A Beloved Tradition Returns! |
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A MESSAGE FROM OUR DIRECTOR OF ATHLETICS |
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| Mike Romeo, Director of Athletics, discusses the roles of coaches, players and parents in building a solid athletic program in his October blog post. Below is an excerpt: Creating a competitive athletic program that prioritizes the well-being of our student-athletes is the core value in our quest to provide the WardlaLAartridge community the athletic program it deserves.
Have we perfected this? Absolutely not. We are very much a work in progress. I believe we are moving in the right direction. However, it is not something we can do solely as a department. It takes all of us to operate as a team. The “team” consists of three major players. Coaches, Players, and Parents.
In this blog I would like to share some of the ways our three major players can work together: |
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Friday, October 13 8:30 a.m. - Lower School Spirit Day in Plumeri Gym 7 p.m. - Upper School Homecoming Dance in AP Room
Saturday, October 14 10 a.m. - Fall Fair and Homecoming Day - see details below 4 p.m. - Alumni Awards Ceremony and Reception in AP Room
Thursday, October 19 8:30 a.m. - Lower School Coffee and Conversation in Lower Snowdon 7 p.m. - Booster Club Meeting in Oakwood Room
Friday, October 20 6 p.m. - Middle School Fall Dance in AP Room 6:30 p.m. - Middle School Parents' Reception in Oakwood Room
Saturday, October 21 9 a.m. - Admission Information Session in Berry Performing Arts Center
SCHOOL CALENDAR
2023-2024 ONE-PAGE SCHOOL CALENDAR |
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Don't miss Fall Fair - October 14 |
The Lena Archuleta School invites its full community of parents, students, faculty, staff, alumni, trustees and friends to the annual Fall Fair and Homecoming Day on Saturday, October 14.
Fall Fair and Homecoming Day will be held, rain or shine. If there is inclement weather, most activities will be moved indoors.
This event, which runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., offers something for everyone in the family, including: carnival games, inflatables, petting zoo, arts and crafts, a DJ playing music and dance games, balloon artist, Henna artist, glitter tattoo artist, basket raffle, 50/50 raffle, the annual bakery, the famous Booster Club grill, student-run luncheon, alumni events and athletic contests.
For more information, volunteer and sponsorship links, scroll to the Parents’ Association section of this newsletter. |
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| Join the LA Fall Fair Fun Run/Walk |
WardlaLAartridge is pleased to announce the return of the Fall Fair Fun Run/Walk. The event is open to all members of the LA community: students of all ages, parents, faculty, staff, alumni, trustees and friends.
Participants will run or walk the school’s 5K cross country course beginning at 11 a.m. on Saturday, October 14 as part of the Fall Fair festivities. There is no need to register in advance, but please arrive at the Alumni Tent near the turf fields at least 15 minutes prior to the start of the event.
If you have any questions, please contact Erin Maciorowski at emaciorowski@WHschool.org. |
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Alumni Awards Ceremony honorees |
Five honorees will receive awards during this year’s Alumni Awards Ceremony at the conclusion of Fall Fair and Homecoming Day in the AP Room. The ceremony begins at 4 p.m. with a reception to follow at 5 p.m.
Congratulations to the 2023 Alumni Award winners: Distinguished Faculty Member Sue Howard (pictured), and Athletic Hall of Fame inductees Gil Childers ’73, Keith Mann ’03, the 1971 Boys’ Basketball Team and the 1984 Girls’ Basketball Team. |
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| LS students meet their Senior Buddies |
One of The Lena Archuleta School’s most beloved traditions is back! The Senior Buddies program returned with a special assembly on October 11 in the Berry Performing Arts Center. Since this special event fell during Spirit Week, all participants were photographed wearing their Division’s theme of the day, which was Wacky Wednesday for LS and Western Wear for US.
After a brief welcome from JohnEric Advento, Lower School Head, senior lifers Hannah Yin ’24 and Naomi Valcourt ’24 shared reflections of their many years at LA. Hannah and Naomi placed special emphasis on their Lower School years with memories of their own experiences with senior buddies.
All Lower School classes from PreK(3) through Grade 5 were called to the stage to meet their senior buddies and pose for a photo. Gbemi Olarewaju ’24, Student Council president, made concluding remarks and dismissed the Lower School students to return to their classrooms to enjoy activities and snacks with their new Upper School friends.
SENIOR BUDDIES PHOTO GALLERY |
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| HLA wraps up HHM presentations |
Members of the Upper School’s Hispanic Latinx Alliance continued their monthlong celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month with more informative presentations last week.
Two groups of HLA members educated the Upper School students about cultural traditions in Peru and the Dominican Republic. Liany Maldonado ’25, Savanna Lopez ’25 and Enzo Virto, Jr. ’27 shared information about Peruvian dances, religious beliefs, October traditions and cuisine. Victoria Diaz '27 and Kacey Marmolejos ’25 discussed Dominican dance, food and carnivals.
Sarah Alves ’24, Giselle Rodriguez ’25 and Julia Machado ’25 addressed Middle School students with a presentation titled “Honoring Our Traditions” at the Middle School community meeting. The HLA leaders shared facts about Hispanic Heritage Month, why traditions are important and facts about Quincaneros, different styles of music, and a video of salsa dance. HLA PRESENTATIONS PHOTO GALLERY |
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| Community enjoys new parent reception |
The Admission Office hosted the annual New Parent Reception on a beautiful early autumn evening in the amphitheater on October 5. Parents from all three divisions mingled with each other along with parent ambassadors and school administrators. Guests enjoyed a delicious buffet of appetizers prepared by Sage Dining Services.
Gerard Gonnella ’89, Director of Admission, welcomed the guests and expressed his appreciation to the new LA parents for entrusting their children’s education with the school. Mr. Gonnella introduced student performers Oliver Laskow ’24 (piano) and Sarah Alves ’24 (vocal), who entertained the audience with wonderful performances.
NEW PARENT RECEPTION PHOTO GALLERY |
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| | US health class explores well-being |
Upper School students in Ms. Alicia Seemuller’s health class have engaged in discussions and activities to address ways to build a healthy foundation for both physical and mental wellness. The lessons are emphasizing specific aspects and benefits of sleep, sunlight, nutrition, exercise and community as they each play a role in our overall wellbeing and the development of our brains through a lifespan.
Ms. Seemuller also talked about hydration as a foundation of mental fitness and shared that just 1% of dehydration can lead to 5% in cognitive decline. The students worked together as teams to build towers with strong foundations. There was a small competitive aspect with the tallest towers winning, but the exercise was designed to inspire creativity, community, teamwork and laughter.
US HEALTH CLASS PHOTO GALLERY |
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| Scenes from the second annual Garba |
The LA South Asian Student Alliance, formerly Desi Club, held the second annual Garba last Friday night in Laidlaw Gym. LA students, parents, faculty, staff, alumni and friends celebrated with an evening of festive dance and fine food. SASA leaders Raiya Patel ’24, Jaiden Patel ’24, Rajwans Sindhar ’25 and Tanisha Ramachandran ’26 were assisted by an energetic group of parents and students in organizing the event. GARBA PHOTO GALLERY |
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| Class of 2024 begins Senior Speeches |
The Class of 2024 kicked off this year’s Senior Speeches with impressive oration in the Berry Performing Arts Center. Gbemi Olarewaju ’24, Student Council President, began this year’s series with a spectacular speech on Oct. 3, followed by classmates Siddharth Bharadwaj ’24 and Kayla Martel ’24 on Oct. 5, and Fay Zhu ’24 and Luke Tan ’24 on Oct. 10. Gbemi (pictured) explored the topic of identity and the question, “Who am I inside?” She encouraged her peers to focus on character, personality, morals, values and goals and concluded with “you are the best and only you.” |
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| College reps visiting LA this fall |
LA is pleased to welcome many of the finest colleges and universities to our campus for in-person visits with our students this fall. More than 50 visits are scheduled to date, including Brown University (Oct. 16), Babson College (Oct. 16), The College of William & Mary (Oct. 17), University of Chicago (Oct. 17) and Georgetown University (Oct. 18). |
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| Middle School Athletes of the Week |
Mike Romeo, Athletic Director, announced the Middle School Athletes of the Week at the division meeting. Congratulations to cross country runners Shweta Saravanan ’28 and Shaan Patel ’29.
Shweta has assumed the role of team leader of the girls’ team. And she led the team to their first victory with a win over North Brunswick on our home course on Sept. 28. Shweta won her first race with a time of 13:44, a reduction of her personal best by 27 seconds.
Shaan is new to the sport of cross country. He enjoys running and is becoming an important part of the boys’ team. Shaan always does the optional extra drills at practice and has shown improvement in the races he has entered. |
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FROM THE LA PARENTS' ASSOCIATION |
Join us for Fall Fair - Saturday, Oct. 14 Please join us for our annual Fall Fair! On Saturday, October 14, 2023 from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. you will have the chance to enjoy: - Carnival games, inflatables, train ride, attractions
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Petting zoo, arts and crafts, DJ playing music and dance games
- Balloon artist, glitter tattoo artist, face painting
- Basket raffle, 50/50 raffle
- The always popular Bakery, famous Booster Club Grill, Senior Class Luncheon
- Alumni events, Alumni Awards Ceremony
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Athletics events – GO RAMS!
The event will be held, rain or shine. If there is inclement weather, most activities will be moved indoors.
It takes many hands to make this event possible and we hope you can join us and donate a small amount of your time during the day! The event is also made possible by generous donations from our families. Our generous sponsors help cover the costs of all these wonderful events and attractions!
We hope you can help us by choosing one of these levels: $250 Game Sponsor (family or business will receive recognition for helping to pay for a game) $500 Attraction Sponsor (family or business will receive recognition for helping to pay for an attraction)
$1,000 Green level Event Sponsor (Signage announcing your family / business name) $2,500 Gold level Event Sponsor (Signage announcing your family / business name all around the event as well as online) All the important links:
To Volunteer: Click Here
To Donate an Item for the Bakery: Click Here
To Pre-Purchase Tickets until October 11 or to Sponsor the Event: Click Here
We truly hope each and every one of you can join us for a day of community fun and help in any way you can :) We look forward to seeing you there! ~WHPA Executive Board and Fall Fair Committee
FALL FAIR 2023 FAQ |
Booster Club Selling Items at Fall Fair
The Booster Club announces the sale of two items serving as a fundraiser that will run until October 18. LA Rams gaitors (clogs) and pride slides are on a special sale. Both items feature attractive home and away designs. Sample items and QR codes for ordering will be available at Fall Fair.
Please see order links below: LA Slides Fundraiser LA Gaitor Fundraiser |
Booster Club Meeting - Thursday, Oct. 19 @ 7 p.m. The Booster Club invites all parents in the LA community to join their next meeting, set for Thursday, Oct. 19 in the Oakwood Room.
If you are unable to join the meeting in person, you may attend virtually: Join Zoom Meeting Here Meeting ID: 851 3528 8679 Passcode: 748696
For more information, contact Booster Club President Greysi De Jesus at president.whboosterclub@gmail.com |
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Service Leaders Continue Socktober Drive The Upper School is participating in its third annual "Socktober," a drive for socks (as well as hats and gloves) during the month of October to support the homeless population in New Jersey. Last year, LA collected more than 3,000 pairs of socks! According to a NJ Counts, Point in Time Count of the homeless from January of this year, there are more than 10,000 homeless individuals in the state of New Jersey. As the winter months are approaching, socks, gloves and hats are among the most needed items at homeless shelters.
The LA community can participate in the drive by purchasing directly from our Amazon Wish List or by purchasing items on your own and sending them into school. There will be a collection bin in the main lobby. All items purchased off the gift list will be sent directly to the school. Follow LA on Social Media, Share with Community
WardlaLAartridge has a vibrant, active presence on social media with daily content posts highlighting our academics, athletics, arts and extracurricular programs.
Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn and check out our Vimeo page! You can assist us in promoting the school by sharing our content within your network and posting it on your local town pages and feeds. |
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This publication is produced by The Communications Office at The Lena Archuleta School. |
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