Student Reports to Board of Education, September 24
At each meeting of the Board of Education, three student representatives from Southington High School update the Board and the public on school system news. This year’s representatives are Murad Alkatib, Alexa Nowakowski, and Arshi Roy. What follows is their report from the Board meeting of September 24.
Editor's note: the Outsider regrets the delay in publishing these reports, which the student reps shared with us on the day of the meeting.
Arshi Roi - Sports
The Blue Knights have been having a busy fall sports season, and our teams have been doing an amazing job representing Southington! Here are some of the highlights from this past week:
• Football: The team has an away game today against Windsor. Good luck to the Blue Knights!
• Boys Golf: The team tied their school record yesterday against Lewis Mills, which is an awesome accomplishment!
• Boys Soccer: The team takes on Platt High School today
• Girls Soccer: Varsity came away with a win against E.O. Smith, while JV battled to a tie.
• Girls Volleyball: The team faced RHAM yesterday. Although they didn’t get the win, they put up a really strong fight!
• JV Field Hockey: The team earned their first win of the season yesterday against Enfield
• Cross Country: Both the Boys and Girls teams placed third at the Wilton Invitational, while the Freshman Boys team took first place in the 1.5-mile race.
• Blue Knights Marching Band: The band took first place at the competition hosted by Maloney High School in Meriden! They also won Best Music, Best Visual, and Best Effect. Don’t forget that Music of the Knight is coming up on October 24, where you can see our nationally recognized marching band perform alongside other bands from across the state.
• The athletic dept. brought eight student athletes to Goodwin College to participate in the first annual CCC Sportsmanship Conference.
• Southington H.S. hosted its annual middle school cross country meet on campus with JFK and JAD. A special thank you to the coaches and athletes from the U.S. cross country program for staging the event.
• Also, the high school hosted its annual JFK / JAD volleyball game at the high school. A big thank you to the high school volleyball players for helping set up the event and supporting the middle school teams.
Alexa Nowakowski - District
Southington Community Cultural Arts (SoCCA) is providing an after school club, Art Van Go, for up to 20 students who are not currently enrolled in an art class. Through a sponsorship with Southington Rotary, this program will meet on Thursdays from October through December and club members will participate in a variety of activities including drawing, painting and sculpting with clay. We are thankful for this opportunity for our students. A spring opportunity will also be offered.
Karen Smith Academy participated in two community building activities within the first few weeks of school. Southington Youth Services organized and funded (through a state grant) trips to YMCA Camp Sloper and Apple Valley Bowling. Our students participated in team building activities and zip lining at Camp Sloper with their staff. In addition, we went bowling as a school community. These were done in partnership with Youth Services to promote team building and communication. We would like to thank Jon Esmail for organizing this and the YMCA Camp Sloper staff for working with our students and staff.
As for our elementary schools,
Flanders elementary is having their pie fundraiser starting on Friday and running through this upcoming week.
Oshana and Derynoski elementary is having a kindergarten field trip to the Indian Rock Nature reserve on October 1 and 2. Oshana is also having their Fox Trot Fundraiser today, an annual fundraiser, primarily parent-run, and it's designed as a healthy and active fun run.
Derynoski elementary is also hosting its annual Mums & Pumpkins Fundraiser pickup this Saturday, September 26, at Ali's Nursery. On October 2nd, the fifth grade students will attend a field trip to the Connecticut Old State House.
As for JFK Middle School, the fall sports season is in full swing including girls and boys soccer games, cross country meets, or volleyball games. We wish a great season to our athletes. Last week's Open House for 6th grade families was also very well attended, including this year's format of meeting with core-subject teachers.
Last but not least, 267 students are now part of DePaolo's Leadership Program. All of these 267 students were able to select the Leadership opportunity that is of most interest to them. Some of the opportunities include students volunteering at the Calendar House, volunteering at Zion Nursery School, volunteering at Hatton Elementary School, and taking care of the chickens in our school coop. All DePaolo sports teams are off to a good start. DePaolo had its Grade 6 Open House last week. Thank you to all the parents that attended. Be sure to visit DePaolo at the Apple Harvest Festival the next two weekends.
Students will be collecting donations for Alex's Lemonade Stand to raise funds for Pediatric Cancer research. Students will be manning the booth for the 6 days of the festival. This is DePaolo's 21st year hosting the stand, and DePaolo students have helped raise more than $144,000 to fight pediatric cancer.
Murad Alkatib - SHS
Southington High School had their annual college fair with over 90 institutions of higher learning joining to speak with over 215 students and families. The event was a great success and provided students with valuable opportunities to explore different colleges and learn about their future options. Beyond this, juniors and seniors can take advantage of college representatives visiting SHS throughout the year by registering on Maia Learning.
The high school’s student council has been working hard to organize a pep rally for juniors and seniors on October 9. The event will bring students together to celebrate school spirit and create memorable experiences across the student body.
In terms of student involvement, a variety of clubs such as DECA, FBLA, Young Democrats, Students for Progress, Writers Club, Spanish Club, Badminton Club, Best Buddies and many more have been beginning to start up at the high school, with many students having increasing opportunities to collaborate with their peers and make a positive influence on the Southington community.
The marching band is preparing for the Apple Harvest Parade on October 4 at 2:00 PM, and they have been sounding great during their preparation. Everyone is encouraged to attend and support the band during this annual community event.
The Red Cross Club is hosting a blood drive at the high school on October 7th, giving students and staff the opportunity to contribute to an important community service effort.
Lastly, SHS students can learn about an upcoming international travel opportunity through the Blue Knights program, which will offer students the chance to visit new destinations and experience different cultures. An informational meeting is being held on October 7th in order to plan for the April 2027 trip to Amsterdam, Brussels, and Paris.
