A Trophy Earned?

SCHOOL NEWSPAPER volume 1 no 1 March 2017 - Since 2017

Good Day, OLA Feature: OLA’s Past By: Robert Shea

Have you ever wondered about OLA’s history? In order to get

this information about our school, we interviewed a former

student, Beth Ford ’78. She told us about life at OLA in the

1970’s. The school had its similarities and differences

compared to today.

Back in the 1970’s, school life was fairly similar to present

day’s life. At the beginning of the day, a prayer and the Pledge

of Allegiance were announced over the loudspeaker. The

students learned the same subjects, including specials like art

and music. But instead of Spanish, French was taught to only

the upper grades. The girls’ dress code was similar to today,

except the girls were only allowed to wear skirts. The boys

wore a light blue buttoned shirt with a tie. There was no

school lunch offered. Milk and ice cream were sold every day.

The school staff was very different. The principal of the school

was Sister Loreen Francis. Most of the teachers were nuns

who lived in what is now the St. Francis Center. There was a

janitor on staff, but no school nurse. If you were sick, the

secretary called your house, and your parents would pick you

up. Ms. Sullivan, who still substitutes today, was the reading

and social studies teacher for 7th and 8th grade. She also

taught gym for the entire school.

The structure of the school has significantly changed since

Beth attended OLA. There were no Smart Boards,

computers, iPads, or even white boards in the classrooms.

Each classroom had chalkboards. During penmanship class,

the teacher used a line maker with 6 pieces of chalk. After

each class, a student would be assigned to erase the board.

The recess yard didn’t have basketball hoops. There was a

kickball diamond and the Four Square courts were located in

the back of the parking lot . If you misbehaved, the naughty

students were told to stand against the fence during recess.

Those students became members of the “Fence Club”. There

were no PTO events: no Monster Mash, Ice Cream Social, or

Movie Night. OLA didn’t offer after school clubs, such as

newspaper or drama club. However, there was a basketball

team and cheerleaders. OLA belonged to the same league as

we do today.

OLA has undergone a tremendous amount of changes

throughout the years. When it was time to educate her own

children, Beth Ford did not hesitate as to where to send her

sons. She knew that OLA would prepare her children well for

the future. Our Lady of the Assumption School, Beth’s alma

mater, was the best place for her sons to receive an excellent

Catholic education.

Contributors: Ryan Fariole, Christina Hasiotis, Charlene

Nansubuga, Kayla Obayashi, Julia Stasinos

By: Andrew D’Avanzo

Should all players receive

trophies, win or lose? I

believe all players who

participate in a team sport

should receive a trophy

whether they win or lose.

The winning team should

obtain bigger trophies while

the losing teams get smaller

ones. Every team should at

least receive a trophy for

participation. Win or lose,

the effort is still there.

After a season of playing

hard and having fun, it’s

always nice to have

something that represents

your effort.

Contributor:

Jack Swales

Editorials

Editorials

Movie Reviews

Sports

Moments

Did You Know?

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Moderators: Mrs. Bernard

and Mrs. Scoppettuolo

Art Director: Mrs. Rogovich

Movie Reviews

Moana By: Isabella Indresano

Moana, a teenager, lives on a nice peaceful island. But long

before she was born, a demigod named Maui, stole the heart

of Te Fiti, the island goddess. Maui has to battle with Te Ka,

the fire monster.

During the fight, Maui broke his magical fishhook, which

would allow him to transform into different animals. Fighting

continued between Maui and Te Ka. Maui got stuck on an

island and the heart was nowhere to be found. Moana set out

to find Maui and restore the heart of Te Fiti because her

grandmother was slowly dying. This motivated Moana to go

past the tide and save the island.

I thought that the actors and actresses, who used their

voices, were great. My favorite actor was Dwayne Johnson

who played Maui. I thought that Maui’s character was

definitely upbeat and very very funny. I thought Auli’I

Cravalho’s character, Moana, was kind. Nicole Scherzinger,

who played Sina, the grandma of Moana, was really sweet

and funny and really inspiring to Moana. Sina and Maui were

my two favorite actors in this movie.

I think this movie is very enjoyable and age appropriate for

children over the age of six , because there were some scary

parts to it. This 3D computer - animated movie was released

by Walt Disney Studios and opened in theatres on October 6,

2016. I really enjoyed all the songs that the characters sang

and all the dances they performed. This movie is rated PG

and is now on Blu Ray DVD. Rating:

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story By: William Roumeliotis

Rogue One is about a group of Rebels that work together to

steal the plans of the Death Star-a planet sized weapon that is

able to destroy another planet in one shot. The main character,

Jyn Erso is also on her own mission to find her father and

clear his name. She wants the Rebellion to know her father

built a glitch in the Death Star that can destroy it.

Rogue One takes place on different planets in a galaxy far,

far away. The time this story was told is right before The New

Hope, which is the fourth movie. It was first shown in

theatres in 1997.

The lead characters are Jyn Erso (Felicity Jones) the daughter

of a First Order weapon builder, with Cassian Andor (Diego

Luna),a rebel commander who assembles the Rogue One team

to steal the Death Star plans. There is also K2SO (Alan

Tudyk) a reprogramed Imperial droid that is Cassian’s pilot

and protector. Chirrut Imwel (Donnie Yen), the guardian of

the first Jedi temple, joined the Rogue One team to help steal

the Death Star plans. Baze Mulbus(Wen Jiang), plays a soldier

that protects Chirrut and fights for the Rogue One team along

with Orson Krennic (Ben Mendelson), the movie’s bad guy.

Krennic kidnaps Jyn’s father and forces him to finish building

the Death Star.

The actors and actresses, who were new to the storyline, were

instantly likeable. The villains were sinister, and the Rogue

One team had you on the edge of your seat.

The theme to this movie was fight for what you believe in and

never give up. This movie is rated PG-13. The movie does

achieve its goal of entertaining its audience; however, its

ending is not what people were expecting. Rating:

Miracles from Heaven By: Danielle Atkinson

The movie Miracles from Heaven is based on a true story. The

real setting of the story takes place in Burleson, Texas in 2011,

but the movie was actually filmed in Georgia in 2015. It is

based on a young, healthy, Christian, girl named Anna, who

unexpectedly started getting sick every night. When her

parents took her to the hospital, the doctors thought she was

allergic to dairy, but that wasn’t the case.

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She was diagnosed with a disease that needed immediate

attention. She met a doctor in Boston who agreed to take care

of her. Later in the month she went home and her oldest sister

suggested she take her to climb the tree in their

backyard. The branch they were on started to break, and

Anna fell into a hollowed -out tree below. She was stuck in

there for four hours. After they got her out of the tree, a

helicopter took her and her mom to Boston to see the

doctor. After Anna’s check up, they received some good news.

I thought all of the actors and actresses did a great job

showing the emotion that was needed to bring you into the

story. Jennifer Garner, who plays the mother, was excellent

because she was able to show such a range of emotion. Kylie

Rogers, who plays Anna, was a very good actor who played a

character who had to be strong, through this hard time of her

life. These two characters were my favorites.

I thought the movie achieved its goal; there is always hope for

you during a battle that’s hard to fight. I would

recommend this movie to be shown in our religion class. I

loved it and enjoyed watching it. It is rated PG for anyone who

is interested in it. It is truly an emotional movie.

Rating:

Sports Football Superstitions by Caden Rogovich

With the Super Bowl having just ended a few weeks ago, I

am sure many of Patriots’ Nation had a superstition or two

to get their beloved Patriots on the winning side of the most

important game of the season. Although, the Cincinnati

Bengals haven’t played in a Super Bowl since 1988, they

too have some superstitions. Let me tell you something

about the Bengals. It was Woody Harrelson that was the

one who cursed them. The Cincinnati Bengals won their

last playoff game in 1991 vs. the Houston Oilers. Four days

later on an old T.V. show called Cheers, Woody’s character

found a foosball table that was allegedly cursed - bad things

happened when people played it! When he played it, his

favorite football team, the Bengals, lost and haven’t won a

playoff game since. In the 2015 playoffs, Woody tried to

break the curse by destroying the table, but it didn’t work!

Believe it or not, some teachers have superstitions of their

own! Mr. Parrott, the gym teacher, Mrs. Disick, and Mrs.

Maylor (cafeteria manager) all wear a certain Patriot’s shirt

or sweatshirt. Mrs. Maylor also stands most of the game,

and her family sets up a life size Tom Brady cut out. We all

know how much Mrs. Gabriel loves Tom Brady, and

displays her giant cardboard cutout of him in the St.

Francis building, for all to see! Mr. Walsh will only sit in a

certain chair in a certain way, and Mrs. Rogovich sits in the

corner couch cushion for good luck. Finally, our Principal

Mr. Grocki, also sits in a certain spot, wears his special

shirt with his Red Sox socks, and before the game, he

makes his famous chili!

Are superstitions silly? Judging by Super Bowl LI, Patriot

Nation needed every single one of those crazy superstitions

or did they?

Word Search

Profile: Odell Beckham Jr. By: Richard Indresano

Odell Beckham is a famous wide receiver for the NY Giants.

He is a talented football player who has a very interesting life.

Odell Beckham Jr. is one of the highest paid wide receivers in

the NFL. For being a wide receiver in the NFL, his salary is

$10,406,198 over four years. Odell stands at 5’11”, weighs 198

pounds, and is just 24 years old. His birthday is November 5,

1992, and Odell’s hometown is New Orleans, Louisiana. Odell

has been playing two seasons for the New York Giants, and

has had an incredible rookie season with the team in 2014.

One interesting fact about Odell Beckham Jr. is that he

currently lives in Drake’s house, which is in Hidden Hills,

California. (Drake is a Canadian entertainer ). OBJ, I believe,

will be a force to be reckoned with in the years to come.

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Woody Harrelson destroying the supposedly cursed foosball table with a

sledgehammer on live television.

Sports Contributors:

Matthew Cushing and Kaitlyn Lehman

By: Thomas Mandracchia and John Carbone

Crossword

Editorials

Cell Phones “R Gr8”!

By: Arianna Shalhoub

A high-demand wish from all kids is to have their very own

cell phone. But, when is a responsible enough age?

In my opinion, I believe students who are starting their

first year in middle school should get a phone. When

students start grade 6, they are more mature and

responsible than when they were in elementary school. At

this age, many students are starting a new school. The

students are becoming more independent, and will need to

stay in touch with their parents.

A survey was conducted among the OLA Newspaper Club,

and the average age when students first received their cell

phone was nine years of age! The youngest age was five

and the oldest age was thirty (Mrs. Scoppettuolo). Kids

receive cell phones for different reasons, too. Some parents

work all day, and they need to keep in touch with their

kids. Others, give their children cell phones because these

young adults want to be part of social media.

Some children haven’t received a phone yet for several

reasons. Parents may not be able to afford a phone, and

there are other kids who could care less if they even owned

one! Some parents may not think their child is responsible

enough to own a cell phone. Others don’t think their child

needs a phone because they are always under their parents’

supervision.

Whatever the reason, children want to get their hands on

the latest piece of technology. Cell phones can open up a

whole new world of communication. That is why I think cell

phones truly “ R Gr8”.

Should Parents Get On Their “A Game?”

By: Sophia Bolger

For years, students have been begging their parents for a

reward for their hard earned grades. This situation still

continues today. Is it time for the parents to pay for each A?

After surveying the students in the newspaper club here at

OLA, ninety percent stated it was time for them to get paid for

good grades. The other ten percent were already getting

rewarded. Those waiting to receive a monetary gift, have been

double guessing if their work is just a waste. They may think

differently if their A and B grades are rewarded. Don’t those

A’s and B’s hold value? Students are angered and think, “It’s

time we should start being paid for our grades.”

On the other hand, some parents disagree. They think a

reward is only necessary if their child receives a good report

card. The parents don't want to waste their money paying for

every 100% that comes home. They would rather save it on

paying for their children’s school tuition.

I agree with the parents on this issue. Students should not be

paid for every good grade. I think children should only be paid

if they come home with a good report card, not with every 100%

they bring home. If the child is paid $5-$10 for an A or B

grade, the child could start to become greedy. This greed must

be avoided. Parents’ money should be saved for more important

items, such as school tuition and school uniforms( if the child

attends a private school ). Paying their child for a good grade is

a waste of money. This is why I believe, that students should

not be paid for every good grade.

Editorial Contributors: Kaitlyn Lehman, Angelina

Micieli, and Jack Swales

By: Caroline Santos

John Carbone

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Dog Search

Ms. Oliver’s Most Embarrassing Moment By Daniel Bousquet and Dimitrios Vamvouklis

Ms. Oliver’s most

embarrassing moment was

when she was in middle

school. Her family went to

Six Flags for a vacation.

They went on a ride that

required you to drive an old

antique car. Each member of

her family had their own car.

As soon as the ride began,

Ms. Oliver’s family had

pulled ahead pulled ahead of her. Ms.

Oliver tried to get her car to move, but it just wouldn’t

budge. Ms. Oliver thought her family was going to forget

about her. Ms. Oliver stayed in her car thinking it was out

of gas.

Almost immediately, a long line began forming behind Ms.

Oliver’s car. A large, strong man then approached the car

and asked what was wrong.

Ms. Oliver told him that she thought the car broke down.

The man then reached in and pushed the gas pedal with his

hand. Suddenly, the car began to move. The car wasn’t

moving because Ms. Oliver wasn’t pushing the gas pedal

down hard enough. When Ms. Oliver finished the ride, her

family was waiting. She then explained her car’s situation

and they all laughed.

Mrs. Blaha’s Fake Wedding By: Anna Fringuelli and Steven Galatis

It was the summer

of 2011, and Mrs. Blaha was

about to get married. The

teachers wanted to do

something new and unusual

to celebrate her future

wedding. They decided that

the OLA faculty would hold

a fake wedding to help her

practice. Everyone pitched

in, and they decorated the

cafeteria to look like a

church. She even had a toilet paper dress made by Mrs.

Tarpinian.

All of the teachers arrived, and the wedding began. Mr.

Walsh stood in as the Father-of-the Bride and walked Mrs.

Blaha down the aisle. Mr. Melchianno was the priest, and

Mr. Bachner was the groom. It was like a real wedding.

Everyone had fun and lots of laughs. Mrs. Blaha received

many gifts and well wishes. It was something to remember.

That was Mrs. Blaha’s most embarrassing, but fun, moment.

Most Embarrassing Moments

Mr. Jorge’s Most Embarrassing Moment By: Yainni Vamvouklis and Maisie Dunn

When Mr. Jorge first came to

this country, he did not speak

much English. One day, he felt

like making stuffed peppers

from a recipe he found online.

The recipe called for egg yolks.

He was not familiar with the

term egg yolks. He assumed

they were some type of spice. So

off he went to Star Market. He

walked straight to the spice aisle

and looked all up and down the

aisle for a bottle of egg yolk. When he wasn’t successful, Mr.

Jorge went to the egg aisle, but still he could not find the egg

yolks. Finally, the store manager came over and asked Mr.

Jorge if he needed any help. He said, “Yes, can you please tell

me where the egg yolks are located in the store? I looked over in

the spice aisle,” Mr. Jorge said.

“ Well, did you try the egg aisle?” The manager suggested.

Mr. Jorge tried explaining to the man that he looked in the

spice aisle, and in the egg aisle, and found nothing. Finally the

manager asked, “Did you looked inside the egg?”

Mr. Jorge said, “No, I didn’t try that yet. But tell me, is the

yolk the yellow or the white part of the egg?”

At that point, the store manager thought it was a prank and

just walked away. So in the end, Mr. Jorge never made the

pepper recipe because he still did not know if the yolk was the

white or the yellow part of the egg.

Comics

Comics created by: Giavanna Franciosa, Thomas

Mandracchia and David Nazzaro

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We are excited to announce this year’s Annual Auction will be held on Thursday, April 27th at Spinelli’s. Join us for a Derby themed night filled with food, drinks, live auction, raffles and MORE. Don’t miss OLA’s biggest and most exciting fundraising event of the year… You

can BET on it being a great night!

We are asking for a $30.00 family donation to help the teachers and

students put together their highly sought after class gifts which will be auctioned off that evening. In return, everyone who donates will

receive a family N.U.T (No Uniform Today) ticket. Your donation is tax deductible and GREATLY appreciated!

With the funds raised from the event, we would like to update our 5th-

8th grade math curriculum and start phase I of redesigning the library/computer lab to create a new student resource room and

library space.

Please make checks payable to: Angels of OLA and return to school in an envelope marked, 17th Annual Auction Donation (with your family

name), by March 22nd.

Many Thanks, Lauren Donahue and Kara Armata Auction Coordinators and OLA Parents