During a soccer game in October 2012, Moncada tore her ACL which is one of the four major ligaments in the human knee. Shortly thereafter, she went through surgery in her knee, progressing from a wheelchair, to crutches, and eventually a cane. They were inspired during this critical time in Moncada’s life to brighten up the lives of other children that were in similar situations. Moncada and Weiner then became acquainted with a young Woodlands student suffering from cerebal palsy and offered to make a cover for her wheelchair. They took a step further and donated a portion of their profits to a cerebral palsy organization in Westchester County.

The competition was held at Westchester Community College. All participating students are held in five different rooms and must present their business plans. A winner is then extracted from each room and then as the next level, each of those five winners must present in large auditorium. Moncada and Weiner won the first prize of $1,500, as well as advancement to the National Business Plan Competition which will be held at the Continental Hotel in New York City on October 3rd. To prepare for the national level, they will be receiving professional coaching to improve their business plan. They will also make more covers for display.

They created their products on their own, without the assistance of a seamstress. They created different designs and templates that they would advertise for customers. “It’s really complicated. There are a lot of things to be considered to see if you’re a feasible business that will survive in the business world.” Weiner comments on learning about the business world. They were able to finance their project through the $5000 sponsored by their NFTE class.

Weiner says, “We hope we will do well in nationals. It is something that we can give back to the people that need it.” As county winners, all business leaders in Westchester were made aware of their growing business. By proceeding to the national level, they have a chance to win $25,000 for their business, as well as national recognition in the business world.

WISH Requirements:

• U.S. citizen 
• Female junior in high school 
• Interested in STEM
• Committed to a one-year relationship with JSC, including a six-day summer residential experience
• 3.25/4.00 (or equivalent) GPA or higher 
• Access to the Internet (home, school, or public library) and e-mail

January through May scholars complete 8 online lessons consisting of reading curriculum, writing essays, solving math problems, and developing designs.

In addition to the online lessons, students complete a final project on a topic of their choice.

The selection process is very competitive; selections are made based on grades, participation in the forums, essays, and geographic regions.

While at WISH, evening activities include competitive events such as building a Mars rover.  Each team will develop a human mission to Mars, present their Preliminary Design Review to a technical panel and create a podcast to show at the closing event.

At the conclusion of the week, scholars will present their team podcast to JSC senior staff and community leaders.

How Do Students Become Women in STEM High School Aerospace Scholars? Apply at

http://wish.aerospacescholars.org//

Questions: Email jsc-nhas@mail.nasa.gov

There’s a lot of talent and experience on the team this season. Led by Seniors Michael Barbieri, Dylan Eddy, Eulises Iglesias, Jackson Davis, Joey D’Angelo, and Justin Riccio, this team is poised to have a great year. The goals are to win the League Title, then go to the Sectional Tournament, then maybe beyond. One thing that this team has that other teams over the years didn’t have is a powerful pitching staff. The potent combination of Eulises Iglesias, Bryan Rosado, Raymond Pujols, Danny Booth, Jesus Molina, and newcomer Travis Rios should help keep opponents on their toes.

In order to be a successful baseball team, though, you also need consistent hitting and fielding. It takes all nine players on the field to win games. Everyone has to contribute; no one person can win on their own no matter how great that player is. Coach DeMaria said this team needs to have the mentality of being “Dirtbags”, meaning that every single player on the roster has to play by sacrificing their bodies, and play without the fear of getting dirty. If this team can come day in and day out and give 110% on every play, they will be successful. According to both Coach DeMaria and Coach Lee, “You have to win every pitch, of every inning, of every game in order to get where you want to be at the end of the season”.

This team has a chance to change the culture and past reputation of Woodlands Baseball in not just the eyes of the students and faculty of Woodlands, but those of the entire community as well. Go Falcons!

• a Modified, Junior Varsity, or Varsity Student-Athlete
•  have a cumulative grade point average of 3.5 or higher in the first three (3) quarters of the school year

It is our hope that all student-athletes will aspire to achieve this type of recognition. We ask everyone in our community to recognize these student- athletes and encourage all student-athletes to work to achieve this recognition every year. This 2012/2013 school year each eligible student-athlete that applies

as follows will receive a “free” T-Shirt. “FREE” 2012/2013 SCHOLAR ATHLETE T-SHIRTS!

Upon the completion of the 2012/2013 3rd Quarter, use the letter size form that is identical to this. Please provide your T-Shirt size, e.g., small, medium, large, etc.., along with a copy of your 3rd quarter report card in an envelope with your name in print or typed and FNBC Scholar Athlete Recognition Program in print or typed on the front of the sealed envelope as soon as possible. All envelopes must be delivered to the Athletic Director’s Office no later than Wednesday, May 15th @ 3:00 PM.

Mrs. Obama talked about the serious and growing issue of obesity in the U.S., along with ways to stay nutritious and to keep our children healthy. She also talked about her “Let’s Move” campaign for a healthier America, particularly its youth.

Jonathan reflected, “It was informative and an honor to watch the First Lady talk about health and nutrition.” Christine added, “We’ve now become more informed about what Michelle Obama wants to do. Specifically, we learned about how serious child obesity is in the U.S.”

“I feel honored to have the opportunity to direct. It’s always been a dream of mine. It’s been exciting from the start, since there are lots of different things to get involved in. We haven’t had such a large crew in the past, and I think that that is an accomplishment for our school. There are a lot of aspects of theatre, which most people don’t recognize or are unaware of, that make the night the way it is. Between staging the set, creating the set using art, lighting, and then, of course, the cast and developing characters, “blocking”, finding the right notes in every song…there’s just so much that’s involved. It’s been a lot of fun the entire way.”

Masi comments that she was able to have both her students and family participating in the making of the musical. Mr. Daniel Masi, her husband and an architect, contributed his skills in constructing the entire set for the show through a program called AutoCad. “He was able to prefabricate a lot of the material at home. He cut the wood at our house. I took multiple trips to bring the materials back after they were cut. He put it together with the help of crew members, many volunteers, and I even had some of my family members come and help put up wallpaper, paint, screws, hammering, and drywall. It was a lot of work, but it was truly a wonderful thing to create.”

Little Shop of Horrors is the story of Seymour, a luckless florist shop worker who raises a strange plant that feeds on human flesh and blood. Senior Stephen Doyle III plays the lead role. On developing his character, he says, “At first, I had struggles with the character, because I looked at him as just ‘the nerdy guy’. Then Mrs. Masi pointed out and explained that the reason the show was so ripe and original was because all the characters, despite the way they act, always step forth with genuine innocence. Whatever they do, they have good intentions.” Seymour introduces the residents of Skid Row to a dangerous plant that eventually drags him to his own demise. The plant, named after his love interest, Audrey, played by fellow senior Ashley Cosby, manipulates him into ruining the lives of others in return for winning his love interest’s affections. The cast also includes senior Jackson Davis, who plays the role of the cruel and sadistic dentist, Orin Scrivello, as well as the voice of the man-eating plant, Audrey II. Although the two characters have their differences, Davis jokingly agrees that both are similar in the sense that they are “highly misunderstood”; Orin just wants to get high off of nitrous oxide and Audrey II just want to be fed. Senior Benjamin Thomas plays the cranky and unintentionally humorous character of Mr.Mushnik, the shopkeeper of the florist. This is Thomas’ debut as an actor, although he has previously participated in theatre production as the stage crew manager for Othello. As for the crew, Kevin Quant, senior, is the stage manager. Quant is responsible for directing fellow students to complete an array of tasks, such as moving the set, cuing the microphones, hitting the lights, closing the curtains, and so forth.

Masi describes Little Shop of Horrors as an absolute classic. “It’s an extremely well known play, and is a quintessential comedy with intentionally cliche ‘B-movie’ characters and scenes. I’m very familiar with the play, so I knew it would be easy for me to translate that knowledge of it and bring it to the students. I knew it would showcase a lot of the students’ talents, which makes it very easy to choose when there are certain students that would fall into place for certain characters. I think directing it helped me get that vision.”

There are many inferences within Little Shop, ranging from the characters’ genuine intentions to the physical being of Audrey II. The show touches upon various aspects of the human life, including love, careers, dreams, and harsh realities. To watch Audrey II magically grow in the little florist shop on Skid Row, catch the final performance at Woodlands High School on Saturday April 6th at 7:00pm.