2014 Fall Issue

Things To See :

 

Sterling News

Ms. Taddei
Mrs. Irace
Mr. Mccullough
Mr. Eckmeyer
Mr. Younger
Lanyard PolicyNavy Knights
ROTC News

Mr. Sterling

 Photography

Intro. to Digital Photography

Festive Fotography

 Fashion

What's trending?

Poetry Corner

 

Featuring Emily Winters

 

Sports

 Derek Jeter's Farewell

Mr.Sterling

THE “KNIGHT” OF MR. STERLING

--NICOLE MASNICAK

The Tuesday of Spirit Week brought with it the Mr. Sterling competition--a fierce competition between twelve of Sterling’s finest senior knights to be crowned the victor. (It could also be seen as a manly pageant, as the rules draw clear parallels to other pageants such as Miss America.)

The night begins with the dimming of the lights, and the twelve knights join forces for a synchronized dance number to impress the audience as well as the judges. It is always wildly entertaining, even for the contestants themselves!

Next, the agenda calls for each contestant representing a specific month of the year; he must come out and give a simple statement about that month, and it is crucial to be creative.

Mr. January -- Thomas DiPaolo

Mr. February -- Ryan Smith

Mr. March -- Dean Troilo

Mr. April -- Paul McGroarty

Mr. May -- Tony Fedoriw

Mr. June -- Sean Macpherson

Mr. July -- Jonathan Glimp

Mr. August -- Darius Coppage-Belt

Mr. September -- Mike Ivins

Mr. October -- Liam Fisher

Mr. November -- James Carman

Mr. December -- John Macaluso

Afterward, the contestants must display a talent, and the acts usually range from the typical to the strange. Thomas DiPaolo sang the country song “Cowboys and Angels” and Ryan Smith performed his own version of “Honorable Mention”, in the end shining the spotlight on his best friend. Dean Troilo performed an entertaining dance skit with a number of crossdressing guys and girls. Paul McGroarty gave the Super Mario Bros. a new twist, and it was one for the books; that performance is something I’ll never forget. Tony Fedoriw helped heat up the auditorium by dancing to a compilation of different songs alongside friend (and Homecoming Queen) Sharon Tang. Sean Macpherson slowed down the action by singing his own rendition of the song “Dead or Alive” with his father (Sterling Geometry teacher Mr. Macpherson) playing the guitar; both men also wore over exaggerated ten-gallon hats. Jonathan Glimp performed a dance routine with two friends, and Darius Coppage-Belt followed suit by co-rapping an original song with a comrade close by. Mike Ivins, with the help of another one of Sterling’s ladies, performed an interpretive dance to the hit “Chandelier” and Liam Fisher followed with a tribute to Drake & Josh by dancing to the renown song “Soul Man” with one of his own cronies--tux, hat, shades, and all. James Carman came out on stage under the impression that he would sing “American Idiot” and play the guitar, but a last-minute change led him to sing a beautiful opera song. John Macaluso ended the night with his own tribute to the movie Napoleon Dynamite and dancing all by himself on stage exactly the way Dynamite did in the film.

From there, the show moves on to its formal wear portion, where the men dress up in their nicest evening attire and give their arm to a lady knight to hold...and you can’t forget the lovely flower arrangements that the girls receive as well!

The end of the night brings three finalists who are chosen to answer a question, each question being something different. The first finalist, opera-singer James Carman, was asked how he would represent Mr. Sterling if he won. Basically, his answer was that he would continue to be himself and be an outstanding individual. The next finalist, John Macaluso, was asked what his favorite two things about Sterling were; the answer that melted the hearts of the audience included that he transferred to Sterling in the middle of the year and he was awed at how welcoming the students and staff were. The third and final finalist was Tony Fedoriw, who was asked what his best experience at Sterling was. He stated that he was tempted to say something about volleyball, but then decided to go against it and declared instead that it was joining the varsity soccer team: this year, the boys’ soccer team became the Conference Champions for the first time in 28 years.

Ultimately, a new Mr. Sterling is knighted based on his overall score, and the People’s Choice is declared at that time as well. The People’s Choice this year was a surprising tie! The honor was split between Ryan Smith and Paul McGroarty. Mr. Sterling himself, however, was awarded to John Macaluso.

All of the contestants did a wonderful job, and an extra congratulations to John--have fun, and make our school proud!

ROTC News

NJROTC: 9/11 HEROES RUN

--Nick Baltera

On September 7, 2014, Sterling’s NJROTC was asked to take part in the 9/11 Heroes Run by providing a color guard. The color guard was made up of c/ENS Emily Fey, c/SCPO Charles Arrigo, c/PO1 Marissa Realdine, and commanded by c/ENS Shaniyla Johnson.

The event also consisted of a five-mile run and a one-mile fun walk or run. During the 5K race Cadet Emily Fey took second in the “Women Under 19” category and Cadet John Drew took third in the “Men Under 19” category.

Additionally, the cadets had an opportunity to talk to some marines and had a chance to win prizes based on the amount of pull-ups they could do. The event had a marvelous turnout with perfect weather and generous sponsors. All proceeds from the event went towards two charities that benefit local first responders and the families of injured and fallen military. A moment was taken to recognize the first responders who were killed in the September 11th attacks as well as the first responders and service members who have died in the line of duty since then.

There was also a classic car show, free massages, and food, provided by Mister Softee, Domino’s Pizza, PJ Whelihan’s, Krispy Kreme, etc., which the cadets enjoyed very much. Overall, the 9/11 Heroes Run was enjoyable and had a phenomenal turnout and I am sure the families of the fallen first responders and military are very grateful for the event and acknowledgment.

Beyond The Selfie

THE FARR OFF LAND OF PHOTOGRAPHY

--Kailee Meyer

 

If some of you don’t know, Sterling High School’s new and fully loaded Intro. to Digital Photography class is filling up schedules. It’s a class for the artsy or non-artsy type, Photoshop intuitive, young photography scholar. If you signed up for the class thinking it’s just kids sitting around a classroom visualizing shots and shooting every inch the school has to offer, you’re half right. Although the picture-taking is a colossal part of it, you also gain editing skills and learn how to use Photoshop. These are skills of which first instructor of the class, Mr. Farr, had to learn himself.

Mr. Farr, who is seamlessly more accustomed to the video tech world, noted that he had Photoshop experience through workshops a few years ago, and that the class called for a refresher. Mr. Kozeniewski, who checks out the fourth block class during the day and is teaching it next semester, says he can use his own Photoshop experience in the class. Towards the end of last school year, he, Mr. Farr, Mr. Feeney, and Mr. Strauss worked towards putting a class together.

So in turn, Farr is not only teaching us but gaining some knowledge as well. Farr also stated his bit of surprise at the huge turnout of students who picked the class. A few months ago, when the class was finalized, Mr. Farr and the other instructors started to crack down and get a game plan; this of course left the most important part: cameras.

From then to around the beginning of this year was the time limit to get cameras (which are not cheap), computer software, and initial lesson plans. But alas, it’s the end of October and we’ve got over six groups of classes spread over the year and over a dozen shiny new cameras to play with.

Farr has said that since this is his first time teaching this class he had an idea of what he wanted it to be, but is basing it just a pinch off of his video classes. The projects you would see students working on are logos for the information you see on the morning news, or postcards. You can also see my personal favorite, our magazine covers, and the final project of finding a letter of the alphabet in different things and shooting that.

A lot of the techniques and angles in the Intro. to Digital Photography class are similar to the video tech classes, which makes Farr a good candidate to start the courses off. Each of the projects integrate photography and Photoshop skills and all of the outcomes lead to at least one being Sterling-related.

Mr. Farr’s teaching technique allows the students to work on a piece without him hovering or disagreeing until it is a finished product and becomes a class discussion. He says that when he sees the project completed he expects to be wowed, and him standing aloof allows students to be creative and worry only about their work.

With only a couple weeks left of the course Farr states that he’s happy with the progress of the students and can’t wait to hear the feedback from others teaching the class later in the year.  

Derek Jeter

Joey Korn

Re2pect for the Captain

Baseball might have just lost not only one of the best all-around players, but one of the most

honored and respected ones as well. Over the past 20 years, Derek Jeter has solidified himself into

baseball history with over 3,645 hits, a career batting average of .316 and an average fielding

percentage of .975, ranking 9th out of all shortstops still playing today. Team-mates and opposing players

and managers have agreed that Jeter is a true professional and is one of the best players in this

generation.

Derek Jeter grew up in New Jersey, and was a hard worker from the start. He never gave up on

things and his parents even had him sign a contract that forbid the use of the word “can’t” and any

other negative words. This behavior followed him all the way through high school and into the Yankees

Minor League system. He had some brief struggles in the Minor Leagues, but eventually his turn came

when the starting Yankee’s shortstop got injured early in the season. He was called up and had a slower

start than most, but quickly turned things around. He got his first hit and scored his first run during the

second game of his career and then on Opening Day of the following year, he hit his first home run. He

had also won the Rookie of the Year award that same year, hitting .314 and 10 home runs. Now being

with the Yankees helped his postseason career but when they were struggling, he was most certainly

not. He earned the nicknames of "Captain Clutch" and "Mr. November" due to his outstanding play in

the postseason, both defensively and offensively. He has won 5 World Series Rings and has a career .316

batting average just in the postseason alone. In the 2001 ALDS, against Oakland, the Yankees were

winning by one run when Oakland got a player on first with their best hitter up in the ninth inning. He

hit a line drive past the Yankees right fielder, which would’ve allowed the runner to score if not for

Derek Jeter. The throw from right field throw was wild, sailing into foul territory by first base, but Jeter

ran all the way form shortstop, caught the ball and flipped it backhand to the catcher in time to get the

runner out. The play was dubbed “The Flip” and it made Jeter even more famous.

Derek Jeter is one of those guys that only come around once a while and thankfully for us, he

stayed around for a long time. During his twenty seasons, he’s had 14 All-Star selections, five Gold Glove

Awards, five Silver Slugger Awards, two Hank Aaron Awards, and a Roberto Clemente Award. He also

became the 28th player to reach 3,000 hits and finished his career sixth all-time in career hits and the all-

time MLB leader in hits by a shortstop. His fame isn’t just from his plays on the field either; he is a

morally rich person and a natural born leader. He once said, “In order to be a good leader, you have to

actually get to know the person. Some people you have to be gentle with and some you can be a little

rough but you won’t know that until you know that person.” Curt Schilling, former All Star said this of

Jeter, “Derek Jeter has always been above the fray. As someone who's wallowed in it, 'foot-in-mouthed'

it hundreds of times, said dumb things and backed up dumber ones, it's refreshing. He's shown up,

played, and turned in a first-ballot Hall of Fame career in the hardest environment in sports to do any/all

of the above." There are thousands more of quotes on Jeter and they all have one common theme:

“Derek Jeter is one of the most respected players of any era and will go down in history.” His whole life

is summed up by this one quote, "If you're going to play at all, you're out to win. Baseball, board games,

playing Jeopardy, I hate to lose.” He never did either, making his family, fans, teammates and most

importantly, himself proud of his accomplishments. We all salute the captain. Even though he is walking

away from the game, he is leaving behind a legacy of greatness.

MISS AMERICA: SHOW US YOUR SHOES (EVEN IN THE RAIN)

--Marissa Realdine

They say one of the things that we learn throughout our years of NJROTC is patience and perseverance. Well, we certainly learned how to do that this weekend. The Sterling High School marching band and cheerleaders had to learn alongside us.

We arrived at Sterling High School for the Miss America: Show Us Your Shoes parade in Atlantic City around 1:30 in the afternoon, leaving school around 2:15. We noticed as we drove down to Atlantic City that a few raindrops started to fall. This didn’t phase us much: so we would get a little wet, who cares? We were very, very wrong. Once we arrived at Atlantic City around 3:30, we got off of the bus and unloaded, standing on the grass and waiting to figure out where to go. Channel SNJ Today came by and even recorded a short interview with Senior Chief O'ski!

The drizzling turned to pouring rain. By the time the parade started, we were all drenched and cold. The ROTC color guard had to do their best to hold on to wet rifles; the marching band had to face heavy, wet flags. But still, everyone managed to pull through. The band sounded beautiful, the cheerleaders were getting the crowd pepped for the parade, and the ROTC stayed on step and looked sharp. I was in the front of the ROTC platoon, but I heard only great things about the color guard behind us.

A special round of applause to the ROTC color guard, sticking it out and switching without skipping beats. It started off with (from left to right): Marissa Realdine, Emily Fey, Shaniyla Johnson, and Grant Horner. Marissa and Grant switched places with Bobby Gaffney and Matthew Harry. Then Emily and Shaniyla switched positions with Delaney Carr and Manny Alamo. We all switched again time after time, doing all different positions, but everyone looked wonderful. Also, great job to Brandon Benigno and Nick Baltera, who kept the unit on step and on cadence. And finally, great job to Charles Arrigo, who commanded everyone to victory.

We were wet--soaked, actually. We were cold and we were tired. But overall, I think everyone had a great time. We got to talk with friends and see Miss Ohio, who we had the honor of marching behind in the parade! I think we all learned something about ourselves, and that is to pull through for the person next to you. Great job to everyone!

New Sterling Knight

 MR. YOUNGER

--Mary McGregor

    New teachers come and go at Sterling, one of our newest additions being Mr. Younger. This year Mr. Younger is teaching the Silvertones and Chorus students but will also begin teaching Intro. to Instrumental Music and Music Appreciation at the start of next semester. During his short time teaching this school year, Mr. Younger says his students have been treating him very well. “I think they realized from the beginning that I’m a weirdo, and because of that, they feel comfortable being weird as well! We have a fun time in class, we learn together, and everyone is smiling when they leave. I can’t ask for much more!” he says about his current students. Mr. Younger says he enjoys his classes immensely; teaching choral music has been a dream of his for a while and he is overjoyed that he is living that dream!

    When asked “If you could describe your teaching style in 2 words, what would they be and why?”, Mr. Younger replied with “Capitalizing interest.” This is an inside joke between him and his students; he chose these words because he often teaches in analogies. As a result, he often teaches lessons in music while simultaneously referencing things like capitalizing interest, jokingly saying “You’re welcome” to the math department. He also references many other topics such as archery, astronomy, and world languages, most music being in Italian. From what I’ve learned, Mr. Younger teaches an exciting class made for many different people and could be enjoyed by anyone who wants to try it out!

New Sterling Knight

RETURNING STERLING KNIGHT: MR. ECKMEYER

 by Mason Plotts

 

                 Mr. Eckmeyer, Sterling High School’s Director of Student Personnel Services (also known as Director of Guidance), was raised in Belmar in South Jersey. He attended Triton Regional High School, where he played football, ran track, and wrestled. After graduation, Mr. Eckmeyer attended West Chester University. While majoring in Economics and Finance, he played for the University’s football team.

Graduating with a business degree, Mr. Eckmeyer did not foresee himself in the public school. He first worked for Janney Montgomery Scott LLC as a stockbroker; however, after six months, Mr. Eckmeyer felt it wasn’t right for him and he pursued further education. He began his career in education at Highland Regional High School while earning two Master’s degrees from Wilmington University, one in School Counseling and the second in School Administration.

             Mr. Eckmeyer worked in the Black Horse Pike District in their Special Education department for three years while coaching football. After this stint, he travelled to Sterling High School as a Guidance Counselor, where he remained for five years, also helping coach the football team. Mr. Eckmeyer was then hired as the Vice Principal of Somerdale Park School where he worked for one year.
            Recently, Mr. Eckmeyer was re-hired by Sterling High School as head of the guidance department. He is intrigued by the realm of guidance because he looks to give back to the student body and have a positive impact on their lives the way his role models did for him. He looks to make a connection with students and coach them on how to make the right decisions with their futures. Mr. Eckmeyer’s philosophy on education entails that each and every student is able to learn in a cooperative and stimulating setting, and looks to continue with community involvement and outreach in the school system. One of the major changes Mr. Eckmeyer would like to play a part in is the increase in percentage of graduating students who attend a four-year college. He looks to make scholarships more accessible to students and build awareness around money offering in regards to college. And finally, Mr. Eckmeyer would like to dig deeper into course offerings and gear curriculum towards college-ready material.

Fun Facts:

Favorite Film: The Godfather

Favorite Musician: Billy Joel

Favorite Sports Teams: New York Yankees and Baltimore Ravens

Favorite Place of Travel: Cancun, Mexico

Good luck and welcome back Mr. Eckmeyer!