The Chief (Dec. 2019) by Cardinal Gibbons High School

THE CHIEF CARDINAL GIBBONS HIGH SCHOOL

DECEMBER 2019 IN THIS ISSUE

VOL. 2 ISSUE 3

ACADEMICS

GUEST SPEAKER

Science Olympiad Takes Second at Invitational

EPA Representative Speaks to Science Students

The Cardinal Gibbons Science Olympiad team finished second overall at the Orlando Science School Invitational.

Tracey Mitchell, who works with the EPA, came to speak to Environmental Science classes.

Clubs Deliver Christmas Gifts to Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital Four student representatives from the Interact, Excel and Conservation Clubs delivered Christmas gifts to ill children and teenagers at Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital in Hollywood on Tuesday, Dec. 3.

CARDINAL GIBBONS HIGH SCHOOL, 2900 NE 47TH ST., FORT LAUDERDALE, FL 33308

KEY CLUB PARTNERS WITH SAMARITAN'S PURSE TO COLLECT DOZENS OF CHRISTMAS GIFTS FOR CHILDREN AROUND THE WORLD

Every year the Cardinal Gibbons Key Club partners with the organization Samaritan's Purse to participate in "Operation Christmas Child," which helps provides small Christmas gifts to children around the world. On Monday, Nov. 25, numerous Key Club members delivered dozens of shoeboxes for "Operation Christmas Child" to the Samaritan's Purse distribution center during the organization's "National Collection Week." Samaritan's Purse is a nondenominational evangelical Christian organization that helps address the needs of people who are victims of war, poverty, natural disasters, disease and famine. Each year, Samaritan's Purse hosts "Operation Christmas Child," which collects shoeboxes full of small gifts and personal hygiene items, such as soap and toothbrushes, for children who may not be receiving any Christmas gifts this year. Some Key Club members even included personal notes in the boxes, wishing the recipient a Merry Christmas. All boxes donated will be delivered to children in over 100 countries on Christmas Day. According to Key Club moderator Mrs. Susan Quailey, volunteers at the distribution center expressed how each year they always look forward to the donations made by Cardinal Gibbons due to the consistently high number of shoeboxes and gifts donated each year.

INTERACT, CONSERVATION AND EXCEL CLUB MEMBERS DELIVER CHRISTMAS GIFTS TO JOE DIMAGGIO CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL Four student representatives from the Interact, Excel and Conservation Clubs delivered Christmas gifts to ill children and teenagers at Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital in Hollywood on Tuesday, Dec. 3. Members of the three clubs, moderated by Mr. Tim Davis, spent numerous weeks collecting and wrapping gifts for patients at the hospital between the ages of 2-17. Once the gifts were wrapped, Davis and the four club representatives set out to deliver the gifts and spread much needed Christmas cheer to those receiving treatment at Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital. In total, the students hand-delivered 30 Christmas gifts and even spent some time with the children completing arts and crafts projects. When reflecting upon the gift delivery, junior Victoria Jewell said, "I had an experience of a lifetime. This opportunity allowed me to spread joy during this holiday season to children who have to be in the hospital during what should be a joyous time of year. It was eye-opening to see kids just like me, and so much younger, endure such pain both physically and emotionally." She continued, "...I really learned to be so thankful for the life and opportunities I have."

CARDINAL GIBBONS HIGH SCHOOL, 2900 NE 47TH ST., FORT LAUDERDALE, FL 33308

EIGHT SPEECH AND DEBATE TEAM MEMBERS ACCEPTED TO COMPETE IN PRESTIGIOUS BARKLEY FORUM TOURNAMENT

Eight members of the Cardinal Gibbons Speech and Debate have been accepted to compete in the Barkley Forum Tournament at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. Senior Mackenzie Alberts will be competing in Dramatic Interpretation, while sophomore Roberto Sosa and juniors Alex Dumas and Zachary Dumas will be competing individually in LincolnDouglas Debate. Two pairs of students also qualified to compete; the teams will feature the pairs of Jillian Malinsky and Camila Jaramillo, as well as Carson Marcil and Kelly Clark, competing in Public Forum. The tournament, which was established in 1956, will be held Thursday, Jan. 23, 2020, through Sunday, Jan. 26, 2020, and will bring together over a thousand of the nation's best forensic students, teachers, school administrators and college coaches. The eight students from Cardinal Gibbons were accepted into the tournament on the first day of team admissions.

SCIENCE OLYMPIAD TEAM FINISHES SECOND AT ORLANDO SCIENCE SCHOOL INVITATIONAL The Cardinal Gibbons Science Olympiad team finished second overall at the Orlando Science School Invitational on Saturday, Nov. 23. The invitational, held in Orlando, featured 23 different team-based events, each incorporating different fields of science, such as biology, chemistry and robotics. In total, 31 individual students took first overall in their respective events. Students who won individual events include: John Bromfield, Nicolas Charland, Melanie Corrales, Kyle Corwin, Samantha Curry, Riccardo D’Ambrosio, Sophie Fandino, Nicolas Francis, Nick Fuentes, Nina Garcia, Isabella Gomez, Jessica Gomez, William Gonzalez, Heidi Guntert, Merit Hajdic, Hanna Hirano, Daniel Jordan, Panayoti Kourkoumelis, Jaxson Lasher, Sophia Lopez-Garzon, Luke Lorenz, Sam McCawley, Sarah Moss, Andrew Neclario, Alejandro Ortega, Ryan Pallack, Joseph Parodi, Alex Schramm, Christian Solanet, Tommy Tight and Alicia Wilson.

CARDINAL GIBBONS HIGH SCHOOL, 2900 NE 47TH ST., FORT LAUDERDALE, FL 33308

ANONYMOUS DONOR GIVES DOZENS OF GIFT CARDS TO STAFF

Prior to the Thanksgiving holiday, an anonymous individual donated dozens of Publix gift cards to Cardinal Gibbons staff members. Members of the Transportation Department, as well as Cafeteria staff, were presented with $20 Publix gift cards by students in Mr. Carlos PerezCubas' Leadership class, which included Heidi Guntert, Danny Jordan, Olivia Lemongello, Bianca Del Toro and Jacob Vaca. In addition to the gift cards, students prepared small gift baskets for each recipient. The baskets were stocked with supplies for Thanksgiving, such as boxes of stuffing and pies.

PTF COLLECTS GIFT CARDS TO THANK TEACHERS

STUDENT GOVERNMENT RAISES MONEY FOR LOCAL FOOD MINISTRIES WITH HOLIDAY MOVIE NIGHT The Cardinal Gibbons Student Government, along with the Office of Student Activities, hosted a holiday movie night and decorating contest on Monday, Dec. 9, to help raise money to support the school's annual Christmas Drive, which benefits local food ministries. During the movie night, students gathered in the gymnasium, sporting their favorite holiday pajamas to watch the classic Christmas film, "Home Alone." Students were also able to decorate Christmas cookies and participate in a Christmas tree decorating contest. A panel of judges is set to crown the winner of the decorating contest prior to Monday, Dec. 16.

During the week of Dec. 9-12, the Parent Teacher Fellowship (PTF) arranged a gift card collection drive to benefit the faculty and staff of Cardinal Gibbons. Thanks to the donations from parents, each teacher will receive a gift card. Thank you to all who donated!

All proceeds from the movie night will be used to purchase Publix gift cards, which will be donated along with nonperishable food items to four local food ministries, including Sheridan House, Jubilee Center, San Isidro Food Ministry and All Saints Soup Kitchen.

CARDINAL GIBBONS HIGH SCHOOL, 2900 NE 47TH ST., FORT LAUDERDALE, FL 33308

JV FOOTBALL TEAM CELEBRATES UNDEFEATED SEASON

The Cardinal Gibbons junior varsity football team celebrated their undefeated 2019 season at their end of the season banquet on Thursday, Dec. 5. The Chiefs finished the 2019 season with a perfect 8-0 record, after besting Chaminade-Madonna 37-0 on Oct. 30.

EPA REPRESENTATIVE SPEAKS TO ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE STUDENTS

FOUR DANCE TEAM MEMBERS TO PERFORM IN DISNEY'S CHRISTMAS DAY PARADE Four members of the Cardinal Gibbons Dance Team will be featured in the Disney Parks Magical Christmas Day Parade. The television special, which is the only parade to be broadcast on Christmas Day, will be aired on ABC. Seniors Julia Sarafianos, Amanda LaPadura, Maggie Guidry and Victoria Scarpinito all traveled to Disney World in November 2019 to film their routine with hundreds of other performers from around the country. Each of the four dancers was personally invited to perform after receiving awards at previous dance camps and competitions. The holiday special will feature the Christmas Day Parade down Main Street U.S.A. in Magic Kingdom, heartwarming stories and amazing celebrity performances. Viewers will also get a special look at "the most magical flight on earth."

Tracey Mitchell, who works with the Environmental Protection Agency, came to speak to Mrs. Susan Quailey's Environmental Science classes. Mitchell, who currently works within the Office of Air and Radiation, shared information about the work she does with the EPA and how certain government policies regarding the environment are created and enforced. In addition to sharing general information about the EPA, Mitchell also highlighted future job opportunities for students who are interested in pursuing careers in environmental science.

SEMESTER TWO SCHEDULE CHANGE DEADLINE The deadline for student and parent initiated schedule changes for the second semester is Monday, Dec. 16, 2019. There is a $50.00 fee for a change. All schedule change forms require a parent signature, counselor signature and administrative approval. Schedule change request forms are available in the Advising Office.

CARDINAL GIBBONS HIGH SCHOOL, 2900 NE 47TH ST., FORT LAUDERDALE, FL 33308

NEW REQUIRED ART CREDIT

Cardinal Gibbons has modified the graduation requirement for course work completed in the area of Fine Arts. Beginning with the class of 2022, students will note that the amount of required General Electives will decrease from 2.0 to 1.5. This is a redistribution of required credit hours, not an additional requirement for extra hours. The .5 credit hour taken from the General Electives area will be added to the previous .5 Fine Arts requirement to increase it to 1.0. The 1.0 Fine Arts requirement is the Florida state requirement for this area. Students may complete this new requirement by taking (2) Fine Arts or Speech/Debate classes during the school year. It may also be fulfilled by taking online or Summer School offerings.

ADVANCED PLACEMENT COURSE POLICIES Advanced Placement courses at Cardinal Gibbons are an introduction to college-level courses. These classes are fast-paced and require independent work that includes research and analysis. Students who participate in AP classes are required to take the AP exam to receive credit for the course at Cardinal Gibbons. AP courses receive an additional 1.5 weight or “quality point” that is added to the grade for each class taken. Currently, Cardinal Gibbons offers AP course work in the areas of English, science, mathematics, social science, technology, and the arts. Recent discussions and clarification of the Cardinal Gibbons Advanced Placement Course Policy has prompted the following policy announcement: No GPA weights or course designations are subject to removal due to test results. This applies to the current academic year, and, as of today, there are no plans to change this policy.

EXAM SCHEDULES Please note: *Early examinations are not permitted. Students absent for a Semester One examination must make up the exam with the first two weeks of the second semester. Students who require a make-up must seek administrative approval and pay the $60.00 fee required for each missed exam.

CARDINAL GIBBONS HIGH SCHOOL, 2900 NE 47TH ST., FORT LAUDERDALE, FL 33308

CALENDAR AT A GLANCE DECEMBER Dec. Dec. Dec. Dec. Dec. Dec. Dec. Dec. Dec. Dec. Dec. Dec.

7 13 13 18 19 20 20 21 21 24 25 31

HSPT Testing Grandparents Day Christmas Concert, 7 p.m. Semester One Exams Semester One Exams Semester One Exams Early Dismissal, 1:00 p.m. Christmas Vacation Begins Christmas Tree Relay Christmas Eve Christmas New Year's Eve

UPCOMING EVENTS

JANUARY Jan. Jan. Jan. Jan. Jan. Jan. Jan. Jan. Jan. Jan.

1 6 11 14 15 15 20 27 30 30

STAY CONNECTED

JOIN US FOR ONE OF OUR UPCOMING EVENTS

New Year's Day Classes Resume Athletic Hall of Fame Induction Financial Aid Night, 9-11th Parents Early Dismissal, 1:00 p.m. Who Gets In and Why? Presentation No Classes, MLK Jr. Day Catholic Schools Week Begins All School Mass NEHS Shakespeare Monologue Comp.

CHRISTMAS CONCERT FRIDAY, DEC. 13 7:00 P.M.

FEBRUARY Feb. Feb. Feb. Feb. Feb. Feb.

7 8 10 19 26 26

Early Dismissal, 1:00 p.m. ACT Testing Spring School Begins Early Dismissal, 1:00 p.m. Ash Wednesday All School Mass

CHRISTMAS TREE RELAY

ATHLETIC HALL OF FAME

SATURDAY, DEC. 21 11:00 A.M.

SATURDAY, JAN. 11 2:00 P.M.

Calendar is subject to change. View our online calendar here.

CARDINAL GIBBONS HIGH SCHOOL, 2900 NE 47TH ST., FORT LAUDERDALE, FL 33308