Four current and former New Rochelle High School students recently became the school's first to receive diplomas and certificates from the rigorous two-year Advanced Placement Capstone program.

"It's very independent," said Sofia Halpern, who graduated NRHS in June and now attends Cornell University. "Even though you're collaborating with each other, it takes a lot of self-motivation and figuring things out on your own."

The other three students - Isabel Sanchez, Kailie Strutin and Sofia Valerio - are seniors. Sanchez is no longer in the School District ; Strutin and Valerio remain at NRHS.

AP Capstone is a College Board diploma program comprised of two year-long AP courses - Seminar and Research. Strutin and Valerio received the certificate from the program. Halpern and Sanchez received the diploma, which requires earning qualifying scores on four AP exams in addition to the two years of study.

"Both courses prepare students for college and career success through the development of critical thinking, academic research, collaboration, presentation and time management skills," said Lakia Robinson, the AP Research teacher.

In their research projects, Halpern studied the effects of social media on teenagers' relationships; Sanchez explored how the level of parental involvement influences a high school junior's achievement; Strutin looked at the connection between participating in music class and positive personality traits; and Valerio looked at how a school district's health education curriculum meets students' needs.

Robinson and AP Seminar teacher Eric Hedman thanked science teacher Dr. Patrick Cushing, school psychologist Dr. Joshua Logan and the teachers, professors and others at NRHS, Iona College and the College of New Rochelle who served as mentors and helped in other ways.

Currently, 16 students are enrolled in the AP Capstone program at NRHS, and the school hopes to engage more.

"It's rigorous and intensive but it's really rewarding because the students who participate in it get to leave here with solid research skills," she said. "They get to explore their passion and improve their writing."

"You really need to have a genuine interest," Valerio said. "You have to have passion for the topic."

"I truly developed as a writer," Sanchez said. "This class provided me with the opportunity to learn how to write a proper research paper."

The students often met at Sanchez's home to study for hours.

"We all became very close," she said. "We became a strong support system for each other."

Strutin added: "I think we would each say that it is definitely one of our proudest accomplishments."

"I liked the whole entire story," said Jasleen Mendoza, one of the 38 fifth-grade orchestra, band and choral students who traveled to The Metropolitan Opera in Manhattan just before the holiday break. They attended a preview of the Julie Taymor production that has become a holiday tradition. At a little under two hours, it is about half the running time of Mozart's 1791 original, but it retains the heart of the fairy tale with themes of true love and good versus evil.

"It's like 'Tangled' a little bit," said student Kerry Hunter, referring to the Disney animated take on Rapunzel. "The queen is like Mother Gothel."

The students attended the show as part of the Metropolitan Opera Guild's Access Opera program. Access Opera "engages students with the unforgettable experience of watching a performance live on the stage of the Metropolitan Opera House and provides teachers with resources for drawing connections across literature, social studies, foreign language, and the arts," according to the guild's website. Davis music teacher Regina Talbot has begun taking workshops in the program. She spoke with the students about the different aspects of putting on an opera.

"Hopefully, it will inspire them to keep studying their own instruments and participate in performing ensembles as they grow older," she said.

Mendoza, who plays violin, was impressed by the way the orchestra's instruments supported the singing. She also enjoyed the dramatic variations in opera music.

"Sometimes it can be nice and smooth and then it can get nice and fast," she said. "It's also romantic at the same time."

Hunter, a singer, could identify the voices of the various characters.

"Tamino was a tenor and Pamina was a soprano," Hunter said. "The Queen of the Night was also a soprano, but her voice could go super high."