The Sanatoga Post

HOT AND JUICY FUND-RAISER AT UPLAND SQUARE – Who wouldn’t want to be served by these two colorful characters? Pottsgrove Middle School Assistant Principal Dr. David Ramage, left, and hamburger look-alike and Principal Dr. William Ziegler, were delivering meals to customers Tuesday night (Feb. 21, 2012) inside the Jake’s Wayback Burgers franchise at Upland Square Chopping Center in Pottstown. Franchise owners Lynda and Darryl Hendershot, who have long been active in Pottsgrove School District affairs, donated 10 percent of their sales yesterday between 4 and 8 p.m. to the Middle School Parent-Teacher Organization. Patrons also helped fill a PGMS jar sitting on the store’s counter, right, with additional cash.

POTTSTOWN PA – What were considered both extensive and expensive repairs to the hillside retaining wall and some support columns at the entrances of Pottsgrove Middle School on North Hanover Street are now not only completed but paid in full, following an approval granted last week (Feb. 14, 2012) by the Pottsgrove School District Board of School Directors.

Board members unanimously voted to pay the remaining $40,231 owed under an invoice from general contractor E.R. Stuebner Inc. The company’s work to rebuild the wall and support pilasters at the school, which is only 13 years old, was made necessary by water seepage behind its masonry that caused the blocks and mortar to crumble.

The total repair cost: $402,318.

Board members and district administrators acknowledge the wall and columns were poorly built, but claimed they could not pursue legal action against the original contractor. The original estimate of the project was for $381,000, but additional work required $21,318 in change orders.

Board Vice President Scott Fulmer was absent and did not vote.

Related:

• Wall Repair Done, Entrances Not Yet, At Pottsgrove MS
• Stripped, Naked And Worked Over At Pottsgrove MS
• Pottsgrove Board Awards MS Retaining Wall Bid, Others
• Pottsgrove Calls For Bids In MS Wall Repair Project
• Retaining Wall Tops Pottsgrove List Of Needed Repairs
• Pottsgrove MS Retaining Wall Needs ‘Significant’ Repair

Dustin Tavella

POTTSTOWN PA – Pottsgrove High School graduate and increasingly popular national singer-songwriter Dustin Tavella is now a television star, too. He’s appearing weekly (so far, at least) in Season Three of “Sweet Home Alabama,” a reality contest series on CMT, formerly known as the County Music Television channel.

But about that “so far” part …

If you’re unfamiliar with the show, think of it as a southern-states version of “The Bachelor.” Twenty-two eligible young men attempt to outdo each other in weekly challenges to win the affection of a young woman. In this case, the woman is Paige Duke of Lancaster SC. She’s a Clemson University graduate who works as a national representative for Kruger Farms, an outdoors retailer in Minnesota.

Tavella, naturally, is one of the competitors. They are regularly eliminated from the show as Duke makes her preferences known, and family member Patti Tavella on Monday (Jan. 23, 2011) reported the news so far is good. Five men have been cut; Dustin’s still hanging in. For how long, who knows?

Tavella’s big chance to woo Duke arrives on the show Friday (Jan. 27), when an episode titled “Around The Campfire” airs at 9 and 11 p.m. Patti said during a “date” with Duke he will sing a song he wrote specifically for her and the show.

As an aside, the show’s promotional material describes Tavella as “a recording artist from Philadelphia, Penn. Dustin loves entertaining at children’s hospitals and has traveled the world doing missionary work. He is still a virgin, saving himself for marriage.”

Tavella has been an inspiration for students in Pottsgrove’s halls in recent years, and particularly at the middle school on North Hanover Street. He’s led music-fueled fitness exercises there, and served as a motivational speaker during assemblies.

It’s understatement to say Tavella – who rarely misses an opportunity to publicly poke fun at himself – is having fun on the show. His latest video on YouTube (he has 73, for anyone who’s counting) promotes “Sweet Home Alabama” in a take-off of the rap song, “Sexy And I Know It.” His twist is titled “I’m Country And I Know It,” and although it’s far from the smell of hay and the sound of twanging guitars, it has already been viewed more than 383,000 times … in just one week.

• Watch the video (above), or see it at Tavella’s YouTube channel.

Other coverage:

• Stowe native featured on reality show ‘Sweet Home Alabama’ (The Mercury)

Photos from CMT, Dustin Tavella

Pottsgrove Middle School

POTTSTOWN PA – Decisions, decisions.

To become a lawyer or a doctor? A machinist or a missionary? A chef or a fire chief?

Luckily, eighth graders at the Pottsgrove Middle School, 1351 N. Hanover St., Pottstown PA, aren’t yet required to make such life-directing choices. They will, however, focus this Thursday (Jan. 12, 2012) on the kind of education they’ll need that someday prepares them to succeed as the next Albert Schweitzer or Emeril Lagasse.

• This event has been added to The Post calendar.

Thursday, school Principal Bill Ziegler reports, is when students begin their course selection process for next year, their first year in Pottsgrove High School. It’s an exercise that will take time, and obviously some forethought and planning; it won’t be accomplished in a day.

But guidance counselors from the high school will be on hand at the middle school for discussion and yes, guidance, on what’s involved and what’s ahead. Parents are included, too; a parent information session is scheduled for Thursday at 6:30 p.m. in the cafeteria of the high school on Kauffman Road. They should not “miss out on this important evening to prepare for (their) child’s academic journey,” Ziegler urged.

Parents with questions (and he’s expecting a few or more) should call Ziegler at 610-326-8243 or send him an e-mail, here.

MAKING STUDIES UNIVERSAL AT POTTSGROVE MIDDLE SCHOOL – Math is math, reading is reading, and those and other subjects taught at schools across the U.S. should contain the same content and concepts no matter where in the nation a school is found. That’s the premise behind the Common Core State Standards Initiative, an effort by the National Governors Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers to create a set of consistent and clear academic standards for students in kindergarten through 12th grade. Common core standards are being implemented this year among students at Pottsgrove Middle School (above), its December (2011) newsletter explains. The newsletter was distributed last week (Dec. 13, 2011) via e-mail by Principal Bill Ziegler, and contains a full-page article on the topic. It can be downloaded from the Pottsgrove School District website, here.

POTTSTOWN PA – Dozens of students at Pottsgrove Middle School, 1351 N. Hanover St., Pottstown PA, were named Monday (Dec. 5, 2011) as having achieved “distinguished honors” on its honor roll for the 2011-2012 school year’s first quarter, and dozens more were named with “honors.”

On the honor roll were, from:

Grade 8 Distinguished Honors

Rammy Abbas,  Brianna Beitler,  Elizabeth Driehaus,  Gabrielle Ermish,  Alexandra Gallion,  Emily Glinecke,  Kevin Gulick,  Kolten Hendershot,  Olive Hernandez,  Benjamin Hnat,  Austin Leach,  Kyle Leach,  Noah Lear,  Eric Maynard,  Molly Mcgeehan,  Noah Nodolski,  Claudio Paez,  Avery Sicher,  Alexis Waldeck,  Hannah Windrim.

Grade 8 Honors

Molly Achuff,  Jacob Adams,  Kevin Basch,  Kerry Brennan,  Jordon Canny,  Kerri Carter,  Brady Custer,  Dalton Davidheiser,  Madison Davis,  Joseph Drager,  Stacey Edwards,  Janine Faust,  Samantha Favinger,  Emily Fisher,  Paige Fisher,  Denisha Footman,  Michael Gantert,  Katelin Gladback,  Landon Gonzalez,  Zachary Gottshall,  Dyani Hairston,  Matthew Harp,  Ashley Interrante,  Dominique Johnson,  Matthew Lance,  Kristen Lawhorne,  Erika Lessig,  Rachel Levengood,  Sydney Martens,  Amanda Martin,  Teresa McNamara,  Isabella Nelson,  Alyssa Oneill,  Sean Orrison,  Loriel Outterbridge,  Vanessa Pearson,  Danielle Pond,  Wyatt Porter,  Robert Poston,  Megan Radomicki,  Jackie Ramsey,  Caroline Remelius,  Paul Rinaldi,  Olivia Robinson,  Kiersten Rodgers,  Daniel Rodriguez,  Alexandra Rybacki,  Rebekah Schueck,  Rachael Sciarretta,  Courtney Sheffer,  Andrew Smith,  Amanda Smoyer,  Matthew Snader,  Nyanna Swans,  Kiana Szymkiewicz,  Brooke Toennies,  Jacob Townsend,  Katlyn Trapani,  Jenna Trythall,  Marissa Voynar,  Darren Waldt,  Amber Warren,  Brock Weir,  Thomas Williams,  Nicole Youtzy.

Grade 7 Distinguished Honors

Dalia Abbas,  Brady Ahern,  Andrew Barber,  Zoe Birch,  Liam Bradley,  Julia Buck,  Erin Carroll,  Karleigh Cimorelli,  Jordan Daniels,  Erica DeBlase,  David Dzordzorme,  Cierra Fekelman,  Ryan Finn,  Alyssa Geniza,  Katharine Harley,  Lillian Hunsberger,  William Kaiser,  Jared Krieger,  Ryan Laise,  Dwight Marazas,  Austin Nace,  Michael Neeson,  Nicholas Osborn,  Sarah Pennington,  Michael Ragusa,  Diana Randleman,  Zachary Rieker,  Cassidy Robinson,  Dylan Rolando,  Tyler Rolando,  Dustin Schreiber,  Michaela Sloan,  Nathan Smith,  Maya Stehle,  Madison Thierry,  Zachary Troutman,  Sophia Walton,  Dakota Williams,  Dana Wood,  Nathaniel Yuchimiuk.

Grade 7 Honors

Kayla Akers,  Mouje Amiri,  Kiley Band,  Madison Batzel,  Kevin Benitez,  Kirsten Bond,  Melissa Bonjo,  Maximillian Bungay,  Emma Burrus,  Marissa Burton,  Ryan Cassidy,  Rachel Cherubini,  Elese Christ,  Gabriel Claypoole,  Ariella Coronel,  Jessica Costira,  George Crock,  Ronald Crowell,  Nikolas Curnew,  Brian Czerpak,  Jazmyne Daniels,  James Dargan,  Nicholas DeCurtis,  Brett Dewees,  Cori Dickinson,  Laura Dorris,  Brenna Dugan,  Saylor Durr,  Elizabeth Galamba,  Bryan Goins,  Joseph Gordon,  Marissa Gratti,  Alex Hoffman,  Briana Hoffman,  Jasmine Hughes,  Emily Hunziker,  Malachi HurtRamsey,  Celina Irizarry,  Kierra Jones,  Alexander Keer,  Cameron Kegel,  Charlotte Kennedy,  Madison Kraichely,  Daphne Li,  Brett Lockey,  Lucia Marino,  Tahj Miller,  Spencer Mitchell,  Kathleen Moser,  Jessica Pasternak,  Jakob Perlstein,  Corey Peterman,  Abigail Pihanich,  Taele Polamalu,  Emma Powell,  Michael Prior,  Jenna Pruski,  Autumn Ricci,  Abigail Rieker,  Luke Robles,  Marissa Shukowitsh,  Tyler Smith,  Austin Spencer,  Madison Steffenino,  Jaime Suny,  Darrin Swavely,  Kaitlyn Thieme,  Shannon Thomas,  Nathaniel Townsend,  Elly Tran,  Logan Vandeweghe,  Rhys Wallace,  Damian Walsh,  Joseph Walton,  Alyssa Wehr,  Maya White,  Trezure Whitehurst,  Destiny Williams,  Madison Wise,  Carly Wood.

Grade 6 Distinguished Honors

Patrick Agnew,  Melanie Aguirre,  Sara Amer,  Jamie Auerbach,  Chase Banyai,  Kamryn Barton,  Jayden Blakey,  Regan Bradley,  Lauren Bush,  Amanda Carney,  Annabelle Chadderton,  Narissa Clements,  Alexis Cornwall,  Bailey Delp,  Julianna Dinnocenti,  Kathryn Drozdowski,  Melina Graves,  Tyler Hillman,  Casey Ivins,  Parris Janusek,  Aaliyah Jerry,  Cassandra Keller,  Joseph Kelley,  Casey Kuneck,  Kira Livezey,  Natalie Lobello,  Emily Long,  Macey Long,  Jenna Makins,  Patrick McLaughlin,  Anibal Mendez,  Celestine Owusu,  Michaela Sallade,  Aaron Schlosser,  Stephanie Snader,  Alexis Spanos,  Gianna Tecce,  Karli Tellis,  Brianne Tyson,  Charles Walsh,  Aimee Zimmerman,  Katelyn Zook.

Grade 6 Honors

Tyler Apple,  Savannah Bailey,  Christina Bautista,  Uther Berbaum,  Holly Bernhardt,  Nasire Birch,  Megan Brickel,  Alexis Brown,  Celeste Carlberg,  Alexandra Chancler,  Hayden Claypoole,  Sabrina Crocetto,  Riley Custer,  Alycia Desimone,  Alexandra Driehaus,  Alyssa Elko,  Wyatt Evans,  Abigail Flannery,  Ashley Flint,  Dssandra Garcia,  Paul Gerhart,  Madison Gillette,  Chloe Gilmore,  Austin Giraud,  Cole Goldcamp,  Kaitlin Gomez,  Sean Graham,  Avery Grant,  Corinne Hagopian,  Amanda Hanuschek,  Carissa Haraczka,  Corey Harris,  Jordan Harris,  Maxwell Hazel,  Matheson Heras,  Nathan Kasper,  Connor Keeney,  Brandon Knox,  Geoffery Lao,  Ashley Lessig,  Ryan Long,  Alyssa Lopez,  Olivia Lopez,  Tyler Marian,  Rayna Markle,  Kaitlyn Marsh,  Tyler Matz,  Arianna Mclane,  Cameron Mitchell,  Skye Morris,  Anna Myers,  Aaron Nealy,  McKenzie Novitski,  Emma Pilkington,  Gabriella Polce,  Abigail Reifsneider,  Rozalynn Roberts,  Alexander Robie,  Nicholas Rommel,  Miazziah Rose,  Jacob Ross,  Alexander Salata,  Christian Samilenko,  James Sanchez,  Morgan Scharneck,  Jenna Shade,  Abigail Sicoli,  Ryan Snyder,  Amanda Spaar,  Lucas Stehle,  Alexander Stump,  Stosh Swede,  Joseph Valentino,  Alexandra Vetrovec,  Kayla Weaver,  Hannah Weghorst,  Tyler Younkin,  Alexis Youse,  Andrew Zammetti,  Alexander Ziemba.

Photo from Clipart.com

POTTSTOWN PA – The “Fuel Up To Play 60″ health and fitness effort at Pottsgrove Middle School keeps paying dividends.

A group of 10 middle school students and their adult chaperone will soon have a chance to get a behind-the-scenes tour of Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, and have lunch in the Philadelphia Eagles’ football players cafeteria, Principal Dr. William Ziegler reported Thursday (Nov. 10, 2011). That’s because the school has been chosen as the first-prize winner in a Fuel Up contest sponsored by the National Football League (NFL) and the Mid-Atlantic Dairy Association.

Now in its third year at the school, North Hanover Street, Pottstown PA, “Fuel Up To Play 60″ intends to keep students healthy, fit, and exercising at least 60 minutes every day. Pottsgrove’s past successes in the program last year helped physical education teacher Marilyn Eaton become a finalist in the NFL “Physical Education Teacher of the Year” competition, as well as an expenses-paid trip to last year’s NFL Pro Bowl in Hawaii.

The middle school, recognized as having one of the best such programs in Pennsylvania, also won a day-long visit to the school during February by Philadelphia Eagles tight end Brent Celek.

Pottsgrove Middle School

POTTSTOWN PA – Four different, half-hour sessions intended to help parents of Pottsgrove Middle School students guide their child’s education are among the featured activities being conducted Nov. 17 (2011; Thursday) as part of an open house during American Education Week observances at the school, North Hanover Street, Pottstown PA.

• This event has been added to The Post calendar.

The open house, from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., gives Middle School parents a chance to see their children and teachers interact in regular classes, tour the building, and even share lunch with their students. The school’s guidance counselors and other faculty members also will provide sessions on:

• The Young Adolescent, with tips and resources for supporting a strong relationship with middle school children;
• PTO Update, with news on activities and opportunities available with the school’s Parent-Teacher Organization;
• Study Island, the web-based resource intended to boost student achievement in math and reading. Every Middle School is registered with an account; and
• Middle school academic goals, in which school principal and assistant principal, Dr. Bill Ziegler and Dr. Dave Ramage discuss the school’s educational objectives this year.

Parents and guests are asked to register in advance, by next Friday (Nov. 11) for the event.

Ziegler also noted that parent-teacher conferences, coinciding with the end of the current marking period and the release of report cards, will be held Nov. 21 and 22 from noon to 8 p.m. at the school. No classes will be held during the week, which also is the Thanksgiving holiday.

POTTSTOWN PA – Only three days after Pottsgrove School District administrators were taken to task by members of the Board of School Directors for some students’ poor performance on Pennsylvania reading and math tests, one of the criticized schools distributed an e-mail newsletter showing its teachers diligently at work to help their classes succeed.

The Fall 2011 "Learn" newsletter issued Friday

Pottsgrove Middle School on Friday (Oct. 14, 2011) issued a Fall 2011 edition of its “Learn” newsletter, which it said intended “to highlight the awesome learning of our teachers and students.” Its four headlined stories, which described how teachers tackled learning difficulties encountered by their pupils, were written by teachers themselves, Principal Bill Ziegler reported.

Ziegler did not indicate whether the three-page piece was meant as a response to directors’ biting comments Tuesday (Oct. 11) regarding Pottsgrove’s 2011 reports of Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) from the state Department of Education. Those results showed the district made its overall AYP goals, but that certain student groups tested at Pottsgrove Middle, Lower Pottsgrove Elementary, and Pottsgrove High schools failed to meet proficiency standards in required subject matter.

AYP is a measure of learners’ achievement, as defined by the federal “No Child Left Behind Act”.

One board member this week cited teacher unwillingness to enforce educational discipline as a potential cause of some students’ inability to master their studies. However, the board as a whole during the past three years has publicly denounced what it cites as continuing problems in helping students significantly improve their academic skills and understanding.

The newsletter optimistically focused on teacher solutions to those problems.

Its lead story told how 8th grade algebra students were divided into three separate groups as a way to maximize assistance teachers offered. A second article covered how students gained confidence in understanding the mathematical concept of “percentage of change.” A third tied reading aloud in science to improving reading in other subjects too.

The middle school’s goals, the newsletter added, in bridging learning gaps are to:

• Align courses with state standards, teach effectively, and test regularly for understanding. The so-called dipstick tests of student progress are professionally known as “common formative assessments.” School board members charged the district has heavily invested in their development and training in recent years with too few positive results.
• Have teachers across several subjects – math, English, science and social studies among them – collaborate on instructional strategies; and
• Ensure consistency in writing across all grades.

The newsletter’s brief fourth story explained how students were also encouraged to teach lessons to one another as reinforcement.

Related (regarding academic performance at Pottsgrove):

• Teachers Helping Classes Succeed, Newsletter Contends
• Poor Math, Reading At Pottsgrove High Frustrates Board
• State Says Pottsgrove Schools Make ‘Adequate Yearly Progress’
• Pottsgrove Teachers Review District Accountability Plan
• School Board Criticizes Lack of Students’ Improvement
• Notebook Worthy For March 23, 2009
• Pottsgrove Tops Many In Science, But …

Related (to the Pottsgrove Board of School Directors’ Oct. 11 meeting):

• Teachers Helping Classes Succeed, Newsletter Contends
• Poor Math, Reading At Pottsgrove High Frustrates Board

Pottsgrove Middle School

POTTSTOWN PA – A regional coordinator for a week-long science-based camp conducted this summer at Pottsgrove Middle School praised school officials Thursday (Sept. 22, 2011) for the way it operated.

More than 40 elementary students were part of the Pottsgrove edition of Camp Invention on the middle school campus at North Hanover Street, Pottstown PA, according to coordinator Susan Z. Clarke. They were challenged to solve a variety of problems using science, technology, engineering, and math concepts they learned during the week.

“I especially want to thank camp director, Elaine Armstrong, her talented local teaching staff and counselors, and the creative students in the Pottsgrove area for their exceptional work,” Clarke said in an e-mail.