NJ students: Fei named semi-finalist for National Merit Scholarship Program
Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School student Dylan Fei has been named as a semi-finalist for the annual National Merit Scholarship Program, the first step in the process for receiving a scholarship.
“Congratulations to Dylan for making it to Merit Scholar semi-finalist,” said Superintendent Joan Mast, Ed.D. “We are proud of his commitment to excellence, and the teachers and staff that prepared him will be cheering him on throughout the process.”
Now that he has become a semi-finalist, Fei has the chance to advance. The next round will be announced in the winter, and throughout the spring, chosen finalists will receive a Merit Scholarship award of $2,500 or a corporate-sponsored or college-sponsored award of varying amounts.
High school juniors entered the National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT), which served as an initial screen of program entrants. The nationwide pool of semifinalists, representing less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors, included the highest-scoring entrants in each state. The number of semifinalists in a state is proportional to the state’s percentage of the national total of graduating seniors.
The winners will be chosen from the pool of finalists based on their abilities, skills, and accomplishments, with a variety of information being evaluated, including academic record, information about the school’s curriculum and grading system, PSAT/NMSQT selection Index score, the high school official’s written recommendation, information about the student’s activities and leadership, and the finalist’s own essay.
Mount Saint Mary Academy
Shortly after the death of Queen Elizabeth II, Vanessa Emanuele, Department of Art chairperson at Mount Saint Mary Academy in Watchung inspired her students to create a variety of depictions of the longest serving monarch. Quite quickly, drawings emerged using pencil and graphite ― portraits of the Queen, her beloved corgis, and even Princess Diana. The activity offered the students an opportunity to pay homage to the Queen’s impact during her reign and to focus on a historical event. The Queen was one of the most depicted women of the past 100 years. The Mounties learned about following artists who painted the Queen's portrait: Lucian Freud ― one of Britain's most famous figurative painters and one of the most famous painters of the 20th century (d. 2011); Colin Davidson, contemporary artist living and working in Belfast, Northern Ireland; and Miriam Escofet, contemporary artist. Her painting of the Queen was unveiled to the Queen online during the pandemic in 2020.
Also: For the second year in a row, Mount Saint Mary Academy junior Nicole Parisi participated in a Habitat for Humanity building project in the Roanoke Valley in Virginia.
During her week-long trip, which was sponsored by her youth group at First Presbyterian Church of Metuchen, she worked on three different houses. While working on the trip, Parisi, of South Plainfield, got a chance to build and put up a roof on a house, caulked and spackled windows, helped build a shed, nailed up drywall and went "plawking," picking up litter while walking. Parisi honed her construction skills by using various equipment regularly, including a chop saw, circular saw, drill, nail gun, and a cap hammer. During the trip, Parisi got to work side by side with the homeowner of the one of the homes, named Serena.
Parisi said, “It was so nice meeting and working with Serena. I was able to learn more about her and her 10-year-old daughter and their dreams of home ownership. It was great to know that soon they would have a safe, new home of their own to live and grow up in thanks, in part, to the work we did. I find this experience so rewarding and I can’t wait to go on the Habitat Trip again next summer.”
Parisi is an active member in the Mount Saint Mary Academy community where she is president of ASL (American Sign Language) Club and is on the leadership team in HOPE (Helping Other People Everywhere) Club. She is also a member of the Cross-Country team and is involved with band, chorale, GraceNotes, and Drama Club.
Also: Sister Lisa D. Gambacorto, RSM, Ed.S., directress of Mount Saint Mary Academy in Watchung, announced Charlotte Gray of Plainfield and Giuliana Pelcher of Berkeley Heights have been named Commended Students in the 2023 National Merit Scholarship Program. A Letter of Commendation from the school and National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC), which conducts the program, will be presented to these scholastically talented seniors.
About 34,000 Commended Students throughout the nation are being recognized for their exceptional academic promise. Although they will not continue in the 2023 competition for National Merit Scholarship awards, Gray and Pelcher placed among the top 50,000 students who entered the 2023 competition by taking the 2021 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test.
“We are so proud of our two seniors who earned this distinction as Commended Students,” said Jacqueline Muratore, assistant directress for faculty, curriculum and planning. “They have demonstrated incredible commitment to their education and remarkable potential for academic success.”
Elizabeth Roper, director of college counseling/AP coordinator, said, “Congratulations to Charlotte and Giuliana for their accomplishment on the PSAT to receive this recognition. Both young women represent Mount Saint Mary Academy as exemplary students as well as being young women of service and leadership in our community.”
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Piscataway Township Schools
The Piscataway High School Theatre Program has once again been accepted into the Paper Mill Playhouse Adopt-A-School Program.
This selection begins a four-year partnership with Paper Mill Playhouse, a highly-acclaimed regional theater in Millburn. It will give PHS’ upper-level students opportunities to see Paper Mill Playhouse performances, participate in workshops, work with Paper Mill teaching artists, attend arts festivals, and perform on the Paper Mill Playhouse stage.
Piscataway High previously participated in the program from 2017 to 2021.
“We are so honored and excited to be invited back!” said Rebekah Sterlacci, supervisor of visual and performing arts. “We are so fortunate to be so close to outstanding professional arts organizations ― and to be able to provide these opportunities to our young artists.”
The Paper Mill program is designed to introduce NJ high school students to the performing arts; to stimulate partnerships between educators, artists, and businesses; and to encourage the permanent inclusion of arts programming as an integral part of NJ’s educational system.
The project has been cited by the Kennedy Center and Stage Directions magazine as one of the nation’s Top 10 arts education programs.
Sterlacci gave credit to PHS theater arts teacher Mike Yoson for building the relationship with Paper Mill and making the partnership possible.
“We are so excited to be working with Paper Mill again,” Yoson said. “The Adopt-A-School Project is an amazing opportunity for the PHS theater students.”
He said his students will get to work with Broadway actors and will perform an original piece of theater on the Paper Mill Playhouse stage.
“I am so grateful to Paper Mill Playhouse for offering this free program to my theater students,” Yoson said. “Their education will expand past the walls of the high school with real-life experiences in the theater. The students are thrilled and can’t wait to get started!”
The program is fully funded so there is no cost to the district or the students who participate.
“We are looking forward to so much learning and growing in the theater arts over the next four years,” Sterlacci said.
Westfield Public Schools
Westfield High School will receive the Group 4 ShopRite Cup for the 2021-2022 school year at a ceremony to be held on Sunday, Oct. 1. The recognition is awarded annually at the end of the school year to the top athletic programs in NJ in each of four public school groups and two non-public school groups.
“We had 13 sports contribute to this award, that’s 45percent of the athletic department. It’s impressive,” said WHS Athletic Director Sandra Mamary, who said this is the second-ever ShopRite Cup win for Westfield High School since 2010.
The award ceremony will begin at 1:30 p.m. at Gary Kehler Stadium before the Blue Devils football team kicks off at 2 p.m.
The Wakefern Food Corporation, which sponsors the ShopRite Cup, awards points to schools for winning group championships and for being disqualification-free all year in all NJ State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) sports.
Taking home state championships for the 2021-2022 season were WHS Girls Soccer, Boys Winter Track and Field, Girls Swimming, and Girls Basketball. Placing 2nd in the NJSIAA state tournament were Girls Tennis, Boys Tennis, Bowling, Boys Swimming, Boys Golf, Boys Cross Country, and Boys Winter Track Relays. Two teams placed third and fourth in the state tournament ― Boys Ice Hockey and Boys Spring Track and Field.
“This is a tremendous honor for our student-athletes, our athletics program, and the Westfield Public School District,” said Superintendent Dr. Raymond González. “I congratulate our committed athletes, their coaches, trainers, parents, Mamary, and all who contributed to this well-deserved award.”
Whitehouse School
This summer, Whitehouse School in the Whitehouse Station section of Readington, was chosen by two former students as their desired site to complete a project in hopes of earning their Girl Scout Silver Award. In April 2022, Katelyn Paul and Briana Goodyear first met with the principal, Dr. Ann DeRosa, to present a proposal describing how they could rejuvenate the WHS Sensory Garden, an outdoor learning space. Subsequently, the Board of Education approved the girls’ plan and the project was underway.
The comprehensive endeavor began with a general clean-up by repurposing select perennials, splitting ornamental grasses, and removing overgrown vegetation. Some of the garden beds were expanded, while others were converted to stone for the purpose of more efficient maintenance. In addition, a Mindfulness area was constructed, which consists of a sitting nook with a handmade wooden bench and privacy partitions. Other sections of the garden were enhanced with a free-standing rain chain and two different types of wind chimes. Lastly, the Girl Scouts repainted the white borders of all of the states on the blacktop’s outdoor United States map.
Whitehouse School is grateful for the support of the Girls Scouts, as well as several local businesses for their donations:
Arvin Farm & Garden Center (stone & mulch)
Bad Axe Sawmill (lumber for bench)
Hutson Lumber & Supply Company, in conjunction with JMR Home Remodeling (lumber for privacy walls and rain chain post)
Hunterdon Paint & Decorating Center (stain, paint and supplies)
The Home Depot in Bridgewater (gift card)
Lowe’s Home Improvement in Flemington (various hardware items)
Kings Food Markets (beverages)
Bishop’s Supermarket (sandwiches and chips)
As part of the District Strategic Plan, the Readington Township Schools continue to seek partnerships with local organizations, businesses, and residents. To show your interest in becoming a partner, contact Dr. Ann DeRosa, principal of Whitehouse School and co-chair of the Partnerships strategic goal. She can be reached at aderosa@readington.k12.nj.us or 908-534-4716.
Student and School news appears on Saturdays. Email: cnmetro@mycentraljersey.com
Carolyn Sampson is Executive Office Assistant for the Courier News, The Home News Tribune and MyCentralJersey.com, and handles the weekly Student News page.
This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: NJ students: Dylan Fei named semi-finalist for program
