Students Represent JHS at District Orchesta

Along with our district chorus students, Renee Samay, Jackie Highland, and Anna Johnson (all Seniors) have been chosen to represent JHS at district orchestra this January. If you see them, please congratulate them!

JHS Marching Band qualifies for Atlantic Coast All-Chapter Championships

‘Congratulations to the Johnstown High School Trojan Marching Band for qualifying for the 2010 Atlantic Coast All-Chapter Championships in Hershey, PA scheduled for Sunday, November 7th. The band will be representing Chapter XI in Group 1 Open Class and entering the competition in 11th place out of 25 bands. 40 Group 1 bands started the season and only 25 qualified for the Championships. Great job Johnstown! Congratulations on a wonderful season.’

Poster Contest Results

PA Career Link of Cambria County recently sponsored a poster contest on “Careers in Demand.” Students created posters based on different career clusters. Mrs. Nanassy’s Health Occupations classes participated and came up winners! Two students were recognized for their posters. Tori Been, a sophomore, won first place for her “Counting Pills to Pay the Bills” Pharmacist poster. Junior Allison Bosier’s poster describing a Pediatrician received third place.

Congratulations to Tori and Allison.

JHS Educator Night Scheduled for October 29th. JHS vs. Central Cambria

On Friday, October 29th, the JHS varsity football team will take on Central Cambria in a matchup of Laurel Highland competitors. This game will also be Educator Night at JHS, This night is designed to recognize some of the great teachers in the district and the impact they have made on our students. On this night, every fall senior athlete will be recognized at midfield with the teacher that has made a difference in their life. Each senior athlete wrote individual letters to the teacher they selected. In this letter, they thanked them for everything they have done for them and invited them to stand with them to be recognized at the game on Friday night. This special event is scheduled to take place on Friday, October 29th, 2010. Ceremonies will start at 6:45.

John Siciliano will also be recognized prior to the game for earning the Jack Buchan Award. The Jack Buchan, Sr. Trojan Stadium Award Fund-is designed to provide a scholarship to a Johnstown High School graduating football player who has demonstrated academic excellence, good character, sportsmanship, leadership, and financial need. John is the 2010 recipient.

GJSD Celebrate Success Night! October 29th. Varsity Football: JHS vs. Central Cambria

Prior to kick off between the JHS Trojans and Central Cambria Red Devils, GJSD will take a brief moment to celebrate some district success and student achievement by recognizing some of the many successful graduates who are currently enrolled in a college or trade school from last year’s graduating class. Last year’s graduates received over $140,000 in scholarship money from the Greater Johnstown School District and Trojan College Access Program. Furthermore, the Trojan College Access program has awarded over $100,000 in scholarship money over the past three years and will award $50,000 in scholarships to deserving students this year! It is truly making a difference and making college a possibility for our students.

This event will take place at 6:50pm.

Furthermore, through additional funding from the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE), GJSD demonstrated increased achievement in mathematics and reading without increasing taxpayer dollars. JHS was named the most improved school in the Commonwealth and has successfully received the US News and World Report Best High School award for two consecutive years. The GJSD has made Adequate Yearly Progress over the last three years, even while the expected benchmarks have risen. The Greater Johnstown School District and the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) is committed to student excellence!

Since 2003-2010:

The percentage of students scoring on grade level has gone up:
* 39% in math (44.7% to 62.1%)
* 1% in reading (53.7% to 54.4%)
The percentage of students scoring below basic has gone down:
* 39% in math (31.4% to 19.1%)
* 28% in reading (27.4% to 21.3%)

Increased student achievement has been made possible in part because of increased state education funding focused on targeted, proven programs that enhance the student’s classroom experience. The GJSD is committed to implementing research proven strategies that are designed to increase student achievement and provide our students with meaningful learning opportunities.

Since 2003‐04, Greater Johnstown SD has received a 42% increase in state funds for education. This includes increases in the Basic Education Fund, Accountability Block Grant, and the Education Assistance Program, Classrooms for the Future and Pre‐K Counts funds.
Without this increase in state funds, local property taxes would have increased in order to provide the same services to students. In 2010‐11

Grow, Support, and Succeed!

A Look at the Nook

by: Brionna Brandon

Greater Johnstown High School principal, Mr.Vuckovich, ordered forty Nooks from Barnes & Noble, and will be ordering more soon, due to the overwhelming request and eagerness to use them from both students and teachers alike. A Nook is an electronic book reader that is based on the Android platform. Nooks include wi-fi and AT&T wireless connectivity, plus a 6-inch E-Ink display and a separate smaller touch screen that is the primary input device. The main purpose for ordering the Nooks is to help increase the reading fluency and vocabulary of the students. They are available to all teachers upon request. The teachers can download numerous books for the students to read. Mr. Vuckovich wants students to enjoy reading and to want to read more, so he is trying to make reading more enjoyable for our generation, which is surrounded by technology on a daily basis.

Painting Pride

Under the direction of Miss Maloy (the arts and crafts teacher), and Mrs. Patula, (the commercial arts teacher) students at the Greater Johnstown High School painted an amazing mural in the hallway by the gym. The mural depicts the Trojan logo with the words, "Johnstown Trojan Pride and Tradition,” set inside blue & black stripes that mimic those found on the sleeves of the school’s football jersey. Many students put a lot of effort into painting this impressive mural, including Alex Alberter, Lucas Tomak, William Seth, Haley Helsel, Justin Palmer, Deanna Boerstler, and Renee Smay. The mural is meant to instill school pride and to provide inspiration to the athletic teams as they exit the locker rooms en route to the gymnasium or fields for their competitions.

District 6 Chorus

This past Sunday, JHS hosted the auditions for District 6 Chorus. Through the tough competition of over 350 students from 4 counties, Annie Tomak (Sophomore) and Emily Jones (Senior) were chosen to perform in this honors choir in January. If you see them, please congratulate them on their accomplishment.

Classroom Connection

All teachers at Greater Johnstown High School have created their own professional classroom websites that can be accessed by the public via the district website. The websites contain course syllabi, teacher contact information, blogs, news and announcements, and many other useful features. The goal of having the websites is to open the lines of communication with parents and students and to make them feel more proactive in their education through another avenue. There are many benefits that come from having these classroom websites. Parents can be made aware of the various activities that are occurring in their child's classrooms. Students can access the websites when they are absent from school to know what they missed. This will help them to be on track with the rest of the class upon their return to school. Overall, these classroom websites are a valuable addition to our school web page.