Grand Island High School News Web Page 2009
JULY - DECEMBER
PAGE 2
Grand Island High School Website
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GIHS Sports Briefs - Week Ending November 19, 2009 Click "Sports Briefs 11/19/09" for this week's Grand Island High School sports scores. (Football Bikings photos) Chelsea Hall Niagara Gazette Player of Year: Volleyball - November 2009 Grand Island High School senior Chelsea Hall, an outside hitter, has been named a Player of the Year (Volleyball) by the Niagara Gazette. According to the Gazette: STATS: Nine kills, two aces per match SCOOP: First team at Niagara Frontier League - all-tournament at Cheektowaga, Wilson and Frontier tournament - MVP at Wilson - notched 16 kills in a win over Class AA sectional champion North Tonawanda - led Vikings to the Class A title game where she recorded a career-high 23 kills in a loss to Hamburg. COACH'S QUOTE: "As a coach, you always want your best players to be your hardest workers. When Chelsea is busting her butt and laying out for balls in practice, other girls see that attitude and effort and try to raise their game as well. Her presence on and off the court helped lead this young team to its full potential. I will miss her as a player, but I will miss her more as a person. Jonas Stalyga Niagara Gazette Player of Year: Volleyball - November 2009 Grand Island High School senior Jonas Stalyga, an outside hitter, has been named a Player of the Year (Volleyball) by the Niagara Gazette. According to the Gazette: STATS: 533 kills, 101 digs, 50 aces, 375 hitting percentage for the season SCOOP: First-team all-Niagara Frontier League - first team all-Western New York coach's pick - had a school record 34 kills in a match this season - led Vikings to Class B championship game - At 6-food-6, he has attracted Division 1 interest while playing club volleyball with Eden COACHES' QUOTE: "His natural talent, to be able to jump like he does, makes him a very tough player to stop. Once he started getting more and more reps. he just kept getting better. And now that he's into the travel volleyball, this kid has no limit. As long as he stays focused, he could go far. He has the potential to be a very, very good player. Successful Blood Drive At GIHS - November 2009 
From left: Advisor Rose Krauss with Donate Life members Savannah Kustra, Katie Cobello & Keran Mattu. Right: Senior Sam Cummings 
Many students wait to donate. Click photos for larger view The Donate Life Club of Grand Island High School sponsored a blood drive on Thursday, November 19, 2009. Over 90 students and teachers were signed up in advance and many walk-ins throughout the day contributed. Senior donators received volunteer credit as an Individual Citizen Action for government class. GIHS science teacher and club advisor Mrs. Rose Krauss noted that the public is welcome to participate and another blood drive will be held in April 2010. Parent/Teacher Conferences - November 2009 Parent/Teacher Conferences will be held on Monday, November 30, 2009 in the High School from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Teachers will be in their rooms and a list of room assignments will be posted. Appointments are not necessary. Andy LaLonde Makes Top 10 In Line For the Connolly Memorial Cup - November 2009 11/13/09 Niagara Gazette Story  Grand Island senior running back, Andy LaLonde, who rushed for more than 1000 yards this fall for the Vikings, is among the 10 finalists for the 38th annual William R. Connolly Memorial Cup presented by the Riverside Athletic Club. The event is set for 1 p.m. December 5th at Ilio DiPaolo's restaurant in Blasdell. The other nine finalists are David Fluellen (Lockport), Justin Juda (Lancaster), Joe Licata (Williamsville South), Pat McMahon (Sweet Home), B.J. Monacelli (Cassadaga Valley), Matt Rosenhahn (St. Joe's), Chris Secky (Maple Grove), Calvin Sluberski (Iroquois) and Zack Sopak (Southwestern). Maritina Tsembelis, Girls Cross Country - Nov. 2009 See 11/13/09 Niagara Gazette for story by Nate Beutel. Klock To Pitch At NU - Nov. 2009 See 11/13/09 Niagara Gazette for story by Nate Beutel. Boys Soccer Suffers Loss In Far West Regional - Nov. 2009 See 11/13/09 Niagara Gazette for story by Nate Beutel. Diver Megan McInerney Takes 3rd In Sec. VI Diving Championship - Nov. 2009 Click 11/13/09 Niagara Gazette for feature story on Megan McInerney. National Honor Society Spaghetti Dinner - November 2009 The National Honor Society Spaghetti Dinner takes place Friday, November 13 in the HS Large Cafeteria from 5-7 p.m. Cost is $6 Adult, $4 child and includes drinks and dessert. GIHS Sports Briefs - Week Ending November 12, 2009 Click "Sports Briefs 11/12/09" for this week's Grand Island High School sports scores. GIHS Spotlighters Present Alice In Wonderland - November 2009 The Grand Island High School Spotlighters Drama Club production of Alice in Wonderland is scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday, November 13 and Saturday, November 14 in the high school auditorium. Admission is $5. The play, a family/children production, is an adaptation of Lewis Carroll's novels, The Adventures of Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. Kathie Macro is director/advisor for the Spotlighters along with Tracie Groves. See Alice In Wonderland Cast. The GIHS National Honor Society's annual spaghetti dinner takes place preceding the play. Boys Volleyball Team Suffers Loss In Finals - November 2009 See 11/10/09 Niagara Gazette for story by Tim Schmitt. Varsity Boys Volleyball Team Ready For Finals - November 2009 See See 11/10/09 Niagara Gazette for story by Nate Beutel. Grand Island High School Shoe Drive - November 2009 Students and staff at Grand Island High School have announced that they are collecting gently used shoes for the Soles4Souls Shoe Charity from November 5 through November 24, 2009. Drop off boxes are located in front of the main office and also in the large and small cafeterias. It is estimated that Americans have 1.5 billion pairs of unused shoes lying in their closets. According to a recent press release, "Nashville-based Soles4Souls facilitates the donations of both new and used shoes, which are used to aid the hurting worldwide. Soles4Souls has distributed more than 4.3 million pairs (currently donating one pair every 13 seconds) to people in over 125 countries, including Honduras, Uganda, Romania and the United States." For more information visit www.giveshoes.org. Varsity Girls Soccer Team Shares Section VI Championship - November 2009 The Grand Island High School girls soccer team played 110 minutes of soccer (80 minutes of regulation, two 10-minute OT periods, two five-minute sudden death periods), but ended up in a 0-0 tie with Williamsville East. The tie made them Co-Champions of Section VI with Williamsville East. The game then went to penalty kicks to determine who advances to the Far West Regionals, and Williamsville East won to advance. See See 11/8/09 Niagara Gazette for story by Nate Beutel. Boys Soccer Team Wins Section VI Championship - November 2009 The Grand Island High School boys soccer team won 2-1 in regulation by defeating Williamsville South on Saturday, November 7, advancing to the Regionals. See Niagara Gazette story (11/8/09) by Nate Beutel Girls Cross Country Team Wins Section VI Championship - November 2009 See Tonawanda News story by David J. Hill Vikings Suffer Loss At Ralph - November 2009 See Niagara Gazette story by Nate Beutel GIHS Sports Briefs - Week Ending November 5, 2009 Click "Sports Briefs 11/5/09" for this week's Grand Island High School sports scores. GIHS Girls Volleyball Team Is Gazette Feature - 2009 See 11/4/09 Niagara Gazette for story by Nate Beutel. Gazette Features Vikings Coach Santorio - 2009 See 11/4/09 Niagara Gazette for story by Nate Beutel. Rotary/PTSA/Rotary Students of the Month November 2009  
Joe Fischer Alex Fry Evan Carey Joe Fischer has been a resident of the Grand Island community his entire life. He has contributed to the community in many different ways. Throughout his educational years he has excelled academically, athletically, and has devoted his time volunteering in the community. Throughout middle school, he volunteered wrapping gifts each year at Christmas time for families in need through his church. He volunteered for two years at the Lions Club picnic for handicap children, assisting the children at the event. Also, Joe has become very involved in Relay for Life for the past seven years, helping in the set up and also being part of a team and raising money for the event. He volunteered at soup kitchens to help the hungry who are in need of service as well. Academically, Joe has excelled in many different ways. Upon graduating from Huth Road Elementary, he was the recipient of the Presidential Academic Award, the “H” Pin and the Pride of Grand Island. While at Veronica E. Connor Middle School, he was consistently on the high honor roll and received the Presidential Gold Academic Award. In his junior year, he received the Academic Excellence in Mathematics award for maintaining over a 100 average all four marking periods. Other achievements include being inducted into the National Honor Society and also the Spanish Honor Society. Joe has maintained around a 3.75 GPA every marking period in his high school career. He is taking numerous AP and college course including AP Physics, AP Calculus, AP Literature, and College Spanish. Athletics is also an important part of Joe’s life. He became involved with sports at a very young age, playing Grand Island Little League baseball, (and was also an umpire) and playing house and travel soccer through the Grand Island Soccer Club. He was a member of a premier soccer team through Buffalo United Soccer Club, that won the State Championship in 2006. From seventh to ninth grade, he was on the JV soccer and lacrosse team and then Varsity from tenth to senior year for both sports. During his freshman year he was the captain of both the JV soccer team and JV lacrosse team. He was captain for the varsity lacrosse team in his junior year and will be this coming senior season as well. He is currently a captain of the Varsity soccer team. In his sophomore year, he received honorable mention for the league in lacrosse, followed by his winning the NFL Sportsmanship award for the entire league in soccer in his junior year. Also as a junior, Joe made second team all league for soccer and first team for lacrosse. Lastly, he has been a scholar athlete throughout his athletic career in the high school. Joe plans on attending a large university, such as Virginia Tech, University of Michigan, or Purdue. He is interested in pursuing a degree in engineering. Alexander Fry has been a lifelong resident of Grand Island and has attended the Grand Island Central School system at every level. From Charlotte Sidway, through Kaegebein Elementary, and on to Veronica E. Connor Middle and Grand Island High School, Alexander has been a lifelong Islander. Throughout this time, he has been an exemplary student, and has excelled both inside and outside of the classroom. In the world of academics, Alexander has always challenged himself and excelled. He has taken a number of Advanced Placement courses and is currently enrolled in AP Physics, AP Calculus, College-level Spanish, AP Government, AP Macroeconomics, and AP Literature. Alexander has received has Academic Excellence certificate, letter, and pin, and is on his way to earning his academic bar. He was inducted into both the National Honor Society and the Spanish Honor Society as a junior. Alexander received the Clarkson University Leadership award for outstanding leadership qualities and academic promise. In addition, he was a member of the winning 2009 Corporate Bowl team “Nerds in Space.” Outside of the classroom, Alexander has been a participant in athletics throughout his lifetime. He was a member of the Grand Island Little League association from kindergarten through ninth grade and played for the Grand Island High School JV baseball team in tenth grade. Alexander has played on the Grand Island Varsity golf team for four years, achieving captain status in his senior year. Throughout his years, he has been named a scholar athlete as a member of the Grand Island golf team. Alexander has also devoted much of his efforts to musical endeavors. He has been a member of the Grand Island Wind Ensemble for four years. During this time, he has played in the Jazz Band for four years and in the Musical pit orchestras in ninth and eleventh grade. Alexander has been named to the All-County band/orchestra every year in high school. In addition, he was named to the Area All-State orchestra twice and the Conference All-State band twice. As a freshman, Alex received the Wind Ensemble’s “Rookie of the Year” award and as a junior he received the “Outstanding musician” award. He was elected Wind Ensemble president in his senior year. Outside of school, Alexander plays in the orchestra at his church (The Chapel), in the Greater Buffalo Youth Orchestra, and has three times played for the Living Singing Christmas Tree pit orchestra. Alexander is a member of the youth group at the Chapel at Crosspoint. He has twice attended missions trips with the group to Lima, Peru, during which time he aided in translation, the building of churches in impoverished areas, and the spreading of hope to those in need. After graduation, Alexander plans to attend college and hopes to pursue a career in Aeronautical engineering. Evan Carey The oldest of four brothers, Evan Carey moved with his family to Grand Island in 2001. Evan completed fourth through eighth grades at St. Stephen's Elementary School and ninth grade at St. Joseph's Collegiate Institute, where he earned high honors all marking periods, was selected as a member of the Collegiate Scholars Program, and was the second highest points earner on the varsity swimming team as a freshman. Evan transferred to Grand Island High School to start his sophomore year, and from 10th grade to date, has maintained high honors grades while taking a number of Advanced Placement and Honors classes . In 11th grade, he was inducted into both the National Honor Society and the Sociedad Honoraria Hispanica (Hispanic Honor Society). He received the Outstanding Regents Earth Science Award, the Outstanding Foreign Language (Spanish) Student Award in 2007-2008. He has received both the Parent Teacher Student Association Certificate of Academic Excellence and the Scholar Athlete Recognition each year he has attended Grand Island High School. He has also been a member of the Greenhouse Club. His biggest contributions as a Viking have come in the swimming pool where he has won a Sectional championship, two Niagara Frontier League individual titles, and finished the 2008-2009 season as the 7th fastest high school swimmer in New York State in two events. Along the way, he broke two school records, one that was 20 years old and one that had stood since 1992, the year Evan was born. Evan's fastest times also earned him All American consideration and a trip to Junior Nationals in Orlando, Florida, to compete against the fastest high school age swimmers in the nation. In addition to swimming for Grand Island High School, Evan practices and competes year round as a member of the Grand Island Piranhas Swim Club. As a Piranha, Evan has swam in international competitions and won numerous individual meet titles. A certified lifeguard, Evan has been employed by the Neumann Catholic Swim League and the Town Recreation Department. He has also volunteered as a swimming coach for St. Stephen's Elementary School swim team, where he himself got his start as a swimmer, taking first place overall in two events at the Diocesan-wide Neumann Catholic Swim League Championships as an eighth-grader . Evan served the last two summers as resident counselor at an international swim camp in Ontario. He has also served as a volunteer for the Kids Escaping Drugs Program in Buffalo. In his spare time, Evan enjoys playing the guitar and singing. He is a member of Whitehaven Road Baptist Church Worship Band and has performed at the Grand Island High School Talent Show in 2008 and 2009. He won third place as a solo act in the Grand Island Battle of the Bands in 2008. Upon graduation from Grand Island High School, Evan plans to swim at a Division I level college and pursue a degree in the environmental sciences. High School News Soles 4 Souls - November 2009 By Kaitie Samland (Senior) - Student Writer Thursday, November 5, 2009 . . .Grand Island High School’s Spanish National Honor Society is holding its biggest charity event yet this year! Starting November 5th and going until November 24th students and parents are encouraged to donate their old shoes to have them given to Hispanic countries. The program is Soles 4 Souls and they have been running this program for over five years, collecting over 250,000 pairs of shoes. Approximately 790 million people in the developing world are still chronically undernourished, almost two-thirds of whom reside in Asia and the Pacific and over 300 million children are without shoes. Grand Island is taking the first step and is getting their students involved, changing the world on pair at a time! DECA Installation Dinner - November 2009 
(left) Sarah Chamberlain and Mary Kneer - (right) Katie Turner, Susan Head, Kelly Hoovan, Amy Grenke 
Lauren Fonte and Mrs. Chamberlain Click for larger view Salvatore's Italian Gardens was the setting Wednesday, November 4th, for the WNY Region 12 DECA Installation Dinner. This prestigious event is the official installation of local high school students into the state and national DECA organization. DECA is an association of marketing and management students devoted to leadership, entrepreneurship, community service and vocational understanding. President and Regional Representative for Grand Island, Miss Lauren Fonte, assisted in the program and helped to welcome new Assistant Principal, Mr. Jerry Parisi to the event. In addition the following dignitaries represented the Grand Island School District: Mr. George Casey, Mrs. Cheryl Cardone, Mrs. Sandra Burns, Mrs. MaryJane Fonte, and Mr. Christopher Simpson. Mrs. Cheryl Chamberlain would like to thank everyone in attendance for their continued support of DECA. National Merit Scholarship Program Recognizes GIHS Commended Students - November 2009  National Merit Scholarship commended students from left are Seth Kline, Mike Chauby, and Sarah Dolan. Click for larger view Grand Island High School is proud to announce that Seth Kline, Mike Chauby and Sarah Dolan are among those being honored as commended students for the National Merit Scholarship program. About 34,000 commended students throughout the nation are being recognized for their exceptional academic promise. These students placed among the top 5% of more than 1.5 million students who entered the 2010 competition by taking the 2008 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship qualifying test. GIHS Semifinalist Competes for Merit Scholar Title and Scholarship Funds - November 2009  Luke Burkhart More than 1.5 million juniors in over 22,000 high schools including Grand Island High School student, Luke Burkhart, entered the 2010 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2008 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT), which served as an initial screen of program entrants. The nationwide pool of semifinalists, which represents less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors, includes the highest scoring entrants in each state. Officials from the National Merit Scholarship Corporation recently shared the names of approximately 16,000 semifinalists in the 55th Annual National Merit Scholarship Program. Grand Island High School is proud to announce that Luke Burkhart is among the 16,000 semifinalists nationwide. Luke will now have an opportunity to continue in the competition for some 8,200 National Merit Scholarships, worth more than $36 million, that will be offered next spring. About 90% of the semifinalist are expected to attain finalist standing. Approximately half of the finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship, earning the Merit Scholar title. Grand Island High School congratulates Luke Burkhart and wishes him continued success in this competition. Varsity Boys Soccer Team Advances To Finals - 2009  Click for larger view The Grand Island High School Varsity Boys Soccer Team won over Cheektowaga, 3-1 in the Class A Semifinal on Tuesday, November 3, 2009. See 11/3/09 Niagara Gazette for November 3rd game story by Nate Beutel. Varsity Girl Soccer Team Wins Class A Semifinal - 2009  Click for larger view The Grand Island High School Varsity Girls Soccer Team beat Amherst, 2-0 in the Class A Semifinal on Tuesday, November 3, 2009. See 11/3/09 Niagara Gazette for November 3rd game story by Tim Schmitt. GIHS Student Recognized as Scholastic All-American - November 2009  Grand Island High School Senior Evan Carey was recently recognized by USA Swimming as a Scholastic All-American. The individual recognized for this honor must qualify for a National USA Swimming Championship Meet and carry at least a 3.7 GPA in the classroom. Evan is a two-time Junior National Meet Qualifier in the 50 and 100 yard freestyle events and currently has a 4.0 GPA at Grand Island High School. Boys/Girls Cross Country Wins NFL's Tsembelis' Win Leads Girls Team Masiello Takes 2nd, Leads Boys Squad Boys Team Undefeated 14-0 - Girls Co- Champs at 13-1 
 (left) Maritina Tsembelis - (right) Derek Stacey and Nick Masiello Click photos for larger view. The Grand Island Cross Country teams capped a stellar season by winning the NFL League Championship Meet at Beaver Island on Saturday, October 31. The Boys Team finished 1st and became the NFL League Champions with their first undefeated season in school history, finishing at 14-0. The Girls Team avenged their only loss of the season by beating Lockport and became the NFL Co-Champions at 13-1. The Boys Team ran superbly with their best team effort of the season. Masiello lead the first 2.5 miles in gale force windy conditions and finished 2nd. Derek Stacey took 3rd with his strongest race of the season beating Lockport’s second runner. Jay Chadwick was very impressive taking a strong 5th. “Jay ran a very strong race and just wouldn’t let up.” Most impressive was the performance of both Sophomore Brendon Lutnick and Freshman Cyle Alcorn taking 9th and 11th respectively. “Our number 3-4-5 runners ran outstanding today which really sealed the win” noted Coach Don Sauer. “They ran together as a team and it really helped them push themselves.” Senior TJ Howley placed an impressive 14th. The Girls team was just as exciting. Determined to avenge an earlier season dual meet loss to Lockport, the Girls also ran their best of the season. Maritina Tsembelis ran her usual strong race from start to finish and kept the NFL title in the family. Brother, Evan won the boys race last year while Maritina won the girls race last year. Junior Dominique Degregorio moved from 7th to 4th in the last half of the race. “Dom ran a real smart race, tucking behind three Lockport runners in the first half in the wind. She made a move in the woods out of the wind finishing a strong 4th” commented Sauer. “Alya Marino and Megan Karpie ran together and placed 6-7. Maggie Demarco had a stellar race placing 9th” noted Sauer. “They ran amazing as they were so determined.” Amber Spiesz was 15th and Angelina Howe was 19th to act as displacers in team scoring. The Teams run at Sectionals next Friday, November 13 at Elma Meadows. Teams that win will compete at the State Championships in Plattsburgh the following week. GIHS Vikings Play Sweet Home In Friday Night Class A Final - Nov. 2009  JT Tomkins Photo - Click for larger view. The GIHS Varsity Vikings Football Team won their semi-final game against Hamburg on Friday, October 30, 28-14. The Vikings are now headed to Ralph Wilson Stadium for the Class A Section VI final against Sweet Home on Friday, November 6th for a 8:30 p.m. game. Click 10/31/09 Niagara Gazette for October 31 game story by Nate Beutel. Holiday Shopping At the GIHS Book Store - 2009 The Grand Island High School book store now offers a selection of spirit wear to students, faculty, staff, alumni, parents and all those who choose to support the Vikings sports teams. See Holiday Shopping At GIHS for details. GIHS Sports Briefs - Week Ending October 29, 2009 Click "Sports Briefs 10/29/09" for this week's Grand Island High School sports scores. High School News - October 2009 Illness Sweeps GIHS - 2009 By Marwa Eltagouri (Senior) - Student Writer Thursday, October 29, 2009 . . . During the week of October 19th Grand Island High School underwent one of the oddest occurrences in its history — a shockingly high absence rate of 20%. And after the excitement of spirit week, pep rally, the powder puff game and homecoming, it is no surprise that students found themselves at home sick with influenza and other illnesses. Approximately two hundred students were absent from school that Monday, and the high numbers continued on into the week, in which about six or seven students on average would be absent from each class. The absurd statistics even caught the attention of local news stations such as WGRZ, who came to the school and interviewed students for a story that had aired the following Monday, claiming that the absence rates were the highest in Western New York. Though the sickness is accredited to several possible causes, such as the frigid temperatures at the powder puff game and the crowded atmosphere at homecoming, the actual cause is remains unknown. It is for this reason that GIHS has decided to take all precautions necessary to keep students healthy, especially with the growing threat of H1N1, commonly known as swine flu. Hand sanitizer dispensers have been put up all around the school, including the cafeteria and the hallways. Disinfecting wipes are passed out at the library so that students could wipe down computer keyboards after using them. With such precautions and every one taking extra care of themselves, a safe and healthy environment can be established, and the amount of students absent due to illness will return and hopefully stay at its usual number. GIHS Vikings Play Hamburg In Friday Night Semifinal - Oct. 2009 The GIHS Varsity Vikings Football Team will play Hamburg 7 p.m. Friday, October 30, following the team's Class A quarterfinals win over Williamsville South, 23-20 on Friday, October 23. Coach Dean Santorio has been named the Buffalo Bills Coach of the Week following the quarterfinals. Viking receiver Pat Gallagher was named the Jim Kelly Offensive Underclassman of the Week and two-way lineman Eric Harnden was a weekly Trench Trophy nominee. Click 10/23/09 Niagara Gazette for October 23 game story by Thomas Baldwin. Girls JV Volleyball - October 2009  Pictured from back left: Alex Griffin, Shannon Gallagher, Melissa Gibson, Marissa Phillips, Paige Kippley, Alexa SantaLucia, Sam Pangborn, Sarah Williams, Kourtney Hoppel, Liz Kowalik, Stephanie Knight, Coach Daneen Gallagher; (front left) Kassie Bennett and Cassie Oursler. Not pictured: Ciara Alcorn and Lexi Kalinowski Click photo for larger view The Grand Island High School Girls' JV Volleyball Team recently participated in the NT Volleyball Tournament. This year's tournament was also a Breast Cancer Awareness Day and a fundraiser. Participating teams were encouraged to wear pink and donate to the cause. These Grand Island girls donned their pink shirts (thanks to Renee Kippley) and gathered donations totalling $240! It was a great day of volleyball and a wonderful effort supporting Breast Cancer Awareness Month. GIHS Vikings 23 - Williamsville South 20 - Oct. 2009 The GIHS Varsity Vikings Football Team beat Williamsville South Friday night, October 23rd, 23-20, at Williamsville South High School. Click 10/23/09 Niagara Gazette for story by Thomas Baldwin. Boys/Girls Cross Country - October 2009 
 (left) Brendon Lutnick - (right) Cyle Alcorn 
 (left) Ayla Marino and Captain Amber Speisz - (right) Bre Gibney Click photos for larger view. The GIHS Boys Cross Country team ended its season with 7-0 record and the Niagara Frontier League regular season cross country crown. According to Coach Don Sauer, Brendon Lutnick and Cyle Alcorn have really improved and helped the Varsity Team this season. The girls team has been helped by Frosh Ayla Marino and Bre Gibney. See "More Good News" See "Sports Briefs." Boys Soccer Team Wins NFL Title - Oct. 2009  Senior boys soccer team and parents. See Slide Show - JT Tomkins Photos The Grand Island High School Varsity Boys Soccer Team won their last regular season home game on Senior night, Monday, October 19, 2009, defeating Kenmore East 2 - 0. The win clinched first place for the regular season in the Niagara Frontier League for the boys' team. It is only the second time in school history that the boys' team won the NFL, the last time being in 1984. The team also broke the regular season shutout record with Jeremy Figler in goal recording their twelfth shutout. The Seniors are as follows: Jeremy Figler (captain), Bobby Ross, Chris Stessing (captain), Kolby Banker, Joe Fischer (captain), Ryan Osvath, Steve Boyle, Eric Breier, Mike Lydle, Korey Hagen, Adam Asbach, Anthony Bruno, Brian Kulick, Seth Kline All of the senior boys were recognized, along with their parents in a halftime ceremony. The GIHS varsity senior cheerleaders and Debbie Billica, were also recognized, presented with carnations and a rose and thanked for their continuous support during the boys' highschool soccer careers. The boys varsity soccer team, coached by Pete Kuehne, wrapped up their season last night with a double overtime 1-1 tie against North Tonawanda. Final league record 11-1-2 and overall 12-1-3, and are ranked #1 in the large school coaches poll. Coach Pete Kuehne said that the boys have a different attitude this year, are more mature and focused. They know what they want and are pretty intent on getting there. Homecoming Dance - October 2009 
Queen Deanna Paternostro and King Seth Kline 
 (left) Andrew Sander and Sara Fiedler - (right) Brooke Chamberlain and Nathanial Beyer 
Zoe and Liam Dodd Click photos for larger view Grand Island High School's Homecoming dance on Saturday, October 17 in the high school gym was a great event with almost 700 students in attendance! The theme was "Skyline and Moonlight." Seth Kline and Deanna Paternostro were chosen king and queen. Those in their court were Dan Mathes and Michelle Fanara, Chris Moody and Meghan Mahiques, Eric Breier and Mary Chiaravalle, Rob Schiffauer and Sara Wilczek. Homecoming photos will be accepted for consideration if submitted by Wednesday, October 28th. GIHS Sports Briefs - Slide Show - Week Ending October 22, 2009 Click "Sports Briefs 10/22/09" for this week's Grand Island High School sports scores. GIHS Tech Club Turns In Fantastic Win At Great Pumpkin Farm Trebuchet Competition - October 2009 
 Click photos for larger view. The Grand Island Senior High Advanced Technology and Design class, accompanied by Mr. Jonathan Shelley and Mr. Carl Koppmann, entered the Great Pumpkin Farm Trebuchet contest in Clarence, NY on Sunday, October 18th. A trebuchet is a catapult-like device that uses a counterweighted arm to throw a projectile (in this case a six-eight pound pumpkin). The advanced tech class waited all day as they were the second to last team to compete. Seventeen other school districts competed along with Grand Island. When it was all said and done, it would be Grand Island in the top spot in the accuracy event! No other school could hit the castle target set 150 feet away. Grand Island not only hit the target, but hit it on all three consecutive shots. A true team effort from all the students was the key to success (and some long days after school working hard to dial in their designs). Two trebuchets were built through the combined efforts of the students. Each student was assigned a different task, from design to computer aided drawing, to construction, prototyping, and even record keeping. Keep an eye out for further testing on the front lawn of the high school in the weeks to come. Viking Swim Star Megan McInerney Featured In Niagara Gazette - Oct. 2009 Click 10/21/09 Niagara Gazette for feature story on Megan McInerney. Support GIHS Football Under The Lights - October 2009 The GIHS Varsity Football Team has made the playoffs and is playing Friday night, October 23rd at 7 p.m. at Williamsville South High School, 5950 Main Street. A couple players came up with the idea to "make some noise" in support of the team. A noisemaker made from an empty plastic water or pop bottle with coins inside is easy to make and will surely "make some noise." Come out and cheer for your GIHS football team. GIHS Boys Volleyball Team To Host Tournament - October 2009 The Grand Island High School Boys Volleyball Team will host a volleyball tournament beginning at 8:30 a.m. Saturday, October 31, 2009 at Grand Island High School. The parents of the players will sponsor the food/refreshment portion of this event. The community is urged to come out and enjoy the competition and take advantage of the concessions (pizza, coffee, hot chocolate, sandwiches, and much much more). All proceeds from the volleyball tournament will be used solely to support the Grand Island Boys Volleyball Team. To make a donation, contact parent representative Ann Bolton at 773-9223 as soon as possible. "We would love to have you join us at this event to cheer for our hometown youth," Mrs. Bolton said this week. Cross Country Star Nick Masiello Featured In Niagara Gazette - Oct. 2009 Click 10/15/09 Niagara Gazette for feature story on Nick Masiello. GIHS Spirit Week - October 2009  From Left: Korey Hagen, Katie Taylor and Steve Boyle dressed for retro day. Click for larger view. Pep Rally Slide Show Spirit week at Grand Island High School began Tuesday, October 13th with class color day. The classes were assigned colors to wear, Fresh: Yellow, Soph: Red, Juniors: Green, and Seniors: Pink. The class who had the most members in colors were admitted to the Powder Puff/Bonfire for free. Wednesday was retro/disco dress, Thursday - mis-match day, and Friday was pep rally with everyone in blue/white. Director of Athletics Jon Roth announced at the pep rally that five fall sports were in 1st place in NFL play: Girls Tennis, Girls Soccer, Boys Soccer, Boys Cross Country and Boys Volleyball. Mr. Roth also announced that Grand Island High School received the NFL Supremecy Award for the 2008-2009 school year. The senior members of the varsity teams, all dressed in blue and white, were then introduced. The boys and girls cross country team seniors gobbled up worms as they do every year. Cheerleaders cheered, twirlers twirled and each class yelled really loud. The classes and the teachers competed in crazy games, and for the first time anyone can remember, the senior boys football team beat the male faculty in the tug-o-war. International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme - October 2009  From left: Cheryl Chamberlain, Carrie Earnst, Jeffrey Green, Jerry Parisi Grand Island High School is a candidate school for the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme. GIHS is pursuing authorization as an IB World School. These are schools that share a common philosophy – a commitment to high quality, challenging, international education that GIHS believes is important for our students. The first contingent of GIHS faculty attended training at Rice University in Houston, TX October 11-13, 2009. Mrs. Cheryl Chamberlain (Creativity, Action, Service - CAS), Mrs. Carrie Earnst (IB Coordinator), Mr. Jeffrey Green (Environmental Systems & Societies), and Mr. Jerry Parisi (IB Administrator) received training in the development and implementation of the IB Diploma Programme. This programme will provide Grand Island students an additional opportunity to earn college credits in variety of areas of study. Our current ninth graders will be the first class with the opportunity to earn an IB diploma. As stated by the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO), “the Diploma Programme is a challenging, broad and balanced two-year programme of international education for students aged 16 to 19. Students are required to study six subjects and a curriculum core concurrently. The programme is designed to equip students with the basic academic skills needed for university study, further education and their chosen profession, as well as developing the values and life skills needed to live a fulfilled and purposeful life.” (p. 1, Diploma Programme: A basis for practice) For information about the IBO and its programmes, visit http://www.ibo.org. Vikings Win Girls Soccer Title - October 2009 Buffalo News Vikings claim NFL title Jenna Raepple had a pair of goals and Kristin Wegrzyn and Sara Palazza shared the shutout as Grand Island defeated Niagara-Wheatfield, 2-0, Thursday to clinch at least a share of the Niagara Frontier League girls soccer title. Grand Island is 12-0 in the NFL and has a two-game lead on Kenmore West, which it has beaten twice, in the league standings. GIHS Sports Briefs - Slide Show - Week Ending October 15, 2009 Click "Sports Briefs 10/15/09" for this week's Grand Island High School sports scores. Boys, Girls Cross Country News - Oct. 2009 Slide Show October 15, 2009 . . The Grand Island Girls Cross Country Team placed 2nd at the Wickham Invite in the trip to Manchester, CT over the weekend! Leading Grand Island was Maritina Tsembelis, 2nd place. Also for Grand Island: Dominique DeGregorio - 12th Megan Karpie - 34th Amber Speisz - 61 Maggie Demarco - 63 Angelina Howe - 74th Competition include 27 teams. The Boys Cross Country Team placed 6th out of 33 teams. Grand Island runners: Nick Masiello - 13th Derek Stacey - 42nd Chris Meyer - 45th Jason Chadwick - 52nd Brendon Lutnick - 100th Matt Killian - 142nd TJ Howley - 145th Eighth grader Brentyn Mendel was 3rd in the 7/8 Race and Freshman Ayla Marino was 2nd with Brianna Gibney placing 12th in the Girls race. The Team, coached by Don Sauer, visited the University of Connecticut and Yale University and paid for their entire trip through fundraising activities. High School News - October 2009 National Honor Society Volunteers at 2009 Kidney Walk - October 2009 By Marwa Eltagouri (Senior) - Student Writer 
Marwa Eltagouri photos - Click photos for larger view Members of the National Honors Society traveled to Bethany, NY on Sunday, October 4th, to help the National Kidney Foundation run its first annual Kidney Walk, a fundraiser intended to help raise money for Kidney Disease. Over 20 volunteers, as well as their advisor, Mr. Kevin Murray, showed up to show their support and lend some helping hands. In spite of the cold weather, several kidney donors, recipients, and their family members attended the event, which consisted of two different walks: a half-mile walk and a two-mile walk. The half-mile walk was lead by volunteer Caity Taylor, who was dressed as the National Kidney Foundation’s mascot “Sydney the Kidney.” NHS volunteers took part in many other tasks as well, such as setting up equipment before the walk began, passing out food, and helping out with registration. Volunteers Jon LoTempio, Luke Burkhart, and Kearney Erhard did an excellent job grilling hot dogs and hamburgers, providing warm food for participants after the walk. Several volunteers also helped organize a basket raffle as well. The event turned out to be quite successful; several donations were made to the National Kidney Foundation, and many kidney disease patients were honored, including a few who underwent recent transplants and were miraculously still able to participate in the walk. The next upcoming event for NHS will be the annual Spaghetti Dinner, which will be held this year on Friday, November 13th. High School News Promote Healthy Lunches - October 2009 By Kaitie Samland (Senior) - Student Writer Thursday, October 8, 2009 . . . The recent complaint around the school is where does this cafeteria hide the healthy foods? Every lunch available at the high school is either full of fat or loaded with salt. Nachos are offered every day as well as pizza. The main meal is usually a hamburger, spaghetti, or even a loaded potato!?! Honestly, what is our school doing to the students and the staff? Sure there is an apple available every day with the lunches but right next to that is the dessert; jello, pudding, cake. Our faculty and staff are very concerned about the Swine Flu but being obese can kill us too. There needs to be more offered for these students to be healthy and remain healthy. Various students and teachers have complained about the lunches. Many say they are too busy in the morning to pack a lunch so they just take a few bucks and buy the school lunch. Not only is there unhealthy food offered in the cafeteria but also in the school store which is right down the hall and then around the corner at the snack machine. Our administration needs to hear about this problem from a student, not from a parent. Students are even concerned about their health and want to take action to a healthy lifestyle. GIHS Sports Briefs - Slide Show - Week Ending October 8, 2009 Click "Sports Briefs 10/8/09" for this week's Grand Island High School sports scores. Girls Soccer Star Jordan Dudish - Niagara Gazette Feature See 10/6/09 Niagara Gazette Story by Nate Beutel. Grand Island Vikings - Athletes of the Week - Oct. 2009 
(left) Alex Fry and Katie Samland Congratulations to this week's Athletes of the Week! Katie Samland is a Senior member of the Girls Tennis Team. Last week Katie won both her matches to help the Tennis Team extend their undefeated streak to 9 and 0. Alex Fry is a member of the Golf Team. Last week Alex scored 37 in both of the week's matches. He was given the honor of "medalist" for shooting the lowest score of the match. Congratulations to Katie and Alex for an outstanding week! The Athlete of the Week is decided by the Student Advisory Council which is made up of two student athletes from each grade. They do the Athlete of the Week, the Student Olympics in March and the Fan Appreciation Month in May. The SAC is an NFL league club and they meet twice a year with other student athletes from around WNY. The SAC sends out an email every Monday to the fall coaches, asking for nominations from their team. After they submit their names, one boy and one girl are chosen on Tuesdays each week. Girls Varsity Soccer Team REMAINS Undefeated - October 2009 See Vikings Beat Ken-West 2-0 and remain undefeated. High School Students Announce Kayak Winner - Fall 2009  Grand Island High School Viking Boat Club (left) Mr. Shelley, Dale Baran, James Cooke, Dave McIntyre (winner), Nick Egloff, Mr. Carl Koppmann, Ian Rogers Click photo for larger view. The Grand Island High School Viking Boat Club would like to congratulate Dave McIntyre of Amherst, N.Y. Dave purchased a ticket for the kayak raffle at the Paddles Up Niagara event held at Beaver Island this summer and his ticket was chosen in the drawing held on Thursday, September 24th. Mr. McIntyre is an avid kayaker and was truly grateful for all the hard work that went into the design and construction the kayak. The club has already started construction of their next kayak. Again, we want to thank everyone for their support of the Viking Boat Club. GIHS Sports Briefs - Slide Show - Week Ending October 1, 2009 Click "Sports Briefs 10/1/09" for this week's Grand Island High School sports scores. High School News - October 2009 Senior Luncheon A Day To Remember - 2009 By Marwa Eltagouri (Senior) - Student Writer 
Click photos for larger view Thursday, October 1, 2009 . . . On September 25th, the senior class attended the annual senior luncheon, a formal lunch held to commemorate their last year of high school. This year’s lunch was held at the Pearl Street Grill in Buffalo, and included an open buffet and a speech from guest-of-honor Nicolas Picholas of Kiss 98.5. The day started off with all the seniors, dressed in semi-formal attire, gathering outside to take the traditional senior picture for the school yearbook, arranged in a “2010” formation while an overhead photo was taken from the roof of the school. Afterwards, seniors were given the opportunity to sign the “senior wall”, a wall painted by senior art students over the cafeteria entrance. This year’s wall was designed by senior Tom McDonnell, who chose to design a cartoon-style “Town of Grand Island” theme, that centered around trees, clouds, and of course, the north and south bridges. Seniors also were given the opportunity to take part in a “senior confessions” video run by the AV Department, in which seniors would either reflect on their favorite memories from High School or “confess” something embarrassing that they did. Students told funny and amusing stories from as early as their freshman year, making the day all the more sentimental. Finally, seniors boarded the buses and made their way to the actual luncheon. Prior to the meal, senior superlatives for the yearbook were announced, and Nicholas Picholas shared some advice with the students. “The most important piece of advice I can give to you guys is this: internships,” the radio DJ said. He explained the importance of getting directly involved with the environments of potential careers as early as possible. He said that interning at nursing homes would allow people to meet doctors, for example, and have immediate connections for when it comes time to find a job. “It’s all about who you know,” he concluded. The luncheon ended with the seniors gathering on the balcony of the restaurant, which had a beautiful view overlooking downtown Buffalo. Seniors talked, laughed, and of course, took hundreds of pictures. All in all, the day was a great kickoff to an exciting last year of high school for the seniors. Much thanks goes out to the Class of 2010 class advisors Mrs. Cindy Wynne and Mr. Michael DeDario, as well as the High School administration for making this memorable day possible. Boys, Girls Cross Country Win Team Titles - Sept. 2009 
(from left) Maritina Tsembelis, Rob Arsenault, NIck Masiello, Girls Team, Boys Team Click photo for larger view. The Boys and Girls Cross Country Teams both won the team title this past weekend (Sept. 26) at the WNY Official's Meet at Beaver Island. GI also had individual winners in Maritina Tsembelis winning the Girls Varsity Race and Nick Masiello won the Boys Varsity Race. Rob Arsenault won the JV Boys race. Girls Varsity Soccer Team Undefeated - Meet KW Thurs., Oct. 1 - 2009 See HOME Match-up - Go Vikings. Chelsea Hall Featured In Gazette - 2009 See "9/21/09 Niagara Gazette". GIHS Sports Briefs - Slide Show - Week Ending Sept. 24, 2009 Click "Sports Briefs 9/24/09" for this week's Grand Island High School sports scores. Isledegrande.com Welcomes New Student Writer - 2009 My name is Marwa Eltagouri, and I am a senior at Grand Island High School. I am currently interning at Isledegrande, and aspire to go into the field of journalism as a career, specifically as a political correspondent. I am pleased to be writing for the online newspaper, and hope to do a successful job. Over the summer I attended the National Student Leaderhip Conference on Journalism and Communications; a two-week program for high school journalists held at American University in Washington D.C. The program was both fun and informative, with a three-hour college journalism class each day, and field trips, leadership seminars, and social events daily. The class I was enrolled in was a newsprint and magazine class taught by Professor Reggie Ragland of American University’s School of Communications. Not only did we learn techniques and methods of article writing, but we also had several guest speakers, and went on field trips to NPR’s headquarters, USA Today’s headquarters, Voice of America’s headquarters, and the Newseum, and national museum completely dedicated to the news. Some highlights of this class were the opportunity to interview Neil Conan of NPR himself, as well as Congressman Chris Van Hollen, and even attend a press conference on AmeriCorps. I was able to do plenty of sightseeing as well; I visited the monuments and memorials, the Smithsonian Institution, old town Alexandria, Georgetown, The Capital Building and Library of Congress, Holocaust Museum, and Arlington Cemetery. In addition to that, I made plenty of new friends from all over the globe — California, Vancouver, China, Brazil, and Germany. The diversity among the students attending the conference was especially worthwhile, seeing as I come from the small town of Grand Island, which isn’t very diverse. Meeting different people changed my perspective of other parts of the country, as well as the world, and allowed me to realize the similarity between me and a person living in an opposite hemisphere. Aside from the program, my journalism experience includes writing for teenobserver.net, a website promoting the involvement of teenagers in keeping up with current events and allowing them to voice their opinions, and writing for the Class of 2010 newsletter, of which I am co-editor. I only started writing for it this year, and through it keep members of the class updated on upcoming events and accomplishments of my fellow seniors. I am honored to write for Isledegrande, and will report Grand Island High School news on a regular basis High School News - September 2009 By Kaitie Samland (Senior) - Student Writer Thursday, September 24, 2009 . . . Red light, green light, stop sign!? Everyone knows that one stop sign on Ransom Road heading towards Stony Point. It’s literally a train wreck. When the bell strikes 2:03 p.m., everyone, Monday through Friday, students eligible to drive rush to their cars and start to head out. But, they get caught in that terrible traffic everyday. Students, teachers, and even busses waste more gas sitting in that traffic than driving from Grand Island to Niagara Falls! It’s just ludicrous. You would think our community would have taken care of this issue by now, but year after year it just gets worse. Not only is there traffic but there has been several accidents because people who turn right at the stop sign believe they can drive on the grass to cut ahead. To me it seems like a simple problem to solve; add a traffic light!! We can’t wait for that building sitting there to be done to actually add a light, because that brick building has been sitting there for several years now. As a community we need to step up to the plate and tell the town board our concerns as members of Grand Island. Tsemblis Wins W. Seneca Invite Teams Take 4th Place - Sept. 2009  Grand Island's Maritina Tsembelis - Click photo for larger view. The Grand Island Cross Country Teams had a good start for the ’09 season by placing 4th in both the boys and girls team finishes. Maritina Tsembelis ran an impressive race leading from start to finish, winning by more than 20 seconds. “Maritina ran strong the entire race” noted Coach Don Sauer. “Her time was very good for this early in the season. We want to continue to improve her performances and times throughout the season.” Tsembelis' time was 18:30 more than a 2-minute improvement than her race here last year. “Every runner but one had their best time here at West Seneca over last year’s times so I am very pleased with our progress”, commented the Coach. Teammate Dominique DeGregorio ran an impressive 9th place followed by Megan Karpie placed 29th and like DeGregorio, shaved a minute off her time. Amber Spiesz placed 38th, and improved her time by over 2 minutes. Maggie DeMarco was 54th while Angelina Howe placed 59th, both improving their times by about a minute. The top JV girls were Jill Greinert (80th) and Andrea Nicolia (81st), both with their best times. The Boys Team also place 4th and was just as impressive. Nick Masiello ran a strong race placing 11th and though he improved his time by 54 seconds (16:58), was disappointed with his finish. “Nick ran a good race and was a little too fast in the beginning so the field caught him about the mile mark,” noted Coach Sauer. “We’ll work on that in the coming weeks to correct it and he’ll be fine.” Derek Stacey placed 20th, improving his time by 1:30 (17:38) while Jay Chadwick (17:53) was 25th improving his time by about 1:30 also. Rookie Chris Meyer was 4th runner for the Vikings in his debut run placing 30th (18:00) and sophomore Brendon Lutnick ran impressive with a 37th place finish running his best in 18:16. Matt Killian was 60th with his best time of 19:13. The top JV finishers were Nate Beyer (34th) and Evan Shaw running his first race in two years and placing 78th. The Team competes at Beaver Island 10:30 a.m. this Saturday (Sept. 26) at the WNY Officials Invite. Island Students Selected to Perform at NYS Conference All State Music Ensembles - Sept. 2009  Jessica Osvath - String Bass (Symphonic Orchestra) and Alyssa Yaeger, chosen as alternate on Cello.  Brian Kulak – Tuba, Justine Call- Eb Clarinet and Bb Clarinet, Alexander Fry- Trombone (Symphonic Band)  Tara Hook - Soprano (Women's Chorus), Luke Burkhart – Bass, Taylor Kozlowski - Soprano (Mixed Chorus). Seven Grand Island High School students have earned a place at the New York State Conference All State Music Ensembles and will travel to Rochester, New York this coming December to perform with students from across New York State. This annual event is sponsored by the New York State School Music Association (NYSSMA). Grand Island is well represented in the All State honor ensembles. Students selected include: All State Chorus Tara Hook - Soprano (Women's Chorus), Luke Burkhart – Bass, Taylor Kozlowski - Soprano (Mixed Chorus). All State Band Brian Kulak – Tuba, Justine Call- Eb Clarinet and Bb Clarinet, Alexander Fry- Trombone (Symphonic Band). All State Orchestra Jessica Osvath - String Bass (Symphonic Orchestra) and Alyssa Yaeger, chosen as alternate on Cello. These selected students competed against approximately 6500 juniors and sophomores from across New York for the opportunity to perform at this event - the state’s highest musical honor. The students auditioned last spring in front of state certified judges who deemed their performances to be worthy of selection into the All State ensembles. All students selected throughout the state prepared a NSSMA Level VI solo with their school music teacher. They practiced countless hours, received coaching sessions with their teachers and spent additional time with an accompanist to prepare for their solo audition. They will rehearse with other outstanding musicians on December 3-6. These rehearsals will culminate to a performance in the historic Eastman Theater. The selected musicians from Grand Island are actively involved in school ensembles and have numerous honors ensemble selections to their credit. It is an honor to have so many musicians from one school chosen and all of these students are most deserving of this wonderful opportunity. High School News - September 2009 By Kaitie Samland (Senior) - Student Writer Thursday, September 17, 2009 . . .Well, the year has just started and it is already sooo busy!! This week Friday for high school students is our first half day. Students will report to first period for half hour then they will be taken down to the auditorium for an assembly about drugs and how they are abused. Also this Friday for seniors they’re superlative sheets are to be turned in, and Friday will be the last day for seniors to buy they’re senior luncheon tickets which are $20. Seniors must have they’re permission slip signed by a parent in order to purchase a ticket. The senior luncheon will be held next week Friday the 25th and students are to dress in appropriate clothing such as dresses and shirts and ties. But this is just the beginning. There is more to come for our seniors as well as the underclassmen. I can’t wait! GIHS Sports Briefs - Week Ending Sept. 17, 2009 Click "Sports Briefs 9/17/09" for this week's Grand Island High School sports scores. NYS Police K-9 Unit Visits GIHS - Sept. 2009 
 Shown are Grace Kulikowski and Alicia Zartman (Accounting and Marketing students), Trooper Brian Paszerski, Javie Solis, Jessica Bamberg, Jon Savoy, and TC - Click photos for larger view. Students in the business department were visited by TC, the New York State Police K-9 unit, along with handler Trooper Brian Paszerski. Mr. Christopher Simpson and his Accounting –I class were the hosts for the visit, on September 15, 2009, that accompanies their unit on choosing a career. Members of the Marketing, Internship, and Keyboarding classes were also invited to attend along with Mrs. Jodie Rudney’s Life Skills class. Students were thrilled to have the dog perform and walk around the class. They were also taken by how much enjoyment and satisfaction Trooper Paszerski gets from being part of the unit. This was the theme of the unit the Accounting class is trying to learn - to match a career with your interests, skills, lifestyle and personal values that each individual has. Trooper Paszerski talked about the academy, training, and how the dog has become part of his family and not just a work companion. TC is one of only a few bomb sniffing dogs in the state and was rescued from being tormented and abused as a puppy. Along with Mr. Simpson and Mrs. Rudney, business teacher Cheryl Chamberlain, School Resource Officer Chris Pyc, and Melissa Kosmoski took part in the event. ECC Offers GIHS Students College Credit! - Sept. 2009  From left are Deborah Schmidt and Cheryl Chamberlain - Click photo for larger view. In addition to a great experience and completed portfolio, students in Mrs. Cheryl Chamberlain's CEIP/Portfolio classes have an added bonus this year. Mrs. Chamberlain, aka "Professor Chamberlain," is now an instructor for Erie Community College and her CEIP students can receive college credit in high school. For a fraction of the cost, students can enroll in CEIP, or GS111 College Success Skills, and receive three SUNY credits. According to Deb Schmidt from ECC, "Students put forth an extra effort and are rewarded for their hard work with one college course completed before they even graduate high school!" For more information on this exciting opportunity, contact Mrs. Chamberlain at 773-8820. "The Rock" Painted In Memory of 9-11 - Sept. 2009  Mark Gorton Photo - Click for larger view. The Grand Island High School Senior Class of 2010 painted "The Rock" in memory of all involved in the September 11, 2001 attacks. Their dedication can be found by visiting the back parking lot of the high school. Thank you, Class of 2010, for a beautiful job well done. GIHS Sports Briefs - Week Ending Sept. 10, 2009 Click "Sports Briefs 9/10/09" for this week's Grand Island High School sports scores. Student Built Kayak To Be Raffled Saturday - Sept. 2009  Click photo for larger view. The Grand Island High School Tech Club will be selling raffle tickets at the Antique and Classic Boat show this Saturday, Sept. 12 from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tickets are $2.00 for a chance to win the student built kayak. High School Venture Yearbook 2010 - Sept. 2009 The 2010 Venture Yearbook will be putting together the senior portrait section of the book as part of their first deadline. Lifetouch Photography (Prestige Portraits) will be in the school on October 8th and 9th for retakes or for seniors who have not been photographed. The sitting is free and the hours will be from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. This is the last chance for seniors to get a portrait taken unless they call the studio at 633-4466 and set up an appointment. Senior portraits are due to Mr. Simpson no later than November 2, 2009. For more information on the specs for the portraits, visit the Grand Island Website under high school and yearbook. Only pictures with the same specs (color, size, head size, tux or drape, etc.) will be used in the book. High School Fall Sports Schedule - Sept. 2009 See Fall Sports Schedule High School Book Store - Sept. 2009 See "Book Store" for complete store information. DECA Volunteers at Freshmen Orientation - August 2009  Pictured from left are Ben Tomkins, Hillary Figler, Lauren Fonte, Courtney Papaj, Maritina Tsembelis, Andrea Nicolia, Ben Soos, and Steve Boyle Click photo for larger view The class of 2013 visited the halls of Grand Island High School on Tuesday, August 25 to receive their schedules, check out lockers, and meet some of their older peers. Freshmen Orientation was made possible by the large number of student volunteers from the Principal's Advisory Council, DECA, SAC and other clubs giving their time to orient new freshmen to a typical day at GIHS. A barbecue started off the evening along with a short welcome video. New students then visited their homeroom and toured the high school with parents. Many thanks to all administrators, food service, teachers, and volunteers who assisted with this event! GIHS Takes 3rd In Lewiston Chalk Walk - August 2009  Click photo for larger view A team of Grand Island High School students competed in the 25th Annual WNY High School Chalk Walk Competition on Saturday, August 8th at the Lewiston Art Festival. Although rain was forecasted for the afternoon, it fortunately held off until after the award ceremony. The artistic and talented team consisting of Jenna Hutzler, Shawn O’Rourke and Jason Chadwick, created one of the most elaborate and conceptual designs in Grand Island Chalk Walk history. The theme, “Year of Our Shared Waters,” celebrated 100 years of the Boundary Waters Treaty between the U.S.A. and Canada. After reading the treaty, researching images, and brainstorming ideas, the team combined imagery and developed a composition based on shared electricity and hydropower. Representing each country with popular landmarks, the buildings pull water into large pipes converting it to electricity which escapes from the antennas banging into each other to create a huge bolt of lightning which strikes the water revealing a peace sign under the water. During the four-hour competition, the team received many compliments from onlookers about their drawing skills, use of color, teamwork and powerful image. The 2009 Grand Island team took third place honors. GIHS To Compete In Lewiston Chalk Walk - August 2009  Click photo for larger view Grand Island High School will be participating in the 25th Annual WNY High School Chalk Walk Competition in Lewiston on Saturday, August 8th. The contest is a featured event on Center Street beginning at 12 noon and requires the team of artists to complete an 8-foot by 10-foot chalk drawing directly on the street surface during the four hours allotted. This year’s team has two new members, Shawn O’Rourke (Class of 2009) and Jason Chadwick (Class of 2011), along with three-time member Jenna Hutzler (Class of 2009). The theme of this year’s Chalk Walk contest is “Year of Our Shared Waters” which celebrates the centennial of the Boundary Waters Treaty between the U.S.A. and Canada. Come for a visit and cheer on your team! Grand Island High School Honor Roll - July 2009 The following Grand Island High School students have attained honor roll status for the fourth marking period of the 2008-2009 school year: High Honor Roll Grade 9: Sonia Brar, Christopher Brownschidle, Amber Carpenter, Alexandra Corrao, Jordan Davis, Maggie DeMarco, Shannon Doctor, Rebekah Evans, Kaitlyn Gilbert, Jonathan Goc, Katlyn Holt, Casey Jelonek, Samantha Kahn, Megan Karpie, Brendon Lutnick, Rebecca Masse’, John McGinty, Kallan McMillan, Casey McNamara, Nigel Michki, Joshua Miller, Ryan Miller, Dominic Morell, Samuel Railey, Sarah Ramsperger, Danyelle Redmond, Rachel Ripellino, Kenneth Rogoza, Nicolette Scerra, Alexandra Seibert, Zachary Smith, Sarah Stanczyk, Taylor Sweet, Rachel Watt, Nathalie Winder Grade 10: Aliena Cook, Sara Diletti, Emma Henderson, Ava Jackson, Ariana Mendel, Kevin Neary, Scott Rogers, Evan Shaw, Stephen Vitello, Danielle Wegrzyn, Melissa Zytariuk Grade 11: Luke Burkhart, Krystal Chapin, James Cooke, Joseph Fischer, Lauren Fonte, Alexander Fry, Mary George, Susan Head, Tara Hook, Ramandeep Kaur, Jeffrey Lariviere, Megan McInerney, Michael Mucci, Erika Osberg, Mary Scherrer, Spencer Seese, Vincent Spada, Jonas Stalyga, Blake Stanwick, Christopher Stessing, Rachel Surdi, Jameela Syed Grade 12: Kaitlin Arida, Chelsea Bernardi, Maria Buyer, Kira Dennis, Mary Egloff, Gregory Feathers, Joshua Kahn, Alexandra King, Charles Lavallee, Kelsey Mash, Destiny Perez, Tess Stewart, Nicholas Vitello, Kelly Williams Honor Roll Grade 9: Reem Abdellatif, Gabrielle Ailinger, Sumr Ali, Laura Amantia. Jessica Bamberg, Makallie Banker, Elora Bascello, Joshua Bastian, Katelyn Benns, Alexandria Black, Amanda Blanton, James Bobak, Shannon Boreali, Diana Boulden, Sarah Brady, Justin Canazzi, Marshall Cancilla, Emma Chambers, Andrew Chorey, Jesse Ciffa, Eric Colon, Emily Dauphin, Allison Donahue, Sydney Dudish, Talia Fabiilli, Matthew Foote, Brent Fred, Alyssa Fuoco, Matthew Gannon, Rebecca Gasiorek, Ashley Gorman, Olivia Graziano, Deanna Green, Thomas Grenke, Brianna Guagliano, Marissa Haley, Jessica Hall, Lynne Huffnagle, Ryan Hughes, Mary Irving, Andrew Jasek, Morgan Kaczmarowski, Dylan Kelly, Paige Kippley, Elizabeth Kowalik, Victoria Kustra, Mitchell Lariviere, Jenna Lee, Jodi Lee, Kelsie Loos, Mark Lydle, Michael Malaney, Madelyne Mankowski, Shannon McNaughton, Brendan Mergel, Mia Michael, Kailah Moss, Hallie Nowak, Alexis Pearce, Kristen Percival, Alyssa Pino, Corey Price, Ryan Proctor, Loretta Scherrer, Glenn Skelly, Emily Sommer, Jessica Spencer, Angelina Stromberg, Bridget Thompson, Harrison Thompson, Kathryn Turner, Jessica Ungaro, Jonathan Voyzey, Laurice Wilbert, Sarah Williams Grade 10: Karl Albrecht, Matthew Arida, Dale Baran, Shannon Becker, Nathanial Benoit, Alexandria Bleich, Christopher Boulden, Kathryn Boutet, Brian Brink, Nicholas Bruno, Justine Call, Jenna Cardone, Brennan Carey, Brooke Chamberlain, Amnadip Cheema, Amanda Cinelli, Bethany Cinelli, Nicholas Colao, Kevin Colman, Nicolette Corrao, Samuel Cummings, Brooke DeMarco, Nicholas DePietro, Christopher Ernst, Chelsea Fairbairn, Geoff Federspiel, Anna Ferrante, Korin Frantz, Craig Fusco, Christian Gibson, Rebecca Hammett, Julie Hasselbeck, Amanda Heftka, Kyle Held, Angelina Howe, Emily Jones, Allison Kaminski, Alex Killian, Matthew Killian, Taylor Kozlowski, Justin Lee, Kelly Lorence, Nicholas Masiello, Chelsea Mazurkiewicz, Ryan McCarthy, Jennie McCoy, Christopher Meyer, Shelbi Milkas, Shannon Moody, Jessica Osvath, Alaina Pariso, Emily Pease, Jack Pilie, Raige Rockwood, Noah Rothberg, Kathleen Rustowicz, Rachel Schauger, Amy Schooping, Michael Seaman, Michael Sharon, Christopher Shemik, Benjamin Sherman, Catherine Sponn, Allison Stewart, Sarah Stewart, Rebecca Sturniolo, Megan Tates, Eugenia Taylor, Sara Victor, Nicholas Wallinder, Sarah Webb, Tyler Wunsch, Alyssa Yaeger, Richard Yager, Jessica Yarnes, Andrew Yockey, Megan Young Grade 11: Sarah Ali, Antonio Amin, Jonathon Anderson, Stephanie Aronica, Adam Asbach, Elisabeth Asbach, Kimberly Asbach, Catherine Aughey, Stephanie Aughey, Alissa Bailey, Conrad Banker, Kolby Banker, Steven Boyle, Anhony Bruno, Sean Burke, Alexandra Buscaglia, Nathan Busch, Victoria Cacciatore, Amanda Camizzi, Evan Carey, Kenneth Cerrillo, Kaitlyn Chapin, Brittany Cieri, Kathryn Cobello, Courtney Cox, Samantha Darby, Renee’ Doermer, Sarah Dolan, Jordan Dudish, Maria Edel, Marwa Eltagouri, Kearney Erhard, Nicholas Ernst, Hillary Figler, Jeremy Figler, Victoria Fleming, Christopher Franklin, Kate Garten, Jonathan Gebhard, Krista Glownia, Sara Grana, Anthony Grande, Maria Grant, Jill Greinert, Amy Grenke, Maria Guidotti, Kelly Hooven, Krystin Hoppel, Sara Huttenmaier, Julia Johnston, Zachary Kelly, Seth Kline, Joel Klock, Kristy Knickerbocker, Laura Koller, Lauren Kucharski, Brian Kulak, Savanna Kustra, Sarah Lew, Joshua Little, Jonathan LoTempio, Michael Lydle, Trevor Maddi, Daniel Major, Aman Mattu, Thomas McDonnell, Jennifer Mellett, Christopher Moody, Christopher Mornelli, Kelsey Mulvey, Andrea Nicolia, Jared Northrup, Ryan Osvath, Sarah Palazza, Courtney Papaj, Deanna Paternostro, Breanne Rafferty, Michael Rayhill, Alexander Re, Ian Rogers, Anthony Russell, Kaitie Samland, Robert Schiffhauer, Kyle Schutrum, Jonathon Seaman, Zaeem Shah, Margaret Shonitsky, Courtney Silsby, Keith Skelly, Michael Sperrazza, Amber Spiesz, Michael Stallard, Kelly Stark, Rachel Starr, Sean Steele, William Sundeen, Scott Suszczynski, Caitlin Taylor, Samantha Tilkins, Maritina Tsembelis, Kristin Wegrzyn, Eric Weigold, Sara Wilczek, Aria Yanicki, Rebecca Zimmerman, Travis Zukic Grade 12: Kevin Acquisto, Zachary Adams, Alexa Amato, Sarah Bastian, Lee Becker, Jeffrey Blanton, Jeremy Bobak, Tyler Booth, Allison Boron, Danielle Bush, Jonathan Caruana, Simarjot Cheema, Maria Christie, Kyle Clayton, Hannah Cliff, Amanda Colman, Caitlin Cook, Dustin Coryn, Kaitlyn Czerwonka, Aaron D’Angelo, Darren DelSignore, Michaeline Dera, Amber Duda, Julia Figliotti, Ashley Fike, Kelsey Foote, Victoria Fortman, Leah Gangloff, Rachel Gaydosh, Jordan Gibson, Samantha Gieselman, Zachary Gilbert, Andrew Ginsburg, Kaitlin Hager, Meghan Haley, Stefan Harzt, Michael Hillock, Jenna Hutzler, Molly Hyland, Alexandra Imperi, Taylor Jackson, Caroline Kaminski, Michael Karpie, Victoria Kowzan, LeAnna Kozlowski, Timothy Lewis, Mia Magliazzo, Jacqueline Maitner, Matthew Major, James McDonnell, Kimberley Mellett, Charlene Meyer, Jessica Mysliwiec, Alexander Neutz, Shawn O’Rourke, Joseph Oliverio, John Osberg, Marvin Pawlowski, James Pezzino, Susan Pioli, Jamie Raepple, Alexander Richter, Robert Rutland, Kayla Salonek, Jennifer Schaber, Victoria Schaber, Sierra Seese, Nicole Serra, Timothy Shantler, Kayleigh Shepard, Kuljit Singh, Griffin Smith, Alyssa Spada, Andrew Stange, Lindian Steele, Sara Stenzel, Mitchell Stessing, Joshua Stoddard, Emily Thompson, Charanjot Tiwana, Jordan Tripi, Evan Tsembelis, Megan Wagner, Allison Walker, Lauren Whitney, Brianna Wojnar, Arlene Wunsch, Meghan Yahner, Amanda Zernickel Grand Island High School Merit Roll - July 2009 The following Grand Island High School students have attained merit roll status for the fourth marking period of the 2008-2009 school year: Grade 9: Alexander Ahne, Chelsey Amacher, Megan Ambellan, Jeremy Anderson, Matthew Beauchamp, Korey Bennett, Conner Bolles, Philip Boudrow, Alanna Cedrone, Mikaela Connors, Natalee Culbert, Kevin Dobson, Donald Failing, Sean Garten, Morgan Green, Jonathan Grenda, Manraj Grewal, MacKenzie Howe, Ashley Johnson, Korey Kostek, Victoria Kostenbauder, Elise Lenzner, Marisa Marino, Dylan Martinic, Alec Metro, Kyle Meyer, Alexander Mirgorod, Lindsay Morano, Michelle Morgan, Gabriela Nizialek, Samuel Oursler, Jamison Phillips, Brittanee Ramallo, Zackary Reese, Stefani Rhodes, Matthew Robinson, Eric Sander, Michael Sendlbeck, Stephanie Senn, Ryan Sharrow, Gagandeep Singh, Cassidy Smith, Brittney Sonnenberg, Phyllip Stallard, Adam Stoddard, Katherine Studley, Erica Surdi, Chandan Tiwana, Samantha Warden, Dominic Zannin, Alicia Zartman Grade 10: Danya Abdellatif, Robert Arsenault, Taylor Bedford, Nathaniel Beyer, Geoffrey Bolton, Kathleen Brady, Dallas Broady, Thomas Cameron, Michael Campanella, Brianna Catanzaro, Jason Chadwick, Andrew Dale, Austin Dee, Dominique DeGregorio, Alexandra DeMita, Kaleigh Deuser, Robert Dickinson, Liam Dodd, Sara Dzielski, Thomas Dzielski, Carson Filips, Patrick Gallagher, Larissa Gelyon, David Gerfin, Vincent Golda, Heather Graff, Steven Henderson, Molly Higgins, Lindsay Hodan, Alex Howard, Mark Jurga, Thomas Kalman, Kyle Keifman, Samantha Kuszczak, Bradley Ludwig, Jaime Magaris, Iman Mohamed, Robert Petrilli, Alexzander Prine, Jenna Raepple, Jeremy Rockwood, Christopher Rose, Chelsea Rupert, Samuel Serra, Lawrence Smith, Rachel Spiker, Matthew Sundeen, Amanda Sutter, Ashley Swiantek, Ambria Tim, Benjamin Tomkins, Courtney Weiser, Patrick Worbs, Nikki Zimmerman Grade 11: Isam Abdellatif, Alyssa Accardo, Courtney Amacher, Richard Amantia, Patrick Antonelli, Jason Bogue, Christina Borden, Eric Breier, Tygue Busch, Julianna Capizzi, CayLeigh Carroll, Michael Chauby, Seana Chirico, Stacy Cich, Justin Ciechoski, David Domagala, Kara Dudley, Alexander Fabiilli, Kayla Fermoile, Rahsanica Ford, Anthony Genova, Christopher Gibney, Lena Gormady, Brandon Hagen, Korey Hagen, Chelsea Hall, Eric Harnden, Kelsey Hayden, Shaughn Irving, Courtney Justus, Matthew Kasprzycki, Raman Kaur, Timothy Krecisz, Andrew LaLonde, Steven Lillian, Ernest Little, Kori Loder, Elizabeth Lorence, Scott Ludwig, Meghan Mahiques, Daniel Mathes, Keran Mattu, Nicole McGuire, Sara McNulty, Hayley Metro, Intisar Mohamed, Sean O’Donnell, Danielle Perri, Dhriti Ramesh, Jessica Randhawa, Kellsi Rassega, Elizabeth Restey, Robert Ross, Ashley Rutland, Kodie Shamrock, Doninique Simmons, Allison Snell, Jamie Sobieski, Benjamin Soos, Paige Speidel, Alexander Strauss, Kasey Sumner, Abram Thompson, James Toney, Patricia VeRost, Brittney Wall, Zakiyyah Wilbert, Molly Wynne Grade 12: Joseph Aladeen, Robert Amsdill, Alexandria Avery, Nichole Barrett, Sean Benninger, Courtnnie Booker, Marissa Booker, Brianna Busch, Philip Cavuoto, Olivia Chopra, Allison Cislarksi, Christie DeMaria, Joseph Edel, Nicolette Fadel, Melissa Fargino, Shannon Farmer, Brianna Fetzer, Andrew Fix, Samantha Forysinski, Angela Fusco, Amanda Geis, Adrian Grant, Kaitlyn Hardison, Michael Harper, Adam Helman, Scott Holler, Stephanie Hunt, Taylor Kaufman, Tristan Kessler, Joseph Khreis, Benjamin Kose, Beau Lapp, Damone Lewis, Danielle McGuire, Mikki McMahon, David McMichael, Ashley McRae, Samantha Morrison, Katie Nordvik, Christopher Podlucky, Lance Robinson, Rachel Rogers, Michele Rossi, Michael Rustowicz, Richard Ryder, Anthony Schojan, Lee Schuster, Zachary Seiling, Kaileen Shoemaker, Carly Snyder, Jeffrey Szczepaniak, Waldemar Vazquez, Robert Whalen, Christopher Wilczek, Andrea Wilson High School 2009 News JANUARY - JUNE High School 2008 News Jan. - June High School 2008 News July - Dec. High School 2007 News Jan. - June High School 2007 News July - Dec. Archives |
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