V O L U M E 4, I S S U E 3 T O W S O N H I G H S C H O O L The Towson Pride I N S I D E T H I S I S S U E : STARS- Weekly 1 Accolades for Staff, Parents, and Students Featured Article 2-4 School 5-13 Happenings Upcoming Events 14 STARS to our Staff, Parents and Students Each week, individuals will be recognized for their contributions to the school. Staff members are encouraged to submit accolades that are worthy of the General s Star. Our staff and students strive for excellence on a daily basis. The comments listed below represent some of the recognition for our staff and students. STARS to Monica Colbert and her staff for doing such a wonderful job cleaning up the building over the summer as well as taking care of things on a day by day basis. STARS to 10th grader, Wilson Turner for participating in and earning a certificate of Excellence in the StarTalk program at the University of Virginia. STARS to the THS Golfers! The boys and girls both finished in 3rd place!! Four golfers: Conner Brown, Burke Harman, Sean Lawrence, and Ryan Walsh qualified for the district competition. STARS to Mr. Olson s 1A AP Psych class!! As a group, they earned a super high average of 89% on their first unit test!! STARS to Senior Cross Country Athlete, Jonathan Ellis for his 2nd place finish at the 65th Spiked Shoe Invitational at Stevenson University last Saturday, September 24th. His time of 15:56 over the rolling 5K course is the 11th Jonathan Ellis fastest time in the state so far this season. STARS to Mr. Jochmans and Ms. Karsos for their organization with the SGA. STARS to Mr. Olson for greeting his students each and every day with enthusiasm and a smile. STARS to Ms. West and her classes, the AP Environmental Club and Key Club for participating in the THS cleanup. STARS to Adam Coplai and members of the Boys Soccer team for organizing a fundraiser to benefit prostrate cancer in honor of Coach Dase. STARS to Brennan Hula for earning National Merit Semifinalist status! Brennan Hula Magnet Assessment December 10, 2016 9:00 am - 4:00 pm Inclement Weather Date: January 7, 2017
P A G E 2 Music News The Towson High School Music Department welcomes the newest member of our instructional team, Ms. Kaitlin Callie Ferrell! Ms. Ferrell is a percussionist, Towson University graduate, and first year teacher who teaches a split, full time position on B days at THS and also at General John Stricker Middle School on A days. She is teaching 2 of the 3 percussion ensemble classes and 1 of the 5 guitar classes at THS this year. The 2016 Marching Generals recently returned from our 11 th annual summer band camp at Camp Ramblewood to present United We Band! The show is one of hope and focuses on universal love and a call to unity in the tumultuous world we live in. The featured songs are: Viva La Vida by the group Coldplay, We re All in This Together from High School Musical (our THS theater production last year), We are the World by Michael Jackson and Lionel Ritchie, and The Harmony Medley arranged by Mr. Rhen with the songs Why Can t We Be Friends by War, Love Train by the O Jays, Put a Little Love in Your Heart by Jackie DeShannon, and Give Peace A Chance by John Lennon. The marching band is under the leadership of senior drum major Micah Herman. The Marching Generals performed at the Reisterstown Festival parade on Saturday, September 2nd and we took the 1st place trophy! Look for the Marching Generals at the Columbus Day parade on Sunday, October 2 nd and at all of the Home Boys Varsity football games this year! On Monday September 26, the THS Chamber Choir combined with the chamber choirs from Perry Hall and Patapsco High Schools for a workshop with Grammy Award winning conductor, Dr. Jerry
V O L U M E 4, I S S U E 3 Music News P A G E 3 Blackstone. Each choir sang a selection and watched as Dr. Blackstone offered feedback from a collegiate perspective. The choirs concluded the workshop by performing a selection together, Blow Ye the Trumpet arranged by Kirke Mechem and eating lunch together in the THS cafeteria. The Towson High School Music Boosters Spaghetti Dinner-Fall Social will be held at the Greene Turtle in Towson on Wednesday, October 16th from 6:30-9:00 pm. This is an ADULT ONLY fundraiser event where Towson parents, club officers, and music teachers have a chance to socialize AND raise money for the music students. Advance tickets are still available for $15 each. So support the program and buy yours today. We ll see you at the Turtle! Here s something new! The Tri-M Honor Society is planning a new concert experience called a Hauncert on Wednesday, October 26 th at 7 pm. Student performers will dress up in Halloween garb and display their musical talents. Prizes will be awarded for best costumes and a reception is also planned.
P A G E 4 Music News This year, 139 students from THS music ensembles will audition for the Baltimore County Public Schools All Honors Orchestra, Band, or Chorus at Carver Center for the Arts on Saturday, October 8th. That s a huge number of students attempting the rigorous audition music and judging process. The BCPS Honors concert will be held at 7:30 pm on the evening of Monday, November 14 th at Morgan State University after weeks of practice and rehearsals with exceptional guest conductors. Congratulations in advance to the THS musicians who likely qualify! About 44% of the THS student body is enrolled in a music class this year! That is a true indicator of the 5 star tradition of excellence at Towson High School. Whether it s guitar class, orchestra, band, jazz band, chorus, marching band, AP Music Theory, music technology, percussion class, or an extra -curricular music group, there is something for every student interested in music at THS. We invite you to come to at least one of the winter concerts this year. The students need to arrive at 6 pm and parents may attend a pre-concert reception social hour with food and beverages in the cafeteria prior to the shows! Concerts begin at 7 pm and are scheduled as follows: Winter Concert 1- Strings- Tuesday, December 13 th Winter Concert 2- Bands -Thursday, December 15 th Winter Concert 3-Choral- Tuesday, December 20 th Each concert is a relaxing and entertaining evening during a busy time of year! On Monday, December 19 th the THS Jazz Ensemble will perform at Kenilworth Mall from 7:00-8:00 pm. Come see the train garden and hear the festive sounds of the Jazz Ensemble. Here at Towson High School we are grateful for the opportunities our music program provides and the abundant success we continue to experience. All of this comes from the support of our community; booster club; feeder schools; staff; administration; parents; teachers; and of course, the students we are lucky enough to teach. The School Status Information Line Has a Number: 443-809-5555
V O L U M E 4, I S S U E 3 P A G E 5 Want to be in the know? Never want to miss an important school activity again??? Sign up to receive convenient up-to-date information about activities throughout the year by text. It s fast and easy!! Simply text @b976f to 81010. If you re having trouble, you can also text @b976f to (202) 524-8600. This year s Homecoming Dance will be held Saturday, October 8th at 7:00 pm in the cafeteria. The theme for this year is Mardi Gras! Ticket sales will begin Thursday, September 29th. The cost is $20 per ticket. Because there are a limited number of tickets, they will be sold on a first come/first served basis. You can purchase your tickets before and after school by the cafeteria. Please remember - if you re bringing a non-towson student guest, that guest form must be turned in by Friday, September 30th no later than 2:30 pm.
P A G E 6 Make your plans and get your tickets for the fall production of The Election presented by Towson High School Theater students. Advanced tickets are only $12.00! Tickets at the door will be $15.00. Follow the link below to grab your seats today!!! You can purchase your tickets online at: http://towsonhightheatre.weebly.com/
VOLUME 4, ISSUE 3 PAGE NATIONAL MERIT SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM LETTER OF COMMENDATION RECIPIENTS Congratulations to the following Towson High School students for receiving a Letter of Commendation from the National Merit Scholarship program. We re so proud of you!! Keep up the good work! Helen Amberger Crystal Cheng Morgan Hylton Jacob Mader Colin Skeen Anne Zappas Alena Bowman Naomi Element Vicente Iglesias Jack Morgan Siwon Sung Aislinn Bratt Samuel Gold Thomas King Zara Schwartz Ellen Tait Deborah Chang Amanda Grogin Katherine Lord Samuel Shrestha Christina Tancredi Not Pictured: Naomi Element, Amanda Grogin, Thomas King, and Jacob Mader THE TOWSON PRIDE 7
PAGE 8 On Saturday morning, students in Ms. West s AP Environmental Science classes, the Environmental Club, and the Key Club came together to make our THS campus a cleaner and better place. This great group of 60 environmentally-conscious citizens collected over 2000 pieces of trash including three tires, two metal sign posts, two pieces of metal tubing, a large plastic container, an 8 foot piece of plastic tubing, a soccer ball, a wooden frame, and lots of recyclables and trash. Our campus cleanup was part of the much larger International Coastal Cleanup. The data hasn t been compiled for 2016 yet, however, the annual worldwide event was held for the 30th year in 2015 and involved over 800,000 volunteers who collected more than 16 million tons of trash from the world s coastlines and the tributaries that lead to the bays and oceans. This was the fourth year for the campus cleanup at Towson High and it was, by far, the largest student turn out for the event. BEFORE THE CLEAN-UP AFTER THE CLEAN-UP THE TOWSON PRIDE
V O L U M E 4, I S S U E 3 P A G E 9 Janice M. Footman (Towson High School; Class of 2006; Law and Public Policy Magnet; Deer Park Magnet Middle; Chadwick Elementary) has accepted a position as an Assistant Public Defender in the Public Defender's Office of Baltimore County. Miss Footman is a 2014 graduate of the University of Baltimore School of Law and was admitted to the Maryland Bar in June of 2015. Now is the perfect time to buy your 2016-2017 Towson High School yearbook. The price will increase after September 30, so visit www.jostens.com to purchase yours today! The Sidelights staff thanks all those who have already placed their orders for their support!
PAGE 10 LPP Program News BCPS is holding its annual Magnet Expo for students and parents to lear n about all the magnet programs offered in the county. The EXPO will be held at the Radisson Hotel North Baltimore in Timonium this Saturday, October 1st from 10am 2pm. Mark your calendars with this important date! Towson HS will host its annual SHOWCASE night on October 18th from 68pm with doors opening at 5:30pm. Prospective LPP students (7th and 8th graders) and their parents are invited to attend and learn about the LPP program and all it has to offer. Some of our Generals return to say hello. Mr. Bianco, department chair at Sparrows Point, stopped by for a visit this week. THE TOWSON PRIDE
VOLUME 4, ISSUE 3 PAGE Roles for group participation appear in Mr. Cooke's class. Students in Mr. Olson's class apply knowledge of the brain to create interesting scenarios. Check out the Wall of Student Work that appears in Ms. Alexander's class! THE TOWSON PRIDE 11
PAGE 12 Get Ready for Spirit Week! THE TOWSON PRIDE
VOLUME 4, ISSUE 3 PAGE Ms. Moyer s class making the target! Mr. Buick's classroom walls always showcase the efforts of our students. THE TOWSON PRIDE 13
P A G E 14 UPCOMING EVENTS October 3 Rosh Hashanah Schools and Offices CLOSED 4-7 Spirit Week 5-19 HSA Exam Testing Window 6 Parent-Teacher Conferences (2:15 pm - 4:00 pm) 7 Homecoming Pep Rally 8 Homecoming Day 8 Homecoming Dance (7:00 pm, Cafeteria) 11 AVID Induction Ceremony 12 Yom Kippur Schools and Offices CLOSED 14 Freshman Magnet Breakfast (8:15 am, Senior Cafeteria) 18 Magnet Showcase (6:00 pm) 19 PSAT Test, grades 9-11 only (At School) 19 Senior Assembly / Senior Panoramic Photo 19 Music Boosters Fall Fundraiser (6:00 pm, Greene Turtle) 21 Professional Development Day Schools CLOSED for students 24, 25 Senior Portrait Make-ups (Auditorium) 25 Financial Aid Planning Night (6:30 pm, Auditorium) 28 Freshmen Elections (in Social Studies Classes) 28 1st Marking Period Ends
V O L U M E 4, I S S U E 3 P A G E 15 Towson High School 69 Cedar Ave Towson, MD 21286 PHONE: 410-887-3608 FAX: 410-583-1375