#b#Gold Award#/b#
Kriti Amardeep, a sophomore at High School North, earned her Girl Scout Gold award for building a library for underprivileged children at El Centro, a Catholic charity in Trenton.
A Plainsboro resident for 15 years, she has been a member of Girl Scout Troop 71607 for four years. The leaders are Praveena Saksena, Padmaja Kondeti, and Shashi Ganjoo. Her advisor was Louisa Ho and her mentor was Maria Duarte.
Amardeep also participates in community service activities such the Arthritis Walk and visits to the senior citizens home. She also studies Bollywood dance at Arya Dance Academy.
For information about joining or volunteering with Girls Scouts contact Louisa Ho by E-mail at louisa.ho@verizon.net.
#b#Reflection Awards#/b#
Thirty-six students from Town Center Elementary School submitted entries to the annual PTA Reflections Program interpreting this year’s theme, “The Magic of the Moment.” The students received a certificate of participation from Brian Stevens, the principal of the school.
Six of the students have been selected as Mercer County finalists and two students received state level excellence and merit awards from the New Jersey PTA.
Aaryan Shankar Chowdhury, a kindergarten student, is a finalist in the state, and received an Award of Excellence from the New Jersey PTA in the primary division for musical composition. His entry, “Happy Moments of Each Season,” is a song he sang highlighting all the festive moments he enjoys each season. His entry is being judged at the nationals in California.
Sounish Ghosh is a first grade student. His entry, “Pleasant Musical Morning,” a musical composition he played on the guitar, received a state award of merit.
County finalists include Ashiyana Ahamed, a third grade student, for her artwork, “A Magical First Flight,” created in oil pastels; Bhadra Gurjur, a third grade student, for his poem, “M.O.M.: Magic of a Moment;” Sivapriya Yallapragada, a first grade student, for her photograph, “Beauty after the Snow;” and Ysabel Alfonso, a third grade student, for her poem “Peaceful Morning.”
The state level awards will be distributed to the award recipients at a ceremony at the McAneny Theater, Princeton, on Saturday, June 15.
#b#HS North Places 2nd in Envirothon#/b#
Students from West Windsor-Plainsboro High School North placed second in the 20th annual New Jersey Envirothon on May 4 at Girl Scout Camp Kettle Run in Medford. The team included West Windsor residents Brian Chan and Allison Wong; and Plainsboro residents Shannon Sheu, Avinash Subramanian, and Edison Lee.
The students competed against 33 other teams from around the state on knowledge of natural resources-related topics, including soils, forestry, aquatics, wildlife ecology, and a current environmental issue. This year’s theme was “Sustainable Rangeland Management: Achieving a Balance Between Traditional Agricultural Uses with Non-Agricultural Uses on Montana Rangelands.”
The Envirothon is sponsored by the New Jersey Department of Agriculture, State Soil Conservation Committee; New Jersey Association of Conservation Districts; the 15 soil conservation districts; United States Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service; New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection; and Rutgers Cooperative Extension.
The soil conservation districts in New Jersey follow county boundaries and implement the New Jersey Soil and Sediment Control Act, which governs certain aspects of new development. These semi-autonomous bodies are locally governed and play a strong role in the protection of New Jersey’s natural resources.
#b#Science Accolade#/b#
Sean Hudson of West Windsor was part of the top team in the Merck State Science competition. He is a student at Princeton Day School.
#b#A Graduate#/b#
Adam Levi of West Windsor graduated from Pennington School at a ceremony on June 1.
#b#Good Cause#/b#
Mollie Rubinstein, a junior at High School North, is raising funds for the NJ Sharing Network, a 5K run/walk for an organization that connects donor families with recipients. “I wanted to help make sure that the NJ Sharing Network could continue to save lives like they saved my little sister,” she says.
Linda’s Home Team was named in honor of Rubinstein’s younger sister, Linda, who recently had a kidney transplant. Last year the team raised $2,400. Visit www.njsharingnetwork.org and search for Linda’s Home Team to donate. E-mail lindashometeam@gmail.com for information.
