Category Archives: Schools

Pennsauken Stages Presents “Beauty And The Beast” March 21-24

By Frank Sinatra, AAP Editor

The talented students of Pennsauken Stages are presenting a “tale as old as time.” Worldwide hit “Disney’s Beauty and the Beast” makes its way to Pennsauken High School March 21-24.

“It’s a fun entertaining show,” explains Kate Guenther, vocal music and theatre director at Pennsauken High School. “It has elements that in some way, shape, or form, our students have grown up with, whether it’s the animated movie, live action film, or Broadway show. We like shows that give us the ability to feature as many people as we can; and there were enough ways to be creative with this show that suited our kids and our style.

Roosevelt Students State Finalists For Samsung Solve For Tomorrow

By Mrs. Emily Bell, Technology Teacher and Head Teacher, Roosevelt STEM School

Five Roosevelt STEM seventh graders, Damra Rivera, Altagracia Pena-Perez, Syla Almero, Claire Ingram, and William Snyder, have been named one of the 300 state finalists in the 14th annual Samsung Solve for Tomorrow competition, receiving a $2,500 prize package.

PEA Collecting Donations For MLK Day Of Service

The Pennsauken Education Association is hosting its sixth annual Dr. Martin Luther King Day of Service event for the Pennsauken community.

Community members, teachers, and school staff can drop off the materials for the care packages for Angels in Motion, an organization that assists individuals who are combating addiction by treating each person as individuals, offering genuine compassion, and understanding, and providing “blessing bags,” which contain food, snacks, clothing, hygiene products and resource information to obtain help when they are ready.

Drop off will be on Monday, Jan. 15, at Pennsauken High School, 800 Hylton Rd., from 10:00 a.m. to noon. During that time, student volunteers will be putting together bags using the donations received. A token of appreciation will be given to families who complete a bag on behalf of PEA Pride upon drop-off. To register your donations, please complete the PEA’s Sign Up Genius Form.

Student Representatives Participate In Board Meetings

By Frank Sinatra, AAP Editor

Two student representatives from Pennsauken High School had a seat at the table during the Pennsauken Board of Education’s monthly public meeting in September. PHS seniors Yaniel Colon and Jordyn Seldon were on hand to share the thoughts and concerns of the high school student body.

PHS seniors Yaniel Colon and Jordyn Seldon
PHS seniors Yaniel Colon and Jordyn Seldon serve as student representatives on the Pennsauken Board of Education.

“We have two student representatives here with us today,” explained Diane Johnson, Board of Education member. “Their objective is to represent the student body to the board, and to share ideas and concerns throughout the year.”

Obituary: Thomas R. Rapa

Thomas R. Rapa passed away on Sept. 28 at the age of 77. He was the beloved husband of 52 years to Margaret Rapa (nee Campbell); loving father of Lauren Rapa Guzzo (Louis) of Marlton, N.J.; Patrick Rapa of Philadelphia, Pa.; and Michael Rapa (Christina) of Philadelphia, Pa. Thomas was also the dear brother of Maryann Rapa of West Deptford and the late Joseph Rapa (Robert Jones); son of the late Joseph and Margaret Rapa; and proud pop-pop of Ava Guzzo, Julia Guzzo, and Luca Rapa.

An Important Message For Phifer Families

By Sandra Allen, Principal, Howard M. Phifer Middle School

Starting this September, we will be making Howard M. Phifer Middle School a phone-free space to improve teaching and learning using a system called Yondr. Yondr has been implemented in over 2,000 schools across 16 countries to facilitate an engaged learning environment.

Pennsauken STEM School Ranked One Of New Jersey’s Best

By The Pennsauken Board of Education: Nick Perry, President; JoAnn Young, Vice President; Osvaldo Alves III, Lisa Eckel; Diane Johnson; Samer John Jarbouh-Rafeh; Scott La Vine; Orlando Viera, and Dontay White; and Dr. Ronnie Tarchichi, MEd2., M.S., M.B.S., M.A.2, Ed.D., Ph.D., Superintendent, Pennsauken Public Schools

School Families: The Board of Education and I would like to share some wonderful news about Pennsauken Public Schools, in particular Roosevelt STEM School. Roosevelt STEM School began as Burling Elementary School in the 2021-22 School Year. Burling was a K-5 Elementary School that was used as a catalyst to create Roosevelt STEM School, which is currently a K-6 School that will become a K-8 School in the 2024-25 School Year. Moreover, the first year of the Roosevelt STEM School project was the 2021-22 School Year at Burling Elementary School.

Remembering Those Who Gave The Ultimate Sacrifice

By The Pennsauken Board of Education: Nick Perry, President; JoAnn Young, Vice President; Osvaldo Alves III, Lisa Eckel; Diane Johnson; Samer John Jarbouh-Rafeh; Scott La Vine; Orlando Viera, and Dontay White; and Dr. Ronnie Tarchichi, MEd2., M.S., M.B.S., M.A.2, Ed.D., Ph.D., Superintendent, Pennsauken Public Schools

On Memorial Day, we come together as a community to honor and remember the courageous men and women who gave their lives in service to our country. In a special way, our District remembers those from Pennsauken who died during military conflicts as members of the United States Armed Forces, including: Terrence P. Allen, Thomas L. Busch, III, John S. DiBenedetto, Michael Egan, James M. Esposito, Matthew J. Henkel Jr., Joseph L. Hesson, III, Frank J. Kohlmyer, Thomas C Miller, Maria I. Ortiz, Richard Patterson, Elmer R. Pease, Jr., Anthony Piersanti, Jr., Harold Russo, and John Edward Tipton.

Pennsauken Stages To Perform “In The Heights” March 30 – April 2

By Frank Sinatra, AAP Editor

Pennsauken Stages is proud to present its performance of the musical, “In The Heights,” March 30 through April 2 at Pennsauken High School. The Tony Award-winning show, created by Lin-Manuel Miranda of “Hamilton” fame, tells the story of people from the Washington Heights neighborhood in New York City. Featuring characters from a largely Dominican American community, the musical is a perfect fit for Pennsauken High School’s cast.

Pennsauken Teacher Publishes Children’s Book

Lisa D. Swint, author of "Tucker Takes The Train."
Linda D. Swint, author of “Tucker Took The Train.”

Lisa D. Swint has been teaching language arts in the Pennsauken School District for 23 years; and after decades of using her original writing to teach literary devices such as alliteration and onomatopoeia, she recently published her first children’s book, “Tucker Took the Train.”

Illustrated by Bill Smith, “Tucker Took the Train” is a fun tongue twisting story of Tucker the turtle, who is taking a very special trip from New York City to South Carolina. This book is a catchy read-aloud that highlights East Coast landmarks and various animal species found throughout the area.

“Tucker Took the Train” is available on Amazon and BarnesandNoble.com. And check out Ldswint.com for more info on Tucker!

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