Golden Page Turners raise over 2,000 books in book drive
By Mia Gettenberg, Managing Editor

The book drive, which took place from Dec. 12 to Dec. 15, beat the expectations of the Golden Page Turners, the book club at the school. In an effort to gather novels to donate to local libraries and schools, the club set up a book exchange at the school in which students and teachers could choose any book from the drive for every three books they donated.

The club’s students developed the idea, which club sponsor Mrs. Atlas initially proposed. She gives all the credit to the students. “I’ve got to take my hat off to the students; they really ran with it,” said Mrs. Atlas.

Originally, the club did not know if they would be able to acquire enough books for elementary, middle and high school levels of reading. Now, says Mrs. Atlas, they have raised over 2,000 books. This is enough to give every teacher at least 12 books for classroom libraries.

Mrs. Atlas explained how involved students and faculty alike became in the exchange. “Dr. Melilo donated nine boxes of books on her own,” she says. PTSA also helped and donated books.

“We got around 2,000 books, and our goal was 1,500,” says club member Stephanie Smith, sophomore.

“I didn’t think we were going to get that many, so that was good,” adds Golden Page Turner Jeremy Wershoven, sophomore.

Students ran the event for the most part, gathering all of the drive’s publicity; they made posters, a Facebook page, and a website. Although the drive started off slow, it picked up later in the week, becoming incredibly busy and spreading like wildfire.
No one is happier than Mrs. Atlas about the exchange’s success. “I would never say no to someone who wants to read something. That’s blasphemy!” she joked.

The drive itself didn’t cost the students or district anything, but it gave local libraries and the school more novels and books to choose from. Even students had more books to choose from the drive. With the present economy, this is a huge benefit. “It’s ironic that a school can’t buy books,” says Mrs. Atlas.

The club hopes to hold another drive in the spring, possibly sometime in May. They hope to raise another 1,000-2,000 books for classroom libraries at the school.

The Golden Page Turners welcomes any new members; they meet on Wednesdays as a reading group and wish to start reading a book a month.

Aspiring members can speak to students in the club, which includes Emily Solley, Taylor Wansor, Jeremy Wershoven, Nyasha Joseph, Rodnicko Pierre-Jerome, Mayah Knight and Stephanie Smith.

The book drive was a huge accomplishment, and all of the group members are extremely pleased. “I’d say, all in all, it was an amazing effort and a rousing success,” says Mrs. Atlas.

Introducing FCAT 2.0 . . . Again
Students, teachers realize reading FCAT has changed
By Melinda Paduani, Staff Intern

Due to drops in FCAT reading scores last year, teachers and staff have put more pressure on students to become better readers and improve their scores this year.

The urge to work on reading skills has become obvious with increases in homework, constant reminders from teachers to read, more in-depth focus on reading strategies, and the emphasis on Tornado Time Out (TTO). That emphasis has helped some students such as freshman Zachary Arnasalam, who said, “TTO has helped me gain understanding of reading.”

Sophomore Michelle Badal said, “This year I’ve felt the pressure to better understand reading. I’ve had more homework than last year and all of my teachers make us use reading logs for TTO.”

Most students agree that the homework load is larger, and the majority have heard the nagging to improve; however, not many have heard about FCAT 2.0. More...

Brain Brawl fights to finals, places second in district
By Sean Blem, Asst. News Editor

The Brain Brawl team had another successful season, taking the team to the finals against Stoneman Douglas on Wednesday Dec. 7. Although the team fell in the finals, they considered their season to be the best yet.

“I feel proud of us because we made it farther than we ever have before", said senior captain Alli Cauvin.

Brain Brawl is an academic trivia game played in teams of eight. The team plays four teammates at a time while four sit out. There are two rounds consisting of 10 questions per round. The questions cover all core subjects: Math, History, Literature, and Science.

The team consists of seniors Cauvin, Nicole Morgan, Collin Richards and Sergio Garcia, and juniors Andre Morgan, Nathan Ricketts, Anna Ward and Patrick Sullivan.

Free Donuts for ‘A’ Students
By Michaela Garretson, Staff Intern

For straight-A senior Dominic Balistreri, any free incentive for an A grade is well received.

Thanks to places such as Krispy Kreme donuts, students can be given a free glazed donut if they have at least one A in one class. Students at Pompano Beach High School, for example, can be awarded up to four free donuts each quarter.

“Why didn’t I know before that Krispy Kreme does this?” exclaimed sophomore Lauren Pomerantz, a frequent invitee to the “Smarty Party” for those with all A’s.
Balistreri was no less excited.

“What? That is crazy! I love Krispy Kreme donuts-especially their glazed donuts,” said Balistreri. “Since I pass by the shop every day, I can’t wait to get my free donuts!”

Krispy Kreme has been offering this reward for at least three years, according to a representative working for the franchise.

They sit next to you in class, but they stand to the side as you check your college admissions status online. They stay home and do homework while other students are out working at local fast food restaurants or clothing stores in the mall. And they will never join their friends at the University of Central Florida, Florida State or any university after graduation.

School grade drops to B for the first time in 9 years
By Emily Solley, Graphic Design Editor

The highest ranked school in the county has been demoted to a B despite high achievement in most categories.

“There’s one very specific reason. Although we’re the highest ranked A, our lower quartile didn’t make enough gains,” said Ms. Carlson, assistant principal. “It came down to about thirty students.”

In Broward County, high school grades are determined by a number of things. A combination of items such as FCAT scores, graduation rate, AP classes, dual enrollment classes, industry certified classes and college preparation (including ACT and SAT scores) earn a school points.

However, there are several specific goals a school must meet. For instance, a school is docked a letter grade if it doesn’t make enough gains in FCAT math and FCAT reading among students in the lowest quartile, the 25 percent of students with the lowest test scores from the previous year.

Although 93 percent of students in the lowest quartile made gains on FCAT math, only 39 percent of students in the lowest quartile scored higher in FCAT reading. This statistic dropped PBHS’ grade from an A to a B.

“The school grade is not a true representation of student achievement. We have the best students in the county here,” Ms. Carlson said. “But it’s important to educate every student. Everyone is important. We need to make sure we make every necessary resource available to our students.”

Many students worry that Pompano’s unique four-day school week could be affected.

“Fridays are one of the reasons I came here,” said Kiera Velaney, freshman. “If we didn’t have Fridays off I could have gone to a different magnet school.”

Some new students have worries about the emphasis on higher reading scores.

“They should give us a break and not pressure us so much,” said Kemore Garner, freshman.

“I don’t have a problem with working hard, but I don’t think they should blame us for something that happened when we weren’t here,” said Brooke Henderson, freshman.

According to Ms. Carlson, it is unlikely that the schedule will be changed.

“We do not anticipate being a five-day school. It’s ultimately up to the district, but there’s nothing to suggest it,” said Ms. Carlson. “If it’s not broke, why fix it?”

There are resources in place for students to increase their reading scores. For example, teachers who stay after school, the Friday Academic Achievement Academy (AAA) and reading coach Mrs. Atlas’s one-on-one testing.

Despite the worries, students and staff remain positive.

“A school of amazing students, dedicated teachers, and diverse learning experiences cannot be captured in a single grade or word,” said Mrs. Kelly, guidance counselor. “Pompano begins where other schools would like to end, so it’s difficult to compare us to other schools.”

“I don’t think it’s a big deal,” said Kiana Anya. “We’re still one of the best schools.”

Ms. Carlson believes that the grade will “absolutely” be an A next year.

“Everyone needs to participate in TTO: administration, teachers, and students. Reading should be vital,” said Ms. Carlson. “We are not a perfect school, and this is a good reminder that there is always progress to be made.”

Mr. Wood is not retiring in January!
By Sean Blem, Assistant News Editor

Mr. Wood, one of the security staff, told students and faculty before the break that was he was leaving the school on Jan. 5 to retire to his home in North Carolina with his wife. But on return from winter break, Mr. Wood revealed he would be postponing his retirement.

Mr. Wood served in the Vietnam War and went on to be in the New York City Police Department. While on the force, he was covertly recruited to be a secret service agent for President Nixon; he then served under Presidents Ford, Carter, Reagan, George H. W. Bush, Clinton and George W. Bush before retiring from the federal agency.

An event on Facebook was created to celebrate his retirement; however, he will continue to administrate and protect the school in till the end of the school year.

Caption: Mr. Wood has served as a security specialist since 2005 and will continue until the end of this school year.