PNA Grapevine

PNA Senior David Zapata hits key free throws late to keep...

Thu, 01 Mar 2012 00:08:22 -0500

PNA Senior David Zapata hits key free throws late to keep Stevenson alive while PNA students watch from the stands in the background.

Boys win 1st Round Matchup

Wednesday, February 29, 2012: Congratulations to the Stevenson Boys Basketball team on their 56-53 victory over The HS of Graphic Communication Arts.

The next game is Tuesday, March 6 @ Mott Haven.

“Like Martin, I don’t believe you can stand for...

Thu, 16 Feb 2012 08:47:00 -0500

“Like Martin, I don’t believe you can stand for freedom for one group of people and deny it to others.”

Remembering Coretta Scott King

By Stiffani Campusano, Class of 2014

Thursday, February 16, 2012: Coretta Scott King was born in Marion, Alabama on April 27, 1927. She was an American civil rights activist. She was also the wife of civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr. January 30th marked the six-year anniversary of her passing.

She was raised on the farm of her parents, Bernice McMurry Scott and Obadiah Scott, in Perry County, Alabama. Coretta excelled at her studies, particularly music. Also being valedictorian of her graduating class at Lincoln High School. She graduated in 1945 and received a scholarship to Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio.

Coretta then went the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. There she met Martin Luther King, Jr. They fell in love and got married on June 18, 1953.

Coretta had to give up her career as a performing concert artist. Coretta and Martin became important leaders in the Civil Rights Movement. They both gave speeches convincing people that blacks and whites are equal. She worked side by side with her husband throughout the 1950’s and 1960’s. She took part in the Montgomery Bus Boycott of 1955 and worked to pass the 1964 Civil Rights Act.

In 1969, Coretta Scott King published the first volume of her autobiography, My Life with Martin Luther King Jr. In 1974 she formed the Full Employment Action Council, a broad coalition of over 100 religious, labor, business, civil and woman’s rights organization. Dedicated to a national policy of full employment and equal economic opportunity; Mrs. King served as Co-chair of the council.

Coretta and Martin Luther King, Jr. had four children: Martin Luther King III, who now serves as president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC); Yolanda, an actress; Bernice, a lawyer and Baptist minister; and Dexter; who runs the King Library and Archive. King suffered a heart attack and stroke in August 2005; she died on January 30, 2006.

Today’s Dark Past By Adam Aquino and Sheila Rodriguez, Class of...

Tue, 14 Feb 2012 23:19:00 -0500

Today’s Dark Past

By Adam Aquino and Sheila Rodriguez, Class of 2014

February 14, 2012: The day of love flowers, roses, and that lustful color, red. Love is everywhere you go. But do you really know the history of how Valentine’s Day came to be? Don’t you want to know why people send cards on Valentine’s Day? You’ll be surprised about what you might learn.

Throughout roman history there where many wars and battles in goals for a united world. Soldiers where needed to fight in these battles. Emperor Claudius II’s army consisted of young men because he believed that they made good soldiers. For the reason that they didn’t have wives or kids that would need them, so he restricted them from getting married.

The idea of Valentine’s Day and sending cards came from a bishop named Valentine who, due to the restrictions of marriage by Emperor Claudius, would secretly marry couples. Finding out of his activities, Emperor Claudius had him jailed to then be beheaded.

During the bishop’s incarceration he wrote to the jailor’s daughter, and they slowly fell in love with each other. There is no mention of the daughter’s name but the first Valentine’s card was to her.

The day of his beheading, the bishop wrote one last letter that was signed, “From your Valentine.” In honor of the day he was killed, February 14was named “ St. Valentine’s Day” by the Catholic Church.

PNA Valentine's Dance

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 08:27:06 -0500

By Tiana Ortiz, Class of 2015

Tuesday, February 07, 2012: The next school dance will be held Friday on February 10^th, 2012. School dances are for students to enjoy themselves once in awhile and in the process tickets can raise money for senior activities.

If you are planning to attend the dance and want to buy your tickets you can get them for $3.00 before the event or you can buy your tickets at the door for $5.00 dollars.

Furthermore, if you do want to buy them before the dance you can speak to these next listed seniors; Joshua Mena, Alex Colon, Shayra Mendez, Jennifer Casado, or you can speak to Ms. Reyes.

The school dance will be in the teachers’ cafeteria and you can enter the main entrance to enter the school building.

Stevenson Dance Class

Mon, 21 Nov 2011 14:40:37 -0500

By Kenia Bernardez, Class of 2015

November 21, 2011

“I love dancing, which is why I’m here,” said one student.

Are you ready to dance? Do you want to show the school your moves? Stevenson Campus has a dance class, and all schools are allowed to come.

In order to participate, you have to sign an Enrollment Form. Kenyatta Funderurk started the dance program. Dance starts at 3:00 – 5:30 in the lunchroom (where students go through scanning) next to the K stair case. Students are allowed to leave at any time.

Britney, the dance teacher, will ask you to sign in and take a snack, if you like. “I love teaching dances to my students,” Britney said. “ I would like to have my own studio; this is just something that I can do in life.”

Students may play with the Wii or do their homework. Participants play the Wii for an hour, and then dance for for the remainder.

Dance class is available for 9 – 12 grade, girls & boys. Students should wear sweats or anything comfortable to dance in because they will do a lot of exercising.

“Everyone can dance & dancing it just something I like doing,” one participant said. Now you know dance is available in Stevenson Campus…what are you waiting for? JOIN NOW!

Lady Ambassadors Slay KIPP NYC College Prep on the Soccer...

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 16:35:11 -0400

Carmen Mendez (Class of 2013)

Jasmine Howard (Class of 2012)

Lady Ambassadors Slay KIPP NYC College Prep on the Soccer Field

By Christina Valentin, Class of 2014; Photos by Juan Rosales, Class of 2015

October 25, 2011: Two energetic teams, the Stevenson Lady Ambassadors and the KIPP NYC College Prep soccer team, played head to head on Stevenson’s field, with the Ambassadors taking a 6-0 victory.

Stevenson made great kicks that made the ball travel great distances, giving them the advantage. PNA sophomore Zebesha Barnes(#3) made great kicks during the game giving her team the advantage to make goals, while KIPP NYC rarely had a shot on goal . Though KIPP NYC tried their hardest to score Stevenson made it difficult for the opponents.

PNA junior Carmen Mendez (#16) showed good defense and helped block the opposing team’s passes. During the first half, KIPP NYC made it difficult to score because they stayed on the Lady Ambassadors and made it hard for our team to pass and make goals.

The teams showed great sportsmanship throughout the entire game. Half way through the game, Mendez took a shot on goal and hit the opposing team’s goalie in the face; she fell to the ground, and this brought the once exciting game to a halt. As the game rebooted, the tension built up in the field. Though they showed great sportsmanship they secretly wanted to start.

Number seven made a great goal and number 10 kicked the ball in bounds and it bounced off the goalie into the goal.

The Lady Ambassadors’ goal keeper, Keyana Brown Wiggins spent most of the game just standing in the goal as the action took place on the other side of the field. Coach Branca stated “I’m going to change you later - don’t worry. Don’t want you to get bored back there.”

The second half of the game was more intense and both teams were making plenty of goals. The Lady Ambassadors won the game 6 to 0 marking the first victory for the team. KIPP NYC and Lady Ambassadors were both great teams and did a great job during the game.

Editor’s Note: Since this was written, Stevenson played their final game against Truman, a 2-0 loss the very next day (also @Stevenson). Congratulations to all of the players – especially PNA seniors Jasmine Howard and Kerniesha Williams, and underclassmen Carmen Mendez and Zebesha Barnes, on a great season!

Weight Room is OPEN!

Thu, 20 Oct 2011 00:00:00 -0400

By Kenia Bernardez, Class of 2015

Attention all PNA students, the weight room is finally open!

Bill (a teacher from Bronx Guild) is in charge of the weight room. It is located in room 276, right near the nurse’s office 273, Staircase K, and next to the gym.

The weight room will be open 3:05 pm – 4:30 pm, every weekday except Wednesday. You MUST sign in your name in order to start working out.

Music will be played to entertain students. Boys and girls are allowed in the weight room.

When asked why one student was in the weight room, the student replied, “I’m in the weight room to work out … I just want to be healthy.”

Another student said, “I just want to have a better body.”

So if you want to work out and have a better body… The weight room is OPEN!!!!!

Youth Court: The New Black

Thu, 20 Oct 2011 00:00:00 -0400

By Stiffani Campusano, Sheila Rodriguez, and Christina Valentin, Class of 2014

October 20, 2011: Youth Court is an exciting new club in Pablo Neruda Academy. Youth Court can benefit students in the school by helping them make decisions.

The Youth Court club recently began recruiting interested students from grades 9-12. Youth court officially began on October 13, 2011. The youth court staff will usually meet during lunch periods on Wednesdays: the 9^th and 10^th graders will meet fourth period, and the 11^th and 12^th will meet fifth period.

A total of 15-28 hours of training is needed to participate. The training for youth court commitment will be from spring to fall. Staying until the end of senior year is optional. The doors for youth court are open to anyone who would like to commit.

Youth court will make the community a better place, it will also affect the community in a positive way. It will also improve our school, by turning negative actions into positive. It will make a difference to the students who join by giving them a sense of adulthood. Also, it will provide a more collective community, year round.

It will help students by offering an alternative, meaning realizing their errors of ways through helping the school. They will be restoring damage they have done to the community, for example graffiti. It will benefit people in youth court by making a difference in the schooby, looking great on a college transcript, and making a person feel new. Like “Man in the Mirror”, by Michael Jackson, talking about change.

If a student no longer wants to be a part of youth court, they get to keep their t-shirt. They are welcome to return. If there is a violation of confidentiality, their service will be removed, because what is spoken in youth court should stay there. Punishments discussed in youth court will be handled, not my deans but by how the punishment can be turned into positive actions or discussions. Youth court will be as real as possible where real judges and lawyers come in. So I recommend youth court to many students so it will help you succeed!

Student Election Results Are In!

Tue, 18 Oct 2011 00:55:00 -0400

By Juan A. Rosales, Class of 2015

Monday, October 17, 2011: Juan Soriano, the incumbent presidential candidate, sat and listened as the votes were tallied. Other candidates were there too, but Juan was visibly nervous.

Mr. Dinner, Mr. Panzer, and Ms. Erickson spent 30 minutes counting all the votes as students tallied the results on the board in room 450 during ninth period, building suspense for the candidates that were present.

Finally, the counting of votes finished and the results were in: unfortunately for Soriano, his bid for re-election fell just short in a very tight race.

Congratulations to the newly elected officers of student government:

President: Lenny Piña, Class of 2012

Vice President: Kayla Patrick, Class of 2013

Treasurer: David Zapata, Class of 2012

Secretary: Kerneisha Williams, Class of 2012

Now all students hope they do what they promised and make changes that benefit the whole school.

Breast Cancer Awareness Walk This Weekend By Adam...

Fri, 14 Oct 2011 06:16:52 -0400

Breast Cancer Awareness Walk This Weekend

By Adam Aquino, Class of 2014

October 13, 2011

This Sunday, October 16, 2011 will be the Breast Cancer Awareness walk in Central Park. The walk starts and finishes at the 72^nd Street Bandshell, and is roughly 5 miles long. Registration begins at 9:00AM, and the walk starts at 9:30AM.

October has been Breast Cancer Awareness Month since 1985. It was started by the American Academy of Family Physicians and AstraZeneca Healthcare Foundation and CancerCare, Inc, and other sponsor companies. Breast cancer awareness month is an informant of breast cancer and its affects. It’s represented by a pink ribbon or just the color pink.

This color of supporting breast cancer awareness started in the 90’s when the Susan G. Komen Foundation handed out pink ribbons in 1991 during its New York City race for breast cancer survivors.

There are many ways to celebrate this month. There are many walks that celebrate breast cancer in places like here in New York’s Central Park, Australia, Korea, and more.

Celebrating this month is beneficial because doing so highlights tips and details for women on practicing regular self-breast examinations, getting mammograms as recommended, scheduling regular visits with their physician for breast care, following any prescribed treatment, and learning as much as they can about breast cancer and breast health.

All in all breast cancer is a serious problem in the world and there are many people striving and suffering from this virus and searching for support and help. Support breast cancer awareness.

For further information, please visit:

http://makingstrides.acsevents.org/site/TR?sid=16393&type=fr_informational&pg=informational&fr_id=35997

Candidate for Secretary: Kerniesha Williams, Class of...

Tue, 11 Oct 2011 04:25:00 -0400

Candidate for Secretary: Kerniesha Williams, Class of 2012

Interviewed by Juan Rosales, Class of 2015

1. Why do you want to run for Student Government?

I want to be a part of the changes in the school.

2. What will you do as Secretary that makes you better than your opposing candidates?

My leadership and my focus.

3. What experience do you have that will help you in this position?

Being a note taker, I have experience at being a person who gives summaries. I am a reliable person.

4. What are your three best characteristics?

Good listener, diligent.

5. Is there anything else PNA students should know about you before they vote on Thursday, October 13?

I will try to help make a difference.

Candidate for Secretary: Genny Balbuena, Class of...

Tue, 11 Oct 2011 04:18:00 -0400

Candidate for Secretary: Genny Balbuena, Class of 2012

Interviewed by Juan Rosales, Class of 2015

1. Why do you want to run for Student Government?

Because I’ve been here for four years.

2. What will you do as Secretary that makes you better than your opposing candidates?

I have experience and I know how to be the Secretary.

3. What experience do you have that will help you in this position?

I print things on the computer at school and all that has to do with computers.

4. What are your three best characteristics?

Nice with people, very smart.

5. Is there anything else PNA students should know about you before they vote on Thursday, October 13?

I figure out everything before it comes out.

Candidate for Treasurer: Christopher Diaz, Class of...

Tue, 11 Oct 2011 04:10:00 -0400

Candidate for Treasurer: Christopher Diaz, Class of 2012

Interviewed by Tiana Ortiz and Brittany Vazquez, Class of 2015

1. Why do you want to run for Student Government?

Because I’m running for election and stuff.

2. What will you do as Treasurer that makes you better than your opposing candidates?

I’m just running just to run for it.

3. What experience do you have that will help you in this position?

Internship.

4. What are your three best characteristics?

Good with money, math.

5. Is there anything else PNA students should know about you before they vote on Thursday, October 13?

I am good with money and math.

Vice Presidential Candidate: Franklin Portillo, Class of...

Tue, 11 Oct 2011 04:01:00 -0400

Vice Presidential Candidate: Franklin Portillo, Class of 2012

Interviewed by Juan Rosales, Class of 2015

1. Why do you want to run for Student Government?

I should represent because I want to control the students so they don’t do crazy things.

2. What will you do as Vice President that makes you better than your opposing candidates?

I will do student meetings and make the school better.

3. What experience do you have that will help you in this position?

I have leadership skills and I have always been involved in student government.

4. What are your three best characteristics?

Kind, like to make friends, smart.

5. Is there anything else PNA students should know about you before they vote on Thursday, October 13?

I am really nice, dedicated, and I have many things to do in the school.

Vice Presidential Candidate: Kayla Patrick, Class of...

Tue, 11 Oct 2011 03:53:00 -0400

Vice Presidential Candidate: Kayla Patrick, Class of 2013

Interviewed by Tiana Ortiz and Brittany Vazquez, Class of 2015

1. Why do you want to run for Student Government?

I am willing and able to speak for others in school, and I feel that I can attend to the problems in the school.

2. What will you do as Vice President that makes you better than your opposing candidates?

I have a different point of view. My opinions can do something to make change in the school because I have experience in student government.

3. What experience do you have that will help you in this position?

I have been in student government before, and in my personal life outside of school I have worked in a program in church where money is involved, which speaks to my trustworthiness.

4. What are your three best characteristics?

Very outspoken, educated, elaborate

5. Is there anything else PNA students should know about you before they vote on Thursday, October 13?

I am trustworthy. I can be very joyful when I’m supposed to, but also serious and hard-working.

Presidential Candidate: Juan Soriano, Class of 2012 Interviewed...

Tue, 11 Oct 2011 03:43:00 -0400

Presidential Candidate: Juan Soriano, Class of 2012

Interviewed by Juan Rosales, Class of 2015

1. Why do you want to run for Student Government?

Because I am a good leader and I want to make a change in the school.

2. What will you do as President that makes you better than your opposing candidates?

I will renew the old things in school and make a better community.

3. What experience do you have that will help you in this position?

I was President last year, and I liked the job.

4. What are your three best characteristics?

Leadership skills, people skills/friendly, smart

5. Is there anything else PNA students should know about you before they vote on Thursday, October 13?

I tried to start the video game club, the talent show, and I worked for the school newspaper.

Leonard Pina: Presidential Candidate

Tue, 11 Oct 2011 03:27:00 -0400

Leonard Pina, Class of 2012

Running for: President

Interviewed by Tiana Ortiz and Brittany Vazquez, Class of 2015

1. Why do you want to run for Student Government?

I am running for President.

2. What will you do as President that makes you better than your opposing candidates?

I will make a change. I will brighten the way students look at things, and have fundraisers for better educational trips.

3. What experience do you have that will help you in this position?

I have been in PNA for three years now. I have experienced the things that 9^th, 10^th, and 11^th graders will, and I know right from wrong.

4. What are your three best characteristics?

Great personality, ambitious, futuristic

5. Is there anything else PNA students should know about you before they vote on Thursday, October 13?

They should know that I am the best role model that they can all look up to.

PNA Grapevine Returns

Tue, 11 Oct 2011 03:14:35 -0400

PNA Grapevine is back for 2011-2012 with an all-new staff, which explains the delay. While we get back on track, expect to see the following in the near future:

1. Student Government candidate interviews - the elections will be held in-class on Thursday, October 13, 2011.

2. Field Day photos and write-up - rumor has it Juan Soriano would like to reprise his story format from last year’s Field Day.

3. Grapevine staff recollections of 9/11/01 - better late than never; the anniversary came just days into the school year, so we’ve needed time to train the staff before publishing.

4. Coverage of PNA/Stevenson sports, including this weekend’s football game.

Thank you for your patience and support. As a final note, we may expand to another site in the future because tumblr is blocked on DOE computers. But please do follow along from other locations!

Moore’s Signing Opens Doors By Karissa Core, Class of...

Fri, 17 Jun 2011 08:57:34 -0400

Moore’s Signing Opens Doors

By Karissa Core, Class of 2011

Maya Moore became the first female basketball player signed to the Jordan brand on May 18^th, 2011. Signing this deal means that she’s now a multi-million dollar rookie in the WNBA, making $3 million to $4 million a year.

An average female basketball player makes a minimum salary of $36,570; the total salary cap for a WNBA team is roughly $800,000. By comparison, Daniel Orton, the 29^th overall pick in the 2010-2011 NBA Draft has yet to play in the NBA but is guaranteed to earn $857,000 for his 1^st year, and will earn nearly 3 million dollars over three years in the NBA, active or not. Aone of the best rookies to ever enter the draft, Maya Moore has made a major breakthrough for women’s basketball for now and the future.

           Her greatness as an athlete is what led to her to this opportunity. From the Jordan press release: “Recognized as one of the greatest collegiate women’s basketball players to ever play, Moore led the University of Connecticut Huskies to back-to-back NCAA titles in 2009 and 2010. During her tenure at UCONN, she re-wrote college basketball’s record books by leading the Huskies to a 150-4 record, including an NCAA Division I basketball record 90-game win streak.”

          For future female basketball players, Maya Moore joining the Jordan family opens many doors. Maybe now they can demand what they want and have those demands met – so many are talented and it would not be fair nor smart to just let go of good talent. The future looks absolutely bright for female basketball players because of Maya Moore. This is only the first step to what women have been fighting for: it only takes time, but now is the time.

         The WNBA has come along way since its inception in 1996; 15 years ago it was just a league with high skilled veteran players that people didn’t really watch. Now it has become a global sensation. Watching new faces and great players who come in to make the game more competitive and interesting, it will only get bigger and more popular with the talent that will keep coming in.

The video time line above shows a series of events that led up...

Fri, 03 Jun 2011 11:02:00 -0400

The video time line above shows a series of events that led up to the hacking of PSN and what has happened since.

PSN Hacking: Where Do We Go From Here?

By Jose Vasquez, Class of 2012

Ever since the Play Station Network was hacked on April 20, 2011, there have been over 77 million disappointed users of Sony’s latest console, the Play Station 3 (PS3). While Sony says that they are trying to find a solution and that they are already in the final stages of testing their new and improved network we are still waiting. It has already been over a month since it happened. Does Sony deserve more time to work on its new network? Is this new network going to be better?

Some people now feel that Sony wasn’t protecting their personal data or properly encrypting their credit card information. Many are worried and/or disappointed while others just wait for the PSN to be back up so that they can continue playing and enjoying the features of the PSN. An article that came out before the network was back up said, “Yes, things are bad right now for the millions of PlayStation 3 and PSP players out there who have to deal with the fact that birthdates, addresses and passwords have been compromised and the PSN is still offline.” Now the only problem is the Play Station Store – It is not yet up!

Everyone that knows what happened has an opinion about it, whether they were a PS3/PSP user or not. One gamer posted the following comment: “As a PlayStation 3 gamer, this outage has affected my gaming routine in a serious way. The hours and hours I spend on PS3 and the PlayStation Network week after week has grinded to a halt, as it has for millions of gamers around the world.”

Not everything that comes from a mishap like this has negative results. There is a possibility that other networks like Xbox Live for the Xbox 360 or Nintendo24 for the Nintendo Wii will see this as a warning and will strengthen their security now that they have seen another major company experience this.

Some believe that the only reason why this happened to Sony and not some other company was because PSN had the weakest security. They may not be completely wrong. Sources say that a previous attempt to hack the PSN by an organization of hackers, known as Anonymous, was what had weakened the PSN. Sources also say that it distracted the workforce that would usually be there to spot any problems and/or disturbances in the PSN.

For additional information, you can visit the following web sites:

http://sony.nyleveia.com/2011/05/17/warning-all-psn-users-your-accounts-are-still-not-safe/

http://ps3.ign.com/articles/116/1169006p1.html

http://ps3.ign.com/articles/116/1164340p1.html

http://ps3.ign.com/articles/116/1164194p1.html

http://ps3.ign.com/articles/116/1163798p1.html