Conner Delaney ’17, Matt Freese ’17: A closely knit trio, Wills Singley ‘14, Drew DeBacco ‘14, and Grant Regillo ‘14, Episcopal’s Ice Hockey captains, have played together for the past six years. The group first met on the ice their sixth grade year, and it is a result of this longstanding relationship that, as Regillo asserted, “We know exactly what is going to happen. We know where each other is going to be and it works out really well.” Indeed, in all aspects of the game it is evident that the group has a special and successful connection. During last season’s campaign,…
Author: TECHALERT
Gianna Pileggi ’14: Ryan Dankanich, Band Director at Episcopal, first realized his love for music when he began playing the saxophone at nine years old. “At the beginning of the year in fourth grade, a man who rented out musical instruments came to my class. He showed all of his instruments to us and played all of them for us. Everyone in the class was able to choose which one they wanted to play. I immediately chose the saxophone,” recalled Dankanich. “I got in the car that day when my mom picked me up and told her that the instrument man…
Winter Concerts Come to the Mainstage Theatre to see Episcopal’s orchestra, band, and choir groups perform. Upper School: Monday, December 16 at 7:00 Middle School: Tuesday, December 17 at 7:00 Lower School: Friday, December 13 at 1:45 Movement, Form, Technology, and Art The Crawford Campus Center Gallery will be showing art based on robotics and technology from December 5-20.
Kayla Coleman ’14: On a chilly October morning, I, along with Allison Camp ‘14, Maria Burke ‘14, Neil Dua ‘14, and Christopher McNeil ‘14 trekked to the heart of North Philadelphia to make a creative difference. Dua commented, “This was the first time I did community service that dealt with art. It’s a perspective I never really thought about, but it’s an awesome way to bring a community together.” Founded in 1989 by artists Kimberly Niemela and Philip Dit Wah, COSACOSA was inspired by Niemela’s experience creating a multilingual book with community members in Harlem, New York. The vision for…
Melanie Kovacs ’15: As part of Philadelphia’s celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the DaVinci Club and Community Service Board have joined forces with the Philadelphia Mural Arts Program to design a city mural. The mural hopes to illustrate the evolution of education in America and specifically how Dr. King’s message influenced the Brown vs. Board of Education Supreme Court decision. This project, which has been an integral part of the MLK Day of Service in Philadelphia for many years, involves five other schools in the greater Philadelphia area. Every year, Mayor Nutter selects a theme for the mural…
Sammi Ciardi ’15: Episcopal is known for a multitude of notable alums: Director M. Night Shyamalan, architect Robert Venturi, and now comedy writer Karl Hess. Hess, whose father is a history teacher and the exchange coodinator at EA, attended Episcopal for thirteen years. He is now a writer for MTV’s show Ridiculousness, which shows the internet’s funniest viral videos. When asked about how Episcopal affected his career choice, Hess explained, “I actually was an editor for this very publication, which was a good time. I’d pretty much just wait until the last minute to submit my article each week, realize I…
Audrey Lee ’17: Free blocks are easily the highlight of any student’s day. When a class drops or simply is not scheduled students have a full period to get work done or just to have extra time, a break in the school day to kick back from a hectic schedule and relax. Every class drops for a free at least once in the twelve-day cycle, making for eleven full classes in a single rotation, except for one. However, science coursea from third through sixth forms meet on a daily basis, plus an extra double-class period twice every twelve days, making for…
Toni Radcliffe ’14: My classmates complain that their political views are not represented in school–and I have to agree with them. The Episcopal administration should become more politically neutral. In no classroom is it appropriate for teachers to impose their political beliefs on students who are still forming their own. Instead, teachers should present the entire political spectrum to students who may then decide where they personally fall. By only presenting one side of politics, teachers prevent students from being able to make informed political decisions. Although the student might agree with the teacher, it is necessary to understand the counterargument…
Toni Radcliffe ’14: My classmates complain that their political views are not represented in school–and I have to agree with them. The Episcopal administration should become more politically neutral. In no classroom is it appropriate for teachers to impose their political beliefs on students who are still forming their own. Instead, teachers should present the entire political spectrum to students who may then decide where they personally fall. By only presenting one side of politics, teachers prevent students from being able to make informed political decisions. Although the student might agree with the teacher, it is necessary to understand the counterargument…
EUNICE JU / © 2013
Michael Smerconish ’14: Including “class-participation” in a student’s grade is unnecessary and largely arbitrary. A student’s grade is meant to be a byproduct of his/her effort and demonstrated understanding of a particular subject. By grading class participation, teachers risk misinterpreting a student’s actual effort towards a class and add an unreasonably subjective layer of grading to the course. Class participation is first and foremost extremely inconsistent. Though the idea of rewarding shared thoughts and insights may on the surface seem to promote a “demonstrated understanding,” in practice it immediately loses this appeal. In the absence of an all-seeing class camera that…
Katie O’Reilly ’14: In a private secondary educational setting, the value of class participation is undeniably the most important takeaway to carry over into professional achievement. The first day on the job, fresh out of a prestigious collegiate institution, one should not expect to be given a multiple-choice question, a fill in the blank worksheet, or the definition of some useless vocabulary word. In reality, on the job it will be more useful to have actually developed and ultimately mastered critical thinking, listening and speaking skills that are almost entirely essential to career success, and the ability to join a discipline’s…
No rules have yet to be established about texting or social media between students and teachers. The lack of clarity on this issue has led to confusion concerning communication. Students and teachers alike differ on what is appropriate communication. Many faculty advisors give their clubs or teams their phone number for simple, fast communication. However, in the first faculty meeting of the academic year, teachers are strongly discouraged from communicating with students personally. The first time a student receives a text message from a teacher, they are likely to question if they are allowed to respond or if the teacher…
Alexa D’Ambrosio ’17, Sonam Saxena ’17: We all look forward to the day we receive our diplomas. We imagine ourselves exhaling as we stand on the stage at graduation, letting out all of the stress of high school and looking forward to college. However, entering the “real world” can be intimidating. After college you are suddenly thrown into reality and the pressure of finding a job looms over your head. Luckily for graduates of Episcopal Academy, the EA community has made many efforts to assist those who are attempting to forge a future by establishing a series of connections among alumni and…
Claudia Teti ’16: We live in a world that is becoming increasingly more dependent on technology. As such, it seems all but inevitable that a school such as the Episcopal Academy would begin to incorporate advanced technology into its classrooms. In 2008, an explosion of brand new technology was introduced to the EA community alongside the shiny new campus in Newtown Square. Flat-screen TVs were hung in practically every corner of the school, SmartBoards were added to many classrooms, and teachers found a new host of opportunities to incorporate technology in their everyday lessons. However, people have begun to question the…
Nadiyah Browning ’16, Nina Pagano ’16: The Episcopal Academy has been perceived by many to be the “Million Dollar School.” However, not many people know that in comparison to other private Main Line schools, our competitors dwarf us in the amount of endowment money that they receive. In actuality, Penn Charter is the leader in receiving the largest endowment as of 2007, with a total of $50,930,000. In comparison, that year Episcopal Academy totaled $21,856,384. Although the Academy has only a fraction of the endowment money other schools in our area have, the amount of money collected from endowment donors has slowly…
Ryan Quinlan ’14: Pictures of America’s 44 presidents line the wall of the Upper School’s second floor. Below each president’s face lies a document with his autograph. Some, like those of Nixon, Ford, Reagan, and George W. Bush, are addressed specifically to EA; others are documents detailing the purchase of supplies or are letters of correspondence. As Cassandra Keith, Upper School librarian and archivist stated, “What has been put in the Upper School is a set of archival copies.” The originals themselves “exist in the EA archives,” which are on the second floor of the Campus Center. “After we moved from…
Kathryn Wilson ’16: Have you ever walked by the teacher’s lounge in the morning before homeroom, seen the fresh donuts and steaming cups of coffee and thought to yourself, “It must be awesome to work here?” Teachers here do enjoy the coffee, free lunch, access to the fitness center, and high-end technological resources that Episcopal Academy is so lucky to have. However, what private school teachers are missing is the main attraction to any job: salary. Private school teachers earn less than public school teachers on a national average. In fact, public school teachers make roughly 24% more, according to the…
Christina Chambers ’16: As homework plays a major role in a high school student’s life at the Episcopal Academy, Scholium has recently spoken to teachers from different subject areas to get a better sense of how departments approach the issue of homework. Scholium has also conducted a poll serving student views on homework from different departments. Homework can consume enormous amounts of time, energy, and leave students exhausted the following day. However, history teacher Anna McDermott believes, “It depends upon the student, for some it is a lot, and for others the work is very manageable.” Chair of the history department,…
Isabella Sanchez ’16: Episcopal Academy has always been a non-profit organization, but partnerships with organizations like NXT Sports have led to questions about the criteria for on-going non-profit status. Lawrence Capuzzi, member of Episcopal’s Business Administration, explained the school’s qualification as a non-profit organization, stating, “Our mission is to provide a good education for kids and to manage the school each year. We never budget to make a profit and any surplus funds go directly back into the school.” Being a not-for-profit entails that any extra income the company makes is not for distribution between owners and investors but instead is…