Category Archives: Schools Scene

Find out what’s going on in the RFH Regional High School and Rumson and Fair Haven school districts.

Arts & Entertainment, Schools Scene

Fair Haven Schools Students Make Their Mark with Art

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The following is an edited press release from the Fair Haven School District:

Make Your Mark was the theme of the Fair Haven School District Art Show, featuring more than 1,000 pieces of original art.

“The art show is a great way to celebrate student talents and diverse ideas,” Knollwood School Art Teacher Kelly Fogas said. “The displayed works and items created throughout the year show the growth of artistic ability, conceptualization, and eagerness in our students.”

Students in Kindergarten through third grade at Viola L. Sickles School and in fourth through eighth grade at Knollwood School each contributed at least one project for display at the show on April 14.

This year’s show represented the district’s implementation of new standards in the Visual Arts program.

Those standards focus on essential questions to help develop both critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Fair Haven Visual Arts students are encouraged to create, present, respond, and connect their artwork to ideas that have personal meaning. This was reflected in the context of each of the displayed pieces.

Featured at the Art Show this year was a ceramics wheel and the Knollwood students’ creations from its use. The wheel was acquired as the result of a grant requested by and awarded to the Knollwood School Art Teachers by the Fair Haven Parent Teacher Association.

Also on display at the show was a variety of drawings and paintings as well as paper, wood and ceramic sculptures.

Fair Haven School District Art Teachers are: RoseAnn LaBrocca K-3, Viola L. Sickles School; Kelly Fogas grades 4 to 8, Knollwood School; and Chris Dudick, 5th and 8th grades, Knollwood School.

Art Show coordinators were Stephanie Bates and Marisa Coar.

Arts & Entertainment, Schools Scene

Getting Festive with Forrestdale Follies

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The following is a press release from the Rumson School District:

From soulful ballads by talented vocalists and stirring performances by accomplished pianists, to comedy and dance extravaganzas and even a hard rock performance, there was something for everyone at the Forrestdale Follies talent show.

Presented by the Rumson Parent-Teacher Organization (PTO), the Follies took place on the evening of April 16 in the school’s auditorium. Proceeds benefited the Rumson PTO.

Continue reading Getting Festive with Forrestdale Follies →

Schools Scene

RFH Students Help Fill Thousands of ‘Empty Bowls’

“Amid a sea of plenty, many in Monmouth County go without. We stand ready to take care of those in need, as long as we continue to get food and funds.” ~ Monmouth County Food Bank Executive Director Carlos Rodriquez.

The figures are in; and, it’s been determined that a Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School (RFH) fundraiser has put 5,190 meals on the tables of area residents in need via the Monmouth County Food Bank.

The fundraiser, held on March 10 at Rumson’s Bingham Hall, was dubbed Empty Bowls to represent the empty bowls at the tables of many local families struggling to stock their cupboards with food, according to a release from RFH.

It featured original artwork in the form of 150 bowls created by RFH Ceramics students as well as members of the RFH National Art Honor Society.

The bowls, purchased by the public with the proceeds going to the Food Bank, were filled with a variety of soups provided by members of the RFH school community. Bread and desserts were served as well to accompany the soup meal fundraiser.

Both Sickles Market in Little Silver and Cups and Cakes Bakery and Coffee Shop in Rumson served as community sponsors of Empty Bowls, the release said.

The desserts were made and donated by members of the RFH Cooking Club, members of the RFH staff and community, and Cups and Cakes. Sickles provided bread for the event, it added.

Members of the RFH Character Education Club and RFH Cooking Club offered a helping hand at what was a well-attended event.

For more information on how you can help as a volunteer or by making a donation, visit foodbankmoc.org.

Schools Scene

A Little Knollwood Chamber Music

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The following is an edited press release from the Fair Haven School District:

Did you make it to the Knollwood School Chamber Music Recital?

If not, here’s a look back at the March 23 evening:

The performances were based on the definition of the original 18th century chamber music — music played by a small ensemble, with one player to a part.

Continue reading A Little Knollwood Chamber Music →

Schools Scene

Author Offers Writer’s Insight to Fair Haven Students, Parents

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The following is an edited press release from the Fair Haven School District:

“Nothing in the creative process comes out absolutely beautiful the first time around,” children’s books author Lester Laminack recently told a group of Fair Haven parents. “If you focus on what your child did well – rather than what went wrong — then he or she will be encouraged to add more good things to the piece.”

Continue reading Author Offers Writer’s Insight to Fair Haven Students, Parents →

Schools Scene

RFH Athletes, Scholars Honored

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RFH seniors Nick Hawke and Andrew Maris were among the Future Business Leaders of America members honored for their achievements in this year's Regional Competition. Photo/courtesy of RFH
RFH seniors Nick Hawke and Andrew Maris were among the Future Business Leaders of America members honored for their achievements in this year’s Regional Competition.
Photo/courtesy of RFH

The following is an edited press release from Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School:

Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School (RFH) students were recently recognized by the Board of Education for their academic and athletic achievements.

“It is becoming increasingly commonplace for us to begin our meetings here in the auditorium to accommodate all of the students who are accomplishing amazing things,” RFH Superintendent Peter Righi told the assembled students, parents, coaches, and club advisors at the April 14 Board of Education meeting. “The certificates awarded tonight are not just another piece of paper – they have a much deeper meaning as the ‘end game’ result of a lot of hard work.”

Students honored were:

Continue reading RFH Athletes, Scholars Honored →

Local Life, Schools Scene

RFH’s Janae Mayfield Signs Letter of Intent

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The following is a press release from Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School:

Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School’s (RFH’s)Janae Mayfield has signed her letter of intent to play NCAA Division I Basketball for St. Peter’s University in Jersey City.

Janae, a senior at RFH, put pen to paper and made it official on the morning of April 15 with her family and coaches proudly looking on.

“My parents put a basketball in my hands when I was four years old,” said Janae. “I loved watching my older siblings play, and as I got older my dad and I would shoot hoops in the driveway while I waited for my school bus.”

Continue reading RFH’s Janae Mayfield Signs Letter of Intent →

Arts & Entertainment, Schools Scene

RFH Stars Shine in Talent Show

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The following is an edited press release from Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School:

The stars shone brightly at the 2015 Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School (RFH) Talent Show.

Proceeds from the April 9 show — organized by the Student Government Association (SGA) and featuring a variety of crowd-pleasing entertainment by dancers, singers, musicians and comedians — benefitted the American Cancer Society.

“I think this was the best show yet,” RFH World Languages Teacher and SGA Advisor Yannell Maglione said. “The RFH students are extremely talented and it showed in their performances.”

“We were also able to raise $2,000 for a wonderful foundation: the American Cancer Society.”

Continue reading RFH Stars Shine in Talent Show →

Schools Scene

RFH’s Alex Perkins Skis to the Top

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Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School (RFH)student Alex Perkins is a skiing star.

The Fair Havenite finished in first-place in the state for his age group, 16 to 17, at the 2015 NASTAR Eastern Regional Championship held at Okemo Mountain in Vermont, according to a release from RFH.

The RFH junior attained the competition honor with a finish time of 20.96 — the fastest raw time of all skiers under the age of 21 — in the Jan. 31 to Feb. 1 event, the release said. The win qualified him for the 2015 NASTAR National Championship held at Aspen Mountain in Colorado.

While NASTAR ranks Alex number one for his age group in the state, he is number 43 in the national NASTAR rankings.

This is the third consecutive year that Alex has taken the podium at the NASTAR Regional Championship, according to the release. He has qualified for competition in the NASTAR National Championship for six of the past seven years.

NASTAR is the world’s largest recreational ski and snowboard race program.

It allows racers of all ages and abilities to compare themselves with one another and with the national champion, regardless of when and where they race. Many U.S. Ski Team stars have competed in NASTAR programs.

Arts & Entertainment, Schools Scene

Sun Shines on Forrestdale’s Production of ‘Annie jr.’

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The following is an edited press release from the Rumson School District:

The sun will come out tomorrow, but it was the stars that shone brightly in the musical Annie jr. presented by the Forrestdale Drama Club in March.

The production, with a cast of more than 30, was directed by Vinny Sabatino, with musical direction by Forrestdale music teacher Barbara Leutz.

The show starred and featured: Gina Teschke as Annie; Sophia Bocklage as Miss Hannigan;  Kate Gagliardi as Ms. Warbucks; Mara Campolattaro as Grace Farrell; Rory McGill and Annabel Morris as the “shady characters” Rooster and Lily St. Regis; and Rachel Bailey as Annie’s dog, Sandy.

Continue reading Sun Shines on Forrestdale’s Production of ‘Annie jr.’ →

Schools Scene

Forrestdale’s Fisbowl of Communication

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It’s all about opening up lines of communication — getting a good look from the outside in, like a fishbowl.

That was the impetus behind the annual Fishbowl Event that’s been held at Forrestdale School in Rumson now for a decade. And the latest Fishbowl was no exception.

Continue reading Forrestdale’s Fisbowl of Communication →

Schools Scene

Tri-District Music Festival Set for RFH

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The Tri-District Music Festival will soon strike a collaborative chord at Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School (RFH).

Slated for 7 p.m. on the evening of April 7, the free and open-to-the-public performance will feature student musicians from RFH, Rumson’s Forrestdale School and Fair Haven’s Knollwood, according to a press release from RFH.

Tri-District features student musicians from Forrestdale School in Rumson and Knollwood School in Fair Haven as well as RFH.

The concert, the release said, brings the high school and sending district students together to perform in various musical capacities and then in a finale featuring all entities: orchestra, chorus, combined band, jazz band and flute choir.

This year’s musical selections will feature: a medley from The Sound of Music by the combined band; Dragon Hunter, an original work, by the orchestra; Lean on Me, as arranged for the GLEE television series, by the chorus; Santana’s Evil Ways, performed by the jazz band; and Pachelbel’s Canon, by the flute choir.

The Grand Finale featuring all performers will be Adiemus, a new age/classical composition that was featured in a 1994 Delta Airlines commercial, the release said.

Student musicians will perform under the direction of Bill Grillo, Mel Chayette, John Lebitsch, Barbara Leutz, Sara Marino, and Vince Mottern.