The Stars Shine on Broadway Night

 The Stars Shine on Broadway Night

by The Oracle Staff, Mrs. Lopez/Photos by Nadia Meckey

Broadway Night is an annual event held by the SHS Choir Program.This event is a special night that allows many of the SHS singers to share their talents and enjoy their turn in the spotlight.  Students perform solos, duets, as well as small and large group scenes from their favorite shows.  This concert is dedicated to the memory of former SHS student, Mark Inga, who sang the first song at our first Broadway Night in 2008.  This year there were close to 40 acts and concluded with “You Will Be Found” from Dear Evan Hansen.  With the help of Sparta Music Boosters Inc. selling tickets and concessions, the event raised money for a scholarship in Mark’s name.

Megan Armstrong, a senior performer, has spent a great deal of time on the Sparta High School Stage. She shares her love of performing with many other students, but says that Broadway Night is one of the most significant performances of the year.“Broadway night is one of our favorite nights of the year between performing solos and group numbers, as well as watching our friends onstage. I am really going to miss participating in Broadway Night, but I am so excited to come back and watch!” 

(JF- Via Facebook)

SPARTA STUDENTS EARN SEAL OF BILITERACY

 Sparta High School Students Obtain The Seal of Biliteracy!

by Julia Miller

For the 2023-2024 school year, 35 Sparta High School students were awarded the seal of biliteracy. This is an award granted to a school system or organization that is “In recognition of studying and obtaining proficiency in two or more languages by high school graduation.” 

The 2023-2024 student recipients were:

• Anne-Kathleen Kuhn- English

• Dana Dunbar- French

• Molly Englehardt- French

• Catherine Gaines- French

• Cassandra Lasko- French

• Aidan Mahoney- French

• Gaayathri Nadarajah- French

• Vaiden Pollard- French

• Christian Posada- French

• Cassidy Pry- French

• Nathaniel Rogoff- French

• Katherine Sheeran- French

• Nicholas Georges- German

• Kyleigh Johnsen- German

• Mason Munier- German

• Nina Nyerges- Japanese

• Arthur Doederlein- Portuguese

• Alecxis Villapando- Tagalog

• Sophia Candeloro- Spanish

• Hector Cruz- Spanish

• Sophia Davis- Spanish

• Angelina Farella- Spanish

• Edward Flannery- Spanish

• Tahg Herbison- Spanish

• Eva Hughes- Spanish

• Julia Mooney- Spanish

• Kayleigh O’Brien- Spanish

• McKaela Reekie- Spanish

• Emily Smernoff- Spanish

• Dean Stas- Spanish

• Juliette Sanchez- Spanish

• Ashton Welber- Russian

• Anna Yerofeyev- Russian

• Chad Wood- Spanish

Double Awards:

• Mathew Vassalo- German and Portuguese

• Michelle Kujalowicz- Russian and Polish

Between 2022 and 2023 there was a 49% increase in passes of the seal of biliteracy at Sparta High School, the best results so far! In 2022 there were 24/293 passes while in 2023 there were 35/119 passes. 

Students who have obtained New Jersey’s Seal of Biliteracy are now awarded 6 credits in the language in which they earned the seal. This corresponds to the first two semesters of language studies offered at Rowan University, and the credits may be used to fulfill the program requirements. 

Sparta High School is excited to have such a strong language department available for students. The 2022-2023 world language department was: Michael Bendorf, Alexandra Brex, Ana Bojorque, Lauren Braytenbah, William Brennan, Pascale Byrne, Jennifer Dow, Douglass Crouse, Eric Hood, Sierra Mitchell, Pietro Piccolo, Halee Orr, and Christiane Wessels. 

(Also published in TAPINTO SPARTA)

SHS DECA WINS BIG AT STATES

 SHS DECA WINS BIG AT STATE COMPETITION

By Oracle Staff

March 7, 2024

(photos courtesy of SHSDECA instagram)

Congratulations to the Sparta High School DECA organization. As always, Spartans excel in competition and once again will advance to the national competition.

DECA’s mission is to prepare “ emerging leaders and entrepreneurs for careers in marketing, finance, hospitality and management in high schools and colleges around the globe” (DECA).

Lead by Mrs. Chiappini, Mr. Anderson, and Mr. Merrill, SHS students are in great hands and ready for California!

The following students will be moving onto the national competition in April:

Stock Exchange competition: Parker Heim

                                               Jordyn Kelly

                                                Gian Parker

Project Management Career 

Development:                          Sama Elhamouly

                                                 Abbey Pierson

                                                 Ella Ryan

Principles of Finance:              Surekha Selvaraj (1st place)

Finance Operations Project:     Brady Flannery

                                                  Quint Flannery

School Store Gold Certification:  Jane Bleakley

                                                     Luke Silvey

*(DECA https://www.deca.org/mission)

SHS Outsmarts PJ in Academic Bowl Championship

 
SHS Outsmarts PJ in Academic Bowl Championship

March 4, 2024

by Mr. Troy Fetherman

The Sparta Academic Bowl Team participated in the Sussex County Interscholastic League (SCIL) tournament February 27, 28, and March 1 at Newton High School.  The team competed against teams from Hopatcong, Jefferson, Newton, Lenape Valley and Pope John XIII in various questions pertaining to Math, Science, History, Language /Literature, and General Knowledge.  

At the conclusion of round robin play, the top four teams qualified for the playoffs.  In the first round Sparta defeated Lenape Valley 1100-550 and Pope John XIII took down Newton by the same score, 1100-550.  The finals were a back and forth battle with each team taking the lead at various points.  In the end Sparta, emerged victorious - defeating cross town rival Pope John by a score of 900-850.  The team was led by senior McKaela Reekie and junior Tyler Harms.  It was an "all hands on deck" win with valuable contributions from Andres Parreno, Aiden Harris, Sierra Harms, Caitlyn Carmody, and Sara Schwarz. 

SHS PRESENTS THE WIZARD OF OZ

Follow the Yellow Brick Road: Sparta High School Presents 'The Wizard of Oz'

(Photos by Ms Paige Lucas)

By Julia Miller

This upcoming weekend, the Sparta high school auditorium will be filled with magic and adventure as the students of Sparta high school present 'The Wizard of Oz.' 

The Wizard of Oz will run from Friday, March 1 through Sunday, March 3. On Friday and Saturday the play will start at 7pm, while on Sunday it will be at 2pm. There will also be a meet and greet with cast members presented on Sunday from 12-1 pm. Regular tickets will cost $15, tickets for children under 5 will be $7, and tickets for seniors/students will be $10.

The students have been working tirelessly for weeks to prepare for this exciting musical.

Michelle Kujalowicz, the student director and stage manager said: “I feel very confident about the musical in general, I think it’s going to be very fun and interesting with a lot of fun little surprises that are waiting.”

Megan Armstrong, playing Dorothy, said, “I think it’s a really great cast, and everybody is very supportive and encouraging. It’s going to be a really great show with a lot of magic and a lot of excitement.” 

This year also marks the 85th anniversary of the original Wizard of Oz. Kujalowicz said this anniversary makes performing the play “even more special.”

Sparta High School previously presented The Wizard of Oz in 2009. Angela Deluccia, the director of this year's Wizard of Oz, also worked on the previous Wizard of Oz 15 years ago. Assistant director and choreographer Mrs. Lucas was also in the previous Wizard of Oz play, and her helping to direct this new play helps make this extra exceptional. 

The cast and crew look forward to sharing their production with the community. Tickets can be purchased online.

*Also published 

https://www.tapinto.net/towns/sparta/sections/arts-and-entertainment/articles/follow-the-yellow-brick-road-sparta-high-school-presents-the-wizard-of-oz

ACADEMIC BOWL UPDATE

 

Academic Bowl Update

By Kate Sutphen and Tyler Harms

Last Saturday, February 3rd, the Sparta High School academic team led by McKaela Reekie took home second place. This tournament featured over 15 teams from New Jersey and Pennsylvania, where teams competed against each other in academically themed trivia questions. The theme for this year was “television shows.” Only eight teams make it into the playoffs, which is a single-elimination model. This is Sparta’s first time making it to the playoffs, where they were seeded fifth out of eighteen after the preliminaries. 

The competition begins with three rounds against three different teams. Each round includes thirty questions with a “lightning round” in the middle. The rounds are modeled after Jeopardy - each question can be worth 20, 40, 60, 80, or 100, with five categories in each round that teams can select. They have thirty seconds to answer the question and if they do not answer correctly or run out of time the question goes to the other team. The other team then has ten seconds to “steal,” and if they either answer incorrectly or run out of time neither team is rewarded the points. During the lightning round, a series of ten questions are asked in 60 seconds. The team can pick from three topics of their choice. Each question that the team answers correctly gets ten points. The other team is then asked the questions they did not get to or did not get correct. For each question that is asked they get six seconds to answer. Then the last fifteen jeopardy-style questions are asked. At the end of the round, all the points are tallied. The total points from each of the rounds are combined to determine the eight teams moving on to the next round. 

During the playoffs, Sparta advanced twice with wins against Chatham and JFK High School. Both rounds, of which, were upsets. The first round was a rematch against Chatham, whom Sparta lost very narrowly to in the preliminary rounds. In the semi-finals, Sparta outlasted the number 3 seeded JFK team to secure a spot in the finals. The final match against Voorhees was well-fought, but Voorhees managed to win. Nonetheless, Sparta’s run was historic, marking their farthest advancement in such a tournament. 

SHS Sports News

 

Photo credits: Nathanial Burke

By: Julia Miller

February 5, 2024

SPARTA, NJ- Two local Sparta varsity basketball teams clashed on Thursday, February 1: Sparta High School visited Pope John. Going into the game, the Sparta boys basketball team's record was 8-9, while the Pope John boys team’s record was 0-16. The final score was 53-31, a win for Sparta. To add to the excitement, this game was also the Pope John team's senior night. 

When asked about the strengths of the team, Coach Brennan from Sparta said, “I think right now it's comradery. It's how the guys love playing together.”

Spartan captain Brandon Joefield, said, “I felt great about the game. The energy was at an all-time high. The highlight of the game was the student section being loud and intensifying the game.” 

The energy of the game was not only noted by Brennan, but also by Coach Vanhorn from Pope John. Both coaches remarked how the game between the two schools is one of the most fun and exciting games of each season.

Vanhorn also noted the significance of senior night, and said, “Honoring the seniors is more important to me honestly than if we win or lose.” Lions Captain Alex Grubbs said the game was a “good overall team effort,” and that he believes Pope John Basketball has a “bright future ahead.”

Brennan said a highlight of the game was “having all five of our seniors on the floor at the end of the game, to finish this game together.” 

This was an intense game, especially since Sparta and Pope John are cross town rivals. Regardless of the outcome, it was a great night for both teams to be able to celebrate their seniors.

Game Stats:

Leshem Little and Hayden Kopco each put up 13 points.  Shane Hoover added eight, Chrystian Grubbs had six.  Pat Connors and Brandon Joefield each scored five.  Nick Szabo dropped in a free throw. 

Sparta boys host Delbarton on Tuesday beginning at 7 p.m.

Published:

https://www.tapinto.net/towns/sparta/sections/sports/articles/sparta-high-school-boys-basketball-beats-pope-john-1efcd16f-d01f-4544-b654-df2c385a7205

STUDENT COUNCIL ATTENDS LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE

SHS STUDENT COUNCIL ATTENDS LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE

February 2, 2024

By- The Student Council Executive Board

"Leadership is an action, not a position." —Donald McGannon

On Thursday, February 1st, the Sparta High School Student Council attended a multi-school leadership conference held at Madison High School. Student leaders from around Morris and Sussex Counties had the opportunity to meet, mingle, and discuss accomplishments and goals of their districts. They also focused on the significance of the qualities of a “leader”. 

In addition to the breakout sessions, the keynote speaker addressed the myriad qualities of leadership. Some of the most notable included selflessness and perseverance.

Student Council Vice President, Jake Koerner took away a lot of information from the conference. “To be a giver and do it for the right reasons, listen and keep an open mind when trying to lead people because they can change your mind just as much as you can change theirs.” Jake noted that communication is the key to the success of any organization. “I learned how we all are a little different but once someone is comfortable talking they open up and you really see who they are and that’s what a leader does for those people.” 

Parer Hein, Student Council Treasurer,  found the conference to be a “very helpful and a great experience”. He really benefited from the fundraising discussions and was happy to swap notes with other student leaders.

 

Sarah Weisbeck, Student Council President, was also in attendance. Sarah was very excited to be able to meet student leaders from other schools and compare notes. She was able to garner some ideas that she would like to share with the Representative Council at the next meeting.  Sarah also noted that it is a common goal for student leaders to bolster school spirit and student involvement in activities to add to the overall positive climate of the school. 

Ms DeLuccia , Ms Scott, Mrs. Tafuri, and Mrs Jozefczyk also attended the conference - they were able to chat with other advisors and brainstorm ideas for upcoming events. 

HOSA

HOSA- SPARTANS STRIVE FOR LEADERSHIP 
By 

Gaayathri Nadarajah

HOSA is a global student-led organization recognized by the U.S. Department of Education and the Department of Health and Human Services and several federal and state agencies. HOSA’s mission is to empower HOSA-Future Health Professionals to become leaders in the global health community, through education, collaboration, and experience. HOSA actively promotes career opportunities in the health industry and to enhance the delivery of quality health care to all people. HOSA’s goal is to encourage all health science instructors and students to affiliate and be actively involved in the HSE-HOSA Partnership (Hosa)

2024 is off to a great start for Sparta High’s newest club! Advised by Mrs. Pisano and Mr. Scognamiglio, and presided by an executive council of officers: Kyleigh Mongon, President; Anna Yerofeyev, Vice President; Katie Sutton, Secretary; Uma Kowalski, Treasurer; and Gaayathri Nadarajah, Reporter, HOSA meets multiple times during the month to plan and prepare for competitions. Throughout the year, members attend competitions and host different events like fundraisers or even socials. On January 20th, 33 HOSA students competed at regionals at Passaic County Technical Institute. 

In their rookie year, Sparta High School’s HOSA Club had 7 students recognized for being in the top eight of their respective division. The 6 students in the top five of their respective division will be moving on to the state competition in March. 

In no particular order:

• Tyler Harms, 11th, placed 6th in Medical Math

• Adrian Appelbaum, 10th, placed 4th in Dental Science

• Alyssa Wainwright, 10th, placed 5th in Sports Medicine

• Sayler Salvigsen, 11th, placed 3rd in Nursing Assistant

• Haley Erikson, 11th, and Chris Munoz, 12th, placed 4th in CPR/First Aid

• Gaayathri Nadarajah, 12th, placed 1st in Extemporaneous Writing

Be sure to show your support by congratulating those who received recognition. SHS’s HOSA Club still has much to do throughout the rest of the school year so be sure to stay updated by following HOSA’s instagram “@spartahshosa”!

SHS Workout Facility Upgrade: A Great Opportunity

 SHS Workout Facility Upgrade: A Great Opportunity

January 2 2024

By: Julia Miller 

Sparta High School is planning to upgrade its current workout facility. It is a great opportunity for numerous students to have space to exercise in their school. The upgrade will include the weight room and the cardio room. The Sparta Education Foundation has already provided the cost for the weight room refurbishment. However, the cardio room expansion will cost between $80 and $90 thousand.
The district is hoping to be able to raise the money through donations.
Of the total cost for the cardio room, $30 thousand will be to layout a turf runner with the balance to be used for purchasing stair mills, elliptical trainers, treadmills and other equipment.

Athletic Director Steve Stoner said the turf section of flooring is to facilitate sleds so they do not ruin the floor as they are dragged or pushed.

There was previously going to be a donor for workout equipment for the gym, but Sparta Schools’ Superintendent Matthew Beck, said, "The donor actually pulled out,” when it was discussed at the December board of education meeting.

Kenneth Scognamiglio, an exercise physiology and human body systems teacher at Sparta High School, has played a vital role in developing the gym expansion. Scognamiglio puts strong emphasis on how significant this gym expansion is because of how beneficial it will be for the students.

He said, "The most important thing is that it will benefit every single student that is in our schools, whether you are athlete, non-athlete, exercise all the time, or are just beginning to learn how to exercise, every single student that comes to this high school will spend time in one of those two rooms." 

A population that will be highlighted through this expansion is female athletes. 

 "We are going to have a number of freeway stations with barbells that allow for traditional lifting, but we also have cable machines that allow for adjustability and movement for all different types of students," Scognamiglio said.  

Stoner said he expects the project to begin in the spring.