Every year Back to School Night gives parents the opportunity to meet teachers and learn more about the school. However, attendance has historically been low with only a few hundred people attending, according to Principal Wohlman.
This year’s makeover of Back to School Night into Block Par- ty was a huge success with close to 1850 people in attendance ac- cording to Principal Wohlman, and we commend Principal Wohlman’s leadership as well as the rest of the staff and stu- dents who made this event such a hit. School administrators’ drive to increase engagement with the school and promote a greater sense of community and school pride is evident in the decision to reinvent Back To School Night with this year’s Block Party.
The Block Party was much more lively than previous Back- to-School-Night events due to a variety of performances, food trucks, and a display competi- tion among academic depart- ments. Student organizations also had the opportunity to pro- mote their clubs and to fund- raise. The performances on the g reen a llowed students to showcase their skills and talents outside of the classroom. Among the many groups who performed were the choir, the orchestra, the cheerleaders, Mrs. Cottengim’s dance classes, the Misfits, PUSO, KDT, VSA, and NJROTC. These groups en- tertained the crowd and put the school’s many talents on full display.
These performances along with the student organization booths will lead more students to become active in student or- ganizations, and they gave par- ents a glimpse of campus life that would not have been pos- sible at previous iterations of Back To School Night.
Administration took the add- ed step of hiring professional performers that represented a variety of cultures and genres. Mariachi Estelar, Moondough, and Hella Doubtful all put on memorable shows.
The interdepartmental com- petition between teachers en- couraged staff to create invit- ing displays to attract parents and other community members. Parents had the chance to meet their children’s teachers and, insome cases, to see what’s hap- pening in the classroom. For example, at the science depart- ment’s table, people could see a mirror and lens game, exempli- fying concepts of the optics unit in AP Physics 2.
We congratulate the adminis- tration, staff, and students for putting on such a wonderful dis- play of school community spirit, and we should all be proud.