Several honor societies at York Suburban High School inducted new members.  They include:

NATIONAL HONOR SOCIETY

 SENIORS — Brandon Flemmens, Ashley Griffith, Hope Halza, Devon Hornberger, Desiree Jones, Gareth Keene, Mikala McBride, Thomas Merkle, Jennifer Seabra, Monida Tum, Cecilia Vu.

JUNIORS — Alex Babinchak, Lucy Cook, Gus Corsaro, Alan Countess, Parker Faircloth-Henise, Elizabeth Huh, Megan Hunt, Jacob Isiminger, Madison James, Michael Kirk, Daniel Lee, Rebecca Polanzke, Molly Sargen, Jack Schultz, Collin Slenker, Lena Strong, Peter Wagner, Sahara Wilt.

ADVISORS — Dan Anderson and Sallie Spanswick.

NATIONAL ENGLISH HONOR SOCIETY

NEW NEHS INDUCTEES — Jacob Arbetman, Katelyn Branch, Matthew Clark, Jillian Ducker, Katelyn Hill, Jacob Isiminger, Joshua Kerr, Ryan Ludwick, Mikala McBride, Jessica McNulty, Yanelis Melendez, Andrea Mendez, Charlotte Nesbitt, Madeleine Nesbitt, Zezette Pflaum, Ali Reinecker, Sofia Spadotto.

 ADVISOR — Heide Cebula.

TRI-M MUSIC HONOR SOCIETY

NEW TRI-M INDUCTEES — Matt Clark, Alan Countess, Kiersten Daugherty, Brandon Flemmens, Michael Kirk, Jack Korver, Daniel Lee, Nicole Peritz, Jessica Renjilian, Meredith Singleton, Richard Smeltzer.

MUSIC FACULTY — Sue Wolschleger, Ashley Thrush, Hannah Stayer, Matthew Husler.

The Hour of Code is a one-hour introduction to computer science, designed to demystify code and show that anybody can learn the basics.

The Hour of Code takes place each year during Computer Science Education Week. This year that was December 7-13, but students can use Hour of Code all year round.  Every student should have the opportunity to learn computer science. It helps nurture problem-solving skills, logic, and creativity.

The Hour of Code is organized by Code.org, a public 501(c)(3) non-profit dedicated to expanding participation in computer science by making it available in more schools and increasing participation by female and minority students. The organization believes that by starting early, students will have a foundation for success in any 21st-Century career path.  YS students in grades 1-12 had the opportunity to participate in Hour of Code.

Hildebrandt students learn about Sweden’s St. Lucia Day .

The children in Hildebrandt Early Learning Program’s Kindergarten Enrichment classes at Valley View Elementary School had a busy December learning about winter holidays around the world.

Every day, a package arrives from Globe Trot Scott.  Inside each package, he sends along a souvenir, a journal page, a book, and a letter which informs students about a country he’s visited and how they celebrate the winter holidays.

Students have enjoyed learning about Diwali in India, Hanukkah in Israel, Christmas in Uganda, the Chinese New Year, St. Lucia Day in Sweden, and other holidays.

Collaborative English and Design posters above lockers at York Suburban Middle School.

Sixth grade English Language Arts (ELA) students in Eric Hoffman’s classes and seventh grade Multimedia Design students under the direction of Janet Toner at York Suburban Middle School  recently completed a collaborative project. 

The ELA students were in book groups and read different novels with a focus on strong characters depicted.  The book groups then had to create a campaign to get the main character of the novel chosen for one of the following awards: Bravest Character, Most Caring Character, Smartest Character, or Most Determined Character.  Part of that campaign was to collaborate with the seventh graders to design a poster that would convince the viewers to vote for that character.  The sixth graders completed “design applications” which were then forwarded to the Multimedia Design Students for production.

The Multimedia Design students used the ELA students’ specifications to create campaign posters using what they’ve learned about the four basic principles of design (contrast, repetition, proximity, alignment).  The young designers discussed the difference between creating their own designs and creating designs for “clients,” where they may not necessarily agree with all aspects of the request.  The experience introduced them to the reality of working for a client.

Now the posters hang over the lockers in the sixth grade wing, calling out to passersby to vote for that particular character.

Both sixth and seventh grade students enjoyed the project and found that a special skill set is required to convey a message to another group when working together for a common goal.

York Suburban High School Varsity Cheerleading Squad will perform at the Citrus Bowl on New Year’s Day in Orlando, Florida Front row (left to right): Madi Elliott and Gabrielle Leiphart. Middle row (left to right): Ashleigh Mackin (named Top All American Cheerleader), Natasha Green, Kayla deGaray, Sarah Wolf, and Tia Murray.  Back row (left to right): Coach Leslee Yoder, Olivia Hocker, Madi Graff, Katie Kinard, Autumn Hammel (named an All American Cheerleader), Brynn Snyder, Shannon Moats, Martye Easterly, and Eleyna Hartman.

York Suburban High School Cheerleaders will perform at the Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Florida on January 1, 2016.

The young women went to the National Cheerleading Association summer camp that was held at UMBC in Maryland.  The Varsity squad won the Top Performance Team award at the camp which enabled the whole team to perform at the pre-game show at the Citrus Bowl.  Of the 15 young women who qualified, 10 will be participating in the event.  They are:  Kayla deGaray, Madi Elliott, Madi Graff, Natasha Green, Eleyna Hartman, Autumn Hammel, Gabrielle Leiphart, Tia Murray, Brynn Snyder, and Sarah Wolf.  Coach Leslee Yoder will be the chaperone.

Two Varsity squad members — Autumn Hammel and Ashleigh Mackin — won an All American Cheerleader award in which they had to tumble, do three stamina jumps, and the camp cheer.  Ashleigh placed the highest in the enitre camp and was awarded the Top All American honor.