Voices of the Past classes from Calhoun High School engaged in an open forum meeting with Laura Lane, the Global Public Affairs Officer at UPS on Sept. 30 at the Brookside building.

A former American embassy officer during the Rwandan genocide in 1994, Lane delivered a popular TED Talk in 2015 about her experiences. She has also spoken at the World Economic Forum in Geneva, at the United Arab Emirates Government in Dubai and more. Lane spoke about her involvement in service and humanitarian rights, as well as how she harnesses her corporate role to assist others in need.

“I leverage the power of a large corporation and get to do amazing things that my company engages in,” she said. “I learned to use the tools at my disposal to make a difference.”

She told students they can lead from wherever they are and to stick to their principles throughout life. Lane also challenged students to purpose things they’re passionate in and devote themselves to that.

“Use past experiences as source of strength and find ways to learn and grow from it,” she added.

Voices of the Past, a class offered to students in grades 10-12, is a joint venture between the English and social studies departments. They focus on the Holocaust, the genocide in Rwanda, Cambodia and International Human Rights violations by looking at case studies such as North Korea.

Christina Cone, a district social studies chairperson, Kim Serpe, a district English chairperson and Voices of the Past teacher Dr. David Goldberg were instrumental in making this program come to fruition.

"Laura Lane's talk impacted students in powerful ways,” Dr. Goldberg noted.“Her stories of heroism and standing up, even in the most challenging of circumstances, and her passion to be a powerful voice for good in the world, are lessons that are key to what we do in the Voices of the Past course.It was a great honor for all of us to have a wonderful dialogue with this extraordinary leader."

Date Added: 10/5/2022

Last school year, then Merrick Avenue eighth grader Betiana Mujica won a Scholastic contest and was chosen to be featured in the magazine. The new issue has been released, and she is officially published.

English teacher Brett Schwartz had his students write stories and submit them to Scholastic “True Teen Story.”

The current Calhoun freshman was selected in the national contest by Scholastic to share her story, “My Life in Two Languages.” The piece discusses her life experiences growing up the child of Mexican immigrants.

“The publishers reached out to Brett, and setup time to work with Betiana on her story and a photo shoot,” explained Kim Serpe, an English chairperson. “Betiana is also featured on the front cover and back cover of the October issue.”

Visit https://action.scholastic.com/issues/2022-23/100122.html to view her video interview as well.

Date Added: 10/4/2022

The Calhoun High School football team defeated Herricks High School, 28-6 at their homecoming game on Sept. 17.

Ahead of the game, Calhoun held a festival for the community, which included school clubs, food trucks and some activities and giveaways.

Bryce Gould-Anderson and Julia Parente were named homecoming king and queen, respectively. The court also included nominees Luke Gallo, Gavin Giordano, Julianna Belbol, and Sophie Tripiccione.

Principal Nicole Hollings was in the press box, announcing the game. The Calhoun Rock Band, led by Ed Tumminelli, provided musical interludes throughout the game. Cheer and kickline teams entertained the crowd both during the game and at halftime. Charlie the Colt, the school’s mascot, was also on hand to spread school spirit.

Calhoun also dedicated the Calhoun Arch at the field’s entrance in memory of Joseph Michalski. The metal archway, which reads Calhoun Colts, was donated by the former student’s family.

Date Added: 9/20/2022