STP November 2012

Volume 19

Homecoming

Homecoming week 2012 hit the ground running with the Powderpuff games taking place on Sunday with a victorious win for the Juniors, Class of 2014! Throughout the week, students dressed up in themed costumes including “Spy Day” and of course Extreme Orange and Blue on Friday!

Special visitors on campus included parents and alumni, who attended the Alumni Memorial Mass and enjoyed tours

Issue 2

November 2012

2012

of the campus and the ATC before the assembly. They also joined in along with many of the students for a pre-game party on the upper field before the Gorman Gaels kicked off against the Bonanza Bengals! Students danced the night away, at this year’s Casino Royale themed Homecoming! See page six for all the details on the homecoming court King and Queen! All in all, Homecoming 2012 was a true success!

Bishop Gorman Open House 2012 Bishop Gorman High School will host its annual Open House on Sunday, November 18, 2012, from 1:00 p.m. until 3:00 p.m.

The afternoon will be geared toward grade school students and their families as well as students who are currently in high school and are interested in transferring to Bishop Gorman.

Students and their parents will have an opportunity to meet our outstanding faculty, administration and current students. Representatives from all clubs, organizations and sports teams will be available to present their programs and answer questions. The afternoon will include performances by

several of our theatrical and musical groups and presentations by our College Counseling, Finance and Admissions Departments.

We encourage all interested families to attend our Open House to learn more about our values: God, Accountability, Excellence, Leadership and Stewardship and find out what it truly means to be a member of the Bishop Gorman community.

For further information, please contact the Admissions Office at 732-1945 or visit the Admissions area of our website at www.bishopgorman.org

*** View Placement Exam information on page 2 *** Administration

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Campus Ministry

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Athletics | Activities

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Gael Pride

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Academics

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Advancement

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Bishop Gorman High School

Diocese of Las Vegas

Administration

Dear Parents: A blink of the eye and first quarter has ended with the very busy second quarter beginning.

This is a wonderful time of year.

Homecoming renewed old acquaintances; the college mid-term break brought recent Gorman graduates back with stories of their college experiences and the start of the holiday season. It is a time that we give thanks for our families, our students, our school and our friends.

The north campus expansion project is moving along and our enrollment numbers are holding strong. We are always thankful for the support and sacrifice that our families make for a Catholic education.

Our students continually embrace the opportunities to reach out to our greater community through Campus Ministry and make a real difference. Catholic Charities was very thankful for the help of our students, parents and faculty for their St. Francis Feast Day activities (see page 4).

November begins the busy holiday season and here are a few key dates to remember: All Saints Day will be celebrated with an all school Mass on November 1st; Seniors take the Nevada State Proficiency makeup exam the week of November 5th; we will honor our Veterans and their families with an assembly on November 9th, giving thanks for all their sacrifices for our safety and freedom; November 14th is an inservice day with an 11:30 am dismissal for students; and on Sunday, November 18th, Bishop Gorman will host an Open House for prospective middle school students and parents. That will bring us to a much needed Thanksgiving break November 21 – 25.

May the spirit of Thanksgiving be shared by one and all!

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, and may God Bless you this Thanksgiving day and always.

Virginia Cunningham Assistant Principal for Academics

Admissions Department 2012 Placement Exam Current 8th grade students interested in applying to Bishop Gorman High School for the 2013 – 2014 school year are invited to take the placement exam scheduled for Saturday, December 1st at 8:00 am.

A make-upth placement exam will be offered on Saturday, January 12 at 8:00 am. The exam will end between 11:30 am and noon both days. Prospective students that take the placement exam in December or January are included in our first pool of applicants considered for admission. Additionally, the placement exam results will help to determine a student’s placement in freshman year classes.

The test given is the High School Placement Test (HSPT) by Scholastic Testing Services (STS). The exam will cover verbal and quantitative skills, reading, mathematics and language.

Prospective students are encouraged to pre-register for the exam by following the link on the homepage of our website, www.bishopgorman.org.

Memos from the Finance Department: Financial Aid Open enrollment for financial aid for the 2013-2014 school year begins November 1st.

Log on to www.bishopgorman.org where there is a link to Facts Grant and Aid under the Admissions tab. Submit your application and pay the required fee online.

The deadline to apply for financial aid is February 28, 2013 Please be aware that you must be VERIFIED by Facts Grant and Aid for your application to be reviewed by the Tuition Assistance Committee.

Incoming freshman that have been verified and reviewed will receive notification award mid-March. All returning students that have been verified and reviewed will receive notification award mid-April.

Tuition Please direct any questions regarding your student’s tuition account to Vanessa Orozco in the Finance Department, 476-4023.

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Gael Pride

Raku Field Trip On October 4th students in Advanced Ceramics and AP Studio Art: 3D went to Clay Arts Vegas located in downtown Las Vegas to participate in a Raku firing. Raku translates to “enjoyment” - and the process and results were very enjoyable and beautiful!

Also, students participated in the Million Bones Project; a movement bringing awareness of genocide in foreign countries.

Students created femurs, patellas, teeth, ribs and other human bones.

These bones will be shipped to Washington DC and displayed along the National Mall.

Each bone made generates $1 from the Bezo Family Foundation for CARE’s work up to $500,000. Our students made over 400 bones in two hours which translates into over $400!

The Physics of Mining at MINExpo

CLOSE UP WASHINGTON AN ADVENTURE IN CITIZENSHIP Close Up’s week-long government studies program in Washington, D.C., is unlike any other trip to the nation’s capital. It’s a total citizenship education experience, and it’s fun!

This year the International Mining Expo was held in Las Vegas. The Mackay School of Earth Sciences and Engineering at the University of Reno invited students from area high schools to tour the Mining Expo.

On September 26th, Dr. Hancock and Mr. Devlin were fortunate enough to bring 20 A.P. Physics students on the tour. We all had a great time and enjoyed learning about all the physics, geophysics, geology and engineering involved in mining. We also really enjoyed seeing all the giant mining equipment.

Sunday, March 2 through

One Person CAN Make A Difference

…Just ask George Underwood, ’14, who made great use of his summer break to collect and purchase 90 books for homeless children. George and his mom, Jamey Miller—an English Teacher at Bishop Gorman, went to the Las Vegas Rescue Mission to distribute books to children who were delighted to receive such a kind gift. This experience s h o w e d George how much better it truly is to “give rather than receive”.

Thanks for taking the lead on such a great service project, George and Jamey!

Hopefully you’ll inspire many others to do the same!

Congratulations BGHS Troupe 4347 Thespian Board!

At the Leadership and Tech Challenge in September, our team took BRONZE at the Southern Nevada Thespian Tech Olympics! This accomplishment is all the more impressive considering our students were all extremely busy with our own tech and opening for the three productions in our Fall Arts Festival!

Individual FIRST place winners include: Julie Borzage ’12 for Theatrical Costumes Kelly Kinas ’12 for Theatrical Rigging

Friday, March 8, 2013

*The week absence from school is an educational excused absence.

If you wish to participate in this adventure, see Mr. Goertemiller this week in Room 309 for details.

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Campus Ministry

Gaels Make A Difference MIRACLE LEAGUES TOUCHES EVERYONE’S HEART! Wouldn’t it be fun to play in a game where EVERYONE WINS? If you think so, come on out to a Miracle League baseball game!

Miracle League was formed for youth with cognitive and/or physical disabilities to play baseball.

All players bat, “run” the bases Neiko Martinez ’13, keeps the enthusiasm and score, and everyone on both high at a Miracle League Baseball game! teams is there to cheer them on!!

Many of our Bishop Gorman students volunteer their time assisting these special players and come away anxious to do this fantastic volunteer service again. What a great way to spend some of your free time...Let’s get out there and cheer on the kids!

Mite Box winners!

Our fun-loving Student Services crew were the first to have the Mite Box trophy this year!!

GAELS GIVE HOPE TO HOMELESS On October 4th, 92 Bishop Gorman students, parents and staff members trekked downtown to the Catholic Charities facility and spent three hours serving deliciously prepared meals to hundreds of Las Vegas’ homeless population. Mrs. Vicki Fertitta sponsored this fantastic dinner and it was a day for us to truly serve others. Typically, food is served buffet style at St. Vincent’s dining room, but on this Feast of St. Francis, the food was plated and served to the homeless clients who came to dinner.

Douglas McArthur ’16 and over 90 BGHS students served approximately 1,400 meals to the homeless of Las Vegas at the Catholic Charities’ dining facility.

Our students truly made us proud! They not only worked very hard, but they took time to visit with people individually and to get to know them and their story. It was heartwarming to see teenagers show such compassion and kindness; and the people were sincerely touched. The staff of Catholic Charities stated that this was the best group of volunteers they had ever had! Our student volunteers were enthusiastic about returning to serve again...they have a better understanding now of the phrase “It’s better to give than receive.”

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Ms. Jackie White and class get carried away with their Mite Box win!

Ms. Burris and her “shady” class take home the Mite Box trophy for a week!

Ms. Dawson and her group of artists were #1 with Mite Box collections!!

Academics

Counselor’s Corner FRESHMAN PARENTS

IMPORTANCE OF GPA AND DISCIPLINE: Thank you to Mr. Spiritosanto and Mr. Maslekoff for the presentation they conducted for our freshmen students, “Window of Opportunity.”

The presentation stressed the importance of the GPA, discipline, and just how heavily they each weigh on college choices and college admissions. The GPA at Bishop Gorman is cumulative. It is extremely difficult to pull out of a rut, so it is crucial to keep grades consistent!

Also, keeping your discipline record clean of major infractions is of utmost importance. That question about discipline is now included on the Common Application. Finally, students need to remember the positives and negatives of social networking sites. Always remember that what students post can be seen by all.

NAVIANCE FAMILY CONNECTION: Mrs. Witucki gave each freshmen classroom a guided tour of the program. Each student received a “yellow card” with their user code.

Naviance Family Connection is a web-based service designed especially for students and parents. Family Connection is a comprehensive website which helps in making college and career decisions. Family Connection is a service that we use in the Guidance Office

to track and analyze data about our students’ college and career plans. Family Connection will allow you to:

• Get involved in the planning and advising process - Build a resume, complete online surveys and manage timelines and deadlines for making decisions about colleges and careers.

• Research colleges - Compare GPA, standardized test scores and other statistics to actual historical data from students who have already applied from our high school.

Please ensure that your child gets logged in and starts working on the program. If you have any questions, please contact your child’s counselor.

Sophomores and Juniors

PSAT RESULTS - Your PSAT results will be distributed during English classes in December or early January. Visit the College Board website for further analysis of the results. (http://professionals.collegeboard.com/ testing/psat/scores/student)

SENIOR PARENTS

Financial Aid Night: November 13th @ 6pm in Room 300.

NOVEMBER COLLEGE VISITS

Senior students who want to attend a college visit must log on to Naviance Family Connection (under visit schedule) and print out a pass and have it signed by the teacher. This must be completed at least the day before the visit. If you have any questions please see Mr. McAllister.

Two Catholic colleges are offering special scholarships to Catholic high school students: • Great Falls University (Great Falls, Montana) is offering free tuition to any Catholic high school student who graduates with a 3.5 or above, this is a savings of over $19,000 per year.

• The University of Mary (Bismarck, ND) is offering FREE room and board to graduates of Catholic high schools. If you are interested please see Mr. McAllister.

Quote of the Month “Aim for success, not perfection. Never give up your right to be wrong, because then you will lose the ability to learn new things and move forward with your life. Remember that fear always lurks behind perfectionism.”

--David M. Burns

by wearing a spirit shirt on Friday. Each Monday a list is generated and dispersed to all of the teachers to review and comment (student may be good in math class, but didn’t hand in their Spanish project).

By the middle of the week, a decision is made based upon teacher comments, the number of nominations for that week and the total number of times a student has been nominated. Students who are named the award winners receive a lunch card, and the results are published on Edline and in the Gorman Daily News. We are pleased with the number of students who have been nominated!

The Freshman of the Week program has been in full swing as we have progressed through the first quarter.

Already 135 freshmen have received at least one nomination for the Freshman of the Week award! This shows us that the transition to high school is going well. Students are embracing the attributes of the Freshman PRIDE Program: Prepared for class, Respect for self and others, Integrity in academics, Determination to do well and Effort in all you do.

The following students have been named Freshman of the Week winners: Megan Coyle, Tanner Prince, Jack Little, Mackenzie Sullivan, Sara Bradford, Emma McEvoy, and Brandon Gahagan. Congratulations to these students and their families!

Finally, I would like to remind you that a student’s absence must be reported within three days by a parent. This can be done by phone, fax, email, or by a written note. At the end of the third day, a detention will be assigned. Detentions must be served on the day assigned, with the only exceptions being a school game or performance, or for a verified medical appointment.

Teachers nominate students each week for those who meet the following criteria during the preceding week: 1. The student must not have been absent nor tardy; 2. The student must not be missing any homework, classwork, quizzes or tests; 3. The student must have shown good behavior; 4. The student must show school spirit

Thank you for your cooperation on this matter.

Irene Anderson, Dean Freshman PRIDE Program

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Athletics | Activities

Athletics Bishop Gorman Athletics continued its success in the fall season this year highlighted by a State Tournament trip to Reno for Women’s Golf and Women’s Tennis. Coach Stanfill and the Women’s Golf team qualified for State by finishing 2nd in the Sunset Region Tournament held at Bear’s Best Las Vegas. Coach Gordon and Lori Hammond led the Women’s Tennis team as they beat rival Palo Verde 10-8 in the Sunset Finals and won the State Tournament. Congratulations!

National Early Signing Day is just around the corner!

Bishop Gorman will honor Homecoming was another big success this year. The Gaels hosted Bonanza on Friday night, October 12 at Fertitta Field. As usual, the stands were packed for the big night and the Gaels did not disappoint with a big victory.

Senior Athletes who have committed to Colleges on

Good luck to Men’s and Women’s Cross Country, Men’s and Women’s Soccer, Women’s Volleyball, and Football as they finish up league play and begin the playoffs.

Wednesday, Nov. 14 at 11:45a.m.

Student Activities We have MADE NOISE here on campus!

As a part of our ASG sponsored campaign to Make Noise in the lives of the people around us, we have embarked on a three and a half week-long campaign to leave an anonymous note or positive message for a fellow classmate, teacher or colleague in a marked box on campus.

We had so much success with this campaign that we delivered each of the notes in a balloon and gave out over 500 balloons in that time frame!

Thank you for everyone who participated in Making Noise on our campus!

We have had an extremely successful Homecoming week here on the Bishop Gorman Campus!!!

Congratulations to the following members of our 2012 Homecoming Court: Alexis Aguilar

Dalton Baker

Allie McBeath

Frank Fertitta

Caroline Guida

Lorenzo Fertitta

Jori King

Morvell Singh

Madison Petersen

Jake Smirk

Jessica Phillips

Ryan Smith

Juliana Remark

Ryan Suppe

Lindsey Remark

Jamir Tillman

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2012 Homecoming King & Queen, Summer Minden ‘12 and Lucas Gardner ‘12

Advancement

The 27th Annual Bishop Gorman Golf Classic was held on Friday, October 19, 2012 at Badlands Golf Club. As one of our most successful tournaments thus far, this tournament will support our students and school by providing unrestricted funds that can be used for immediate needs during the year.

Many thanks go out to all of our parents, alumni & friends who were a part of this event and helped to make it a success!

If you would like to

A special thanks our Title Sponsor: Golden Gaming and other Major Sponsors: Wirtz Beverage of Nevada, Par-4 Golf Management, Western Cab, Par-3 Landscape & Maintenance, Bentar Development, CC Construction, Extreme Commercial Concrete, Reliant Construction, OMEX, Chapman Dodge, Red Rock Harley Davidson, Robco Electric, Sun Valley Electric Supply, Bon Breads, Frazier Masonry and Lance & Roxanne Shoen.

be on the Committee for next year’s Golf Classic, please call the Advancement Office at 476-4032.

With the beautiful weather and wonderful people at the tournament, it was a fun day for all!

Yearbooks! Order your 2013 yearbook by January 25th at www.jostens.com. All books ordered before the 25th are $80 and all books ordered after are $100. If ordering for more than one student, please be sure to order for each student separately with name and grade. All yearbooks must be purchased online.

BGHS’ Best of Ireland Trip!

July 30th – August 8th, 2013

Join us as we take a tour of Dublin.

Enjoy Galway and go fly-fishing at Ballynahinch Castle.

Visit the famous cliffs of Moher in Killarney and the town of Limerick.

And many other beautiful locations & experiences in Ireland!

T his Summer Enrichment Trip is Open to all Students & Parents

See Mr. Lieb in Room #401 For Details or EMAIL AT: klieb@bishopgorman.org 7

Go Gaels!

Piling on clothes in colder weather doesn’t have to be bulky!

Check out the Hammes Campus Store for your stylish winter gear!

BISHOP GORMAN HIGH SCHOOL PRESENTS

winter music Extravaganza December 14 & 15, 2012 6pm Instrumental Music Portion

directed by steve purifoy

7:30pm Vocal & Musical Theatre Portion

directed by Elena ferrante-martin

Happy Holidays

With performances by: Gaels on Broadway JV & Varsity Heart and Soul Directing Practicum Knight Rhythm Worship Choir JV & Varsity Band Gaels Guitars Drumline

from the

Hammes Campus Store!

www.bishopgorman.org and click on Campus Store

With a preview performance by the cast of INTO THE WOODS

Jim3 House of Performing Arts

Tickets available at www.bishopgorman.org For box office information, contact 702 476 4175 or performingarts@bishopgorman.org

For more information visit: www.bishopgorman.org.

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Bishop Gorman High School 5959 S. Hualapai Way Las Vegas, NV 89148

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