Schools

Marking Students Academic Achievements

Convent of the Sacred Heart students compete for national science title; Greenwich Academy marks 184th anniversary of founding.

Four CSH students are the Connecticut winners of Siemens “We can make a Difference”

Four students Convent of the Sacred Heart eighth-graders were named Connecticut winners in Siemens’ national contest, “We Can Make a Difference” and are now headed to the nationals, where their project on water conservation competes with winners from other states.

This is the third consecutive year that Sacred Heart has won the statewide Siemens’ challenge.  

Find out what's happening in Greenwichwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The students are Grace Isford, Claren Hesburgh and Isabella Libassi, all of Greenwich, and Elizabeth Cunniffe of South Salem, NY.

The girls recognized the overuse of water at CSH, and conserved water through several steps.  First, they sold water bobbles at their school bookstore, which are water-efficient water bottles with a carbon filter that conserves water. The bottles gained popularity at Sacred Heart and are now a being sold regularly in the CSH Bookstore to all students, faculty and staff.  The bottles are a water-friendly solution to plastic water bottles, which require more than two gallons of water to produce.

Find out what's happening in Greenwichwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

They then suggested to the school and then worked to introduce faucet aerators and hydro-right flush converters.  The faucet aerators control the flow of sink faucets, mixing air and water to emit less water per minute.  The hydro-right flush converters convert the flush of toilets, consuming less water for liquid wastes than solid wastes. 

“The results of their project were astounding, as by equipping the school with only 50 faucet aerators and 25 flush converters, as well as a majority of the school using water-efficient water bobbles, the girls saved the school 100,000 gallons of water per year,” according to their advisor, Middle School science teacher Carol Vergilis.

Now the students are competing for the national title of the Siemens Challenge with prizes of $10,000 in savings bonds and a trip to Costa Rica.

Greenwich Academy celebrates Charter Day; raises money for Room to Read project

GA Head of School Molly King welcomed the GA community to the 184th Charter Day, a tradition-filled celebration of the school’s founding.

The included announcement of new school officers in Middle and Upper schools, the anticipation of the Group IV students as they wait their turn to perform the Maypole dance, the Group V song and, the Pre-Connecting and Connecting girls singing “Happy Birthday” to GA.

Group IV girls explained the significance of the Maypole dances as they related to their journey through Lower School. A rite of passage for Lower School students for nearly 40 years is the dances — the Spider Web and the Basketweave. Each dance celebrates how each girl contributes her effort to the community. 

King commended the students on the their community service efforts throughout the year, highlighting the number of books read throughout each division and the proceeds raised from Gator-Aid to support Room to Read. This worldwide literacy campaign serves communities globally and focuses on the education and literacy of girls and young women.

Roster of Greenwich Academy student leaders who were elected on the morning of the Charter Day Assembly:

Middle School Leadership Council for 2011-2012 are President Olivia Winn;  VP of Unity Margot Shang; VP of Community Service Alyssa Mulé; VP of Programming  Nina McGowan; Secretary of Community Service  Taylor Mc Donald; Secretary of Programming Kara Meacha, and Secretary of Unity Barbrah Ravina.

Upper School Leaders for 2011-2012 are President of the School Morgan Hearn; Vice President of the School Claire Blumenthal; Arts Board President  Cassidy Gifford; Community Service President Margot Mejia-Johnston, and Athletic Board President Ana Hernandez.

After the assembly, the girls were treated to a cookout and carnival, planned and coordinated by Upper School students. The popular games, face-painting stations and alumnae cupcake decorating booth provided not only fun but also purpose as the proceeds from the day support ongoing community service projects.

 

Greenwich resident Rupert Ommerborn completes funded Pace University internship in social entrepreneurship

Rupert Ommerborn, a Greenwich resident and a finance and political science 2010 major at Pace University, has completed an internship at Project Rebirth funded by Pace's Helene and Grant Wilson Center for Social Entrepreneurship.

The Wilson Center Internship Program was created three years ago to give students practical experience in the marketplace to better prepare them for career paths in the nonprofit sector. It is the largest program of its kind in the New York metro area, placing up to 20 Pace University students each year in full-time summer internships with New York social enterprises and human service nonprofit organizations.

The internship offers experiential learning and income for students interested in careers in the nonprofit sector, and to offer bright, highly motivated, mentored students in service for nonprofits.

 


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here