During assembly on Tuesday March 29, 2011, Head of School Robert Hill III announced that Brett Beaney ’11 of Scarborough, Maine, is a finalist in the 2011 competition for the National Merit Scholarship Program. Brett was presented a Certificate of Merit for his advancement to finalist standing.

The National Merit Scholarship Program is an academic competition for recognition and scholarships that began in 1955. High school students enter the National Merit Program by taking the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test—a test that serves as an initial screen of more than 1.5 million entrants each year–and by meeting published program entry/participation requirements. The semifinalists were named in the fall of 2010 and must advance to finalist standing before considered for an Achievement Scholarship award. Scholarship awardees will be notified in April and May of 2011.

Williston senior Dongyang “Don” Cheng ‘11 has qualified as a semifinalist for the 2011 U.S. Physics Olympics Team, the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) announced recently. Don was one of approximately 3,000 students who participated in the first phase of the selection process by taking the “Fnet=ma Exam” in January. As one of only 400 semifinalists nationwide, Don took a second exam in March, the results of which will be used as the basis for selection as a member of the 20-member U.S. Physics Team.

The US Physics Olympiad Program is a joint initiative of AAPT in partnership with the member societies of the American Institute for Physics (AIP): Acoustical Society of America, American Association of Physicists in Medicine, American Astronomical Society, American Crystallographic Society, American Geophysical Union, American Physical Society, AVS, Optical Society America, and the Society of Rheology. Ms. Lauren Benson is Don’s physics teacher. In February, Don was inducted into Williston’s Cum Laude Society.

Race to Nowhere: The Dark Side of America’s Achievement Culture, a documentary described by the Washington Post as “an education film that gets it,” will be screened for the public on Thursday, April 14, at 6:30 p.m. in the Williston Theatre at 18 Payson Ave. Tickets are $10 general admission ($5 for teachers/students; $15 at the door) and may be purchased online.

In Race to Nowhere, Vicky Abeles, a concerned mother turned filmmaker, aims her camera at the high-stakes, high-pressure culture that creates unhealthy, disengaged, unprepared, and stressed-out youth.  The film describes “a silent epidemic” among high school students in the United States by which many young people arrive at college and the workplace unprepared and uninspired. Race to Nowhere seeks to challenge current assumptions on how to best prepare the youth of America to become healthy, bright, contributing and leading citizens.

“Race to Nowhere shines a light on the crisis of learning and meaning facing American education,” says New York Times bestselling author Rachel Simmons (Odd Girl Out: The Hidden Culture of Aggression in Girls). “The film is both a call to arms and a beacon of hope, a source of relief and outrage and a way forward for all of us.”

The screening is sponsored by The Williston Northampton School’s Parents’ Association and a portion of the proceeds from the screening will fund programs at The Williston Northampton School. The film will be followed by a panel discussion led by faculty members.

Six Williston students recently participated in the American Mathematics Competition, a worldwide competition that involves more than 250,000 high school students. Dongyang “Don” Cheng ’11 (far right) and Jiayuan “George” Xu ’13 scored high enough on the AMC 12 and AMC 10 tests, respectively, to be invited to the next level of competition, the American Invitational Mathematics Exam.  
 
The purpose of the AMC exams is to increase interest in mathematics among high school students through friendly competition in a timed format. Students taking AMC exams must answer 25 multiple-choice questions within 75 minutes without the use of a calculator. Students moving on to the next level of competition will face a 4.5-hour exam. That exam will be given at the end of March.

This weekend, Easthampton area residents are invited to Williston’s Lossone Rink to peruse and purchase quality, gently used children’s clothing, equipment, furniture, and more from over 120 consigners. The All-4-Kids sale is open to the public on Saturday, March 26, from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and Sunday, March 27, from noon to 3:00 p.m. There is no admission fee. On Sunday, many items will be sold at an additional 50% discount.

Williston alumna, tutor, and softball coach Molly Couch Ward ’82 has organized the semiannual All-4-Kids event since 2003. The two-day consignment sale traditionally donates a portion of the profits to local and regional charities. Unsold items are given to Cradles to Crayons, a children’s charity in Boston.

The sale had previously used the parish hall at St. Philip’s Church, but Molly says they were “busting at the seams there so we have been looking for a new and bigger location for a couple of years now.” What started as a small church fundraiser has grown into a “huge ministry.” She says, “It’s a win-win situation for everybody. People enjoy buying quality items and recycling at the same time.”

For more information about the sale, email all4kids128@yahoo.com.