Moorestown Friends School E-News - September 30, 2011

Eight Named National Merit Commended Scholars | An Evening with Tony Wagner - Tues., Oct. 18
MFS To Host Bioethics Bowl - Volunteers Needed | Social Studies Teacher Published
Announcing Lower School Find Out Fridays | Volunteers Needed for The Music Man
Thirft Shop Needs Volunteers and Donations | Meeting Visiting Day This Sunday | Fox Tracks

What's Happening at MFS
(DHC - Dining Hall Commons; FHC - Field House Commons)

Visit the Enhanced School Directory Page on the MFS public website. Now online are headshots of faculty and staff along with titles and academic credentials. Sat., October 1 JV Girls Tennis FSL Tournament, 10 a.m., Friends' Central JV Girls Soccer FSL Tournament, 10 a.m., Germantown Friends School JV Field Hockey FSL Tournament, 10 a.m., George School JV Boys Soccer FSL Tournament, 10 a.m., Shipley Have you picked up your yard sign from the Admissions Office to help promote upcoming Open House events??? Wed., October 5 Middle School Parent Education Evening, 7 – 8:30 p.m., DHC Mon., October 10 Fall Break, No School (Upper School varsity sports practices will be held from 3-5 p.m.) Tuesday, October 11 College Guidance Coffee for Senior Parents, 7:30 – 8:30 a.m., D’Olier Room Wednesday, October 12 PSAT for Grade 10 & 11

Eight Seniors Named National Merit Scholarship Commended Students

Eight Moorestown Friends School seniors were recently recognized by the National Merit Scholarship Program.

The following students were named National Merit Commended Scholars: Edward Barrett, Carolyn Chelius, Katherine Churchill, Matthew Eckart, Karan Hiremath, Katherine Sowa, Madison Taormina and Emily Whitley. The 2010 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT) served as an initial screen for more than 1.5 million entrants to the National Merit Scholarship Program. Commended Scholars represent the top three percent of high school seniors nationwide. The Commended Scholars from MFS constitute over ten percent of its senior class.

Parent Council Presents: An Evening with Tony Wagner
When: Tuesday, October 18, 6 p.m. (Reception at 5:30 p.m.)
Where: MFS Auditorium

Watch a clip of Tony Wagner. MFS parents, alumni and the general public are invited to an evening with Tony Wagner, author of The Global Achievement Gap, a book featured prominently in MFS Strategic Planning efforts. A former high school teacher, principal and professor, Wagner has served as Co-Director of the Change Leadership Group (CLG) at the Harvard Graduate School of Education since its inception in 2000. An initiative of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, CLG helps teams to be effective change leaders in schools and districts. He consults widely to public and independent schools, districts, and foundations around the country and internationally. This event is funded by Parent Council and the G. Macculloch Miller Social Studies Endowment.

First-Ever Bioethics Bowl To Take Place at MFS - Saturday October 22
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

Last December Dr. Arthur L. Caplan, Director of the Center for Bioethics at the University of Pennsylvania, asked Moorestown Friends School to host a high school competition in Bioethics. As his profession is to provide opportunities for thoughtful debate at the medical school level, he recognized the importance of providing similar opportunities to high school students. In response to his request and given our interest in stimulating discussion on important issues in science, the Moorestown Friends Bioethics Bowl will take place here on Saturday, October 22. Fourteen high school teams will compete.

We are proud to co-sponsor the first high school Bioethics competition with Penn. The cases to be argued are based on real world fact patterns, e.g., a lottery game that offers contestants the opportunity to win fertility services; the testing of a meningitis cure in Nigeria by Pfizer; and the right to remain unvaccinated. The cases were written by Penn philosophers to stimulate student thought about what should be done when thoughtful people disagree about what to do. The MFS team is hoping to use their experience AND the home court advantage to win on the 22nd!

PARENTS: If you are interested in helping to improve the critical thinking skills of students at MFS, the Bioethics Bowl is a unique opportunity to help. We are looking for two kinds of volunteers.

• First, we need moderators – people who keep the time and verify scores in each of the seven rooms.
• Second, we need judges. Judges must listen carefully to the arguments and then pose questions to make the students defend their position.

On the day of the Bioethics Bowl, there will be a short training period for judges and moderators.

Please contact Barb Kreider or parent Sandra Karasin if you want to get involved.

--Barbara Kreider, Chair, Science Department

Social Studies Teacher Published in National History Journal

Upper School Social Studies Teacher Eliza McFeely, Ph.D, was published in Vol. 39, No. 3 (Sept. 2011) of Reviews in American History, published by Johns Hopkins University. Her article was titled "Coming of Age" and was a book review of Nancy C. Lutkehaus' book Margaret Mead: The Making of an American Icon.

Announcing Lower School Find Out Fridays...

Find Out Fridays are a time each month when parents are invited to come to their child’s classroom and witness first-hand what their child is learning. Find Out Fridays take place from 7:55 - 8:25 a.m. during the months of October through March with parents of kindergarten and first graders visiting on the first Friday of each month and parents of second through fourth graders visiting the second Friday of each month. In order to attend these events, please park on the bus pad or in the Acme parking lot. Only one person per child may attend each month.

Seeking Volunteers for The Music Man

Thrift Shop Needs Donations and Volunteers

The Moorestown Friends School Thrift Shop, located at 301 Chester Ave., is in need of volunteers and donations. The shop is open Monday - Saturday from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. Donations are accepted from 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. each business day. Please consider your time and/or donations, as the Thrift Shop provides valuable financial support to Moorestown Friends School. For more information, call Manager Connie Muldowney at 856-234-1567.

Friends School Visiting Day at Moorestown Monthly Meeting -
Sunday, October 2

Moorestown Monthly Meeting invites Friends School families to join them on Sunday, October 2 for to learn more about Quaker Meeting for Worship. Take advantage of this opportunity to experience Meeting for Worship and talk with Meeting members.

Families are welcome any Sunday, however, October 2 will offer a special chance to share fellowship with parents of other Friends School children. Meeting begins at 10 a.m. with refreshments to follow at 11 a.m. Children are welcome and child care is provided free of charge.

Fox Tracks
MFS Boys Lacrosse Coach and PE/Health Teacher Michael McGinn led a contingent of lacrosse players from throughout the northeastern United States on a trip to Costa Rica this summer to provide service and lacrosse instruction to local children. The group, which included current sophomores Sam Madamba and Pierce Williams, taught young Costa Rican children the joys of lacrosse. In return, the volunteers learned the valuable lessons and joy of giving back to a community which not only embraced this unfamiliar game, but also marveled at the dedication of this group as it worked tirelessly to grout the exterior walls of the local Community Center and removed beach debris, helping to restore beauty to the otherwise pristine shoreline.

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