Smoke and Scales: Week of May 17, 2016

GOVERNOR'S SCHOOL FOUNDATION 2016 PARENT CLASS

ANNUAL FUND CHALLENGE!

This week, the Governor's School Foundation is excited to kick off the 2016 Parent Class Annual Fund Challenge! Through the Annual Fund, the Governor's School Foundation is able to directly support things like academic competitions, student travel, as well as new technology, and student aid. The support of MLWGS parents is critical in these efforts and The Foundation is most grateful for your continued commitment. Be on the lookout for emails from parent representatives from your child's class.

Here is a summary of parent participation to date:

Senior parents (2016)	30%
Junior Parents (2017)	41%
Sophomore parents (2018)	32%
Freshman Parents (2019)	37%

At this time, The Governor’s School Foundation have raised $239,916.58 towards its goal of $300,000. To make a contribution online visit http://www.governorsschoolfoundation.org/donate/. The Foundation looks forward to all that we can accomplish together during this exciting campaign!

REPRINTED GRADUATION ANNOUNCEMENTS ARE BEING DELIVERED TO MAGGIE WALKER THIS WEEK!

As soon as the reprinted announcements arrive, they will be distributed to all seniors who originally ordered them. If any extras are delivered, they will be available for purchase for $2.00/each. MLWGS apologize for any inconvenience this has caused. Herff Jones and the printers have been working tirelessly to get everything corrected and delivered as quickly as possible.

If you have any questions, please contact Kerry Sheppard, graduation coordinator, at ksheppard@gsgis.k12.va.us or 804-354-6800 ext. 3304.

SENIOR SHOWCASE

Invitations have been mailed to parents. No need to RSVP. MLWGS looks forward to seeing you on June 1. Parking will be available in the James River Bus Parking Lot.

MLWGS PROM

Saturday, May 21

The Junior/Senior Prom will be held on Saturday, May 21, from 8:00 – 11:00 p.m. at the Bolling Haxall House, located at 211 E Franklin St, Richmond, VA 23219. Seniors are not charged admission, but each senior must pick up his/her complimentary ticket during ticket sales. Junior and guest tickets are priced at $30.00. If juniors or seniors plan on bringing a guest from outside the MLWGS community, they must submit a form, which can be found on ItsLearning or can be picked up in Ms. Valenta Williams’ office in room 100. It is recommended that dinner reservations be made early enough so that students are able to arrive in time to enjoy the prom (This is particularly important if students plan to dine where meals can typically take over an hour and a half). If you have questions, please contact the Class of 2017 Sponsor, Mike Brown, mbrown@gsgis.k12.va.us

ITALIAN NATIONAL CONTEST RESULTS

The results from the Italian National Contest are in. The following students were national placement winners. Maggie L Walker Governor’s School is the only high school in Virginia that participates in the contest.

In the top 1% of the students across the nation (and among over 5,000 participants) the following students received a monetary award:

For Italian Level I: Parker DiPaolo (’17, Henrico) and Ana Mullian (’18, Richmond)
For Italian Level II: Isabella Dulà (’18, Henrico)
For Italian Level III: Isabella Ragazzi (’16, Richmond)

The following students earned Honorable Mention and will receive certificates for their achievement.

For Italian Level I (in alphabetical order):

Andrew Datovech (’18, Hanover),
Nicolas Ferree (’19, Chesterfield),
Max Frankel (’17, Richmond),
Dominic Gammino (’19, Richmond),
Gordan Graham (’17, Henrico),
Maelee Hearington (’18, Chesterfield),
Frances Heller (’18, Richmond),
Julie Hribar (’18, Chesterfield),
Ankith Laichetty (’17, Henrico),
Sarah Lott (’17, Chesterfield),
Andrea Macedo (’16, Chesterfield),
Sam McCormack (’17, Chesterfield),
Amanda Mier (’17, Henrico),
Caroline Nyfeler (’18, Richmond),
Jackie O’Neil (’19, Chesterfield),
Eder Rivas-Hernandez (’18, Richmond),
Kallia Smith (’17, Chesterfield),
Meha Srivastava (’18, Chesterfield),
Kyle Stegmann (’17, Prince-George),
Robert Zhang (’17, Henrico),
Brianna Zimmerman (’17, Chesterfield)

For Level II (in alphabetical order):

Darby Anderson (’16, Chesterfield),
Emma Bilski (’16, Chesterfield),
Ryan Buscaglia (’17, Chesterfield),
Dolan Edinboro (’16, Henrico),
Adaire Locke (’17, Richmond),
Elizabeth Rosenbaum (’16, Goochland)

For Level III (in alphabetical order):

Devon Bortz (’16, Richmond),
Bailey Dunn ('19, Hanover),
Willa King (’16, Richmond),
Jack Miller (’16, Chesterfield),
Zoe Nelson (’16, Chesterfield),
Maria Tahamtani (’16, Hanover),
Natalie Weinberg (’16, Chesterfield)

KOLOR ME KATIE 5K

The Kolor Me Katie 5K, in memory of Dragon Katie Anderson, is being held on May 21, 2016 at the Goochland YMCA. This year’s race benefits Connor’s Heroes Foundation and the Goochland YMCA Leaders’ Club. Last year’s inaugural race had around 300 runners and raised more than $7,000 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (last year’s beneficiary).

For more information about the upcoming race, please go to www.kolormekatie.com.

TECHNOLOGY STUDENT ASSOCIATION (TSA) STATE OF VIRGINIA CONFERENCE

Congratulations to MLWGS students Samarth Kishor (’17, Henrico), Parth Kotak (’17, Henrico), Anuj Kotak (’18, Henrico), and Panth Doshi (’17, Henrico) for their successful performances at this year’s Technology Student Association (TSA) State of Virginia conference. This year’s conference was held May 6 – 8 at the Richmond Convention Center.

Samarth placed second in the state for Essays on Technology, and the Technology Bowl Team of Parth Kotak, Anuj Kotak and Panth Doshi placed first in their event. These students are now eligible to compete at the National TSA Conference in Nashville, Tennessee, June 28 – July 2.

This year, more than 1900 middle and high school students from across Virginia attended, including students from TJ SciTech. Other area high schools successfully represented at the conference include Deep Run, Highland Springs, Henrico, Glen Allen, Douglas Freeman, Varina, Matoaca and the Technical Centers of Richmond and Chesterfield. The increased competition from STEM specialty centers and other schools joining the TSA has made it ever more difficult for our students. To finish in the top ten of their events is a real achievement. However, to place in the top two is remarkable!

The TSA is a national, non-profit organization of middle and high school students who are engaged in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). The TSA fosters personal growth, leadership and opportunities in technology, innovation, design and engineering. Members apply and integrate science, technology, engineering and mathematics concepts through co-curricular activities, competitions and related programs. Nationwide, there are currently over 230,000 middle and high school student members.

BACCALAUREATE SERVICE

Thursday, June 16, 2016

6:30 p.m.

The Baccalaureate Service will be held at Reveille United Methodist Church, 4200 Cary Street Road. Sponsored by the MLWGS PTSA, the interfaith service begins at 6:30 p.m. and will last approximately one hour. Students are not required to attend, but this traditional and memorable event celebrates finishing one chapter in their lives and beginning the next. Families and friends of graduates are most welcome to attend. The official invitation from the PTSA will arrive by mail in a couple of weeks. Seniors are reminded to bring both cap and gown for the ceremony. If you have any questions, please contact Susan Creasey at creaseys@verizon.net.