the B E A C O NVolume 65, No. 2November 2016

W-H actors set to perform The Chronicles of NarniaBy Soorya Srinivas ‘18

Every year, The Wardlaw-Hartridge School holds a fall play and a spring musical. While there are only two productions each year, each one is the culmination of weeks of planning, practicing, and rehearsing roles. This year’s fall play will be W-H’s adaptation of The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S Lewis. The plot centers around four sib-lings who enter the fantasy world of Narnia and must defeat an evil queen.

The leading roles are played by Thomas Borner Du Cane ’18 (Peter), Kallie Schildge ’20 (Lucy), Carlin Schildge ’17 (Susan), Zishan Sajid ’17 (Aslan) and Hannah Yates ‘18 (The White Witch). The fall play will owe a

great part of its success to its organizers, who have shown great dedication and coordination: stage manager Mr. Russell Althouse, director Ms. Becky Randazzo and producer Ms. Liz Howard. Together, they plan out the food and play rehearsals, work with the sound and light experts, and help students hone their acting skills.

“This play has challenged me to take on a very difficult role. I’m

thankful for this opportunity to perform,” Yates said.

The play features multiple experienced W-H actors, as well as some newcomers who will be performing on the Upper School stage for the first time. Sajid and Yates are two of the most experienced cast members and have been taking part in W-H plays during the entirety of their Upper School career.

“Being a part of the

play these past few years has been a positive experience for me and taught me a lot about performing. I’m proud of the effort the cast and crew put in as well as the supervisors. I can’t wait for opening night,” Sajid said.

The play premieres on November 18 and closes on November 19. Play tickets cost $5 for students and $10 for adults. The cast, crew, and coordinators are all very excited for the play’s premiere showing and encourage the student body, parents, staff, and friends to come out for a night of W-H theatre arts.

“We chose this play because it is based off a book that many students have read, has a great balance between drama and action, and it’ll be fun for the whole family,” Randazzo said.

W-H helps community through multiple service initiativesBy Sanjna Patel ‘19

As a community-oriented establishment, The Wardlaw-Hartridge School participates in many fundraisers throughout the year. Just this fall alone, there has been a food drive, a Socktober fundraiser, and a coat drive. In addition, a fundraiser for Haiti will also be held.

On October 10, 2016, as part of Spirit Week, Wardlaw-Hartridge created a food drive competition within the Upper School. The competition proved to be immensely successful,

bringing in over 800 food items including pasta, rice, stuffing, potatoes, canned goods, cake mix, gravy, and much more.

“Everything we give makes an impact on people’s lives and they really appreciate the smallest contribution,” Dawn Francavilla, the Director of Student Life and 10th Grade Class Dean, said.

The food was shipped out to the Hands of Hope Food Pantry on October 18. Seeing the success ofthe October food drive, Ms.

Francavilla has stated that she would like to hold another one before Christmas.

W-H third-gradershave also been doing their own fundraiser. For the entire month of October, they participated in an event called Socktober in which they collected socks to give to the people in need.

“Not everyone has what we have. I want to see people in the winter happy and warm, not cold. I think we can change lives,” Gavrielle Alexander ’26 said.

As of October 26,

they collected over 260 pairs of socks, although they hoped to reach a grand total of 300 pairs per grade. At the end of the month, the socks were sent to Hands of Hope.

In light of the recent tragic events that took place in Haiti, W-H will also hold a fundraiser named Donate Change to Make a Change. It will be a competition between the grades to see who can raise the most amount of money, in change. In the end, the money will go to uses such as food, shelter, and medical aid.

Student actors rehearse for the fall play.

1

Fall Fair proves a successful and festive eventBy Anuva Goel ‘17

On Saturday, October 15, 2016, the Wardlaw-Hartridge School community enjoyed a festive day at Fall Fair. Not only was the event fun, but it was also a successful day to support and benefit the school.

Fall Fair had activities for all age groups. Inside the Laidlaw Gymnasium, vendors were selling their goods to faculty and parents. Outside, younger kids enjoyed the petting zoo, rock climbing wall, inflatables, and carnival games. In addition, the new W-H garden was showcased,with Lower School studentsgiving tours of the garden tointerested visitors. The eventalso attracted lots of alumni

back home to Wardlaw-Hartridge.

“This was the first time I ever came to Fall Fair,” Learta Bajqinovci ‘17 said. “But I saw lots of alumni and it was really fun seeing people from different generations all connected in the strong alumni network.”

Meanwhile, fundraisers were being held to raise money for various groups. The Middle School, in their traditional fundraiser, sold French fries, while the Class of 2019 had a popcorn stand and the Class of 2017 sold cotton candy, attracting lots of crowds. The Class of 2018 continued to hold their indoor soup luncheon, while the W-H Parents’ Association Bakery and Coffee Café sold sweet treats.

The Booster Club was also busy, handling the BBQ stand and selling W-H athletic attire. In total, the Booster Club raised more than $3,000. As people watched sporting events, including soccer, tennis, and volleyball games throughout the day, there was an abundance of school spirit in the air.

The many raffle baskets also provided lots of excitement. The three lucky winners of the Super 50/50 Basket raffle were first place winner Milly Ferreira with $5,663, second place winner Bill Lewis with $1,618, and third place winner Laure Park, mother of Andrew Park ‘17 with $809.

“It was a picture perfect day weather-wise,

school spirit was at an all-time high, and the smiles on our families’ faces seemed to be bigger than ever,” Mr. Kevin Kornecki, W-H Parents’ AssociationPresident, said.

After the activities of Fall Fair faded in the afternoon, the Alumni Awards Ceremony and Reception took place. This year, Mr. William P. Kenny, Sr. was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Faculty Award. The Distinguished Alumna Award was presented to Bridget McCormack ’84. Furthermore, Eloise Cordasco ’81, Steve Maxwell ’82, Ryan Hegna ’99, and the 1980, 1981, and 1982 golf teams were inducted into the W-H Athletic Hall of Fame.

to the garden and how they are essential to help plants reproduce and spread. The lower schoolers learned about what happens to the plants underground, how worms can help the plants in the garden grow, and how the roots suck up water.

For children who may not have had an opportunity to interact much with nature, this project gave them a chance to experience nature and to really get involved with the outdoors. Lower schoolers learned the greater importance of the environment, such as how plants give us oxygen

to breathe and food to eat. The school garden did not just grow flowers; it also grew food plants, such as squash. When the plants were harvested this fall, the Wardlaw-Hartridge Lower School students decided to donate their fruits and vegetables to a local food pantry. By learning how to grow their own food, the lower schoolers learned how a sustainable environment can be developed.

How to use sustainability at home:

You can also increase your sustainability by

growing your own food. Many plants can be grown easily in small spaces without much cost as long as they get water, sunlight, and care. A great way to become more sustainable is to start to compost. By turning all of the organic food waste you create into nutrient rich soil, not only can you decrease your waste, but you can also increase your sustainability.

If you cannot grow plants in your home, you can join a community garden or create other garden projects in your neighborhood. A great tip for making a garden even more eco-friendly is to make it an organic garden. If you have a garden already, it is best not to use pesticides, because they can drive away helpful pollinators. Try to also use natural fertilizers like compost, rather than chemical fertilizers, which can affect the water supply or harm plants.

Green Corner: Learning Sustainability through a Garden ClassroomBy Claire Stout ‘18

Last spring, the Lower School students at The Wardlaw-Hartridge School planted different types of plants in the beautiful and educational garden they created near the playground. This fall, they returned to a magnificent garden. Everyone from the Lower School took part in the garden effort, from the pre-kindergarteners to the fifth graders, as well as the teachers and some of the parents. This garden taught them about sustainability and how it is good for the environment.

The garden became an outdoor classroom for the students as they explored how plants grow from seeds, how seeds travel, and how different types of plants interact with other things in the environment. The students were taught about how pollinators, such as butterflies and bees, come

2

W-H golf team of early 1980s inducted into Hall of FameBy Anuva Goel ‘17

Winning the state championship three times in a row may seem like a far-fetched dream, but it was the phenomenal feat accomplished by The Wardlaw-Hartridge School’s golf team in 1980, 1981, and 1982.

On Saturday, October 15, more than 30 years later, this stellar team was honored at the Alumni Awards Ceremony, when it was inducted into The Wardlaw-Hartridge School’s Athletic Hall of Fame. Members in attendance included Bruce Calkins ’80, Greg Cordasco ’81, Randy Rogers ’81, Dave Lombardi ’83, and Mike Kavka ’84. Rogers introduced Mr. Jim Howard, Upper School math teacher and golf coach, who accepted the award on behalf of the three-year champs.

Mr. Howard has coached W-H golf for 36 years, beginning with the 1980 team. Golf, as he describes it, is a technical sport – though it is a team sport, it is all about the individual. In fact, he

attributes the team’s success to the individual talent.

“All of the players on this team were players who played in tournaments and played lots of golf outside of school – they were battle-tested,” Mr. Howard said. “They gave me a lot to work with.”

Mr. Howard guided the Rams golf team to victory at the New Jersey State Prep championships in 1980, 1981, and 1982 for a three-year streak that earned the golf team this Hall of Fame recognition. In addition to the state tournament, during these three years, the team also won the Middlesex County titles. The 1981 team

accomplished yet another noteworthy feat, winning the Eastern Interscholastic Golf Association Tournament at Yale University for the first time. Furthermore, the 1980 team went undefeated at 10-0. These glorious three seasons have been the pinnacle of the W-H golf team. Mr. Howard reflects that this success would not have been possible without the ambitious goals the team set for itself.

“Regular season matches weren’t the focus of the team,” Mr. Howard said. “Instead, they had their sights set on the tournaments at the end of the season.

When tournament time came around, they were deadly serious.”

In fact, as Mr. Howard recounted in his acceptance speech, the talent of the small prep-school team stunned even the Peddie and Lawrenceville schools, larger boarding schools that had been the only former winners of the state championship and had the resources of on-campus golf courses. At a time when there was only one division, Wardlaw-Hartridge’s success three years in a row, led to the formation of a second Prep B division for smaller prep schools.

The 1980, 1981, and 1982 golf team surely made history, and its induction into the Athletic Hall of Fame marks it down in the history books. Other members of the Rams golf team during these seasons included Alan Bowman ’82, Chip Gerber ’82, and Greg Boff ’83, who were members all three years, and Andy Horowitz ’80, Mike Lackland ’80, Chris Braun ’80, Mike Kopelman ’84, and George Hagstoz ‘85.

By Ellena Son ‘17Hiking, bonding

activities, and apple cidering. These are just a few of the many activities the Class of 2023 participated in during the annual sixth grade trip to Frost Valley. This trip to a YMCA in the Catskill mountain area in New York is one of the most anticipated trips in the Middle School.

The Frost Valley trip chaperones, Andrea Barnett, Middle School science teacher and Co-Head of the Science Department, Tanda Tucker, MS art teacher and Sixth Grade Coordinator, Kirstin Rogers, MS English and history teacher, and

Dina Congregane, School Counselor, are always just as excited about the trip as the sixth graders. The teachers come back from the four-day experience with new, stronger relationships with their sixth grade students.

The Frost Valley trip, while incredibly fun, also enhances students’ and teachers’ classroom experiences upon returning as the trip’s activities correspond with the Middle School curriculum. In correspondence with the Life Science course, students study the health of a pond by observing macro invertebrates that they catch

in their nets. Students also partake in an orienteering activity that requires knowledge of compasses and mapping skills, necessary in their history courses. The hikes, ropes course, and demonstrations of composting all apply to the art, language, and English courses throughout the year.

Outside of the academic activities, students form deeper, and sometimes new, friendships with their peers. Catching salamanders together and then uniting to conquer their fears on the ropes course are particularly good bonding experiences during the trip.

“I look forward to Frost Valley each year because of the way I get to know our sixth grade students. In this environment we get to see the students at their best. We see the way they handle challenges, we see the way they support each other and we get to know them on a more personal basis. As teachers, we bring that knowledge back to the classroom and it helps us to create a classroom environment that works for them. It is no wonder that many students will tell you years later that this was the best of all the trips they took in school,” Mrs. Barnett said.

W-H sixth graders bond in Frost Valley trip

Randy Rogers ‘81 presents Jim Howard with the award for the 1980, 1981, 1982 golf teams at the Alumni Awards Ceremony.

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Lower School has fun with new senior buddiesBy Ellena Son ‘17

Every year, Wardlaw-Hartridge seniors look forward to connecting with the Lower School students and classrooms. Each senior is assigned to a Lower School classroom and invited to special events such as the annual Halloween Parade and Valentine’s Dance. This tradition brings the community together by pairing seniors, ready to start their lives in college, with Lower School students, enthusiastic to experience the years ahead of them.

The Senior Buddy Assembly, held on October 5, is an event both seniors and Lower School students look forward to. Mrs. Maggie Granados, Assistant Head of School for Lower and Middle School, began the ceremony with a warm welcome to Lower and Upper Schools.

Senior Yumna Naqvi ’17 followed Mrs. Granados and talked to the students about her own memories in Lower School and the

excitement she felt years ago with the assembly. The current seniors who attended the Wardlaw-Hartridge Lower School remember counting down the days until they met and bonded with their senior buddies; it wasn’t uncommon to see classes fighting over who had the best senior buddy.

After the seniors met their Lower School buddies, they were invited to their classrooms for a bonding activity in which seniors answered any questions the curious Lower School

students had. The questions ranged from “What’s your favorite color?” to “What college are you going to?”

On October 31, the seniors reunited with their classrooms for the much anticipated Halloween Parade. Both the seniors and lower schoolers dressed up in a variety of costumes, both spooky and silly. Superheroes, princesses, and even heroes without capes joined together and walked with their senior buddies to the Laidlaw Gymnasium where the festive celebration

came to a cheerful end with a walk of unity around the gym’s basketball court. Mrs. Granados, dressed as Lady Pancake, of Lady Pancake and Sir French Toast, led the parade and invited students to walk together and join in the center of the gym based on the children’s costumes.

“The holiday is a wonderful way for many of us to celebrate the joy and imagination of childhood. It is lovely that so many families come to the classroom parties or parade in Lower School. This year I was excited to even have the Middle School participate by being invited to dress as a favorite book character - many of them did and they looked wonderful!” Mrs. Granados said.

The Spanish class, along with Señora Maria Hinestroza, led the Lower School through a popular Spanish song. The joyful voices rang through the gymnasium, bringing the parade to a wonderful close.

days. In the four cities, Mr. Gonnella was focused on meeting with current and past international parents and alumni to make sure they were receiving strong communication from the W-H faculty. Mr. Gonnellawas also able to give updateson the stretch plan of the

school, specifically on the Berry Performing Arts Center construction.

“It is so important to share and break bread over there, to understand their culture, and to try to make them feel as connected as possible,” Mr. Gonnella said.

Another key aspect of

Mr. Gonnella’s trip was his meeting with international education agencies in China in an effort to promote and provide insight on the growing opportunities that W-H can provide for international students. Mr. Gonnella shared with the agencies how extensive and personal the college counseling program at W-H is. In Hangzhou, Mr.Gonnella was able to addanother chapter of WHISPA,the Wardlaw-HartridgeInternational StudentParents’ Association, to thepreexisting three.

“Our International Student Program gives us the opportunity to live out

Two W-H faculty members make trips to ChinaBy Neha Shukla ‘17

In October, two Wardlaw-Hartridge faculty and staff members, Mr. Gerard Gonnella ’89 and Mrs. Elizabeth Plautz, visited China with very positive and productive outcomes. Mr. Gonnella, the school’s first Director of International Student Program and Associate Director of Admission and Financial Aid, and Mrs. Plautz, Director of Global Learning and Upper School history and economics teacher, made trips which are linked to their roles in the W-H community.

Mr. Gonnella’s China trip included four cities, Beijing, Qingdao, Hangzhou and Shanghai, and took place over a period of seven

Ms. Ellen Colandrea’s fourth graders pose in Halloween costumes with their senior buddies.

Mrs. Elizabeth Plautz works with a teacher during her visit to China.

See Faculty trips to China,continued on Page 7

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OPINIONSpirit Week changes: Were they spirited?

Andrew Park ‘17 and the seniors prepare for Green and Gold Day of their final Spirit Week.

By Andrew Park ‘17Spirit Week: the week

leading up to Fall Fair each year in which each grade competes against one another each day for a week. Each day consists of a different challenge in which the grades are then judged based on unity, designs, decorations and entrance all relating to the daily theme with the winners being announced during the pep rally at the conclusion of Green and Gold Day. The competition not only brought out the best in each grade’s class unity, but also the unity within the entire school.

However, this year saw many changes to this tradition. Instead of doing the same creative, energetic entrances and decorations for various themed days, grades were asked to do something unique to each day: food drive, scavenger hunt, music video, and the traditional Green and Gold Day. The new days appeared to make the events more about unity and overall class involvement. Each day still had a theme and Green and Gold Day remained the finale to the big week, but the major changes were more to change the dynamic of this tradition.

“The changes they made to Spirit Week really looked like they took the spirit part out of it,” senior and President Zishan Sajid ’17 said. “All the contests we competed in are good for

unity but except for Friday (Green and Gold Day), I feel the hype is lacking.”

The week started with the Food Drive day. On this day each grade brought in a combined 100 items of a specified food. While each grade brought in overwhelming amounts of food and promoted giving to the community, this didn’t feel like Spirit Week. Although this required cooperation throughout the grade, it lacked the energy and excitement normally brought during the opening day and set a more lackluster tone for the week. While the excitement was lacking, the day did remind us who we are as a community and how we can come together as a school to make a difference and should still be incorporated as a bigger part into future spirit weeks.

The next day proved to be trickier. The next 24

hours until morning meeting Tuesday, each grade engaged in a scavenger hunt, which involved them finding six pieces of a team uniform and to show it off Tuesday morning. While the concept seemed very exciting, the entire time period created a lot of frustration for both students and teachers. Many students spent lots of free time looking for very well hidden items, which while very interactive, didn’t allow students to get work done or study as many felt pressured to find the items. Teachers also felt the burden of this day as their classes were always being interrupted even though they constantly explained that no items were in their room. In the end it felt like the cons outweighed the pros here and it proved to be the weakest day of the week.

“The items were hard to find, which made things

interesting, but it took up too much time and kind of wound up being more frustrating and time consuming than fun, ” sophomore Ryan Petela’19 said.

However, the next two days showed much more success. While the music video day took a different approach to unity, it proved to be a great success across all grade levels showcasing togetherness, filmmaking prowess, and teamwork. The momentum from that carried into a traditional Green and Gold Day, which still appeared to carry a strong amount of energy and overall ended what was an interesting week.

Overall, this week was a tale of two weeks with the last two days showing a lot more promise than the first two with the week as a whole doing a lot better than some thought it could be. Although this Spirit Week turned out to be satisfactory, it did leave room for improvement and perhaps could lead to a combination of what happened this year with more of what’s occurred in the past. This would possibly involve keeping the final two days while also bringing back color day as well as a theme day while keeping the food drive a competitive part of the week. No matter what happens, Spirit Week will always remain a cornerstone in W-H tradition and a favoriteamong the students.

CONGRATULATIONSCLASS OF 2017

Spirit Week Winners! 5

SPORTSGirls’ soccer continues to thrive, looks ahead to next season

Carlin Schildge ‘17, captain, and Allison Haley ‘17, captain, pose with their parents at Senior Day for girls’ soccer.

By Andrew Park ‘17The Wardlaw-

Hartridge School girls’ soccer team came into the season looking to find a good combination of winning games while also growing as a young team. The team seems to have achieved that goal with a 10-12 record and a 6-4 divisional mark.

“The record doesn’t show who we are because I think scores don’t show how we’ve played and grown as a team,” Co-Captain Allison Haley ’17 said.

The team had lots of tough games that the 10-12 record might hide. The Rams faced off against big girls’ teams such as East Brunswick, Princeton Day, and South Brunswick. All the games played were not only big in experience but were also very close margins, showing how the Rams could compete with anyone. In addition, the team also posted a positive division record and

made the quarterfinals of the county tournament, which included defeating rival Metuchen in a 2-1 battle.

“Playing against the best teams definitely brought out the best in how we played and I think it’s better to test ourselves than play easy teams,” Co-Captain Carlin Schildge’17 said.

Haley and Schildge will be graduating this year, but they are the only seniors, leaving a very

young and experienced team for next year. This group is highlighted by Co-Captain Mia Reyes ’18 and sophomore Sofia Ambrosio. Reyes broke the girls’ assist record as a junior when she tallied her 39th assist in a 6-1 win against Spotswoodon October 10 and she isnow sitting at 44 assistsheading into her senior year.Ambrosio has been extremelyimpressive her first twoseasons as she has already

accumulated 40 goals, and with two more years to play, will look to break the scoring record of 62 set by Valentina Margiottiello ’13 and Alex Garces ’16.

“I still have one more year here and I want States, and I know that with my teammates, we can get it, no doubt about it,” Reyes said, regarding next year.

Although this is not the end some may have hoped for this season, the W-H girls’ soccer team stillaccomplished a lot this year and hopes to build into next year. Despite losing two valuable four-year starters in Haley and Schildge, the team will return with many key varsity players. Combine that with some more incoming freshmen, additional growth of returnees, and coach Mike Romeo still running the show, the team will once again be ready for all that comes in its path.

Boys’ soccer uses season to build for futureComing into the

year, the W-H boys’ soccer team knew it was in for a long season. With a lot of seniors graduating and many underclassmen coming in, the team knew its youth and inexperience would force it to have a struggle. However, despite a not so glamorous 2-17-1 record, the Ramsremain optimistic about theirgrowth.

“Honestly, it was a learning year for us but as the season progressed this team got a lot better and that was most important,” goalkeeper and captain Andrew Park’17

By Zishan Sajid ‘18 said.While yearly results

do matter significantly, the team’s main goal was constantly improving in order to compete in the future. With Park the only senior departing, the team will bring back everyone on the roster plus a couple of freshmen to help push the team right into contention. Coach Pedro Aresta was very optimistic about that idea.

“I generally believe this group can fight for a division title next year,” Aresta said. “There was a lot of ups and downs but that experience will only help all

the players and help mold us into fighters and hopefully champions.”

The team will have no shortage of experience coming back. Shaun Martinez’18 will once again be captain and will be joined by Kevin Nader’18 and Andre Souza ’19. All three players will enter their third year as varsity starters and were very big contributors to the team this year and Souza earned All-GMC Blue Division honors. In addition, the team will also look for more growth from its most promising newcomers this year, highlighted by Ryan

Petela’19, Ricardo Garces ’20 and Danny Hoffman ’20.

“I can’t wait for next year. I think everything really has a chance to come together and we can show how important this year was for us,” Martinez said.

The W-H boys will definitely be working to make sure they can make the most out of everything next year, and to make a statement in the division. From there they can start to look at bigger tournaments such as counties or states. With more talent and experience coming back, who knows how much they can achieve next year?

6

Season of hard work rewards XC runnersAs The Wardlaw-

Hartridge School’s fall sports have come to an end for the season, the boys’ and girls’ varsity cross country team has not only worked exceptionally hard during practices, but also improved their individual times during meets. Head coach Rick Reipl and assistant coach Jamaal Burden worked with the runners to prepare and motivate them to keep challenging themselves and build endurance.

“Cross country started out slow in the beginning, but once school started everyone was more enthusiastic than

By Sanjana Nalla ‘18 ever,” Emanuel Arriaza ’18 explained. “We had a great team this year with two fantastic new coaches.”

During the season, several runners significantly reduced their times, which led to improvements within the team’s performance. In a meet against South River, Austin Guo ’18 dropped 21 seconds off his time, JJ Stueck ’19 dropped 53 seconds, and CJ Stueck ’18 reduced his time by a minute and 32 seconds. Suraj Chandran ’18 achieved his personal best and the team with a time of 18:53. Furthermore, an honorable mention was given to CJ

Stueck, who continued to improve his times and was on the verge of breaking the 20-minute barrier.

“The team, even though it is still not on a competitive level, improved tremendously as we had almost everyone under 30 minutes for a 5k run,” CJ Stueck said. “It leads me to believe that next year we will be able to compete and perform better.”

Cross country has a final state meet: the NJSIAA Championships. Chandran, Jennifer Guo ’18, CJ Stueck, JJ Stueck, and Emily Calderon ’19 will be participating in hopes that

their hard work put into running this season will essentially come through for one last time.

JJ Stueck ‘19 runs during a cross country meet.

Girls’ tennis secures another division titleBy Soorya Srinivas ‘18

One of the most dominant teams in the GMC White division, the Wardlaw-Hartridge Girls’ tennis team, closed out a successful 2016 season. The team concluded the season with a 14-5 overall record with a 13-1 division record and another GMC White Division title.

“It feels good to win the division one last time,” senior captain Samantha Anastasiou’17 said. “It’s never easy, but we all never stop fighting and I think

that’s what gets us over the top.”

The girls’ tennis program has been simply dominant over the years in the White Division. They have won at least 10 divisional matches in each of the last five seasons and have multiple division titles under their belt. They’ve also become more competitive in the Middlesex County Tournaments, with Brittney Wilson ’18 finishing fourth at second singles this year. The team, however, hopes for more in the state tournament

next year.“States has always

been this hurdle for us and while we’ve struggled to climb it in the past, I think next year is the year,” Wilson said.

Next year really could be when they make that run. The team will lose Anastasiou and doubles player Neha Chaabra’17, but will return everyone else from this dominant team. In addition, there were three players on the team who played varsity for the first time with one of them, Sydney Kuo ’20,

doing so at first singles. With more experience, it could help make the team next year better.

“We get better and better each day, and next year I don’t know who could stop us,” Wilson said.

The team seems to have high confidence and will definitely have high expectations going into next season. Until next September, though, the entire team will just be waiting to continue its dominance in the division and move up in the county and state.

our mission statement to be globally interconnected. As an institution, we are no longer American-centric but globally focused,” Mr. Gonnella said.

Although different, Mrs. Plautz’s China trip was also quite busy. Mrs. Plautz traveled to China between October 12-16. The AP workshop that Mrs. Plautz attended was sponsored by the China Initiative, a distinct

area in College Board, which was designed to promote and assist Chinese Schools in their offering of AP courses. In Shanghai, Mrs. Plautz fulfilled her designation of an AP Economics Workshop Consultant by educating new and current AP Economics teachers on the course, strategies, lessons, and exam content. This is the third AP Economics workshop Mrs. Plautz has consulted for, with the others having been held in Illinois and California.

“The formation of a professional learning community is one of the most important things that happens at an AP workshop. It broadens the opportunity to collaborate and creates a community that continues beyond its gatherings,” Mrs. Plautz said.

Having already experienced AP workshops as an attendee teacher, Mrs. Plautz had the opportunity to come full circle and mentor 37 other AP

economics teachers during her workshop. During the duration of the workshop, the foreign teachers were also able to give Mrs. Plautz insight into the particular challenges that non-English speakers face when they teach and take the course.

“I enjoy teaching AP Economics because it’s not just my background, but it so relevant. You can be outside of the classroom, and see concepts we study about in action,” Mrs. Plautz said.

Faculty trips to China,continued from Page 4

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The Beacon • Volume 65, No. 2

Published by the students of:

The Wardlaw-Hartridge School1295 Inman AvenueEdison, NJ 08820

Editor-in-ChiefAnuva Goel ‘17

Assistant EditorsNeha Shukla ‘17

Soorya Srinivas ‘18

Sports EditorAndrew Park ‘17

Faculty AdvisorMr. Rudy Brandl ‘83

Staff Writers

Zishan Sajid ‘17Ellena Son ‘17

Sanjana Nalla ‘18Sanjna Patel ‘19

Laura Prishtina ‘19Isaiah Singh ‘19

Guest Columnist

Claire Stout ‘18

The Beacon serves as a student voice for those in all divisions. The paper strives to give a full account of current events and problems facing The Wardlaw-Hartridge School in a truth-ful, comprehensive manner. The paper also serves as a me-dium through which all members of the school community can voice their opinions about issues through “Letters to the Editor.”

The Beacon reserves the right to edit letters for length and clarity and to reject letters. Opinions expressed in letters and signed opinion writing are only those of the writer.

All letters should be sent via e-mail to beacon@whschool.org

Girls’ volleyball passes torch with large senior class departingBy Laura Prishtina ‘19

The Wardlaw-Hartridge School girls’ volleyball team played hard this year, despite a very thin roster and very tough schedule. The team ended their season with a 4-11 record and a 3-6 record in the GMC Blue Division.

“Our record does not show how we played this season. There were a lot of extremely close games that we put in our blood, sweat and tears but still couldn’t pull out the win. By far, we grew a lot from start to finish,” Co-Captain Michelle Afflu ’17 said.

Statistically, Afflu ended the season leading the team in kills with 68. Sydney Johnson ’20 led the team with 131 service points, 38 of which were aces, and Sidney Daniel ’17 was behind her accumulating

84 service points, 12 being aces. Although they didn’t make it to states, they did participate in two tournaments throughout the season. The first one was held at the Rahway Recreational Center and the second at the Morristown Beard School. The Rahway tournament was a charity event for

children who need expensive surgeries. The team played hard at both, becoming first in their pool at Morristown.

“Everybody gave 110 percent at every game, and there was great teamwork and communication throughout. I’m going to miss these girls very much,” Co-Captain Melanie Davis ’17 said.

The team also had its Senior Day on October 15, on the day of Fall Fair, when they played against Mother Seton. The coach, Dave Arva, had lots of positive things to say about the senior class, highlighting their dedication, talent and collective leadership throughout all eight of them.

“The girls played with heart from day one! I couldn’t be prouder of them as a coach. I hope our seniors continue to keep up the sport,” Assistant Coach Raquel Belo said.

While many seniors say goodbye, many promising underclassmen will look to take over and lead the team next year. It’s a long time away, but all the returnees will get ready for next fall and be ready to reach new heights on the court.

Michelle Afflu ‘17, captain, passes the ball during a home game.

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