Kelly Saiz
News Editor
Thirty minutes before the start of school on Tuesday, November 30th, the semi-annual Rising Above award ceremony was held in the College and Career Center. Rising Above certificates were awarded to eight individuals nominated by staff for their contribution to the school community under difficult circumstances. Attended by administration, staff, honorees, parents and relatives, the ceremony lasted twenty minutes.
This Fall, the eight recognized students were seniors Maggie Donnelly, Sammy Escherich, Anjelique Kyriakos, PJ Larson, Cody Nader and Nick Zanca, sophomore Kyle Connor, and freshman Ben Duplock. Principal Tony Pavia, who presented the awards, said these students are not always identified as superstars. “I’m looking around this room and I don’t know what your grades are, but I’m looking around and I think, ‘We could run a country with these eight kids,'” he said.
“You don’t really need great grades to run a country, you have to have street smarts,” Kyle said.
In addition to Mr. Pavia, the awards were presented by Assistant Principal Dawn Bartz and social worker Rachel Alpert. Each presenter gave a brief description of the honoree’s achievements. Some of the students were credited with participation in the Names Can Hurt program and the November 10th Veterans Day Assembly. The students received a certificate and a small gift.
The assembly was organized by school psychologist Dr. Rosella Fanelli, English Department Head Heidi D’Acosta and school counselor Jane Mitchell. Together they compiled staff nominations and determined the honorees. Dr. Fanelli said the award winners were chosen carefully. “We wanted to recognize those students doing service for the school that people wouldn’t know about.”
According to Dr. Fanelli, the group of honorees this fall was larger than most years. The gathering, small in comparison to the annual Awards Ceremony in June, attracted what some are calling the school’s ‘unsung heroes.’ “There’s nothing quite like this in the awards ceremony, so we try to this twice in the year–once in the fall and once in the spring,” Ms. Mitchell said.
Sammy, commended for her active effort to reach out to peers, said she was glad to receive the recognition. “I’m very honored and it was cool to be recognized. I think we [the honorees]have been recognized for doing something little that made a big change for someone else,” she said. “It gives me enthusiasm to keep going and keep helping other people.”
Sammy’s grandparents Bob and Nancy Jewell, who were visiting from Florida to celebrate Thanksgiving, said they were proud to see her recognized and delighted by the tradition. “We really thought the whole thing was terrific,” Mr. Jewell said. “It’s great that the school honors unsung heroes.”
Photos by Elizabeth Kilbride
