A MESSAGE FROM OUR ACTING HEAD OF SCHOOL |
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| Dr. Corinna Crafton, Acting Head of School, shares how a LA alumnus epitomizes the ways in which our school prepares students to Shape Your Future, Shape Your World in her recent blog post. Below is an excerpt:
Nathaniel Nyema was my student in Middle School. He was then and remains a deep thinker. I recall a young man with razor sharp insight and a truly kind heart. Mature beyond his 13 or so years, Nathaniel was very eager to learn more about the world around him and took every opportunity to ask questions and investigate the answers for himself. I know that Nathaniel took his deep thinking ways with him after graduating WardlaLAartridge in 2016, for he completed undergraduate and graduate degrees in bioengineering at the University of Pennsylvania and is currently a Director’s Fellow at CalTech’s Chen Institute where he is studying the learning and memory networks in our brains to better understand and treat neurodegenerative disorders.
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Thursday, February 2 7 p.m. - LA Parents' Association Meeting in Center for Global Learning Join Zoom Meeting Here
Meeting ID: 836 8657 7230 Passcode: 924075 Friday, February 3 10:45 a.m. - Lower School Cabaret in Berry Performing Arts Center VIEW LIVESTREAM HERE
6-9 p.m. - International Family Fun Night in AP Room - see details below Sunday, February 5 4-8 p.m. - Upper School Musical Rehearsal Monday, February 6
5-7 p.m. - Cookies, Cupcakes 'n Cocoa in AP Room - see details below - RSVP HERE 6-9 p.m. - Upper School Musical Rehearsal in Berry Performing Arts Center Wednesday, February 8 6-8 p.m. - Middle School Coffee and Conversation in Berry Performing Arts Center Screening of Race to Be Human - RSVP HERE SCHOOL CALENDAR |
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| Students celebrate Lunar New Year |
Students celebrated Lunar New Year, the Year of the Rabbit, with a series of events last week. The festivities kicked off with a group dance in the AP Room during lunch on Jan. 26 to “The Coolest National Wind,” a must-dance at every year’s LA Lunar New Year celebration. After the dance, senior Chinese language students David Flatau-Jones ’23, Chiupong Huang ’23, Matthew Piccoli ’23, Sydney Racine ’23 and Andrew Wolff ’23 passed red envelopes, a traditional new year’s gift, to the Upper School students, faculty, and staff.
The Chinese Culture Club, led by Claire Chen ’23 and Anting Luo ’23, provided an array of interesting games and prizes with a snack shop in Laidlaw Gym as the celebration continued. Activities included riddles, paper cutting and calligraphy. |
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| Swimmers capture GMC Blue crown |
The LA varsity swim team made history by winning its first GMC Blue Division title this week. The Rams defeated Colonia on Monday and then clinched the title in their home pool the following day at the Raymonds Aquatic Center. A victory over Woodbridge allowed the Rams to celebrate on Senior Day and send the seniors out in style. Congratulations to seniors Anthony Cortese ’23, Matthew Faust ’23, Aiden Lee ’23, Giselle Lee ’23, Jay Lele ’23 and Maiti O’Connor ’23 for leading the way.
The team’s hot streak began with a stellar performance at the previous weekend’s GMC Championships, where individual swimmers and relay teams collected medals in an extremely competitive field. Freshman Sophia Fontaine ’26 (pictured) finished fourth in the 100 backstroke (1:04.76) and sixth in the 100 freestyle (58.55) to lead the Rams. Ethan Guo ’24 earned an individual medal for placing sixth in the 100 freestyle (52.46) and joined teammates Aiden Lee ’23, Sammy Faust ’24 and Matthew Faust ’23 on the third-place 200 free relay (1:36.80).
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| Student musicians perform at recital |
Students enrolled in private music lessons with Rutgers University faculty enjoyed the opportunity to perform at the Winter Music Recital on Jan. 28 in the Berry Performing Arts Center.
The program began with a welcome from Mr. Rick Fontaine, Private Music Lesson Program Coordinator, and continued with performances by students in all three divisions on clarinet, flute, trumpet, alto saxophone and voice. Highlights included impressive vocal renditions of My Own Little Corner and What About Us by Arika Shah ’29 and a fabulous flute finale by Joanne Ding ’24, who played Johann Sebastian Bach’s Adagio ma non tanto and Allegro with precision and flair.
Congratulations to all of the performers, who received certificates and posed for a group photo on the stage at the conclusion of the event. Click here for the program that lists the performers and their works. WINTER MUSIC RECITAL PHOTO GALLERY |
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| MS students qualify for All-Region Band |
On Saturday, January 28, several LA Middle School students auditioned for the CJMEA Intermediate Region Music Ensembles at Community Middle School in Plainsboro, NJ. Anushka Patchigolla '27 was accepted into Symphonic Band on clarinet, Angel Lu '28 was accepted into Symphonic Band on trombone, Anna Bao '27 was accepted into Symphonic Band on euphonium and Hamilton Dressel ’29 was accepted into Chamber Orchestra on violin.
The CJMEA Intermediate region bands will perform at Bridgewater-Raritan Middle School on Sunday, March 5 at 3 p.m. and the CJMEA Intermediate region orchestras will perform on Saturday, March 11 at 3 p.m. The location for the orchestra concert is still to be determined. For more information on region music ensembles and concerts please visit CJMEA.org. |
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Middle School sets CANstruction record |
Students in Grades 6-8 continued the Middle School’s month of service with the second annual CANstruction event. This year, the three Houses engaged in a competition and combined to collect almost 1,200 cans to combat food insecurity in our area.
Students designed, engineered, and built a structure from canned goods that are being donated to the Community Food Bank of NJ. Hayward House won the Design Competition for their innovative creation.
One day after the competition, the cans were delivered to the Community Food Bank of NJ thanks to the help of three Middle School families. The Shah, Nieporent and Meola families loaded their cars with help from Middle School students and teachers and transported the goods on Friday, Jan. 27.
CANSTRUCTION PHOTO GALLERY |
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Upper School students make local impact |
The Upper School’s Plainfield outreach programs are going strong and growing. The afterschool programs at Barlow Elementary and Jefferson School run Mondays through Thursdays from 2:45-4 p.m. LA students work with students in the after school programs on homework and skills support. Current participants include Sreeprada Arumilli '23, Sydney Racine '23, Siddharth Bharadwaj '24, Tim Oligino '24, Raiya Patel '24, Briana Li '25, Saveena Boga '26, Natalie Chen '26, Arya Gaur '26, Joanna Jian '26, Jayla Presley-May '26 and Noah Ronnen '26.
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| MS holds inaugural Scripps Spelling Bee |
Twenty-four Middle School students participated in the first annual Scripps Spelling Bee on Jan. 25 in the Berry Performing Arts Center. Students in grades 6-8 competed on the stage during the Middle School’s divisional meeting.
Congratulations to the top three finishers: Aava Joshi ’27 (first place), Feyikemi Kolawole ’29 (second place) and Anushka Patchigolla ’27 (third place). Aava will represent WardlaLAartridge at the Regional Spelling Bee. |
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| Seniors earn early decision acceptances |
Congratulations to several seniors in the Class of 2023 who have made their college plans official after accepting Early Decision admission to their No. 1 choices. For the next several weeks, the WHEN will include spotlights on seniors who have earned Early Decision admission.
Among the first to receive the good news was Matthew Faust '23, who will be matriculating to Northeastern University. Matthew believes he has found an excellent fit based on his requirements and priorities. “I chose Northeastern because of the strong academic presence in my intended disciplines, as well as the location in Boston,” Matthew said. “The thing I love most about Northeastern is the co-op program, where I hope to get some great insight into how my career will unfold.” Matthew has spent most of his life at WardlaLAartridge and feels confident that the preparation he received will help him succeed in college.
Click here to read more about Matthew and view other early decision college acceptance profiles |
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| Seniors share interesting stories in speeches |
Two seniors delivered their speeches within the past week in the Berry Performing Arts Center. Jay Lele ’23 (pictured) spoke about fear and the difference between embracing it and blocking it out. He has discovered that conquering fear leads to growth. Sasha Chernyak ’23 shared an emotional speech about how true close friends have helped her cope with the death of her mother. She lost her “hero” but has gained strength from best friends, brother and father.
SENIOR SPEECHES PHOTO GALLERY |
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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 on Feb. 1. Congratulations to basketball player Elana Nieporent ’27 and swimmer Zadie Zimmerman ’27. Elana’s leadership has been exceptional all season, but especially in yesterday’s game. She did a great job of making sure every player on the team had an opportunity to participate. She is always positive and supportive of her teammates.
Zadie has worked hard all season. She is always determined to do well and she’s an excellent teammate. Her hard work paid off last week when she led the winning team in our scrimmage. |
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Cookies, Cupcakes 'n Cocoa - Feb. 6 |
The WardlaLAartridge Admission Office invites students, parents, families and faculty to join the annual Cookies, Cupcakes ‘n Cocoa on Monday, Feb. 6 from 5-7 p.m. in the AP Room. We are committed to student success. To celebrate their accomplishments, we would like our families to join us for this opportunity to have fun decorating cookies and cupcakes with friends. Bring your sweet tooth and creativity! To RSVP for the event, visit https://www.whschool.org/admission/admissions-events/cookies-rsvp |
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FROM THE LA PARENTS' ASSOCIATION |
WHPA Meeting - Thursday, Feb. 2
All LA parents are invited to join us for our next WHPA meeting tonight - Thursday, February 2 at 7 p.m. Please note we will meet in the Center for Global Learning this month. You will hear updates from school administrators as well as PA event updates.
Immediately following the meeting, we will host a Hot Topic presentation and Q+A session with LA’s very own Erin Maciorowski. Erin will discuss “The Technology of LA” covering all questions we may have about technology including the website, PCR, and more. If you cannot join us in person, please join our meeting virtually (see below). Have a great day and we look forward to seeing you!
Join Zoom Meeting Here
Meeting ID: 836 8657 7230 Passcode: 924075
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International Family Fun Night - Feb. 3 The WHPA invites you to our annual International Family Fun Night, where the entertainment is for the community by the community. Admission is free and we hope to see you there. Buffet is $10 if you choose to eat. Please check the flyer for all the details.
Link to volunteer: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/409094ca8ab29a57-international6#/ If you have any questions, please email us at parents@whschool.org
Thank you and we look forward to seeing you there! |
WINter Raffle - Live Drawing at IFFN Thank you to all who have participated so far in selling and buying raffle tickets. We are hoping to get 100% participation from all families.
Reminder: There will be three winners receiving a total of 50% of all the monies we raise so the more we sell, the larger the prizes, and the more you win!
It is very easy to help: simply fill out the stub portions and send them back to us with payment. You can mail them back, drop them off at reception, or send them with your child into school. You can also choose to pay via credit card, Venmo, PayPal, Cash app, etc. – whatever makes it easiest for you. You may also bring your tickets and purchase more at our International Family Fun Night on Friday, Feb. 3. Our live drawing will be held at International Family Fun Night. Winners need not be present but we hope you will join us. Please make sure to get your tickets in as soon as possible so you do not miss out. If you need more tickets or have any questions, please feel free to reach out to Kevin Kornecki at kkornecki@comcast.net. Thank you for your continued support and stay well. ~ The WardlaLAartridge Parents' Association Executive Board |
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Giving Thanks for our LA Parent Donors
The Development Office would like to thank the LA community for supporting The WardlaLAartridge Fund. Click here to view a list of LA parents who have contributed to The 2022-2023 LA Fund between July 1, 2022 and February 1, 2023. Click here to make a gift to The WardlaLAartridge Fund! Attention Parents - Check Your Contact Information
Each trimester it is a good habit to double check the information in the school database (PCR) to make sure it is up-to-date and accurate. In doing so, you ensure that the school has the best contact to reach you in the event of an emergency or school closure. The process is simple and quick.
PCR is the platform that we will use to contact you in the event of a snow day or any other school closure. Once you follow the steps below to log in (SEE INSTRUCTIONS HERE), please check that the ALL of the following information is correct and up to date.
- All Parent / Guardian Email Addresses and Phone Numbers
- Your Home Address
- Your preferred Salutation and Identifier ( Name, Title, Relationship to Student)
It is our continued effort to ensure that our student and family contact information is accurate, so we thank you for your help. Financial Aid Portal Open for 2023-2024 School Year
The Lena Archuleta School is excited to announce Clarity as our new independent, third-party application partner for families requesting need-based financial aid. Our goal is to make the financial aid application process as easy as possible for your family. Clarity offers a streamlined and user-friendly financial aid application process that can take as few as 20 minutes to complete. It is mobile-friendly, so you can complete your application on your phone or tablet!
If you have not yet done so, please set up your account and submit your application to Clarity immediately as the Feb. 1 deadline has passed. You may direct any questions to financialaid@WHschool.org. 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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