Please read the important news from the Principal. 
VOORHEES HIGH SCHOOL
Principal's Newsletter
April 2017
Upcoming Events
Important dates to remember:  

  • 3/29 - 4/5 PARCC Testing
  • 3/31 3rd Marking Period Ends
  • 4/3  4th Marking Period Begins
  • 4/6 - 4/9 Spring Musical – Legally Blonde  
  • 4/6 - 4/10 Spring Art Show – Mall
             (Reception on 4/7 5:30pm -7:00PM)  
  • 4/7 S.H.I.P. 8th Grade Dance 7:00-9:00PM
           Main Gym
  • 4/10 NHV Community Health and
             Wellness Series - NHHS Theater
             7:00PM Alcohol and Drugs in
             Hunterdon County: What a Parent
             Needs to Know
  • 4/12 SEPAC Meeting 6:30pm NHHS        
             Media Center - William Presutti,
             M.S., LDT/C will be presenting
            “College Students with Learning
             Disabilities: Transitioning from High
             School to College”.  
  • 4/13 Habitat for Humanity Movie Night
             6:00-8:00PM Auditorium
  • 4/13 - 4/21 School Closed - Spring Break
  • 4/25 AP Pre-gridding 9:00-11:00AM
  • 4/27 Teen PEP Workshop  7:30AM
             2:30PM – NCAF
  • 4/27 RVCC Information/Registration for 2017-2018 courses Cafeteria  7:00PM
  • 4/28 Teen PEP Workshop NCAF          
              7:30AM-2:30PM 
Special Education Parent Advisory Committee (SEPAC)
The 4th SEPAC meeting will be held on Wednesday, April 12, 2017, at 6:30 p.m. in the North Hunterdon High School Media Center. North Hunterdon High School is located at 1445 State Route 31, Annandale, NJ 08801.  William Presutti, M.S., LDT/C will be presenting “College Students with Learning Disabilities: Transitioning from High School to College”. The meeting is open to all adolescents, who have a disability and parents/guardians of adolescents with disabilities. 

Presenter’s Biography

Bill Presutti is the Director of the Regional Center for College Students with Learning Disabilities at Fairleigh Dickinson University. Prior to working at FDU, he was a Superintendent for more than 18 years in New Jersey. He has also served as a Director of Special Services.  Therefore, He is very familiar with the K-12 environment and the heightened importance of transitioning special education students with a learning disability to the right college placement.  

I look forward to seeing you. If you are able to attend this meeting, please RSVP to me at mpublicover@nhvweb.net or call (908) 713-4169.
Spring Musical -
Legally Blonde
The Voorhees Drama Club will be performing Legally Blonde the Musical on April 6, 7 and 8 at 7:00pm and on April 9 at 2:00pm in theater.  For ticket information, please click here.
MR. VOORHEES
  • The Mr. Voorhees Competition took place on March 10.  Seven seniors competed to be crowned Mr. Voorhees.  They each displayed formal wear and casual wear.  They performed a wide array of talents and had a question/answer session.  The junior class hosted the event and raised around $1,100.  Mark Hodulik was the victor.  He will receive a free prom ticket and tuxedo for the prom.  The other contestants were August Heithoff, Dan Pavan, Ryan Dec, Francisco Guglielmino, Ryan Morello, and Mike Stazzone.  Staff members - Angela Exley, Mary Galal, Kathy Manz, and Karine Polgar were the judges for the competition.  
Athletics News: 
  • Unified Basketball has started - VHS won both games played against North Hunterdon and both games were well-attended and quite competitive.
  • Girls Basketball
    Lost in the Group 2 sectional finals to Somerville. The Gymnasium was packed with a great atmosphere. It was a very impressive run for a team that was seeded 6th in the tournament.
    Allie Best was voted Hunterdon County Player of the Year. She has the 2nd most points in the history of the school. She has the 10th most points in the history of the county.
    All-Conference
    Allie Best – 1st Team
    Lauren Wagner – 2nd Team
    Caitlin Reilly – Honorable Mention
  • Boys Basketball
    All-Conference
    Blair Felts – 1st Team
    Kyle Kokoskie – 2nd Team
    Douglas Lemenze – Honorable Mention
  • Wrestling
    NJSIAA Region 4 Tournament
    Michael Fernandes – 2nd place at 160 lbs
    Lewis Fernandes – 2nd place at 195 lbs
    Aidan Taylor – 4th place at 106 lbs
    Scott Fernandes – 4th place at 182 lbs
    NJSIAA State Championships:
    Lewis Fernandes had a record of 3-2 and finished in the top twelve. 
    Michael Fernandes and Scott Fernandes had a record of 2-2 in the state championships.
    Aidan Taylor was 0-2.
    Michael Fernandes finished with a career record of 108-20 It is the 5th best win total in school history. It is the 11th best winning percentage in school history.
    All-Conference
    1st Team – Lewis Fernandes
    2nd Team – Michael Fernandes
    Honorable Mention – Scott Fernandes and Aidan Taylor
  • Girls Fencing
    The girls foil squad qualified for the state squad championships and finished 7th in the state.  The members are: Taylor Hubiak, Magdalena Clevenger, Estella Clevenger
  • Girls indoor track
    Nicole Cassavell – 2nd in the two-mile in Group 2 and 8th in the state 
  UNIFIED BASKETBALL
  • On March 8, the VHS Unified Basketball team played its inaugural game vs. North Hunterdon High School at NHHS and won 42-40!  Bruce Fujihuara, a freshman student became an “overnight sensation” leading the Unified Basketball team to their first win, scoring 24 points!  *See Photos Below

  • The team will be traveling to Princeton on Sunday, April 2 to compete in the Shriver Cup.
Girls Basketball Team Fundraiser:
  • The girls’ basketball team raised $6,500.00 to benefit Hospice Youth Programs. The team also raised $12,500.00 to benefit the U.S. Pain Foundation that provides free tuition to a weeklong summer camp for children living in pain. This year they will be able to send 4-5 families.

The following is a letter received by Carmen Cook in response to Hoops for Hospice.

Carmen,
It is always touching for me to see your players and the other students running around in the Hoops for Hospice t-shirts. Knowing the families personally who are benefiting from your incredible generosity makes the experience even more special for me. It always feels like a full circle moment! Your fundraising efforts bring great support to so many grieving families in our community. We are truly blessed to have your support of our mission!
 
On behalf of all of us at Hunterdon Hospice, thank you for all that you’ve done to support our program again this year. We are truly overjoyed, and deeply appreciative! Congratulations on a terrific game last night as well. It was so fun to see the kids in action and working hard for the victory. It was inspiring and a lot of fun to watch!

I think your players and extended Hoops for Hospice supporters enjoyed the pizza after the game. It was a great pleasure to offer this to those in attendance. I think it was really well received, and we enjoyed being able to do that for all of you!
  
Thank you again for your caring hearts and generous spirits!

Warmest regards,

Diane Gilbert LCSW

Coordinator, Youth Art Therapy Bereavement Program

Hunterdon Hospice
ART STUDENTS OF THE MONTH: 

  • The Voorhees High School Art Department would like to announce that senior Julia Governali and junior Margo Rogers have been selected as Art students of the month for the month of February 2017.  (See photos)                                                                                                     
  English:
  • CDL (Communication and Digital Literacy) students will be completing their business models for their cooperative project that focuses on social issues.  Students are in the process of forming a fictitious non-profit organization, and they have recently completed a second round of research in the media center. 
Guidance:
  • College Night, Part 2, was attended by over forty parents and students. Beth Nemeth discussed topics such as the importance of starting early, academic planning, and extra-curricular activities. A standardized testing plan and college visit information were included in the presentation.  Additionally, attendees learned information about Naviance, the application process, and financial aid.
  • On Monday, March 13, all sophomores attended the Improbable Players presentation of Stages: Growing Up in an Alcoholic Family.
Health and Physical Education:
  • Teen PEP presented a two-day workshop on HIV/AIDS.
Math:
  • Current VHS freshman Ioannis Ypsilantis is the only student in the country with a perfect score for the ninth-grade Continental Math Competition for all schools participating. Great job, Ioannis!
  • Students in the Math Honor Society shared their love and appreciation for the number Pi  (3.14) throughout the school.  Each student created three signs that had fun facts about the  number – such as how the number has been used in popular culture, how the number was derived, and other interesting features.  The students hung these signs around the school for the student body to read and enjoy.  
  • The Math Honor Society organized a Pie-a-Teacher fundraiser for National Pi Day (3/14/16).  The “winning” teachers were Mark Davis (most money collected in his name), Melanie Kerr (2nd), and Karine Polgar (3rd).  Mr. Davis and Ms. Polgar were “pied” on 3/16/17 (the delay was due to two snow days) in the mall in front of a small gathering of students.  Jeremy Brandt ran footage the following day on The Morning Show.  The top finisher in the recent math contest won the right to “pie” Mark Davis, while Karine Polgar was “pied” by a student of hers who recently received a 100 on a test.  Mrs. Kerr is still awaiting her fate!
Music:
Students in Mr. Finck's choral ensembles held their annual Coffee House performance on Friday, March 17, at 7:00PM in the cafeteria. The theme for this year's concert was "Lucky to Be on Broadway", and the evening featured songs from many well-known musicals.  On March 24, the Coast Guard Cadet Chorale presented a forty-minute concert for our music students. Two members of that ensemble, Kyle and Quinn Levy, are VHS graduates.  It was a pleasure hosting them at Voorhees!
Practical Arts:

  • Eight Independent Study Early Childhood Education students, along with the Guidance department, created a study skills bulletin board (see photo) to encourage healthy study habits. The posters illustrate guidelines on how to prioritize assignments to reduce stress and present ideas for developing a study plan. Additionally, the display includes a selection of helpful suggestions.
Social Studies:
  • The Voorhees B.R.I.T.E. academic competition team #1 made it to the second round of the semifinals in Bridgewater on 3/21/17.  B.R.I.T.E. is the Bridgewater-Raritan Invitational Tournament of Excellence.  The club advisors are Mary Galal and Kathy Manz. 
Technology and Engineering:

  Architecture Students were earthquake testing their designs.

CAD Students laser engraved pencils and began 3d printing some of their designs.

Engineering Students assembled and programmed their robots. The robots now move in a straight line.  Students will code the robot to turn and follow sensors to complete a course of movement across a room.
World Language Department
  • Bruce Whitehead, an anthropology professor at Lehigh University and a past volunteer in Mali, Africa, with the Peace Corps, presented at Voorhees High School on March 17.  Students were exposed to some great information and were shocked to learn that life expectancy in Mali is 43. Mr. Whitehead then joined the teachers in the World Language department for lunch and interesting conversation.
  • German Club members met in the gym twice to play speed badminton (or crossminton).  Speedminton (brand name) is a sport that was invented in Berlin, Germany, that combines elements from badminton, squash, and tennis.  There is no net and no prescribed court, so it can be played on beaches, fields, tennis courts, or in gyms.  A game ends when one player reaches 16 points.  If the score is tied at 15 or greater, play continues until one player has a two-point advantage.  A match consists of three wins (best of five).  The game is growing in popularity throughout the world. 
STUDENTS OF THE MONTH
 These are the February PTSO students of the month:

Pillar of Fairness
      
                                                                  Grade 9   Lauren Kokoskie
                                                                  Grade 10 Cecilia Turello
                                                                  Grade 11 Donavyn Meyh
                                                                  Grade 12 Dylan Novick

           
Voorhees High School, 256 County Road 513, Glen Gardner, NJ 08826.  Tel: (908) 638-2199
www.nhvweb.net/vhs