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Vol. 23, No. 5 June 2007
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Townsend Harris High School at Queens College
149-11 Melbourne Avenue, Flushing, NY 11367
Passing the torch: Cunningham .steps down after5 years by Jocelyn Wright After 37 years as an educator, Principal Thomas Cunningham is stepping down, and, according to alumni and faculty sources, the top candidates to be his successor are Acting Assistant Principal of Organization Ellen Fee and Assistant Principal of Science Susan Brustein. Ms. Fee and Ms. Brustein both declined to confirm that they are still in the running. The selecti'on process is ·now at the Chancellor's office, according to two reliable sources; howeveT, the Chancellor's office did not respond to inquiries as to the stage the selection process is at, nor did they provide a date by which a new principal will be announced. Ms . Fee and Ms. Brustein, according to the same sources,
were recommended to the Dis- wh ioh ope"od up o 15-d•y wi"trict Superintendent by the dow quring which ca.ndidates Townsend Harris selection ("C- · could apply to replace him. / 30") committee, which con- Faculty, students, alumni, and sisted of parents, alumni, teach- parents were not informed of ers, Student Union Presidt:nt this decision until about a week Michael Bye, and Cornelia later because "protocol requires Gutwein, principal' Of Flushing that you let people know in a High School, who served as a certain order," said Mr. representative of the Council of Cunningham. He first spoke wirh his cabinet, which consists School Supervisors (CSS). Mr. Cunningham decided to of Assistant Principal of Huretire because "I realized thaJ I manities Susan Getting, Ms. accumulated a list of things I Brustein, Ms. Fee, Assistant would like to do and have not Principal of Languages other had time to do. High on the list than English Lisa Mars, and are the desires to renew friend- Assistant Principal of Pupil Personnel Services Janet ships and visit family." The search for a new princi- Solomon, as well as Coordinapal began with Mr. tor of Student Activities Adam Cunningham's announcement Stonehill and Dean Wanda Nix; then with the faculty; then with to Locallnstruc.tional Superintendent Gerard Beirne in early alumni and parents. "The times May that he would be retiring, chosen were when there were
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mooti "g' '" I hid (!!, ·· - ri!i'.;S',i,·. ' the opportunity to personally address I · people rather than in a letter," explained .Mr. date, the selection of new prinCunningham. This .time gap . cipals will be handled at the and the proximity of the an- Chancellor's office. In late May, Mr. Beirne, who nouncement to the end of the is the hiring manager for a new school year made it difficult for principal for Harris, reviewed the school to conduct the naall the applications. His office tionwide search it had after narrowed down the pool of apformer principal Malcolm plicants to four candidates, at Largmann announced his inleast halfofwhom did not have tended retirement. That time, alumni placed ads in the New a Humanitiies background. York Times and drew applicants Harris's C-30 committee selected two candidates from this from across the country. · pool and sent the names to Mr. This year, the process was Beirne ~ After interviewing more rushed, partially because these two candidates, he made of the current restructuring of his selection, which was_sent to the school system, which calls
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superintendents such' as Mr.
the Chance\\or's office for approval. The Classic was unable
Beirne after July I . After that
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for the elimination of regional
-Xie, Pasca:l earn top honors imp.roving ·quality of llife
Seniors June Xie and Lavinia Pascal, winners of first and second.place in this year.'s Quality celebrate their success with teacher Franco Scardino and Principal Thomas Cunningham
Locks of Love page 5 ·
West Side Story pages 8~9
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"It was a nice little reward by Stephanie Pak Seniors June Xie and for the two years' worth of reLavinia Pascal captured first search, certainly I" said June . "I was delighted when I reand second place, respectively, ceived the news that I was one in the 2007 Quality of Life of the finalists because it made Competition. They were honme realize that all of my sacriored at the Quality of Life fices were worth it in the end ," Youth Forum on June 6, along · said Lavinia . with fellow top 10 finalists . " I was very ex cit ed ~ each of Valeria Chi and Alexandra the finalists did an outsta nding Stark, and semi-finalists Steven job. Having the most fina lists Chang and Susan Wasserman . June received a· $17,500 of any school in t]le city made scholarship from the Peter Jay me very prou d of the students i.n the social science research Sharp Foundation and has ajJprogram ," s aid their te ac he r ' plied for a $7 95 gra nt from Franco Scardino. Youth Venture to implement To enter the competition , all her reform ideas for improving students selected a. social issue access to the city 's food stamp to research independently for 6' program . Lavinia received a two years with a mentor who is ~ $6,000 scholarship from the an expert in that field . Students ~ Sociology Department of New do preliminary background re£York University. The entire se-c search, conduct their "own re- . ~ nior social science research search, analyze data, test their -&class was honored at a principal's 1uncheon on June hypotheses, and suggest a solution for the specific 12. continued mi'page 12
Netspeak page 10
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Harris twins page 13
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