etsd

Owatin Creek Places First in Berks K’Nex STEM Challenge

owatin creek team poses with their k'nex design

"The Blue Takis" from Owatin Creek with their solar charging recycling robot

lorane team poses with their k'nex design

"The Lorane Drops" from Lorane with their eco-friendly carwash

jacksonwald team poses with their k'nex design

“The Soaring Eagles” from Jacksonwald with their sustainable greenhouse

Using K'Nex and loads of imagination and intellect, Exeter teams from each of our elementary schools competed in the STEM Design Challenge at the BCIU this week. Placing first in the competition against 44 other elementary schools from across the county was Owatin's team of Nora Hart, Owen Kercher, Avery Manndel and Olive Weis who designed a solar charging recycling robot! Meanwhile, Jacksonwald's team of Abraham Cepeda, Bradyn Gowdy, Katie Nguyen and Anniston Stevens created a sustainable greenhouse, and Lorane's team of Anthony Cocchimiglio, Drew McClain and Shashanth Tummeti designed an eco-friendly carwash. Owatin's first place finish may allow them to compete with other winners across the state in Harrisburg this spring! We're so proud of these Eagles for their teamwork, brain power and problem solving ability! Congratulations to them all!

Reiffton Hosts Career Fair for 6th Grade

Parents, relatives and friends from area businesses shared more about their work to help students in 6th grade learn more about what it's like to work as a hairstylist, engineer, physical therapist or CEO during last week's Career Fair at Reiffton. More than 30 different volunteers from all different careers both in and beyond Berks spoke to students about their daily work, educational journey and offered advice to interested students. As students learned more about each career, they completed a "career passport," giving each occupation a thumbs up or thumbs down as they jotted down notes and thought about what it might be like to have that particular job when they grow up.
 
Our thanks to the many amazing volunteers who gave up part of their workday to share their careers with our 6th graders, and for Reiffton's school counselors, Mrs. Ricci and Ms. Seeberger, for organizing the very popular event, which they hope to continue next year as a new annual tradition at Reiffton!

Science Olympiad to Compete in State Tournament

science olympiad team poses together

Congratulations to our Senior High's Science Olympiad team who qualified for states during the regional tournament yesterday at Kutztown University! During the competition, students, who are advised by Mrs. Amber Bollinger and Mr. William Lasky, test their knowledge in many different areas of science, including earth science, biology, chemistry, physics or engineering by competing in events against other schools, such as building structures, creating design logs and data tables, and completing lab practicals or exams. During yesterday's competition, Gillian Foster and Zak Kauffman placed first in Forestry; Katie Hoover, Hansika Kunduru, and Alex Nerney placed second in Experimental Design; Chase Cupitt and Anthony Tartaglia placed third in Astronomy; Gillian Foster and Audrey Gielrich placed third in Rocks and Minerals; and Ella Lynch and Aubrey Ridge placed first in Cyber Security. Congratulations to all of our members who participate in this extracurricular after-school club, and best wishes to all of them at the state tournament, which will be held in State College in April!

Seniors Earn National African American Recognition Award from the College Board

seniors earn college board award

Seniors Justin Lee and Malayna Spiller received the National African American Recognition Award from the College Board due to their outstanding academic achievements in school and performance on College Board assessments. More than 180,000 students from all 50 states were eligible to apply for the College Board National Recognition Programs, which grant students with academic honors that can be included on college and scholarship applications. These National Recognition Programs grant underrepresented students with academic honors that can be included on college and scholarship applications and connect students with universities across the country, helping them meaningfully connect to colleges and stand out during the admissions process. 

Justin is the son of Rafaela Lopez and Freddy Lee and plans to attend Penn State University to major in electrical engineering. He is a member of the Technology Student Association, Spanish Club and played football and tennis during high school. Malayna is the daughter of Mylissa and Marcus Spiller and also plans to attend Penn State University to major in finance. She is a member of the National Honor Society and the Spanish Club, a Mini-THON leader and participated in dance throughout high school.

Students were eligible to apply for this national recognition if they had a GPA of 3.5 or higher, excelled on the PSAT/NMSQT or PSAT 10 or earned a score of three or higher on two or more AP Exams; and are African American or black, Hispanic American or Latino, indigenous and/or attend school in a rural area or small town. Congratulations to both Justin and Malayna for earning this national award!

Josie Whitney Sets Goal to Collect 12,000 Cans of PlayDoh

mrs whitney holds cans of playdoh

In 2014, third grade teacher Mrs. Josie Whitney had a modest goal to collect 2,000 cans of PlayDoh in March to help honor the late brother of a Lorane student she taught the year before. His name was Jason Heckman, and through his battle with brain cancer, she discovered that the four year old loved to play with PlayDoh during the time he was being treated at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. 

Although Jason never had a chance to be a student at Lorane like his sister and brothers, he’s left an indelible impression on the school and community as he’s remembered each year and honored through Mrs. Whitney’s annual PlayDoh drive, which she holds every March. Last year, her collection netted a record-high 12,338 cans of the colorful doh, which she personally delivers to CHOP to help other children who can only use one can one time since it can’t be sanitized between uses. 

This year, with the community's help, Mrs. Whitney hopes to collect another 12,000 cans of PlayDoh to help honor Jason. If you’d like to help her reach her goal and donate to her drive, you may drop off PlayDoh donations at Lorane anytime during school hours, or you may send donations directly to the school, which is located at 699 Rittenhouse Drive, Reading, PA 19606. To learn more about Mrs. Whitney’s annual collection, please see our story from last year, or WFMZ’s story here: https://bit.ly/403LoSF.