Upper  St.  Clair  School  District     Volume  2,  Issue  3  

Progress  ...pointing  gifted  learners  to  a  promising  future!    

The  Quarterly  Newsletter  of  the  Upper  St.  Clair  High  School  Gifted  Education  Program  

Spring  2014-­‐2015  

AIU  Apprenticeship  Applications  Open  

    Allegheny   Intermediate   Unit   (AIU)  Apprenticeships  for   gifted  students   are   now   available   for   application.     These  apprenticeships  provide  students  with   six   to  eight  days   throughout   the  2015-­‐2016   school   year   "in   the  field,"   having   experiences   with   professionals   from   around   the   region.     From  acting  and  animation   to  engineering  and  zoo  animal   care,   the  wide  variety  of  opportunities  offer  a  chance  for  students  to  “try  a  career  on.”    We  often  remark  that  these  apprenticeships  are  as  much  about  finding  what  career  really  fits  as  they  are  about  ruling  out  possibilities.      

  The  application  process  is  relatively  simple  –  we  are  ready  and  excited  to  help  students  through  the  steps.    Several  emails  have  also  been  sent  to  alert  students  about  the  open  application  window.  

  Even   if   it’s   not   through   an   AIU   apprenticeship,   we   welcome   the  opportunity  to  speak  with  students  about  their  future  –  though  it  can  be  both  exciting  and  daunting,  but  we  are  honored   to   support   your   child   through   the  process.    

Wisdom begins in wonder.

(Socrates)  

Upcoming  Events  

Quote  for  Gifted  Thinkers  

May  4-­‐15  

June  11  

AP  Testing  

Commencement  

June  1-­‐3  

June  11   Last  Day  of  School  

May  4-­‐22   IB  Testing  

Finals  

Mrs. P. & Tim

  lorem  ipsum  dolor   issue,  date  

2  

On  February  10,  2015  sixty-­‐five  Upper  St.  Clair  students  participated  in  the  preliminary  rounds  of  the  Pittsburgh  Public  Theater's  Shakespeare  Scene  &  Monologue  Contest.    This  was  the  21st  annual  competition,  sponsored  by  education  director  Rob  Zellers.    

Over  1,000  students  from  the  region  were  a  part  of  

Ben  Nadler  &  Sriparna  Sen  awarded  1st  place  in  Pittsburgh’s    21st  annual  Shakespeare  Monologue  &  Scene  Competition  

the  first  round  of  competition,  portraying  characters  from  across  Shakespeare's  many  works.    

Following  preliminary  rounds,  High  School  junior  Ben  Nadler  and  senior  Sriparna  Sen  were  invited  to  the  Showcase  of  Finalists.  After  their  performance  as  Lysander  and  Hermia  from  A  Midsummer  Night's  Dream,  the  judges  

announced  Ben  and  Sriparna  the  winners  of  the  Pittsburgh  Public  Theater's  Shakespeare  Monologue  &  Scene  Contest.      Their  performance  the  evening  of  the  showcase  of  finalists  –  if  possible  –  surpassed  their  performance  during  preliminaries.    Congratulations  are  extended  on  this  exceptionally  high  level  of  achievement  in  the  arts.    

  Freshmen  Alex  Brufsky  and  Kriti  Shah  had  a  “bright  idea”  which  earned  them  a  spot  at  the  national  Conrad  competition  at  the  Kennedy  Space  Center  in  April.    As  the  duo  describe,  “Using  LED  lights,  Peltier  tiles, various  

fabrics,  and  other  components,  ULuminate  harvests  heat  from  the  back  of  a  person  and  converts  that  energy  to  electricity  using  the  Peltier  tiles  attached  to  the  inside  fabric  of  the  jacket.  The electricity  then  lights  up  the  LED  lights  that  

will  illuminate  the  area  around  a  person.”    They  were  selected  to  present  a  power  pitch  from  among  hundreds  of  teams  from  across  the  United  States.    USC  is  proud,  Alex  &  Kriti!  

Conrad  Awards  “Power  Pitch”  for  ULuminate    

The  bard  (and  judges)  approve!  

 

 

     

Upper  St.  Clair  School  District   Volume  2,  Issue  3  

Congratulations   to   Boyce,   Fort   Couch,   and   USCHS  students  for  their  participation  in  this  year’s  regional  Computer  Fair  held  at  Carnegie  Science  Center.    Students  entered  a  variety  of  categories  including  animation,  digital  movie,  graphic  design,  programming,   web   page   design,   and   logo   design.     Special  congratulations  are  extended  to  four  USC  students  who  earned  recognition   in   their   respective   categories:   Fort   Couch   student  Julia   Fennell   (2nd   place,   logo   design),   USCHS   students   Alex  Brufsky  &  Jacob  Lantzman  (2nd  place,   logo  design),  and  USCHS  student  Connor  Byrnes  (3rd  place,  programming).  

 

Computer  Fair  Participants  Place  at  Annual  

Competition  It   was   an   exciting   spring   for   our   internationally  

minded   gifted   students!     USC’s   Academic   World   Quest  team  placed  tenth  at  the  National  Academic  WorldQuest  competition  in  Washington,  D.C.   in  late  April.  The  annual  competition,   organized   by   the  World   Affairs   Councils   of  America,   tests   students'   knowledge   on   10   different  international   topics,   ranging   from  Russia   to  Asia  and   the  New   Global   Economy   to   Human   Trafficking.   Our   team  competed   against   more   than   40   teams   from   across   the  country.   The   team   earned   the   right   to   compete   in   the  national   competition  by  winning   the  Pittsburgh  Council's  Academic   WorldQuest   competition   in   February.     Team  members   included   Dan   Pituch,   Gaurav   Bhushan,   Paul  Abrams,  and  Thomas  Mologne.  

World  Quest  Team  Visits  Washington,  DC  for  Nationals  

 

Future  Problem  Solving  Team  has  a  future  at  internationals!  

 Upper   St.   Clair   High   School   was   thrilled   that   two   high  

school  teams  (sophomores  and  juniors)  successfully  earned  spots  at   the   state   Future   Problem   Solving   competition.     Based   on   the  six-­‐step   problem   solving   framework   developed   by   E.   Paul  Torrance   in   the   1970s,   the   teams   completed   a   problem   solving  experience  related  to  propaganda  during  the  qualifying  round.    At  the  state  level  teams  competed  on  the  topic  of  enhancing  human  potential.    The  cheers  were  spirited  when  USC’s  sophomore  team  (Tyler  Clark,  Joey  Violi,  Tyler  Besselman,  and  Tommy  Bednarz)  was  announced   as   2nd   place   winners   –   and   recipients   of   a   bid   to  international  competition  in  June!