7-12 News

Goodbye

The members of the Class of 2008 sat through their final assembly as students Sunday afternoon. For the 51 graduates it was a day they never thought would come. Shay Mailloux opened the ceremony which was hosted, for the last time, by Mr. Harrica. Speakers Chelsea LaBare and Lena Ryan provided the student perspective. Mr. Harrica was the guest speaker this year. It was his final class at CCS as he prepares to retire in the coming months. Emily Jackson was on hand for the pictures.

CCS Goes Green

I think this has something to do with recycling, but it could be about Mrs. Gratto's cooking. The Science Club would like you to know a few facts about the recycling efforts at CCS:

"Since Earth Day, April 22, 2008, CCS has been recycling plastic bottles. Our maintenance staff has just delivered over 2200 plastic bottles (180 pounds) to the landfill this past week. Thank you for saving our landfill space."

"CCS also recycles paper. So far 2008 has yielded 6940 pounds of paper - that's about 46 trees saved. We are on record pace. Thanks."

Previous Years of Recycling at CCS:

2007 - 6460 = 32 trees saved
2006 - 8380 = 41 trees saved
2005 - 5420 = 27 trees saved
2004 - 6400 = 32 trees saved

Facts About Plastic Recycling

Plastic bottles are not biodegradable. When they end up as trash in the landfills, they stay there for up to 700 years before beginning to decompose. Recycling plastic bottles reduces the amount of trash clogging landfills, and limits the environment's exposure to chemical contaminants from products like soap, hair dye, and cleaning products that can seep into the soil and contaminate ecosystems. Recycling plastics also saves energy. One recycled plastic bottle conserves enough energy to power a light bulb for up to three years.

Very Cool

Mr. Jaggers sent me this link to a neat flash movie. I think the geekier members of the readers will like it. CLICK HERE

OAS Recognized

After a brief assembly held to remind students about behavior during Finals Week, Mr. Breault turned the morning over to Mr. Miller for a moment to recognize the OAS team for their remarkable achievement over the past weekend. Liz Trombley, Chelsea LaBare and Dr. Voss from SUNY Potsdam also spoke briefly about the accomplishment. Dr. Voss stated that he feels Chateaugay has shown the most growth of all the school that participate in the event. Congratulations once again to the OAS students. Pictures - High Res Pictures - You can save these for printing. Use the other ones for your MySpace pages.

A Night of Honor and Distinction

Tonight CCS students who achieved academic distinction were honored at the annual Academic Awards Banquet and Ceremony. Students on the honor roll for consecutive quarters and for consecutive years were honored including a substantial group of seniors who were recognized for 16 quarters (4 years) of academic excellence. Continuing the tradition of honoring past graduates, David LaPlant was the evening's guest speaker. After all awards were handed out the new members of the National Honor Society were inducted by President Hannah Gardiner. Congratulations to all students honored and thank you Mr. LaPlant. Pictures

Outstanding

For the first time in CCS history the students involved in OAS earned the event's highest honor - Most Diplomatic Organization. There were 14 schools and 19 countries represented at the High School Model OAS event held at SUNY Plattsburgh. Along with the team recognition, Shay Mailloux and Liz Trombley were recognized as Most Diplomatic 1st Committee and Hannah Hanover was singled out as Most Diplomatic 2nd Committee. Mr. Miller is extremely pleased with the efforts of the these students . There are some stories about elevators that I believe should be left to the students and Mr. Miller to tell. Hannah Gardiner, Hannah Kinney, Hannah Hanover and Hannah Cassavaw (just kidding Devin) will be attending the National Model OAS as representatives from this High School Model OAS. Congratulations to the Mr. Miller and the students for this extraordinary achievement. The team will be recognized next week during a morning assembly by the student body and by Stuart Voss from SUNY Plattsburg. Here are a few pictures courtesy of Hannah Hanover.

Chateaugay Idol

Dear Mrs. Gratto and Mrs. Pageau: Danielle Swanston and Briana Stark are completely responsible for the following video: I admit I was the one who downloaded to my laptop, rotated the video and posted here for the whole world to see, but it is all because of them. For the rest of you....break out those coke bottles.

Science Trip

Over the past weekend students who are involved in the Science Club were treated to a trip to Boston. I have a few pictures from Briana Stark and Amanda Wilcox to share. There are also some videos that I will be posting soon as well, unless I hear something from Mrs. Gratto and/or Mrs. Pageau....you will want to see them. Pictures 1 - Pictures 2

Special Video

The following video was created by Jamie Bigelow and a friend over the weekend. He did such a nice job I thought I would share it here.

One foot in front of the other

You know I have seen some of you walk through the halls. You should be amazed that we have a group of students who can walk and play at the same time. The CCS Marching Band once again provided the backbone of two Memorial Day weekend parades; one in Chateaugay and one in Malone. I do not have a lot of pictures. At one parade my battery dies and at the other the rain kept the camera in the bag. Sorry. Here are the few PICTURES I did take.

Adirondack Chair

A number of schools were selected to create a piece of art in the form of an Adirondack Style Chair. Our school was selected and Lauren Cook rose to the challenge. You can see all the hard work and detail she put into the project (under the watchful eye of Mr. Walley and Ms. Smith) in the PICTURES. This chair (along with the others) will be traveling around the area. They will be auctioned off at the end of the tour. Wonderful job Lauren!!

New Signs

"The Chateaugay Central School FFS chapter has made 14 signs in the past for Oswegatchie Educational Center. Upon visiting the camp in the fall for a leadership conference we were asked to make a new sign for the entrance to the camp. With many improvements mad to the camp they felt it was time for a new and improved sign, The camp donated the wood to make the sign that is 4 feet by 8 feet. Our chapter also donated the rest of the wood and other materials needed. The sign was fiber glassed sand painted to water proof it so it it not damaged by the weather. In two weeks we plan to take the sign to the camp and install it for all to see. We hope the sign welcomes many children for many years to come." - Emily Jackson. Photos

Senior Trip

The Class of 2008 is seeing their final days fly by and now that the senior trip is completed, the realization is setting in for most that the end is near. Lisa Pratt dropped off her memory card this morning with a ton of pictures to share. There are many pictures of monkeys and other animals, as well as some great shots from the zoo. If anyone else has any they want to share please drop off your memory card, your camera, a CD or email them. Thanks for sharing. Pictures

And the winner is....

The Class of 2009 and the community of Chateaugay. The Class of 2009 won by raising so much money from a packed house and the community won by being treated to a long night full of wonderful performances. There were 11 acts along with many skits spearheaded by emcee Tony Lamica. In the end it was the pairing of Shawn Douglas and Malone student friend Nick (billed as Metal Frost) who won the night. Oour own Shay Mailloux and Kyle Demers came in third followed by The Skipping Stones band (John Peterson, Jeff Robinson and Ben Trombley). Thanks goes out to all the performers, special guests and the judges (Mr. Walrath, Ms. Pickering and Ms. Smith). There were far too many highlights from the evening to point anything out but I know I was amazed to see Drew Boyea dancing along with Cory Spoor, Andrew Gadway, and Blake Parmeter. I also liked the little break dancing moves from Coach Boyea. I also have give a nod to Isaac Kinney for the cat jokes. It was a great night. Congrats to the Class of 2009, Mrs. Swanston and Mr. Lamica for a great show. Pictures

Mock Crash

It is always an emotional experience when the mock crash is presented and this year was no exception. Many thanks to all the volunteers, the student participants and Mrs. Johnston for helping put it all together. There are many pictures in this section, but some are a little gruesome. Even though the event is staged, the presentation looks and feels pretty real. Pictures - WARNING - SOME OF THE PICTURES ARE VERY REALISTIC AND GRAPHIC

Color Wars

After looking at the mock crash photos you may need something a little more fun. Just before the April vacation students in grades 7-12 participated in the color wars. This Student Council sponsored event pits the students in different grades against each other in some fun games like knock-out, tug-of-war and more. The Junior class won the day with a strong showing in each event. Pictures

Science Olympiad trip

From Mrs. Harrigan - "The Division B Science Olympiad team recently took time out of their spring break to participate at the state level. The competition was held at SUNY New Paltz. It was a great learning experience for students to see how top teams around the state performed. Students especially learned a lot about designs from many of the different vehicles that were built and tested. The weather was great! The students had an enjoyable experience, while learning a great deal." - Pictures

Very cool indeed

I probably should post this in my blog, but I also want to make sure everyone sees this. I am pretty good with numbers, but this guy is amazing. Enjoy

Science Olympiad

Students placed 3rd in the Division B Science Olympiad held @ SUNY Potsdam on Saturday, March 15th. The team was selected to move on to the state level competition held @ SUNY New Paltz April 11th and 12th. Students tested their skill and knowledge in a variety of events ranging from amphibians & reptiles to labs and planetariums, as well as testing a number of devices they had built. Students competing: Morgan Legacy, Meaghan Wood, Ben Roulston, Greg Holmes, Matthew Swanston, Katelyn Legacy, Marc Lambert, Jessica Burl, Stephen Bernier, Nikki Cooke-Paige, Jason Lawrence, and Laura Stewart. Pictures - Thanks to Ms. Nemier for reminding me about this neat picture service.

OAS

I never did get any information about these photos but I decided to post them anyway in a slightly different way. I think you will like it.

Spanish Love Song

I think this may be romantic...maybe not...you decide

Pep Overdose

I am all full of pep. With a dash of spirit. The Student Council sponsored a Spirit Day event Thursday afternoon complete with a cheering demonstration, a game of knockout and some 10 minute mini games. I think Zach Peck and Lauren LaBare won the knockout game, the faculty men beat the JV Boys, the faculty women beat the Senior Girls' (with one junior) team and half the cheerleaders beat the other half. There were some special cheerleaders helping out the regular squad and the afternoon ended with Mr. Breault leading the students in a massive cheer. The event was scheduled to give the varsity teams some momentum as they move into the payoff season. I grabbed a few pictures and so did Emily.

Science Olympiad

From Mrs. Gratto - "The Chateaugay Central School Science Olympiad high school team completed successfully at Clarkson University this past weekend. A total of 15 teams were present for the competition. Events included lab in chemistry, physics, biology, astronomy, rocks and minerals, oceanography, robot ramble and more. The team placed 7th overall and won the SPIRIT AWARD. Cassondra Whyte and Margaret Empsall placed 1st and 3rd in the events respectfully. Cassy and Amanda Wilcox also took 2nd in the boomilever. Congratulations to the entire team. A super job. Pictures

Food Fight

Not really, but it grabs your attention right? - "Mrs. Simonsen's French class celebrated "Le Chandeleur", a French religious holiday commemorated on February 2nd each year. To appropriately celebrate Chandeleur, the classes played a Crepe throwing game. The object of the game was to catch the crepe in the very center of their paper plate, but they were not allowed to flip or jiggle the crepe to try to reposition it. Each student tried a different technique, but only one could be "le/la gagnant(e)"! Bonne fete!" I think some of those words are made up....hmmmm...pictures

Spanish Projects

Not really sure what I have here but there are some great pictures from Mrs. Swanston's Spanish class. It appears that there were some skits performed recently. Looks like a fund day. Pictures

12 Angry Men

Recently students in grades 7-12 were treated to an amazing performance of "12 Angry Men". The locally renowned Pendragon Theatre group supplied the talent. Thanks to Mrs. Stumpf for helping provide this entertainment and thanks to all the performers for such an amazing morning. (Thanks also to the students who helped pack up the truck after the scow.) Pictures

Romeo and Juliet

It has become a grand tradition. Mrs. Allen's students presented their Romeo and Juliet projects recently. They included posters, lego sets and much more. Pictures

Linerider

Mr. Jaggers (and many others need this program) so I am trying to post it here for you to use. Right click HERE and save the file to your desktop then run the program. I hope it works.

Spanish project

Mrs. Swanston's Spanish V class were pleased to invite Mrs. Smith's and Mrs. Flaherty's 1st grade classes to make Ojos de Dios. The children worked hard to make these Christmas Ornaments. ¡Qué diversión! Pictures

Door Decorating Contest

Mrs. Johnston said that this was one of the best contests in many years with a lot of participating classes and several beautiful doors. But someone has to win. This year Mr. Miller's door won first place and Mr. Walley's door came in second place. We have pictures of all the doors HERE and a behind the scenes look at the winning door HERE. Congratulations to all the winners and all the participants for making the hallways look a little brighter this morning. The elementary students touring the hallways enjoyed all of your hard work.

Drama in Biology

From Mrs. Gratto - "Drama in biology? Yes! Students in my class performed skits to demonstrate cellular energy process. This helped them better understand the concepts of photosynthesis (converting sunlight into energy) and ATP (Adenine Tr. Phosphate). All life requires these processed for living. It was fun." She also took the pictures.

Have your DNA and eat it too!

I am not certain I want credit for the headline so I will blame Mrs. Gratto since she sent it to me. Anyway, here is the story: Seventh graders have been hard at work in Mrs. Gratto's and Mrs. Harrigan's science classes learning about cell reproduction and genetic traits. They recently made edible models of DNA using licorice and marshmallows. It was a tasty learning experience. Pictures - Once again food was made and eaten and all I get is the chance to report it.

Mentoring

November 28, 2007 From Mrs. Jaggers - "The mentoring program is officially up and running. Take a look at this year's awesome group. We are looking forward to a year full of fun activities." Pictures

A few lost Halloween photos

These may hurt your eyes...proceed with caution. Pictures

Cleaning up your mess

On Friday, November 2, 2007, members of the Science Club hit the road to pick up the trash. As part of the Adopt-A-Highway program and students worked on picking up roadside garbage along Route 374. The group collected nearly 20 bags full of trash. They were all treated to a pizza party after for their efforts. Pictures

Creating Skulls

Novmber12007 Students in Mrs. Swanston's 7th Grade Spanish class spent some time in Mrs. Gardiner's room working on Dia d los Muertos (Day of the Dead) skulls. The annual celebrations are held November 1st and 2nd. The sugar on the skulls represents the sweetness of life, while the skull signifies that the body has passed on. The sugar skulls are colorful and bright and are used in altars to honor loved ones who have passed away. Pictures

Halloween Contest

oct312007 Although there were fewer contestants than in previous years, there were still some amazing costumes and skits on display at the annual Halloween Costume contest. The event is sponsored by the Student Council and prizes were awarded in 4 categories. Eddie Layton and Derek Dupee won for most original, Ben Leach won for best costume, "The Flintstones" won for best skit (Danielle Swanston, Brianna Stark, Michelle Swanston and Emily Jackson) and "Salt-N-Pepa" were the best dressed staff member award winners. (Miss Peryea and Miss Nemier). Check back later for the parade pictures. Costume Contest Pics

Senior Play

Oct232007 One of the major fundraising efforts for the Senior Class is the annual Senior Play. Every year the play provides some solid laughs and amazing performances. This year was no exception. "Switching Principals" was the title of this year's presentation under the direction of Miss Pickering and Miss Nemier. As with every performance a few students left their mark. This year the two leads, Kimberly Johnston and Thomas Jackson, carried the play very well, leaving us all hoping for more in the musical. All performers, many who do not normally appear on stage, did a great job. The Class of 2008 wants to thank all who participated and all who supported the weekend performances. Pictures

Opening Day Games

For a refreshing change the senior class did not cheat. They did not win either, but they went out with dignity. The juniors won in what was the closest competition in many years. The basketball shoot-out was also very close and took a long time to finish. It was the only event the seniors were able to win. Izzy Dizzy was a hit as always. Now it is time to get busy. Many thanks to the members of Student Council, especially Mrs. Johnston for her organization and Mr. Gugliotta for acting as the host. Welcome back. Pictures

7th Grade Orientation

It has become a tradition, and for brothers and sisters, a bit of a competition. The 7th grade students at CCS reported for school one day early for a special orientation day. They were given a chance to meet their teachers, learn their way around the building, find their lockers and more. After a special cook out lunch the students were divided into teams and tried their luck at many special team building stations. From Mr. Legacy falling into their arms, to Mr. Walley convincing some students that his white sneakers turned black from the nuclear waste the students learned had a great day. Welcome to Middle School/High School. Pictures

A Message from your Student Council President

"Welcome back for the new school year. I hope everyone had an enjoyable summer and is looking forward to a great school year at CCS. In keeping with our school spirit, strive to do your best in whatever activities you participate in. I hope you make the most of your junior high and high school years. Get involved and create some awesome memories.
Lt's make 2007-2008 a great school year. If you have any suggestions for Student Council days or different ideas on ways to improve our school, don't hesitate to let one of the members know.
Thanks for your continued support." - Lauren LaBare

High School Principal - Mr. Breault

Student Handbook

You can help

As always you can help by sending in stories, pictures and information about events important to the school and our students. Drop off your memory card, email a story, or stop by and see Mr. Trombley to have your item added to the website.