compiled by Lauren Salinero
Palm Lake Elementary
Palm Lake Elementary officials held a dedication ceremony for the school’s re-opened Bobcat Nature and Fitness Trail. The trail was originally dedicated on April 23, 1988, by founding PLES faculty, staff members and volunteers. This past January, Dr. Phillips High’s ROTC helped to install 10 fitness stations on the first half of the trail. An outdoor learning deck was also approved by the county. Volunteers with the PLES PTA also participated in workdays to help complete various projects along the trail.
Windermere Elementary
Orange County Public Schools Superintendent Barbara Jenkins pays a special visit to Windermere Elementary to personally thank fourth-grader Brady O’Malley for his letter of appreciation.
Windermere Elementary fourth-grader Brady O’Malley emailed Orange County Public Schools Superintendent Barbara Jenkins to thank her for all she does each and every day to help the schools in Orange County succeed. As Ms. Jenkins does not often receive such correspondence, she made a surprise visit to WES to see Brady in person and thank him for his kind letter.
Windermere Elementary fifth-graders (front, l. to r.) Jessica Williams, Salman Hamada, Spencer Odier, Kathryn Hey, Julia Calandra, (middle, l. to r.) Salma Tujjar, Ryan Crenshaw, Brandon Bui and Ibrahim Squires receive Four-Way Test awards from WES Principal Diana Greer (middle, far right) and Rotary Club of Windermere members (back, l. to r.) Kobie Pieterse, Jennifer Able, Natalie Acosta, Nicole Begley, Lisa Bonnin, Zack Frank and President Darrell Gardner.
Congratulations to Windermere Elementary fifth-graders Brandon Bui, Julia Calandra, Ryan Crenshaw, Salman Hamada, Kathryn Hey, Spencer Odier, Ibrahim Squires, Salma Tujjar and Jessica Williams for winning Rotary Club of Windermere Four-Way Test awards. Each child submitted an essay about the theme of the Rotary’s Four-Way Test, which is a nonpartisan and nonsectarian ethical guide for Rotarians to use in their personal and professional relationships. It consists of answers to the following four questions about the things they think, do or say: Is it the truth? Is it fair to all concerned? Will it build goodwill and better friendships? and Will it be beneficial to all concerned? The Four-Way Test is one of Rotary’s hallmarks and encourages decision-making based on integrity.
Lakeview Middle
Lakeview Middle released its summer reading list. Parents should preview the books and keep the following in mind: The summer reading program is designed to entice teens to read. In order to engage their interest and provide a spur to critical thinking, book selections include those that involve sensitive issues. The content of some of the titles may be more mature than younger students have previously encountered. This is a voluntary reading program, and not every book selected will suit every student. The new line of books includes All American Boys, An Ember in the Ashes, Every Last Word, Everything Everything, Extraordinary Means, I Am Princess X, The Making of a Navy Seal, Nearly Gone, Red Queen, Simon vs the Home Sapiens Agenda, Sweet, A Thousand Pieces of You, Untwine, What We Saw and The Wrong Side of Right. More selections are recommended for middle and high school readers at www.justreadflorida.com on the web.
Dr. Phillips High
(L. to r.) Savannah Gonclaves, Hayley Shipley and Juan Valeriano perform in the Dr. Phillips High School Visual and Performing Arts theater magnet program’s one-act play, The Seagull.
For more than 27 years, the Dr. Phillips High Visual and Performing Arts theater magnet program has brought award-winning, full-scale productions to the Southwest community. This season’s one-act play, Anton Chekov’s The Seagull, was awarded best one-act play at the Florida Theatre Conference in Gainesville. It went on to represent the state at the Southeastern Theater Conference in Greenville, South Carolina. While there, DPHS magnet director Roberta Emerson received the best director award and senior Hayley Shipley won best actress for her portrayal of Nina. All Star Cast awards were presented to juniors Oliver Davids and Sabrina Michaels.
The Seagull was also named best one-act play at the District V Thespian Competition. Senior Savannah Gonclaves won best actress for her performance as Irina Arkadina. It went on to represent District V at the Florida State Thespian Festival in Tampa and was awarded straight superiors for outstanding work.
In the large musical category, the magnet’s “It’s a Musical” number from the Broadway show Something Rotten was also awarded Critic’s
Choice, the highest award presented in individual event competition at the District V Thespian Competition. It then won Critic’s Choice at the Florida State Thespian Festival and was performed onstage at Morsani Hall. Junior Oliver Davids was recognized for his solo performance at the state festival and was awarded Critic’s Choice.
Olympia High
(L. to r.) Dacia Williams, Meghan Amundson, instructor Michael Cacciatore and Lya Dominguez work on the final 2015-16 issue of Olympia High’s newspaper, The Oracle.
For The Oracle’s final 2015-16 issue, the Olympia High newspaper staff and journalism classes worked on a spread centered on the Class of 2016. They were each tasked with interviewing a senior using a series of questions about that student’s high school career. They also photographed each senior and used Adobe Photoshop as needed for editing. The newspaper staff then chose 16 students and used Adobe InDesign to compile a center spread that featured the stories and photos taken by the aspiring journalists. The staff was led by Meghan Amundson, Lya Dominguez and Dacia Williams.
Et Al
As part of First Lady Michelle Obama’s Reach Higher initiative, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer and city commissioners joined Orange County Public Schools Superintendent Barbara Jenkins to host College Signing Day. The celebration included 50 local high school seniors from the city’s youth programs who signed on to continue their education after graduating. The students publicly committed to pursue higher education as they announced which school they plan to attend. College Signing Day is an annual tradition to celebrate students going to college the same way athletes and celebrities are celebrated and to inspire youngsters to take charge of their futures by completing their education past high school. Programs like the Reach Higher initiative are part of the city’s continued efforts to provide opportunities for youth year-round, focusing on impacting academic success, reducing juvenile crime, promoting health and wellness, and helping Orlando families.
The Preschool Advisory Board honors Windermere Union Church Preschool staff members (front, l. to r.) Sheri–Lyn Adams, Pam Shawron, Director Kim Collins, Candy Ryan, (middle, l. to r.) Martha Stephens, Mimi Hill, Marci Sgattoni, Ann McGarry, Morag Kinnear, Carol Jones, Pamela Thompson, Amy Brasse, Ellie Chase, Katie Crawford, (back, l. to r.) Joy Dagon, Patty Harak, Vicki Ferguson, Lori O’Leary, Faith Charles, Eve Bailiff, Janis George and Heather Lesesne with a fabulous lunch in commemoration of Staff Appreciation Week.
Local high-schoolers can receive 35 hours of community service this summer during a free, weeklong program at Goodwill Industries of Central Florida, a nonprofit providing job training and placement for individuals with disabilities and other barriers to employment. The service program introduces youth to Goodwill’s operations and how the nonprofit benefits the community. Participants tour the facility, meet Goodwill’s leaders and engage in other activities. They also experience two work settings each day, including the retail store, BookWorks program, E-Cycle Washington program for donated electronics, book scanning, sustainability and public relations.
Students can participate from either June 13-17 or July 18-22, and hours run from 8:15 a.m.-3:45 p.m. daily. Participants receive documentation of their community service, as well as a certificate of accomplishment, and, if interested, may be eligible to continue volunteering.
For more information or to download an application, visit www.goodwillcfl.org/volunteer on the web.
(L. to r.) Shiloh Hillis, Esa Holbrook, Annabella Magginoni and Jackson Leanard stand in front of displayed artwork at Cranium Academy’s annual art show.
Cranium Academy transformed into an art museum for its annual art show. Families enjoyed creative masterpieces, including everything from sculptures and paintings to poetry and 3-D works of art, that were displayed by the academy’s preschoolers and elementary students.
The Dr. Phillips Center Florida Hospital School of the Arts is hosting the 2016 Applause Awards in the Walt Disney Theater at Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts on June 5. The program supports participating high schools by providing high-quality learning, performing and creative experiences for students. Schools register to have their musical theater productions reviewed by a qualified team of adjudicators who provide directors with valuable feedback.
After each spring review period, Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts hosts the Applause Awards showcase to recognize the outstanding achievements of the participating high schools’ theater productions and students. Modeled after the Tony Awards, the showcase features performances by select high schools. Southwest-area schools participating in this year’s event are Celebration High with Little Shop of Horrors, Dr. Phillips High with Tick, Tick … Boom and Mary Poppins, The First Academy with Jane Eyre, the Musical, West Orange High with Mary Poppins and Into the Woods, and Windermere Preparatory School with The Wizard of Oz.
Tickets to the award ceremony are $18 and can be purchased by calling 844-513-2014 or visiting drphillipscenter.org on the web.
Christ The King Lutheran PreSchool students (l. to r.) Zachary Winfield, Joette Raketich and Kaylee Maristan take part in a “wedding ceremony” for the letters Q and U.
Officials of the National Merit Scholarship Corp. named this year’s National Merit $2,500 scholarship winners. The honorees were chosen from a talent pool of more than 15,000 outstanding finalists in the 2016 National Merit Scholarship Program. Southwest-area winners include Sreya Pinnamaneni, Navya Pothamsetty and Sara Wilson of Lake Highland Preparatory School; and Samantha Sexton of Olympia High.
The scholars were selected by a committee of college admissions officers and high school counselors, who appraised a substantial amount of information submitted by both the finalists and their high schools: the academic records, including difficulty level of subjects studied and grades earned; scores from two standardized tests; contributions and leadership in school and community activities; essays written by the finalists; and recommendations written by high school officials.
Although we try to ensure that all information presented above is the most current, correct and dependable available, we do rely on others for the source of our news. Therefore, the Southwest Orlando Bulletin and Kearney Publishing Corp. cannot be held responsible for the validity of the information presented here, nor does mentioning it constitute an endorsement. School News is welcome and may be mailed to P.O. Box 851, Windermere, FL 34786; or emailed to Lauren@kearneypublishing.com.💓