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WavelengthsPOTTSVILLE•AREA•SCHOOL•DISTRICT • VOLUME 12 NO. 1 OCTOBER 2005

TideLines Eyes open through Governor’s School artBy: Samantha Wertz

Editor-in-Chief

Many students opted to spend their sum-

mers at a part-time job, on vacation or even melded into a couch with their eyes glued to com-puter and TV screens. Neither of these op-tions attracted senior Stacey Hostetter’s atten-tion. Her sights were set on Governor’s School. She first decided to apply when she consid-ered how colleges would look highly on the fact that she had attended the summer program. However, before she could start marking the prestigious school on her resumé, she had to sub-mit a narrative essay and an eight piece portfolio of her work. “It’s hard to know exactly what to put in. You want a variety of stuff, but I did it [applied for Governor’s School] last year so it was a bit easier,” Hostetter said. After months of waiting for a response, she was accepted into the art curriculum at Governor’s School as one of 30 in the program. Hostetter chose to take ceramics as her major study and drama as an elective in addition to a mandatory drawing class in which all the art

Entrepreneurship opportunity captures interest

Jamboree engages scouts in outdoor activities

Bill of Rights come alive for third graders

PHOTO BY BRITTANY BRENNER

CREATIVITY — Applying the drawing skills she learned this summer at Governor’s School, senior Stacey Hostetter begins a project in her AP Studio Art class. During her five week stay at the pres-tigious program Hostetter took drawing, ceramics and drama classes. While each offered their own unique features, it was her ceramics class that impacted her most. Mr. Andy Makara, Stacey’s AP Studio Art teacher, said, “Not only can she draw, paint and sculpt, but she can put sincere meaning into her artwork ... she’s a real thinking artist.”

Students gain edge through leadership training courses

Members of the

Pottsville Area High

School Chapter of the

National Honor Soci-

ety will be inducted

November 2 during

a special assembly.

A reception for the

inductees, family and

friends will follow in

the cafeteria.

The faculty speaker

will be Mrs. Pamela

Terry.

The inductees in-

clude: Seniors — Kyle

Bevan, Christopher Bu-

lino, Elizabeth Cortese,

Brianna DelValle, David

DeMarkis, Roni Dermo,

Michael Furr, Jennifer

Hardock, Daniel Hede-

mann, Bryan Heim,

Michael Kaiman, Ste-

ven Kheloussi, Dana

Osburn, Maria Rinaldo,

Nicole Seward, Jen-

nifer Stock, Timothy

Sullivan, Tyler Tassone,

Rachel Wallace, Scott

Yeastadt.

Juniors — Timothy

Camise, Matthew

Feeney, Cory Fisher,

Thomas Guastavino,

Bradley Hallick, Valerie

Hughes, Megan Miller,

Cody Milliman, Aman-

da Rennick, Samantha

Wertz.

The NHS adviser

is Mrs. Mary Ellen

Setlock, Director of

Guidance.

students participated. “My teacher in ceram-ics was the best. The drawing teacher taught us to draw from any angle and in the drama class, you learned so much,” Hostetter said. At the end of her five weeks at Governor’s School, Hostetter learned lessons that took her beyond what could be placed on a college application.

“I learned dedication. I realized that I want to do art for a living. It opened my mind to many differ-ent areas such as how to respect other art forms. Mostly I want to explore more about art,” Hostet-ter said. Mr. Andy Makara, Ad-vanced Placement Studio Art teacher, said, “Stacey Hostetter is a superlative student who truly makes great use of her artistic

ability. Not only can she draw, paint and sculpt, but she can put sincere meaning into her artwork ... she’s a real thinking artist. I have no doubt that art will always be a huge part of her life.” Hostetter is the daughter of Robert and Rosemary Hostetter of Pottsville. She is a member of the Sketch and Drama Clubs.

Wavelengths2 Wavelengths3OCTOBER 2005 OCTOBER 2005

Entrepreneurship simulation captures teens’ interest By: Amanda Markovich

PAHS Sophomore

PHOTO COURTESY OF KELSEY MINNIG

TEAM WORK — An awards banquet was held on the last day of the Pennsylvania Free Enterprise Week (PFEW) program. It marked the end of a productive week spent learning how to manage a business. Students were organized into 18 com-panies, which were then split into two groups: advertising and financial. A CEO for each company was elected on the second day. The students not only learned how to advertise and to raise funds for their respective companies but also how to work together and solve problems often encountered in real life corporations.

While many teens were enjoying Rita’s and drink-

ing tall cool drinks, while sitting pool side this past summer, nine students were trying their hand at entrepreneurship. Juniors Sarah Donlin, Jes-sica Fehr, Crystyn Hoke, John Jones, Kimberly Kocher, Kelsey Minnig, Eric Rajchel and Corey Wilson and senior Kyle Lisowski were selected to participate in the Pennsylvania Free Enterprise Week, PFEW. “First we needed to send our application, which included why you should be accepted by the program and why you wanted to take part in it,” Jones said. Students had the opportunity to act as a member of an execu-tive management team and run their own business. Throughout this course they determined selling prices, marketing costs, budgets for production, research and development, financing and stock offerings, all while working together as a team. “We had to simulate a company. Our company had to maximize its profits as much as possible. We ended by get-ting honorable mention for a

commercial ad that we made,” Rajchel said. Teens were also given the opportunity to meet syndicated cartoonist Robb Armstrong. “My favorite speaker at PFEW was definitely Robb Armstrong. He was such a dynamic speaker, and he used stories of his personal experiences to moti-vate us. His speech was very motivating. By the end, almost everyone in the room was in tears,” Minnig said. Participants enjoyed a variety of classes. “It was great spending a week on a college campus and learn-ing from business profession-als. One of my favorite classes was with the founder of ‘Ghost Wings’ magazines. He is 23 and was just named the top young entrepreneur,” Jones said. PFEW adviser Ms. Mary Ellen Matunis said that the students attended PFEW for one week at the Lycoming College, Wil-liamsport. The participants were given the opportunity to live on campus. PFEW provided an opportu-nity for students to learn about career opportunities that they may not have considered previ-ously. “PFEW taught me what kind of qualities you need to be a

business person, and how to manage your business and keep it running,” Wilson said. Ms. Matunis said that PFEW was an exhilarating experience for the students because they got to meet teens from many different schools. “If I had the opportunity, I would definitely do the program again. You can meet so many friends from all over the state. I would love to see them again,” Fehr said. According to the partici-pants, along with this experi-ence came memories and benefits to last a lifetime. “The end of the week was the best because we got to present our work. I was the leader of the

stockholder group and we won,” Fehr said. The PFEW participants cited their best experiences from the weeklong educational simulation. “I really enjoyed the guest speaker Robb Armstrong. He was hilarious. I liked that the point of the story he told was not to do drugs,” Jones said. “PFEW was an amazing experi-ence, I met a lot of great people from all over the state, and my company was able to work well together as a team. I am definitely glad I had the opportunity to participate,” Minnig said. Sophomores and juniors are eligible to apply for PFEW. For more information go to: www.PFEW.org.

An online grade book. New servers. Software to pro-

mote learning. Parent access to student grades and assign-ments. The latest in technology upgrades have arrived in the Pottsville Area School District for the 2005 - 2006 school year. According to Mrs. Dianne Dougherty, Director of Technolo-gy, the district has implemented an upgraded student manage-ment system that includes K-12 teachers taking their homeroom

attendance online. In addition, middle and high school teachers have a new online grade book application called Classroll.com that is be-ing incorporated in stages. By the end of January all teachers will have been trained to use the new grade book. This is a web-based product which will allow the teachers to access their grade book wherever there is Internet access. Parents will also be granted access to this application to

check their child’s grades and assignments. The program is tentatively scheduled to be available online to the parents in spring 2006. A new lab was created in Room 316 at the high school to provide PLATO Learning soft-ware as a supplemental tool for high school students. This pro-gram helps pupils to become proficient in math, reading and writing. A new web server was installed over the summer to

Technology upgrades continue throughout the district schoolshost the district web site and to accommodate access to and pre-sentation of streaming media. A Remote Access Server was also installed and is scheduled to be available to employees for ac-cessing select programs and files from home. Over 1800 PASD students use a computer daily. There are more than 500 computers with over 240 Internet connections avail-able for pupil and faculty use. Ninety classes utilize computer technology on a daily basis.

Dear Members of the Community,

Dr. James T. Gallagher

Wavelengths2 Wavelengths3OCTOBER 2005 OCTOBER 2005

Withdrawal from IU causes changes in special educationBy: Kate Zimmerman

PAHS Sophomore

Changes were made.

Special education students at PAHS are now under local admin-istration according to Dr. James Gallagher, Superintendent. In 2003, Blue Moun-tain was the first in a series of schools that decided to withdraw the service of the IU as they took over their own special education program. However, the re-maining schools saw dramatic cost increases in their IU budgets. During the 2004-2005 school year the

North Schuylkill district pulled out. The 10 remaining districts had a series of meetings discussing the pros and cons of stay-ing with the IU. They decided to remain within the contract that had been established. The districts remained together until January, 2005 when Shenandoah Valley told the IU that they were no longer in need of their service. Three other districts decided to pull out. And then, there were six. Pottsville remained in the battle between staying in the IU and providing special educa-tion at their own cost. When the Pottsville

Area School District Board of Education reviewed the pro-posed budget for the 2005-2006, they were shocked at the results. They realized that they would need to spend an additional $800,000 on special education. Dr. Gallagher recommended that the district should consider removing their services from the IU. After discussing the mat-ter, the board came to the conclusion that they were able to provide the services for less money than the cost of IU pro-vided services. Pottsville pulled out of the IU. The Pennsylvania School Code states that

any district withdrawing from the IU first needed to hire the teachers who were PASD IU employ-ees before making the job open to anyone else. Twenty-four out of the 26 teachers stayed in the district. This made the transition very easy because the students were already familiar with the faculty. “I was very happy that was the case,” Dr. Gal-lagher said. Since Pottsville now provides its own spe-cial education program, someone was needed to supervise it. Miss Patty Todd was hired. Miss Todd completed her graduate studies at LaSalle University, Ship-

pensburg University and Western Maryland Col-lege. She had previously worked for the Pennsyl-vania Board of Education in the bureau of special education. “The special ed pro-gram is going very well. It’s nice because the kids do not notice the change,” Miss Todd said. Mr. William Zim-merman, president of the school board, was essential in the decision making for the program. “It was very nice that most of the teachers were willing to stay at Pottsville. We have great teachers, so the transi-tion from the IU went very smoothly,” Mr. Zim-merman said.

It’s my pleasure and quite a privilege to welcome you to the 2005-2006 academic year at the Pottsville Area School District. More than 3,100 students are busy tackling the challenges of an upcoming school year, and if one of those students is a member of your household, I’m sure you’ll agree that the opening days of school are an interesting and fun time for all students from kindergartners to seniors. I spent some time early in September at the bus area of the John S. Clarke Elementary Center. I watched very young students board their buses after a full day at school, and I couldn’t help but notice their enthusiasm and energy. One would think that after a hard day of activities, those little bodies would be worn out. Not so. It seemed as if they still had energy to stay for more! They all had smiles on their faces, and they all seemed to be thrilled to be part of the student body. That scenario is not peculiar to the JSC Elementary Cen-ter. All students, whether they’re six or sixteen, enjoy those first few weeks of school. Seeing their friends, learning who their new teachers are, and being introduced to new subjects are the events that students like about the opening of school. However, when the novelty wears off, it becomes our job to keep that enthusiasm alive. We, as administrators and teachers, must join parents in an effort to insist that our students be as eager to learn in April as they were in September, and we must begin this task immediately. We

must capture that spirit that our students exhibit in the fall and save and revive it for them in those cold months when it might not be so much fun to climb onto that school bus. Parents must encourage students to make every effort not only to attend school every day but also to share with their parents their school routine. Parents, find out if your third grader has a spelling test every Friday; if so, make sure you hear those spelling words every Thursday night. Ask if your seventh grader has a short story or book that must be read for English class; if he/she does, perhaps you might read it also and be able to discuss it with your child before he discusses it in school. Perhaps your high school son or daughter will be working on a social studies research paper; offering just to proofread it for him/her would not only help to improve his/her grade but also send a clear, encouraging message, and that is “I care, and I’m here to help you.” The pressures of growing up are tough. Let’s lighten the load for our students by offering to help. Sometimes we’ll have to ask to be permitted to enter their lives, but once we have the key to that lock, all kinds of doors will be open for our children.

Very sincerely,

Teachers and parents can work together to motivate students

Trustworthy, loyal, helpful, courteous,

brave. These are a few of the qualities that the Boy Scout Law suggests a scout should possess. In order to enhance these qualities and have fun at the same time, thousands of scouts from around the country gathered at the Boy Scout Jamboree from July 25 to August 3, 2005. Unexpected adventures awaited the scouts upon their arrival in Fort A.P. Hill, Virginia. Over the course of 10 days, over 35,000 scouts partici-pated in the Jamboree, which could be described as a massive camping trip. Campers from across the nation who attended the event were between the ages of 12 and 18

Wavelengths4 Wavelengths5OCTOBER 2005 FEATURE

Local teens enjoy Scout JamboreeBy: Kelsey Minnig

PAHS Junior

scouts participated in various outdoor activities, such as biking, archery and sailing. From scuba diving, to rock-climbing and repelling, to canoe-ing, many recreational activities were available. Scouts also had the opportunity to test their skills by means of a mili-tary obstacle course. The campers learned important outdoor survival skills and were able to interact with other scouts from around the country. “While I will be too old to participate as a Boy Scout next time, I am considering going back to the next Jamboree as a production manager for their daily paper,” Jones said. Jones attended the Jamboree in 2001 with a few fellow scouts, then returned in 2005 as an Eagle Scout and served as a correspondent for the Pottsville Republican. While there were many activities in which the scouts participated, several stood out as favorites. Campers participated in a competition called a

Bikathalon, in which stu-dents rode bikes and fired rifles at various targets. For each target missed, the racer would receive a penalty of a few seconds. “The Jamboree is like the Disney World of scouting. Because there’s so much to do, you’ll never have enough time to experience it all. I came back this past summer to participate in some of the things I missed the first time I at-tended,” Tellep said. Another event that highlighted the trip was a presidential visit by George W. Bush. “His speech was very encouraging to all of the scouts to continue doing the good things we are doing. He even shared some stories from when he was a scout,” Tellep said. For many scouts, meet-ing people from around the world was a major trip highlight. They learned about and interacted with teens from different ethnic backgrounds and cultures while participating in one of the most widely-known and anticipated events of scouting.

PHOTO COURTESY OF MICHAEL TELLEP

JAMBOREE — Over 35,000 Boy Scouts gather in Fort A.P. Hill, Virginia for the National Boy Scout Jamboree. During their week at the fort, the scouts partici-pated in outdoor activities such as biking, archery and sailing. They also took advantage of the military setting by testing their skills on an obstacle course. The annual Bikathalon, which combined the skills of bike riding and shooting, was another high point of the trip.

PHOTO COURTESY OF MICHAEL TELLEP

BE PREPARED — Immediately after stepping off the bus, juniors Michael Tellep and John Jones were immersed in the atmosphere of the Boy Scout Jamboree. Jones and Tellep, on their second trip to the Jamboree, served as correspondents to the Pottsville Republican by sending daily updates on the scouts’ activities.

”

“The Jamboree

is like the

Disney World

of scouting.

Because

there’s so

much to do,

you’ll never

have enough

time to

experience it

all.

MICHAEL TELLEP

PAHS JUNIOR

and possessed various ranks. Juniors Michael Tellep, Eric Rajchel, John Jones, Frank Davi-davage and Ian Fitzpatrick represented Pottsville Area’s boy scouting pro-gram. Jones, Tellep and Davidav-age have all received their Eagle Scout Awards, which is the highest honor a scout can earn. Rajchel and Fitzpatrick are currently working on their indi-vidual community service projects for the honor. A typical day consisted of the raising and retiring of the colors and troop campfires. Throughout the day

Wavelengths4 Wavelengths5OCTOBER 2005 FEATURE

Traveling abroad enhances musical experienceBy: Kate Zimmerman

PAHS Sophomore

Anxious to share their polished musical

talents abroad and to experience new cultures, four PAHS juniors toured Europe playing in four countries this summer. They went as members of the American Music Abroad Program and were able to see France, Germany, Austria and Hungary while playing concerts for the locals. The musicians were Angela Cairns, Michael Tellep, Gregory Schuettler and Benjamin Schuettler. Band director Mr. Rich-ard Fries began sending students to this program in 2000. “The students travel to

Europe and perform for appreciative and recep-tive audiences. The tour is well organized and our students have loved the trip over the years,” Mr. Fries said. Mr. Fries sent names of musicians who he felt would be the best suited for the trip. “I recommended quality musicians who will benefit from the op-portunity and also will represent our school and program well,” Mr. Fries said. This year Pottsville was fortunate enough to have four students attend. “Mr. Fries selected me for the program, and I was very excited when I was accepted,” Tellep

said. The foursome prac-ticed their songs at Mill-ersville University three days prior to the trip. “I practiced at Mill-ersville with the rest of the band,” Benjamin Schuettler said. Playing in the con-cert halls was the main objective of the trip and it proved the hours spent practicing the music worthwhile. Then they were off. The instrumentalists left for their big adventure. Other than playing sev-eral concerts filled with various arrangements of tunes, they filled their days with many sightsee-ing trips. They climbed glaciers and even ate lunch on top of the leg-

endary Alps. “Some of my favorite memories are climbing a glacier and a mountain in the Alps, performing con-certs in several venues, and touring some of the most beautiful build-ings in Europe,” Gregory Schuettler said. All four agreed that they would go on the trip again in a heartbeat. They all recommended this program to anyone considering it. “I would tell someone to go on the trip for the experience. No words can describe the sights or feeling you will have or the memories. This trip is a once in a lifetime experience that I will never be able to forget,” Cairns said.

Ambassador program motivates juniorBy: Eric Rajchel

PAHS Junior

What is leadership? Leadership is

defined as the capacity to lead. It is a trait that is valued in employees, college students and the armed services.

I, along with other sophomores from Central

Pennsylvania, learned what a leader is at the four day Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership Semi-nar held at Millersville University. The goal of Hugh O’Brian Youth Lead-ership is to motivate leaders and to provide a better understanding of the free enterprise,

economic and political systems. Ambassadors are teens selected to par-ticipate in the seminar. Students are selected through a process based on an interview, resumé, leadership and commu-nity service experience. The program encourages teens to be good citizens and to take an active role in their school and local communities. At the seminar, am-bassadors engaged in projects which ranged from helping serve meals to singing songs at a nursing home. As part of the seminar, ambassadors spent a day at the Capitol. During this time they experienced a mock legislative voting session, committee meet-ings and majority and minority reviews. Ambassadors also had the opportunity to listen

to several speakers from the House of Representa-tives and the Senate. Throughout the work-shop presentations were made on an array of topics including busi-ness ethics, news and the media ethics and the functions of all levels of government. At the conclusion of the speeches, ambassadors were asked to formulate questions to ask the panels. Teamwork, work ethic development and com-munication skills were some of the most valu-able techniques learned from this experience. This is one opportunity that many do not have the chance to experience. However, for the students who do, the abilities obtained at the Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership seminar last forever.

PHOTO COURTESY OF ERIC RAJCHEL

FAST FRIENDS — Eric Rajchel gained the opportunity to interact with international students especially through his Polish room-mate, Cuba, at the four day conference. Camaraderie was quickly built between the international and American students.

”

“This trip is

a once in

a lifetime

experience

that I will

never be able

to forget.

ANGELA CAIRNS

PAHS JUNIOR

Good leadership is a quality many people

would value highly. For juniors Nicole Stock, Renee Kintzer, Angela Cairns and sopho-mores Joseph Kurtek, Kate Zimmerman and Amanda Markovich the quality of good leadership is close to being some-thing they can possess and use for their benefit later in life in whatever challenges they face. How are these students close to being young leaders? The answer is through a workshop called the Dale Carnegie Leadership program. Nearly 50 high school students in the county

went through an ap-plication process for the course. Six students from the Pottsville Area School District were chosen by the Guidance Department to attend the seminar. “It’s a really great privilege to be accepted to the program,” Markov-ich said. “I really hope that it makes me a better leader.” The group met during 13 three hour sessions Tuesdays at 5:30 p.m. at the Wall Auditorium in the Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center in Pottsville. During this pro-gram the participants improved their skills including socialization, communication and public speaking. Car-

negie himself believed that 15 percent of one’s earning potential comes from knowledge and direct skills and the other 85 percent comes from leadership and interper-sonal skills. Pressed with the bur-dens of high school, they were also taught how to memorize important infor-mation and to prepare for tests. Training was con-ducted in organizational skills and prioritizing of jobs to avoid procrastina-tion. “I feel like this program is making me feel more comfortable speaking in front of a crowd and help-ing me communicate with other people,” Stock said. Each student was given copies of the books “How to Win Friends & Influ-

Wavelengths6 Wavelengths7OCTOBER 2005 OCTOBER 2005

Students benefit from leadership training courseBy: Mark O’Reilly

PAHS Sophomoreence People,” “How to Stop Worrying and Start Living” and a workbook with lesson plans to im-prove social interaction. The classes were led by Mr. Sam Iorio, a Vil-lanova graduate. The course also counted for college credit for its participants. The program has con-tinued through the years, thanks to the support of Communities that Care, a department of the local government. “The program is really fun because you get to meet kids from all dif-ferent schools and after coming home from a stressful day of school it’s nice to go to Dale Carnegie and just be yourself and have fun,” Markovich said.

SPEAKING OUT — Informing her audience about an experi-ence that changed her life, sophomore Kate Zimmerman delivers a speech during the Dale Carnegie Leadership program. In addition to her speech about her father’s illness, Zimmerman was also able to practice public speak-ing skills.

PHOTO BY RONI DERMO

High school journalists capture national honorsThe 2005 Hi-S-Potts Yearbook, Tide Lines Newspa-

per and Expression through Creativity literary/art magazine each received top honors in evaluations from national and state scholastic press associations. “Take Five,” was named a Keystone yearbook by the Pennsylvania School Press Association. This is the nineteenth year in a row the yearbook received this honor. The Columbia Scholastic Press Association awarded the Hi-S-Potts a Gold Medalist ranking and three All-Columbian honors for concept, coverage and writing for the eighteenth time. The National Scholastic Press Association named the book an All American with four marks of distinc-tion for the fourteenth consecutive year. Tide Lines, 2004-2005, received its fifteenth Key-stone Award from PSPA. The newspaper also received All American honors with four marks of distinction from the NSPA. The marks of distinction were for: coverage and content; writing and editing; layout and design; edito-rial leadership. This marked the fourteenth time the paper received this honor. The Quill and Scroll International Journalism Honor Society awarded Tide Lines its fifteenth consecutive George S. Gallup honor for outstanding journalism achievement and editorial leadership. The 2005 ETC literary/art magazine received its fifteenth Keystone Award from the PSPA.

ETC also earned All American hon-ors with four marks of distinction from the NSPA. The marks of distinction were for: content, layout, concept, photography, art and graphics. In the PSPA Individual Entry Contest, several publications staffers earned the highest honors. These included: Tide Lines: senior Rachel Wallace, nine Gold and seven Silver Awards for column, editorial and review writ-ing; graduate Amy McKenzie and junior Michael Paulshock, four Gold and three Silver Awards for front, sports and news page design and photo package design. Editorial Staff, two Gold and two Silver Awards for in-depth coverage. Expression through Creativity Literary/Art Maga-zine: senior Brianna DelValle, one Gold and two Silver Awards for cover design, table of contents design, theme selection and development. Hi-S-Potts Yearbook: senior Jen Hardock, one Gold Award for a community spread; junior John Jones, graduates Alina Gayeski, Emily Brennan, one Gold Award for a people spread. All publications will compete for Gold and Silver Crown national honors at the CSPA spring convention in New York City and for Pacemaker honors at the NSPA seminar in San Francisco.

AWARD WINNERS — Work-ing on the pagination for the October issue of Tide Lines, senior Rachel Wallace, editor-in-chief and junior Michael Paulshock, production editor-in-chief, check story placement. Wallace earned PSPA honors for her work in column writing, editorials and reviews. Paulshock also earned honors in the PSPA In-dividual Entry Contest for his front, sports, news and photo package design submissions.

PHOTO BY JON SHAFFER

PASD Calendar

PASD Phone Numbers • John S. Clarke Elementary School: 621-2947• D.H.H. Lengel Middle School: 621-2924• Pottsville Area High School: 621-2962• Academic Center: 621-2900

Wavelengths6 Wavelengths7OCTOBER 2005 OCTOBER 2005

October28 — Deadline to sign up for 12/3 SAT.

November1 — First marking period ends2 — PAHS National Honor Society Induction Ceremony3 — JSC Kindergar-ten National Sand-wich Day Celebration4-5 — FBLA National Leadership Confer-ence5 — SAT8 — Report Card Distribution All Schools9 — PAHS Parent Teacher Conferences 6-8 p.m.

10 and 15 — Lengel Parent/Teacher Conferences 6-8 p.m.13-19 — American Education Week and Children’s Book Week14 and 17 — JSC Parent/Teacher Conferences 6-8 p.m.15 — JSC Book Fair24-28 — Thanksgiving Recess All Schools Closed 30 — PAHS Financial Aid Night 7 p.m.

December7 — PAHS Christmas Choral Concert 7:30 p.m.8 — Lengel Christmas Choral Concert at PAHS 7 p.m.

Wavelengths Staff• Samantha Wertz PAHS Junior Editor-in-Chief• Kate Zimmerman PAHS Sophomore Editor-in-Chief• Katie Zwiebel PAHS Sophomore Production Editor-in-Chief

Pottsville Area School DistrictCommunity Computer Courses

Registration Open

For Application or Information Call621-2021 or Log on to

www.pottsville.k12.pa.us

ClassesMost Courses Three or Six Hours

Rates $20 to $50Half Price Age 65 or older

College preparation draws studentsBy: Chelsea Wertz

PAHS Sophomore

GIRLS’ NIGHT OUT — During six weeks eight juniors and seniors learn how to prepare for college admissions, visits, applications and interviews. The participants in Upward Bound found time to relax during nightlife activities. Girls’ Night Out, a day at Knoe-bels, tie-dying, talent shows and arts and crafts highlighted the students’ free time.

PHOTO COURTESY OF ASHLEY BETH MARTIN

Leadership. Academics. Fun. These were the

ingredients to theUpward Bound experi-ence at Bloomsburg Uni-versity this past summer. For six weeks seniors Lori Chylack, Samantha Gibble and Sierra Herman and juniors Amber Fryer, Shirline Wojick, Samantha McIllwain, Gabriel Skwait and Ashley Beth Martin attended classes and got a feel for what they would be learning during the upcoming year. Upward Bound is a source of help for stu-dents who might not otherwise have a chance to go to college. This or-ganization provides letters of recommendation and financial support to those who are involved. “Some benefits of be-ing in Upward Bound are SAT charges are waived, it looks good on college applications and [you have] the chance to be in the Bridge program your senior year,” Herman said. It also motivates stu-

dents to want to continue their education beyond high school. “We did a lot of college preparation. We went on college visits and they told us exactly what we needed to know about them,” Martin said. Ms. Deidre Smith, Up-ward Bound Club adviser, said, “If I can motivate students to wish to go to college and further their education, then I believe I should become involved. Upward Bound is a great place to start.” In addition to motiva-tion and preparation for classes, the program at Bloomsburg prepared them for other aspects of college life. “It helps to prepare you and get you used to a dorm environment,” Gibble said. The classes at Blooms-burg focused chiefly on individually preparing each participant for the SATs and their classes in the current school year. “I took Biology 2, French, writing, reading, algebra 2 and speech classes. There were also

activities like basketball, volleyball, girls’ night out and chorus which I par-ticipated in,” Fryer said. All of the students who attended agreed that they would enjoy returning to classes at Bloomsburg. “I had a great experi-ence meeting new people and I gained memories that will last a lifetime this past summer,” Martin said. As a freshman, sopho-more or junior in the Up-ward Bound program one is automatically eligible to attend Bloomsburg classes in the summer. As a senior, one can try out to be in the Bridge program and continue at Bloomsburg. The Bridge was for students who were interested in taking summer college courses and also receiving college credit for the courses. To become involved with Upward Bound, high school students should contact the Guidance Office. Specific criteria must be met. A student must be the first generation going to college in a fam-ily and there are specific financial requirements for the government-funded program. To be in Upward Bound, one also has to take the SATs at least once during the junior and senior years.

Wavelengths8 OCTOBER 2005

Non-Profit OrganizationU.S. Postage

PAIDPermit No. 647

Pottsville, PA 17901

POTTSVILLE AREA SCHOOL DISTRICT1501 West Laurel BoulevardPottsville, PA 17901

BOARD OF DIRECTORSWilliam J. Zimmerman, PresidentPatrick J. Murphy, Vice PresidentScott Krater, TreasurerDr. William R. DavidsonDr. Jack T. DolbinPeggy D. JaegerPeg KouryAgnes M. ReileyDr. Michael D. Smink

Dr. James T. Gallagher, SuperintendentRichard Thornburg, SolicitorDavid J. Delenick, Secretary/Business Manager

Photo by Nina PattonFOUNDING FATHERS — Signing the third grade Bill of Rights, Shae Golden pledges to respect the people and things around him and to obey the school’s rules. The third grade teachers met together to plan their lessons on the Bill of Rights and United States Constitution and decided to draft a Third Grade Bill of Rights to help the students understand the concept.

Bill of Rights and Constitution reach third gradersBy: Samantha Wertz

Editor-in-Chief

Concepts such as equality and free

speech covered by the Bill of Rights are difficult to understand. Now imagine describing these ideals to third graders. This was the challenge with which the third grade teachers were faced. “We realized the Bill of Rights and Constitution were hard to grasp so we all talked about how we could teach it so that they would understand,” teacher Mrs. Patricia Den-mon said. The importance of these documents to the course of United States history was also considered by the teachers. “The students don’t have a clue what it is like to be in another coun-try where people aren’t

voted for. They just don’t understand, so we tried to get that across to them,” teacher Mrs. Linda McEl-vaney said. The solution was to involve the students in creating their own Bill of Rights. The document reads, “I have the right to: be happy and to be treated with compassion in this class, be myself in class, be safe in this class, to hear and be heard in this class and to learn about myself in this class.” After the lesson was taught in the classroom, each of the students signed a long sheet of paper to indicate that they agreed with the Bill of Rights. This sheet was then hung in the hallway outside of the classrooms. “I liked signing the wall. Other people would see it. That way we would

follow the rules and under-stand them,” Rachelle Price said. Other stu-dents enjoyed learning about the document and its impor-tance in class. “I liked learn-ing it in class. If we didn’t have rules the school would be a disas-ter. People would think they could do anything they wanted,” Tar-ryn Brilla said. The teachers’ goal was reached. The students learned the history lesson, but that was not all. “It is nice to have something you can all agree with. If you treat

other people how they would like to be treated,” Jacob Spece said. The students learned how to treat each other fairly in the classroom. “You can’t fight in school, you have to be

nice to each other,” Mu-hammed Mansoor said. The concept of under-standing was also taught. “I like that I will be able to talk in class without be-ing embarrassed,” Price said.