Model United Nations (UN) students from Gaithersburg Middle School competed in an International Model UN conference in Madrid, Spain. The event was hosted by the International Baccalaureate school, SEK El Castillo, in Madrid. The Model UN was an opportunity for the students to apply research, writing and public speaking skills they had been practicing in their class taught at Gaithersburg Middle School by Kelli Champagne. The conference was attended by 400 students from Argentina, Spain, the United Kingdom and France. Gaithersburg Middle was the only U.S. school in attendance and its students were recognized for their exceptional level of participation and knowledge of topics.
Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students Win Regional Competition
Students in the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (DHOH) center-based program at Rockville High School won first place in the 2016 Academic Bowl regional competition. Students on the team are: Bryan Yun, Jaclyn Gleicher, Jonathan Summer and Ruthie Ferster. Coach Jenna Hubble and volunteer Chester Kuschmider guided the team. Yun won the Most Outstanding Player award. They competed against 17 other DHOH programs in the region and will now go on to the national competition later this month.
Wheaton HS Senior to be Honored at Montgomery Service Awards Event
Najma Thomas, a senior at Wheaton High School, will be given the Youth Service Award for extraordinary community service or volunteerism during the 5th annual Montgomery Serves Awards celebration. Thomas’ award is one of 10 that will be presented to citizens in recognition of their service to Montgomery County. The Montgomery Serves Awards will be held May 2 at Imagination Stage in Bethesda. It is free and open to the public.
Oscar and Grammy Winner Mentors, Directs North Bethesda Music Students
The North Bethesda Middle School chorus collaborated with the Young Artists of America in the Youth Premiere Performance of Children of Eden by Stephen Schwartz with the famed composer himself as guest mentor. Schwartz has written the hit musicals Wicked, Pippin and Godspell, and contributed lyrics to a number of successful films, including The Prince of Egypt and Pocahontas. Schwartz, who has won four Oscars, four Grammys and a Golden Globe, spent the final rehearsals with the cast and chorus preparing for their performance last month.
Schwartz also took part in a master class with the students and held a Q&A session. Children of Eden was performed on the main stage at The Music Center at Strathmore and featured the full symphonic orchestra, vocal ensemble as well the North Bethesda Combined Choruses, totaling more than 350 students. The show was directed by New York theater and opera director, Noah Himmelstein.
MCPS Students Honored for Musical Excellence
Fourteen MCPS students were recognized as winners in the Young Artists Awards Competition. The goal of the awards program, which was sponsored by the City of Gaithersburg and the Kentlands Community Foundation, is to provide young musicians with an enriching artistic experience and encourage them in their love of music. Public and private school students participated in the contest. The winners performed in a concert last month.
The 2016 winners from MCPS are:
Piano Category
First Place – Tycho Gormley, Walt Whitman High School
Second Place – Emily Tian, Richard Montgomery High School
Third Place – Andrew Zhang, Takoma Park Middle School
Vocal Category
Second Place – Victoria Chai, Soprano, Cabin John Middle School
String Category
Second Place – Jenna Wang, Cello, Winston Churchill High School
Third Place – Steven Qu, Violin, Montgomery Blair High School
Wind Category
First Place – Hannah Lee, Flute, Montgomery Blair High School
Second Place – Jason Hong, Clarinet, Richard Montgomery High School
Brass Category
First Place – Grace Tifford, Tuba, Home Schooled
Second Place – Paul Owens, Trombone, Home Schooled
Third Place – Jason McFadden, Trumpet, Quince Orchard High School
Honorable Mentions
Ayano Yamanouchi, Piano, Walt Whitman High School
Brian Morris, Vocal/ Baritone, Montgomery Blair High School
Michael Baniak, Bass Trumpet, Quince Orchard High School
Students Recognized for Writing and Art Awards
More than 330 students from the Washington, D.C. area received recognition for their writing from the 2016 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards. Presented by the nonprofit Alliance for Young Artists & Writers and Regional Affiliate Writopia Lab, the awards program recognizes creative students in grades 7–12.
More than 600 submissions of fiction, non-fiction, poetry and dramatic scripts were honored this year. Award recipients receive Gold Key, Silver Key, or Honorable Mention. Gold Key pieces are submitted to the national level of competition and may earn national recognition, publication and scholarships. A total of 36 MCPS students won 43 awards.
See the list of 2016 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards.
Lydia Wei, a student at Eastern Middle School, was one of five students in the region named an American Voices nominee, and now has the possibility of being awarded a National Medal.
“I feel really honored and surprised! It’s crazy,” says the 13-year-old Wei, who received a Gold Key and an American Voice nomination for her collection of poems. “I went into the whole contest not even sure if I would get anything, and then I get an American Voice Award nomination, WOW!”
All works were blindly judged by novelists, poets, playwrights, critics and editors. Each piece is judged based on originality, technical skill, and the emergence of a personal voice.
