February 2014 Archives

By Richard Kagan

What started out looking like a potential blowout; became a close game in the second half as Butler University fought hard, coming all the way back from an 18-point deficit. But host St. John's had the last flurry of points in the game, to edge a determined Butler University squad, making its first visit to the St. John's Queens' campus. The Red Storm made key plays down the stretch to fend off Butler's second-half plucky effort that saw it take a 50-48 late lead with 3:40 to play. Red Storm senior, Briana Brown and Sophomore Aliyyah Handford, came through late in the game to nail down the 58-55 victory, before over 4,000 school children on Field Trip Day held on January 15th. The youngsters arrived from the five boroughs and Long Island, to cheer on the Red Storm and enjoy the festivities.

St. John's improved to 11-5 for the season and 3-1 in Big East Conference play. Butler fell to 7-10, 2-4 in its first season as a Big East Conference member. The students and the Red Storm came out winners on this day. And, Butler had a stirring second-half after scoring just 17 points in the first twenty minutes.

"Obviously, we're excited about coming away with a win today," said head coach Joe Tartamella. 

The Bulldogs outscored SJU 38-23 to take a 50-48 lead but the Red Storm made got a steal by Handford and some big baskets by her to seal the win. Mr. Galanty's fourth grade class from P.S. 120 in Queens was on hand to cheer on the home team.  He chaperoned his students who seemed a bit awed to be sitting in a large setting. "It seems like they're having fun," he said.

Kaliantra Hoffman, 9, from Corona, sat near Mr. Galanty, and was beaming with joy. She enjoyed watching the cheerleaders and the dance team. Asked how it was being at the game, she replied, "It's awesome."

The St. John's players were not immune to the enthusiastic cheers from the crowd.

"So many kids out there, it was a great feeling," said Brown.  Briana made some clutch free throws in the final minutes to secure the win. Brown scored 16 points, 12 in the first half. Handford had 14, and Sophomore Danaejah Grant had 11 points coming off the bench. The Red Storm had a 35-17 half-time lead that evaporated when the Bulldogs went on a 14-2 run to get back in the game, trailing by 3 at 39-36.

Guard Taylor Schippers played great in the second half for Butler scoring 17 of her 18 game high points.  When Butler took a 50-48 lead late in the game, Schippers thought her team was right there. "We thought we were in the game," Schippers said. "We could have won it."

But the Red Storm took the challenge and made their own push, getting the key steal rebounds, and points to come away with its fourth Conference win.

Butler coach Beth Couture knew St. John's would be a tough opponent. "St. John's is really good, if not the best team in the Big East," said Couture.#

• 50 scholarships total across three disciplines - visual arts, music and dance.
  
  
• Value ranges from roughly $1,000-$5,000, depending on classes taken.
  
  
• Application due June 6. All applicants must either audition or submit a portfolio of work - various dates in June.
  
  
• Details and applications here: http://www.92y.org/rkscholars (page is to be updated soon with dates for 2014).
  
  
• Contac: Allison Valchuis, 212.415.5597, avalchuis@92Y.org.
  
  
• For ages 7-17.
  
  
• No GPA requirement.
  
  
• Must live in greater NYC area.
  
  
• General description: Offering full, 100% merit-based scholarships, the Recanati-Kaplan Program for Excellence in the Arts opens doors for exceptional students in Greater New York City to hone and develop their creative potential as artists and performers. Studying under the guidance of 92nd Street Y's esteemed School of the Arts faculty, upon acceptance students are immersed in a board range of advanced classes and private, personalized instruction. Students demonstrating particular excellence in their field are eligible to receive end-of-the-year awards, which can be used towards college tuition. At the core of the Recanati-Kaplan Program is the belief that individualized instruction and mentoring accelerates learning, supports technical accomplishment and stimulates creative potential. This is where the journey begins, putting students on a path to reach new goals, exceed expectations and fulfill their dreams.

New Programs:
 Musical Theater Dance, Musical  Theater Audition Workshop,
Sewing And Fashion Production



Usdan Center for the Creative and Performing Arts (www.usdan.com), the nationally acclaimed summer arts day camp, announces several new programs for its 2014, 47th season: Musical Theater Dance and Musical Theater Audition Workshop, both for grades 7-12; and Sewing and Fashion Production, for grades 4-12.

The Center, whose alumni include Natalie Portman, Mariah Carey and Jane Monheit, will hold the next of its Open Houses for the 2014 season on Wednesday February 19th from 11AM to 2PM. In addition to the Center's frequent Open House dates, Usdan also offers individual weekend guided tours available by appointment. Weekday self-guided walks are also available, on the Center's magnificent 200-acre woodland campus at 185 Colonial Springs Road, Wheatley Heights (Huntington), New York 11798 (for directions to the Center, visit www.usdan.com).


For an appointment, call 631-643-7900. (Visitors must be 21 years of age or accompanied by a parent.) Families who cannot attend an Open House may make individual appointments for visits on weekends or weekdays throughout the Fall and Winter.
Sewing and Fashion Design is an introductory courses focused on sewing basics and beginning design. Students learn how to create fashion from concept to construction, including hand and machine sewing and basic design. The course is an expansion of Usdan's popular Fashion Design course, in which students model their creations at the end of the season, made up by professional makeup artists and photographed by Usdan photography students.
 
Theater Dance, for grades 7-12 is a 3 or 4-week course (students may attend for either), in the Theater Department, in which students learn dance routines from popular and classic musicals. Choreography may be drawn from the works of Bob Fosse, Jerome Robbins, Susan Strohman and others. The program culminates in a studio workshop. A minimum of one year of previous dance training is required.


The Audition Workshop, open to Theater majors only, is a 7-week course including training for the acting and singing components of a musical theater audition. It also instructs students in choosing material that highlights the strength of each student.
Usdan Center offers more than 40 programs in music, dance, theater, visual arts, creative writing, nature and ecology and chess, annually hosting more than 1,600 students from towns throughout the Tri-State New York area. No audition is needed for most courses, and transportation is provided in air- conditioned buses that depart from most New York-area neighborhoods. One-third of Usdan's students receive scholarship assistance based on family need. Video from many of Usdan's programs and special events, may now be viewed on the Center's website, http://www.usdan.com as well as on YouTube. Also, families can check out Usdan's Facebook site, where additional information and late-breaking news is featured.
 
Usdan Center for the Creative and Performing Arts, whose alumni include actors Natalie Portman and Olivia Thirlby and singers Jane Monheit and Mariah Carey, has introduced the arts to more than 60,000 Tri-State Area children since its founding in 1968. The Center is open to all young people from age 6 to 18. Although the mission of the Center is for every child to establish a relationship with the arts, the unique stimulation of the Center has caused many to go on to arts careers. Alumni include members of Broadway shows and major music, theater, and dance ensembles such as the Boston Pops and the New York City Ballet. In addition to its regular programs, Usdan offers special opportunities for advanced high school- age performing and visual artists. These include Music Staff Internships, a Summer Ballet Intensive. Usdan Center is an agency of the UJA-Federation of New York.
 
Usdan's 47th season begins June 30, 2014 and runs through August 15. For more information, write to info@usdan.com, Call (212) 772-6060 or (631) 643-7900, or visit www.usdan.com
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By Cynthia R. Savo 

President Barack Obama has appointed Dr. James P. Comer, the Maurice Falk Professor of Child Psychiatry at the Yale Child Study Center and the founder and director of the School Development Program, to the President's Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for African Americans. Dr. Comer and the other Commission members will advise the President and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan "on ways to advance federal programs that improve educational opportunities for African Americans, increase participation of the African American community in federal agency programs, and engage stakeholders in a national dialogue on the mission."

President Obama said, "These fine public servants bring both a depth of experience and tremendous dedication to their new roles. Our nation will be well-served by these men and women, and I look forward to working with them in the months and years to come." 

On July 26, 2012 President Barack Obama signed the Executive Order that created the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans to help accelerate national efforts to support African-American students. President Obama appointed Dr. Freeman A. Hrabowski III, president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, as the Commission's chair.

"I am honored that President Obama has appointed me to his Advisory Commission," said Comer. "It was my belief 50 years ago that the focus of research and intervention in African-American education should be on excellence and potentials more than deficit; and should use a holistic and public health approach. This led to my desire to improve schools and education, especially for children who have been closed out of the social and economic mainstream. I look forward to collaborating with Dr. Hrabowski and the other Commission members to provide the President and Secretary Duncan with our collective knowledge, wisdom, and experience."

By Marc Fanaroff

At High Point School we serve students with special educational needs in grade 8-12. However, the following advice, based on the lessons we have learned from our tablet solution roll out, should apply to all schools.

The first step is to know from an instructional standpoint what your objectives for the investment are, and how you envisage using the resource. This could have implications for the required functionality of the hardware device. While many tablets are designed for consumer use rather than classroom use, in general, a tablet is a tablet. A vital consideration is the inclusive tools, including a classroom management system that will enable you to embed the technology in your learning environment.

The next step is to consider the learning content. Will you be able to access appropriate, high quality learning resources for your tablets? We found that mass marketed devices offered limited 'real' learning resources, focusing more on games. Unless you can integrate your existing web based curriculum the success of the hardware will be limited. The LearnPad allows the teacher to control access to appropriate websites, which is vital from an eSafety perspective.

We invested in a protective cover for our tablets and as a result, despite our 'spirited' students, we haven't experienced any damage to date.

And finally, once you have your devices, don't roll them out all at once. The teachers spent the first few days using the devices, looking at all the free content on the LearnPad website and downloading what was right for our specific needs. We then used them with just one trial class group, one activity, and one day at a time. We learned what worked with the students and in turn managed any problems that arose on a much smaller scale. Once you know which problems will occur with one class you can ensure a smoother roll out for the next.#

Marc Fanaroff is the executive director at High Point School of Bergen County, Lodi, NJ, which has recently implemented the LearnPad tablet solutions across the school.