Por Elizabeth Gillingham

Estudiante del mes

Kiwanis student of the month for April was Noah Leach.

Noah is a senior at Henry and is most remembered for his many roles played on the stage at PHHS, both in choir and drama productions.

However, in the classroom he has also made his mark as noted by the many different teachers who nominated him.

Teacher, Ms. Terri Clark, stated in her recommendation letter:

“I would like to send out a plug for Noah Leach. A lot of what he does is for choir and drama; however, I believe he has been an excellent student in all of his other classes as well. Noah always volunteers to go above and beyond. He sees a need and works to fulfill it while encouraging other students to join him in a cause. 

He is a natural leader whom his younger peers are prone to follow. He does whatever he is asked to do and most of the time he does so cheerfully. He is always respectful with adults. He is creative and thinks outside of the box to solve problems or to present other or improved options. He initiates ideas and projects and works to follow through with those plans. He spends much time outside of class thinking through how to improve his class and what he can contribute. 

It is almost as though whatever Noah touches turns to gold. He is enthusiastic and truly cares about succeeding in whatever he chooses to do. He is a committed young man.”

Choir director, Ms. Kristin Love stated:

“He is solid academically, focused and on task, willing to help anyone who needs it. Beyond that, he is so creative and pulls together seriously professional looking outfits. I feel like the world will know his name. His school spirit is strong, he’s involved, he was an awesome Ursula in ‘Little Mermaid.’ I am so curious to see where he will go and what he will do — I think he will do great things!

He is a quiet sort of leader, where his accomplishments (and great spirit day outfits!) seem to stem from a genuine desire to push himself, rather than for the sake of seeking others approval. But it is that sort of trait that can make the best leader — he doesn’t have to look behind him to see whose following — his eyes are facing forward on his next goal!”

Noah is off to San Diego State next year and has been accepted into their theater program. We are very excited to see where his career will take him next!

PHHS Model United Nations Club

The PHHS Model UN Club sent a team to compete in the annual TritonMUN Conference held at UCSD, representing Russia in committees such as the UN Forum for Indigenous Peoples, and the UN Security Council.

After two days of fervent debate on international issues, competing against over 300 students from schools all over Southern California, the team won Best Delegation out of all of the competing schools. In addition, Jonny Phan and Daniel Khuu won honorable mentions in their respective committees, and Kalos Chu won Best Delegate in his committee, the UN Human Rights Council.

They hope to return next year to repeat their resounding success!

Henry wins $1,000 for recycling efforts

Congratulations! Henry High was the runner-up winner in the High School category of the 2016-17 EDCO Recycling Challenge!

To help reduce waste and increase recycling awareness at our schools, the San Diego Unified School District once again teamed up with EDCO, our waste and recycling service provider, to bring you the 2015-16 EDCO Recycling Challenge. There were cash prizes for the schools that divert the most waste while increasing recycling efforts.

All schools that receive waste and recycling services through the district contract with EDCO were automatically registered to compete in the challenge. A baseline of existing services was set for each school based on a pounds-per-student calculation for waste disposal and recycling. The criteria for awards were based on a combination of school recycling and waste reduction efforts (overall waste diversion rate).

Special thanks to our POS (Plant Operation Specialist), Cathy Murphy who helped us win by ordering several new blue bins around campus to make it easier for students to separate their trash.

Coach Jack Lococo earns 300th win

Congratulations to Coach Jack Lococo who celebrated his 300th game win while coaching Varsity High School Baseball at Patrick Henry High School in less than a dozen years.

Jack Lococo started as a head junior varsity walk-on coach in 1996 for Henry, assisting former head coaches Blivens and Michael Williams with the varsity program as well.

In 2003, principal Pat Crowder hired Lococo to teach in the engineering program, making him a full-time teacher at PHHS. In 2005, Lococo was asked by Williams to take the head coach reins where he began collecting his wins over what would be the next 12 years.

Lococo was also named as the PHHS Athletic Director in 2010, providing direct guidance and support for over 20 different sports, hiring new coaches, supervising games, and putting on countless professional development opportunities and meetings to ensure a safe and competitive program for everyone involved.

Lococo’s favorite coaching memories include: taking his students in 2005 to the CIF Championship game; playing at Petco Park in 2014; and coaching with his two sons, Johnny and Anthony. On April 27, 2017, against Serra High School, the Patriots came out on top marking the coach’s 300th victory as a Patriot.

Principal Gillingham was on hand to present a banner to Coach Lococo that will be hung on our fences to signify this amazing achievement. The students helped him celebrate by dumping an ice cooler of water on his head as tradition dictates in many sporting events and continued with a silly string attack as well.

On May 18, 2017, Lococo celebrated his last senior game with the Patriots and the city recognized him through a proclamation from Mayor Kevin Faulconer declaring May 18 as “Jack Lococo Day” in honor of his tremendous contributions to our program at Henry.

—Elizabeth Gillingham es directora de la escuela secundaria Patrick Henry.