Our Ninth Grade went to Ramapo yesterday with Peer Leaders from the Class of 2009 and faculty to enjoy boating, hiking and a challenging ropes course. Tenth Graders, with more faculty members, joined them there today to do the same, but also to build bridges and new friendships between the classes.Our Eleventh Graders are enjoying a thoughtful program implemented by Nick O’Han, History and English Teacher and School Historian. Today, students are on a field trip to the Lower East Side of Manhattan. This trip focuses on the background to Dreamland, the novel they read this past summer. Thursday’s trip is an important part of their academic work in Gotham this year – even for those who are not in Gotham this trimester.

On Friday, Eleventh Graders will be giving back as a class. They will return to Thursday’s neighborhood to perform community service in Sara Delano Roosevelt Park. Before leaving Friday morning, they will spend some time discussing the trip the day before and break out into advisories to discuss the book based on questions handed out on Wednesday morning in homeroom. These book discussions will be led by student moderators, with Eleventh Grade Advisors setting the tone.

The Class of 2009, minus Peer Leaders, is spending the day working on college applications; they also have the opportunity to hear from select schools today, including Smith College, Hartwick College, Bryant College and Bennington College. To have the undivided attention of select faculty and Amy Shapiro, Director of College Guidance, is important.

Equally important is the work Peer Leaders are doing while Upstate. They have spent time coming together and getting to know members of the Ninth Grade and have worked hard training for ropes course leadership yesterday, putting together the campfire last night, and the annual talent show tonight.

Tomorrow, Twelfth Graders have the opportunity to visit colleges; some who have made the decision to apply early have chosen to participate in the Eleventh Grade community service trip, which is terrific.

Finally, one of the first class trips of the year occured yesterday; the Twelfth Grade Drama Class went to see a matinee of Equus, which they loved!

As a faculty, we love when the hint of fall comes, the weather cools, and the students are energized for annual trips!Our Ninth Grade went to Ramapo yesterday with Peer Leaders from the Class of 2009 and faculty to enjoy boating, hiking and a challenging ropes course. Tenth Graders, with more faculty members, joined them there today to do the same, but also to build bridges and new friendships between the classes. I have to say, members of both grades packed significantly! They have plenty to keep them warm and dry. The weather is to be beautiful throughout their stay, and they will return tomorrow by 3PM.

Our Eleventh Graders are enjoying a thoughtful program implemented by Nick O’Han, History and English Teacher and School Historian. Today, students are on a field trip to the Lower East Side of Manhattan. This trip focuses on the background to Dreamland, the novel they read this past summer. Thursday’s trip is an important part of their academic work in Gotham this year – even for those who are not in Gotham this trimester.

On Friday, Eleventh Graders will be giving back as a class. They will return to Thursday’s neighborhood to perform community service in Sara Delano Roosevelt Park. Before leaving Friday morning, they will spend some time discussing the trip the day before and break out into advisories to discuss the book based on questions handed out on Wednesday morning in homeroom. These book discussions will be led by student moderators, with Eleventh Grade Advisors setting the tone.

The Class of 2009, minus Peer Leaders, is spending the day working on college applications; they also have the opportunity to hear from select schools today, including Smith College, Hartwick College, Bryant College and Bennington College. To have the undivided attention of select faculty and Amy Shapiro, Director of College Guidance, is important.

Equally important is the work Peer Leaders are doing while Upstate. They have spent time coming together and getting to know members of the Ninth Grade and have worked hard training for ropes course leadership yesterday, putting together campfire last night, and the annual talent show tonight. Peer Leaders for the 2008-2009 school year are: Jessica Wilson, AJ Sims, Gio Casiano, Ariele Baptiste, Dominique Fils-Aime, Thea Aguiar, Lola Lorber, Vio Picayo, Yanilda Gonzalez and Zoe Harris.

Tomorrow, Twelfth Graders have the opportunity to visit colleges; some who have made the decision to apply early have chosen to participate in the Eleventh Grade community service trip, which is terrific.

Finally, one of the first class trips of the year occured yesterday; the Twelfth Grade Drama Class went to see a matinee of Equus, which they loved! Equus is one of my all time favorite plays, and I can’t wait to see it myself.

LREI encourages and teaches our students to probe, to challenge and to develop one’s own interests and passions, and certainly the goal of the Senior Project Program is to express our educational experience to those in the world of work. This requirement is of particular importance. As the internship demonstrates the ability of our students to move through the world and make a significant impact, the presentation, which will take place during the annual Senior Project Presentation Evening on June 5, 2008 at 6:30 PM, demonstrates the ability to utilize one’s experience to educate others. It is also important because it marks the end. At the end of this evening, all of our seniors will have fulfilled the requirements for graduation.

It is important to thank all of the faculty mentors who provided guidance and support throughout the process and especially the Senior Project coordinators, Adele Pelz and Antonio Valle who provided the vision and the organization. Many thanks to the organizations, companies and institutions who provided our 12th Graders with internships, including:

Bleecker and Sullivan Advertising, Peace Games, Nightingale-Bamford, Random House, Harlem Hospital, Mary Ellen Mark, DDC Lab, Democracy Now!, Public Theater, The Center for Constitutional Rights, Amnesty International, the UN Development Program, the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art (MoCCA), the Harlem Success Academy, and NYU School of Medicine (Departments of Pathology, Dermatology and Cell Biology).

All are welcome to attend what is always a terrific evening, June 5.

Inspired by the art show at Synchronicity Arts, and the previous Broadway benefits, Senior Ella Saunders-Crivello, has put together a two-day event/art installation and benefit at a gallery space on Mercer Street. She is encouraging young artists from our school, grades 9-12, to donate their favorite, original art pieces for purchase; 80% of the purchase price will be donated to one of four charities–the artist’s choice. The charities are Action against Hunger, Doctors without Borders, the Susan G. Komen For the Cure Foundation, and Sean Casey Animal Rescue, a no kill shelter in Brooklyn, NY. This event, ArtACTION, will take place on May 10 (opening reception, 3 PM-8 PM) and May 11 from 12 PM-8 PM, 7 Mercer Street, New York City.

LREI High School students will be participating in the Youth Media Arts Show taking place this Friday, March 14, from 10 AM to 1 PM at the Titus Two Theater, Museum of Modern Art, 11 West 53rd Street. Students will be presented awards for their distinguished contributions in film and media. Dr. Eric Heyworth, Director of the Youth Media Arts Show, describes the show as a day where:

Students from New York’s high schools and middle schools will come together to share the media works they have created. When students use language, the arts, technology, community investigation, teamwork, and problem solving, they are deep in the process of what education is all about. The display of student video and multi-media productions is a vivid test of authentic learning.

With regard to our participation in the show, Director of Media Arts at LREI Vinay Chowdry comments that:

LREI has had a media arts program for a number of years now and has been a leader in this field among independent schools. Much of what we do is synthesis of practice and theory. The films selected represent our great school and were chosen based on merit, content quality,educational value, and production value. It was a tough decision as we have so many talented students who have created a such good work. Our success can be claimed by everyone at LREI; media is truly an all encompassing and collaborative medium.

While our submissions have been edited down for time, and not all of the selected films will be shown, we congratulate our students, Brendan McCormick, ‘08, Gavin Cady, ‘08, Laura Hallman, ‘08, Oskar Peacock, ‘08, Keith Nocera, ‘08, Duncan Lewis, ‘08, Nemo Allen, ‘08, Jane Sternbach, ‘08, Dash Lunde, ‘08, Ava Hamilton, ‘08, Jesse Towsen, ‘08, Ellie Shnayer, ‘09, AJ Sims, ‘09, and Lola Lorber, ‘09, who represent our Media Arts program beautifully.

One Night for New York’s Children: A Coffee House Benefit for the High School Community Service Roundtable. The High School Community Service Roundtable is a unique service learning program in which students work on behalf of New York City’s children, their families and their communities both through direct volunteer service and grants of financial assistance. Since 2002, the Roundtable’s Student Action for Children project has devoted hundreds of hours of volunteer service and distributed grants totaling more than $60,000 dollars to over twenty-five literacy, leadership, cultural and arts programs for children from communities throughout New York City and, when special circumstances arise, beyond. You can be part of this worthy cause by attending the March 8th Community Service Coffee House (7PM in the Charlton Street PAC). Enjoy performances by student musicians and performers, as well as hear from special guest Stephen Shames whose foundation that provides education for AIDS orphans and child soldiers in Uganda the Community Service Roundtable has supported over the past two years.

We are very pleased to announce that six of our high school photography students were selected among High School and University student submissions for an upcoming exhibition at Synchronicity Fine Arts, 106 West 13th Street. The opening reception is on February 9 from 2-5 PM; the show runs from February 5 through March 1.