NFA World
By Geoff Serra
It’s been a quiet week on campus as students hunkered down
to take examinations, and teachers were busy testing and grading,
Although second semester has barely begun, administrators
and guidance personnel are already preparing for next year. Starting Feb. 1, registration for the 2008-9
school year begins. The NFA course catalog will be distributed in homeroom and
students will watch a special video reviewing the entire registration process. A Curriculum Fair for students and parents
takes place 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., Feb. 7, in Alumni Gym. Seventh and eighth graders from sending communities are
encouraged to attend. Actual
registration follows online throughout the month.
Teri
Bruce, Director of Student Sevices, announces that an information session will
be held 5:30 p.m., Feb. 7 in the Ensemble Room of the Frank Center for parents
of special needs students. Parents of
these incoming 9th graders are especially encouraged to attend. Joe Miragliuolo, Special Education Department
Head, will also be on hand to answer questions to provide a smooth transition
for students to the NFA community and its many services.
On
December 10 NFA unveiled its exciting extended college credit program: College Pathways. Through partnerships with the University of Connecticut, Three
Rivers Community College, and Eastern Connecticut State University, and with
Advanced Placement and Tech Prep courses, NFA students have opportunities to
earn college credit in courses taught by NFA faculty. The program places NFA at the vanguard of schools preparing
students for powerful futures. To learn more about these opportunities view the
College Pathways Press Conference taped by students in NFA’s video production
program. It airs on Channel 12, 7:30
p.m., 8:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m., Jan. 31, and 4 p.m., 5:30 p.m., 7:00 p.m., and
8:30 pm on Feb. 1, 2, and 3. Don’t miss
it.
Simultaneously, NFA looks for opportunities to provide life
experiences for students in meaningful internship programs as it also develops
its Career Pathways program. Gil
Lapointe of the Business Department brings us news of the second year of a
successful program in collaboration with CorePlus Federal Credit Union. Last summer 8 NFA students were interns in a
program that hires students of diverse backgrounds to learn business skills by
working in various capacities in the company.
Participants Nayab Rani, Lanisha Knowles, Mei ting Wu, Wucheng Feng,
Bhavana Patel, Malcom Jones, Sana Samnani, and Carline Charmelus all agree that
the experience was valuable. According
to Paul Pescatello, Groton CorePlus branch supervisor, “They were a breath of
fresh air!” The academy looks to
partner with other community organizations to breathe enlivening “fresh air”
into meaningful curriculum opportunities for students.
Every Wednesday during the first semester NFA’s Career
Resource Center was abuzz with activity.
Over 67 colleges and university representatives met with a total of 683
students to share information about their respective colleges. Fran Schwartz, NFA’s new College Counselor,
reports that on one visit, representatives of Johnson and Wales University in
Rhode Island interviewed 3 prospective students, reviewed their transcripts,
and accepted them on the spot. In
December ten new 2007 alumni, returned to answer questions and share freshman
year college experiences with current 11th and 12th
graders. A Wildcat Thank You goes out
to the following: Jessica
D’Auria of UConn, Allison Boutin of Earlham, Barbara Tucker of Providence
College, Cal Weaver of the University of Arizona, Eric-John Tate of Randolph
College, Chelsea Green of UVM, Sterling Dumas of Cornell, Alyssa Belisle of
Colby, Brianna Clark of Vassar, and Kevin Sheehan of Boston University. What a
wonderful group.
Land Library is open to students and the public 9 a.m. – 2 p.m., Feb.
2. Check the NFA Web site for library
news. Don’t miss the list of almost 300
new titles added to the collection.
Wildcat
kudos to members of our talented NFA community. Two pieces by NFA English teacher, Patrick Barry were
featured in a Festival of New Artists at Goodspeed Musicals in East Haddam.
Barry continues to work with Goodspeed in development of his musical The
Great American Race, based on the life of Dale Earnhardt. Check out the article “Life
Sentences” in the Feb. issue of O Magazine by NFA alum and former
English teacher and colleague Wally Lamb.
Dancing Alum Brianna Clark and acting 11th grader Amelia
Parenteau both had significant parts in the performance of “Twelfth Night,” the
Chorus of Westerly’s annual extravaganza of music, myth, legend and dance. The irrepressible Sue Iwanicki, NFA’s ELL
Coach, who just returned from training for the state’s LAS Links
scoring (English Language Learner’s assessment) presented about
multicultural education and instruction of English Language Learners at the
BEST Leadership Academy, a select group of teacher leaders from across the
state.
Wildcat Billboard:
Varsity Boys Basketball vs. East Lyme, 7 p.m. Jan. 29,
Alumni Gym.
Varsity Boys Swimming vs. Fitch, 3:30 p.m. Jan. 29, YMCA.
Varsity Wrestling vs. Ledyard, 6 p.m. Jan 30, Norton Gym.
Varsity Girls Gymnastics vs. Woodstock Academy, 6 p.m. Jan.
31, Norton Gym.
Varsity Boys Swimming vs. St. Bernard, 3:30 p.m. Feb. 1,
YMCA.
Varsity Girls Basketball vs. Ledyard, 7 p.m. Feb. 1, Alumni
Gym.
If the winter days make you sluggish, recall the advice of
marketing and advertising genius Bruce Barton:
“If you can give your son or daughter only one gift, let it be
Enthusiasm.”
See you next week in NFA World….until
then direct your comments or questions to serrag@norwichfreeacademy.com
