Winter 2014 Jr.K-12, College Preparatory Private School, Dublin, CA www.QuarryLane.org

Pencil Drawingby Amy Kim,

Alumna

QLS ALumni…Where Are They noW?

The list below is a compilation of the nation’s top schools that have accepted Quarry Lane alumni.Carnegie MelonClark University Columbia UniversityCornell UniversityDartmouth College Drexel University Emory UniversityGeorgetown University Gonzaga University Harvard University Johns Hopkins UniversityLoyola Marymount University New York UniversityNortheastern UniversityNorthwestern UniversityPenn StateRice University Saint Mary’s CollegeStanford University University of California, BerkeleyUniversity of California, DavisUniversity of California, IrvineUniversity of California, Los Angeles University of California, RiversideUniversity of California, San DiegoUniversity of ChicagoUniversity of MarylandUniversity of North Carolina - Chapel HillUniversity of Southern California Vanderbilt University Whitman UniversityWhittier University

Looking BAck AT A SucceSSfuL FirST SemeSTer

As I look back on the first semes-ter, I’m proud of Quarry Lane’s many accomplishments. From

our Cougars sports teams to our Visual and Performing Arts department and the Science and Engineering program, I’m excited to see our students stay-ing committed and involved in every step of the learning process. This is what sets Quarry Lane School apart: an atmosphere where students are prepared to succeed regardless of the career path they choose. Quarry Lane provides them the opportunity to mas-ter the skills that are absolutely neces-sary in the real world so that they’re ready to be citizens of the world.

Our hands-on approach instills in our students critical thinking, critical analy-sis and an engineering approach to solv-ing problems. Our Art department’s costumes, for example, are made by our own students. One might say it would be easier to buy them, but we take the opportunity to get every single one of our students involved and committed to making the performances a success, just as if it were a real-world theatrical

production. This teaches our students to plan, stay committed to great team work and work in an organized manner.

Another example of our small but mighty teams’ competence is Mr. Mike Chow and Dr. Parul Khare’s middle and high school Robotics program, which has beat larger schools’ programs and received multiple awards, including the recent FTC Tech Challenge’s Connected Award. Making the Robotics program available to lower school students proves that by providing them with an early op-portunity to engage they’ll be ready for complex projects and even specialized internships by the time they reach mid-dle and high school.

We’re also fine-tuning our Internation-al Baccalaureate Diploma Programme, Science, Engineering and Technol-ogy and College Preparatory academic tracks for students interested in medical, engineering, science, humanities or law careers.

Year after year I have seen our pro-grams further adapt to the individual needs of our students. I know this is an endless process, one that at Quarry Lane

is fueled by a combination of the pas-sion of our teachers and staff and the commitment of our students and par-ents. They do not hold themselves back and, as a result, the entire school reaps the benefits. Here’s to a productive and successful second semester!

QLS RoboTicS TeAmS Bring Home AWArdS

Quarry Lane Robotics is a comprehensive

program of classes, clubs, and competi-tions that provide en-gineering training to students in grades 5 through 12. The Pro-gram is an important part of the Applied Sciences and Engi-neering Track, whose goal is to prepare students with the ad-vanced knowledge, experience and

reasoning skills necessary for tackling difficult college engineering curriculum. It also teaches stu-dents the importance of perse-verance, collaboration, drive and dedication to excellence.

This past fall, our three robot-ics teams—5th grade, 8th grade and high school—participated in the first round of tournaments for their respective age brack-ets. The High School Robotics Team, run by Dr. Parul Khare, made it to the semi-finals of the FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC)

Qualifying Tournament, win-ning the runners-up trophy. Addition-

ally, it was a finalist for the prestigious Parametric Technology Corporation De-sign Award for excellence and creativity in robotics design and construction. Our brand new 5th and 8th grade teams, under the direction of Mr. Michael Chow, com-peted admirably against programs from much larger schools, demonstrating the quality of the rigorous QLS program and the dedication and ingenuity of our stu-dents. The teams are busily preparing their robots for the next round of compe-titions in February.

The goal of the high school robotics club is to work together to compete in the FTC Tech Challenge. According to Mr. Chow, the chair of the Applied Sci-

ences and Engineering Track, “At QLS, we believe that the best way to teach stu-dents to be engineers is to immerse them in the real-world practice of engineering. Robotics is a rapidly growing field, with many new applications in medicine, manufacturing, transportation, construc-tion and defense. Our Robotics program provides many opportunities for stu-dents to undertake meaningful hands-on projects integrated with the curriculum. This helps students develop deeper criti-cal and spatial reasoning skills, apply their knowledge of mathematics and science to real-world challenges, and practice their collaboration and technical writing and oral presentation skills.”

Evening of The ArTS ReveALS TALenTS

In its third year, last December’s Eve-ning of the Arts was unanimously described by students and staff as

“the best QLS production ever!” It was an exceptional evening where a group of creative minds including docents, stu-dents and parents gathered in the Villa

for art gallery show-cases, poetry reading, music, dance and the-atrical performances.

Mr. Louis Chinn, QLS’ IB Art Teacher and the event’s lead

organizer, recapped the night saying, “It is impressive how much of our student population has creative talents and is excited to share it.” He was also pleased with the way the Visual and Performing Arts teachers brought together their

expertise to seamlessly plan and execute a cross-disciplinary show.

This year, the Villa was divided into distinct spaces, including tailored lighting and ambiance, for each of

Theatre students’ Hamlet.

DreAmS TAke FLighT

Of the great minds throughout history, whether they were engineers, scientists, musi-

cians, composers or artists, all had one thing in common: they were dream-ers. Before you can build a pyra-mid, cure an illness, fly into outer space or paint a masterpiece, you have to dream about the possibility.

You have to be a dreamer to accomplish feats never done before. QLS had the op-portunity to meet this kind of dreamer when Godfrey Masauli came to visit. As a child in Malawi, Africa, Godfrey would dream of being able to fly, but didn’t

know how such a dream could become real in a place where it had never hap-pened before. “I believed I could fly if I had the chance,” said Masauli. “I could fly just like an eagle.”

And then one day he met a film-maker named Benjamin Jordan, who was flying a kite near where Godfrey lived. “I couldn’t believe it,” said Masauli. “Maybe this crazy-looking white man can teach me to fly.”

The two became good friends and began a journey to pursue the dream of flying that has already taken them across

Africa, into Canada, where Benjamin is from, and across the United States in a wildly painted bus named “Honey.”

Their goal is to raise $30,000 in order to buy land and build the very first school in Mala-wi to offer paragliding in-struction and inspiration. Masauli hopes to inspire the children of his country to follow their dreams and try for what seems impos-sible. “I’m really used to

working with kids now from this trip,” he said. “Too many children believe it when others tell them they cannot do things. I

believe they can.”QLS families, students and teachers

pulled together to raise $2,325 to help fund the School of Dreams. The money from our school allowed the group to meet their $10,000 goal for the United States portion of their fundraising tour. Next, the group, which includes Masauli, Jordan and Tour Manager Erica Dobie, will travel to Europe where they hope to raise an additional $10,000.

“$30,000 probably doesn’t sound like a lot of money to many people,” said Erica. “But in Malawi it’s enough to buy the land and build the school, so we’re talking about an incredible amount of money.”

Masauli holds QLS’ donation.

By Mr. Michael Chow and Dr. Parul Khare

Continued on Page 4...

Sincerely,

Sabri Arac, Ph.D.Head of School

By Mrs. Kelly Gabel

QLS HS Robotics team.

In December 2013, National Portfolio Day was held in Phoenix and our very

own Daniel Xi’s portfolio was accepted to the prestigious School of Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC.)

Daniel, a senior in the International Baccalaureate (IB) program, came to QLS three years ago. He explained, “I like QLS because it is an international school. The learning experience becomes richer and goes beyond academics when we are given the opportunity to interact with classmates from different places like India, Holland, England and Germany.”

In addition to having his portfolio

accepted by SAIC, Daniel also met with the School of Visual Art and

Parsons School of Design, both based in NYC, and the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD). Daniel is still deciding about his future, but felt privileged to be at National Portfolio Day. He said, “It offered me the opportunity to have my portfolio critiqued by professionals and pointed out my work’s strengths as well as areas I should continue to work on.”

Daniel’s passion for the arts developed early, before he even attended elementary school.

With the help of a tutor, he started learning sketching at age seven and hasn’t stopped experimenting with different art media ever since. More recently, he has taken on marker, including pointillism and water color. He also enjoys origami—in fact, he

enjoys mixing different media and expressed his concern for the earth’s fragility by adding broken glass to origami flowers.

When thinking about the future, Daniel dreams of turning his artistic talent into a career as a video game designer. His advice for fellow QLS students is, “Make your decision early and once you decide where you want to go, keep planning and preparing. You have to set a clear goal and stick to it so that everything you’re doing now will work towards that goal.”

Mr. Louis Chinn, the IB Art Teacher who has mentored Daniel for the last two years, agrees and adds, “Few students have worked as diligently as Daniel this year. He is a joy to have in class and his dedication sets a great example to his peers.”

When asked what he’ll miss once he graduates in a few months, Daniel says, “The best thing at QLS are the

teachers. They are very kind, especially Mr. Chinn, who gives me autonomy to work on my own ideas and use any art medium I choose. He encouraged me to learn marker last year to make my portfolio stronger. He’s very supportive and patient and never gets angry even when we get his classroom dirty with paint.”

“Additionally, the greatest benefit of coming to QLS has been the IB Program. It has been a key component of my education and has made me ready to apply and get accepted at the country’s top art school programs.”

When he’s not hard at work on his art pieces, Daniel likes to play tennis and plans to take on basketball. He’s also the president of the Fashion Club and is excited to be planning the costumes for the upcoming Fashion Show.

TEACHER Spotlight

Student Spotlight

Ms. Marian Odda-Steahly’s contagious love of learning—and teaching—has spread to

all of her students and beyond since she joined Quarry Lane School in 2013. Her love of the Spanish language first developed thanks to a Gipsy Kings album her father brought home one day. It was a jovial and energetic Spanish teacher, however, who cemented her love of learning and inspired her to become a teacher. With a Bachelor of Arts from Ohio University in Spanish Montessori Advanced Adolescent Studies, Ms. Odda-Steahly recalls dropping marching band so she could take Spanish. Later on in college she worked two summer jobs and saved enough money to go to Mexico, where she spent seven years teaching ESL while immersing herself in the culture and Spanish language.

About her experience living abroad, Ms. Odda-Steahly says, “It was the best time of my entire life. Living in a foreign country was amazing because I became very independent and learned, essen-tially, how to survive having to speak a different language, so I grew up a lot.”

The love of learning that was instilled in her is what she strives to pass along to her students—practical life use of what is taught in school is the core of her philosophy. Ms. Odda-Steahly also fosters an environment where it is okay to make mistakes. She recalls when she lived in Mexico, her host mother gave her ten pesos to buy ¼ kilogram of ham (about 1/2 lb.) but when she mis-pronounced the word “quarto” (one fourth) by saying “quatro” (four) she ended up taking home four kilograms, nearly eight pounds of ham! The expe-rience taught her to laugh at her own

mistakes and learn from them. Of her teaching style, Ms. Odda-Steahly says, “I strive to make my students feel comfortable and relaxed, because if you’re relaxed as a teacher, they’re going to be relaxed to learn. If you start to stress out, they can pick up that energy and also feel closed down—so it is our job to open them up.”

When she isn’t enseñando español, Ms. Odda-Steahly likes to spend as much

time as possible with her 16 year-old daughter, Sophia. She also loves to run, attend yoga class-es and is an avid reader of mys-tery novels. She is also mentor-ing the National Honor Society Program, using the skills she learned by mentoring the United Nations Club. She has also worked with the Adopt a Family program for the past 10 years and firmly believes that it is very important to get children involved with philan-thropy and charity work. Ms. Odda-Steahly advises her stu-dents to get out of their comfort zones and try doing something

different today than they did yesterday because this promotes learning regard-less of how old they are.

Close Up

dAnieL Xi: Gifted Artist And Committed to exCellenCe

kAden rAmzAnALi: lifelonG dediCAtion to helpinG those in need

2

The Quarry Lane School community service program has been an integral part of

the Lower School experience and third grader Kaden Ramzanali is no stranger to incorporating giving to others into his everyday life. Kaden says, “There are people everywhere that need help, they need food, they need clothing, not just here in our communities, but all over the world, and I want to help those people.”

Last summer, Kaden took action him-self as a Walking Team Ambassador for Partnerships in Action, an initiative of

the Aga Khan Foundation U.S.A. and its network of volunteers across the Unit-ed States. The organization raises awareness and pro-cures funds for innovative programs that create hope and opportunity for dis-advantaged communities in the developing world. When asked why this orga-nization was one that inter-ested Kaden, he explained, “I really believe in this or-ganization because they teach people how to help themselves. Yes, we raise money, but we teach people how to plant their own food so they can feed themselves.”

Kaden has been involved with Part-nership in Action since he was two

years old, when he attended events with his parents. Last summer, as a Team Ambas-sador, Kaden attended Part-nership Walk Sessions to learn the process of setting up his own walking team, how to collect and track do-nations and recruit volun-teers for his team. With the support of Kaden’s family, and his Quarry Lane Upper School friends Dinar Kurji,

11th grader, and Adam Kong, 12th grad-er, Kaden was able to encourage his friends as well as other 50 QLS students

to volunteer their time to participate in the walk.

Kaden’s team, comprised of 60 plus members, ranged in age from pre-school through high school and included participants from communities all over Northern California. Together they raised more than $3,000—$1,090 of which was raised solely by Kaden. Partnership in Action acknowledged the efforts of Kaden and his team members by awarding them the “Team All Award” for the team with the most pre-registered walkers. Kaden assured us, “I do not do this for the trophy or the T-shirts but because it is important to me to help people, and I do help people”.

With a degree in journalism, 5th grade teacher Ms. Meghan Slan dabbled in

the world of news while working for TV stations in her native Toronto, Canada, but when she began teaching media relations courses and public speaking skills for adults she discovered her true passion: teaching. She went back to school for her education degree and taught 2nd grade at the Toronto Public District School Board for six years,

until she relocated to the sunny San Francisco Bay Area. Since November,

2013, Ms. Slan has taught 5th graders at QLS and is enjoying her students’ ability to sit still and focus for a lot longer than her younger students. She admits that teaching children is “a lot more fun” than adults. Her efforts to relate to her students have paid off as she is already held in great esteem by her peers,

students and their parents. In regards to her goal as a teacher, Ms. Slan says, “My main goal is to inspire my students by making the classroom a safe place where they’re comfortable taking risks and making mistakes, because this is how the learning process is most efficient.”

Her inspiration came from her own middle school teacher, Mr. Kinsey, who taught her for three years. She recalls him fondly, saying, “he always went above and beyond the call of duty to create something meaningful for us—including creating an Arts program even though he wasn’t very artistic.”

As far as her adjustment to living abroad, she says “The Bay Area is as

wonderfully diverse and multicultural as Toronto, but has much better weather.” However, not everything is exactly the same between the two countries. During a class her second week at QLS, one of her students raised his hand and said, “Ms. Slan, we know you’re from Canada and it’s not that different, but you talk a lot funnier than we thought you would.”

When she isn’t inspiring her students to excel, Ms. Slan can be found at concerts throughout the Bay Area or camping, all while adjusting to miles and Fahrenheit after a lifetime of kilometers and Celsius.

meghAn SLAn: inspirinG students to do the best they CAn do

mAriAn oddA-STeAhLy: leAdinG by exAmple to inspire her students

By Ms. Gabrielle KaplanLower School Director

communiTy Service iS boundLeSS AT QLSFeatures

QLS Speech And debATe mAking Their mArk in The bAy AreA

There is no debate about how mem-bers of one of the fastest growing ac-tivities on the Quarry Lane campus are making their mark through-out the Bay Area.

The number of Speech and Debate team members has tripled since last year, in-cluding the middle school club version of the class.

Practice has led middle school to per-form well enough to consistently earn trophies in competitions. Sophomores Tanishka Chellani and Ron Gupta are the team’s most decorated public forum

debaters. They remain undefeated at the halfway point of the season by winning each and every one of their eight debate rounds. The team of freshmen Inaara Walji and Musab Imran has won 75 per-cent of its debate rounds while earning

a pair of awards. Fel-low freshmen Madison Sierra and Stephanie Rusnak plus Tara Tran and Yuvi Mahadesh-war have also earned trophies in the Public Forum category and so have sophomores Kaneeka Shenoy and Tejas Vajjhala. Sopho-more Meha Ahluwalia has twice been recog-

nized as the youngest member of her individual speech division to reach the final round. Also, freshmen Devika Oak and Sofia Podvisocka have each won rounds of their speech divisions.

The Cougars’ Oratory topics have

ranged from the sublime—a personal reflection on race relations, a poignant take on suicide and a revealing anecdote about anger management—to the ridiculous—a dramatization of a SpongeBob SquarePants episode and an original spin on Hamlet’s famous “To Be or Not to Be” soliloquy. Freshman Ivy Lu used her journey from Quarry Lane to Boston and back again for her heartwarming speech on how goodbyes can turn into hellos. Several members have also entered the Impromptu Speech category, where they are handed a set of random words, phrases or quotations, given just two minutes to brainstorm, then must deliver a five-minute presentation on their subject.

The accomplishments of the Cougars are even more impressive when you consider how they routinely compete against much larger schools. Yet, the Quarry Lane name is heard loudly and clearly during awards ceremonies at schools as close as Dougherty Valley

to as far away as Sonoma Valley. As the season heads into its second phase, the Cougars are gearing up for a pair of events in March that will determine qualifiers for the state tournament that eventually leads to the nationals. “You want to win whenever you compete,” Ron said, “but we obviously want to be at our best when it’s time to qualify for the states. If we can make it to the next level, it will show how far we’ve come as a team and as a group.”

Before the Cougars head into a debate tournament, they compete against one another with the same resolution that they will use against their opponents from other schools. “You would think,” said Madi, “that it would be a lot more stressful when we go into the actual tournaments. But it’s actually harder when we have to go up against each other in class. You have to do everything you can to try to beat your friends. But when the debate is over, you can go back to being friends.”

3

If you asked any typical young per-

son today if they are connected, I am sure the response given would involve any number of references to so-cial media sites, including Face-

book, Twitter and Instagram. Al-though no stranger to the dynamic world of social media, Quarry Lane students understand that connec-

tion is made through service-learning and the support of one’s commu-nity, locally, nationally and globally.

From the earliest years, students at the Quarry Lane School are taught that being connected means to be a part of something bigger than oneself. All grade levels (Jr. Kindergarten through twelfth grade) participate in service learning opportunities. We, as a school, believe community service and volun-teering are an integral part of social de-velopment and strengthens our belief that in order to be connected, to make a difference, and to be considered a part of a community one needs to partici-pate as fully within that community as possible.

We, as educators, find that the

benefits to service-learning have a profound impact on our students socially, emotionally and academically. “Students perceive themselves to be more socially competent after engaging in service-learning (Scales and Blyth, 1997; O’Bannon, 1999; Morgan and Streb, 1999), are more likely to treat each other kindly, help each other and care about doing their best (Berkas, 1997) and have a greater chance to increase their sense of self-esteem and self-efficacy (Shaffer, 1993).”

Within the Lower School program at Quarry Lane School our students are af-forded numerous service-learning op-portunities. In the fall, for example, stu-dents participated in our annual food drive to benefit the Alameda County

Food Bank, donating over 900 pounds of food within two weeks. Additionally, they demonstrated tremendous sup-port for families in transition through holiday donations to the McHenry House in Tracy, CA, and when tragedy struck in the Philippines, our students jumped into action to gather and send hygiene supplies to those in need.

The Quarry Lane School values education and builds strong academic foundations for our students through rigor in the classroom, but we are well aware of the importance that service-learning and volunteering bring to the development of one’s character and to the connectedness that all need to share with their families, their community and the world.

communiTy Service iS criTicAL for our STudenTS

Community s e r v i c e is an

e x t r e m e l y i m p o r t a n t and powerful component to each student’s e d u c a t i o n a l experience and development as a young adult. During the first

semester, our students were involved in numerous community service projects. Some of the projects our students contributed to include the Canned

Food drive, Doctors without Borders, Viola Blythe Community Service Center’s Adopt-a-Family, School of Dreams–Malawi and McHenry House Family Shelter. Spearheaded by either the leadership class, Spanish Club, National Honor Society, or one of our many other clubs on campus, all of our students were active participants and should be congratulated for their efforts to support our community at large.

Community service is valuable for students as a testing ground for future academic interests and career choices and to develop the ability to work collaboratively with others who have similar or different backgrounds and experiences. The process of working

as a volunteer is often more rewarding for the student than the person receiving the assistance because it promotes personal growth and self-esteem, teaches compassion, patience and understanding. UC San Diego has compiled a list of the top ten reasons to volunteer. Of those listed, individuals who volunteer not only discover hidden talents, but also see government in action and how non-profit agencies work. They also benefit from analyzing what local resources are available to solve community issues. Community service and volunteering provides students with the ability to develop relationships with peers and professionals they can use in the future as references and for

possible internship opportunities. Ms. Paz-Rumore works with

students to find specific community service and volunteer opportunities based on each student’s personal interests and experiences. Those opportunities may include, but are not limited to, working at the Tri-Valley SPCA, Kaiser Permanente and local hospitals, senior centers, reading for the blind, California Park Service, research facilities or Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. If your student is interested in community service or volunteering, please contact Ms. Paz-Rumore.

Practice makes perfect in Speech and Debate.

By Dr. Cheryl BurleighDean of Academic and Faculty Affairs

prepAring your chiLd for kindergArTen

Parents want to know “How can I

best prepare my child for Kinder-garten?” The first and most impor-tant step is to enroll your child in a high quality preschool program. It is im-

portant for your child to develop social-ly, emotionally and academically to be successful in school. Sometimes, even separating from mom and dad is a hur-dle to overcome before Kindergarten. Skills required for Kindergarten are ever-changing and at Quarry Lane we prepare your child by teaching them the following skills in prekindergarten:

Reading Readiness and Writing:• Identifying upper and lowercase letters• Sound identification A-Z• Writes first name using correct upper

and lowercase• Writes upper and lowercase letters (us-

ing proper top to bottom left to right tech-nique)

• Orally states a rhyming word for one given

• Knows where to begin when reading and writing

• Recalls beginning, middle, end of storiesMath Skills:

• Counts orally and recognizes numbers up to 30

• Counts objects in a set up to 10• Orally identifies a group of objects (5

or less)• Sorts objects by different attributes (col-

or, shape, size)• Can copy and extend a pattern

• Can identify plane shapes (circle, square, triangle, rectangle, diamond)Social / Emotional / Language Development:

• Expresses emotions verbally• Resolves conflicts verbally• Takes responsibility for actions• Participates in classroom activities• Able to initiate/join play with others

and has developed friendships• Stands up for own rights• Completes tasks in a timely manner• Listens attentively• Speaks clearly• Uses complete sentences• Able to engage in conversations

Fine and Large Motor Skill Development:

• Correctly grips and uses a pencil and scissors

• Pedals, runs, jumps, hops

• Can do a 10 or more piece puzzle• Aware of own body and others’ personal

space• Walks with balance on a straight line or

balance beam• Able to participate in games with simple

rulesYour child does not need to mas-

ter these developmental skills before Kindergarten but should be working towards them. Your best resource for whether or not your child is ready for Kindergarten is their preschool teacher. If you and your child’s teacher feel your child is not ready for Kindergarten it is okay to give them one more year to pre-pare. Some families choose to do an ad-ditional year of prekindergarten or go to Quarry Lane’s Junior Kindergarten. These are great alternatives if your child needs one more year of development before Kindergarten.

By Ms. Gabrielle KaplanLower School Director

By Ms. Katie WarrenPreschool Director

By Mr. Michael SmithSpeech and Debate Coach

UPCOMING EVENTSApril 2, 3, 4 – Charlotte’s Web Student Production

April 12 – High School Prom

April 17 – 3rd - 5th grade Musical, Amador Valley Theater

April 19 – 27 – Spring Break (Lower and Upper School)

April 18 – Middle School Spring Formal

April 28 – May 2 – Invention Convention (Jr.K - 5th grade)

May 2 – High School Fashion Show

2013-2014 Admissions EventsDate Time Event Location of EventMarch 2 1-4 p.m. Open House The Dublin Campus 3-5 p.m. Open House The Pleasanton West and East Campuses

DirecT SAvingS:$8,568 x 4 yrs. = $34,272 Annual Cost

$40,000

$35,000

$30,000

$25,000

$20,000

$15,000

$10,000

The Quarry

Lane School

Average cost of

Top Bay Area

Independent

College

Preparatory

High Schools

IndirecT SAvingS:International Baccalaureate High

School Diploma Programme •College Credit - Potentially save 1-2 years of college - Potentially advance career earlier = $$$

Acceptance to top colleges •Better job opportunities = top salaries & top positionsThese numbers are based on the 2013-2014 academic school year.

AT The QuArry LAne SchooL, there is no relationship between tuition spending and student achievement. QLS provides results for less.

Staff Writer and Graphic Designer: Vanessa PiccininiSLATE is published by The Quarry Lane School.

Dublin Campus - Jr.K-12 | 6363 Tassajara Rd., Dublin, CA 94568 | 925.829.8000 Pleasanton West Campus - Preschool | 4444B Black Ave., Pleasanton, CA 94566 | 925.462.6300

Pleasanton East Campus - Preschool| 3750 Boulder St., Pleasanton, CA 94566 | 925.846.9400

www.QuarryLane.org

Student Life

4

I f o u n d e d the Quarry Lane Jour-

nalism Club a little less than two years ago, as a freshman. Now, as a ju-nior, I’ve seen that same club publish four newspapers on-

line. The last two have been printed as well. On top of that, we’re publishing at a faster and faster pace. Looking back now to what felt like just yesterday when I started the club, I realize just how lucky I was, and how much the school has helped the club in its effort.

Around March/April of my freshman year, I was sitting in Academic Prep reading a copy of Slate, when I realized something rather peculiar—we didn’t have a student produced paper. That was understandable as a school of our size, and as young as we were, would lack certain clubs which are now almost central to the culture of the student body. One example being the Quarry Lane Model UN Club, which was started by senior Snigdha Khare the same year I started the Journalism Club, and is now the most popular club at school. I had been a part of my middle school’s newspaper production, therefore, I realized the opportunity I had to start a potentially popular club. I then went to talk to our college counselor, Ms. Paz-Rumore and told her about what I noticed and that I wanted to start our school’s very own Journalism Club with the goal of publishing newspapers

for the students. She was very excited about the idea, and pointed me towards a mentor for the club as well as a group of students who would be interested—such guidance has been provided to us whenever needed. I, as well as the small core of people who constituted the nascent club, spent the rest of that year getting a handle of how things would work, and how to actually produce a paper. Although we have no physical proof to show the benefits of that time, it was essential for our following successes. The following year, we were able to publish two editions, as we continued to learn about the process.

At the beginning of this year, the Club, which had grown significantly in size since its inception, really began to ramp up its progress. We have been able to publish two editions in print as well as online in just one semester, despite the number of holiday breaks during

the first semester, such as Thanksgiving and winter. I look forward to publishing several more issues before this school year has ended. Again, a lot of credit goes to the school and its community. Ms. Ho, the Club’s new mentor, has provided us with her vast experience from a previous career in Journalism, which has helped us immensely in creating a more professional paper. Also, a parent was generous enough to help us print our first edition. And now the school has taken upon itself to help us print our papers.

It’s amazing just how much has changed within the Club since my freshman year. All of which for the better. I truly believe all this wouldn’t have happened if not for the assistance and support we have been given, from teachers, parents, and QLS. Go ahead and pick up a copy of The Roar to see just what I’m talking about.

By Ravi MaddaliJunior

The roAr reAcheS A miLeSTone; dreAmS big for The fuTure

the arts represented. The goal was to create an experience as close to a real arts gallery environment as possible, down to the hors d’oeuvres. Another highlight was the Fashion Club’s booth, which successfully produced and sold Evening of the Arts branded aprons and raised enough money to buy a new sewing machine. The Photo Club also had a very popular portrait booth. Regarding the success of the evening, Mr. Chinn says, “The leadership of certain students, the fact that they stepped up to the challenge and supported each other is what made the event so successful.”

The Rock Band Club, led by Physics teacher Paul McCullough, played

three songs and the crowd response was nothing short of a real rock band concert, with the audience chanting their performing peers’ names.

The dancers and poetry reading by IB English students were also flawless. Ms. Susan Lamberth, who led the dance performances, couldn’t agree more, “The eight dances performed were choreographed in just one month and chosen by the high school, 8th grade and Dance Club students. Their involvement with all steps of putting the performance together, from choosing the music to the costumes, teaches valuable skills, such as working in a group, collaboration, cooperation, problem solving and commitment.

Director’s Honor Roll (4.0 G.P.A, > 3 conduct grade)4th grade: Amita Grewal.

Honor Roll (> 3.5 G.P.A, > 2 conduct grade)3rd grade: Barron Wesenberg, Chiara Melchor, Chloe Katz, Cristian Mayo, Colin Johnston, Kaden Ramzanali, Leia Fisher, Louisa Fordham, Noelle Woodward, Rachel Cobbe, Romal Mitr and Shyama Bharath.

4th grade: Angela Zhou, Arya Sasikumar, Edward Kim, Julia Brase, Mackenzie Davis, Maritsa Christo-forou, Nandana Abburi, Olamide Oluyemi, Olivia Lennon, Ria Potharlanka, Sydney Lu and Zoe Jeffs.

5th grade: Claire Fingerhut, Ellen Fordham, Jessica Joby, Neha Pant, Risha Kulkarni and Taylor Roho-vit.

SeptemberPartnerships in Action’s Team All Award

Kaden Ramzanali and QLS team.

National Merit Scholarship ProgramSarah Weber and Snigdha Khare.

OctoberJohns Hopkins Talent Search AwardsAudrey McClure, Devin Shah, Jessica Joby, Shreya Rana and Victoria Moore.

High School Speech and DebateDevika Oak, Inaara Walji, Kaneeka Shenoy, Meha Ahluwalia, Musab Imran, Ron Gupta, Tanishka Chellani, Tejas Vajjhala and Yuvi Mahadeshwar.

NovemberHigh School Robotics Team3rd place and runners-up trophy at FIRST Tech Chal-lenge (FTC) Qualifying Tournament semi-finals.Finalist, Parametric Technology Corporation (PTC) Design Award for excellence and creativity in ro-botics design and construction.

Stanford Model UN ConferenceEshaan Iyer: best delegate award.Kamya Arora, Scott Rowland and Tyler Kim: best research award.Ravi Maddali and Ron Gupta: verbal commenda-tion.

Lower School Food Bank AwardMs. Wards’ class collected 451 items for donation.

DecemberHarvard Model Congress’ Award of ExcellenceRavi Maddali

US Nationals Table Tennis Tournament Aayush Sahgal, bronze medal, under 1300 rating category.

JanuaryScholastic Writing Contest Honorable MentionsAmmar Manasawala, for his flash fiction “Medusa.”

Kenneth Lee, for his short story “Falling Icons.”Phoebe Yang, for her poem “To Picasso.”

National Geographic Society AwardRhea Mitr.Quarry Lane Spelling Bee AwardArjav Rawa.

February5th grade Robotics TeamVEX IQ Challenge’s Judges Award and Teamwork Champion Award.

QLS Tech Support FIRST Robotics teamFTC Elk Grove Qualifier Connect Award.

Golden Gate Speech Association TournamentAneesha Kalur and Nehal Desai.Madi Titus and Stephanie Rusnak.Meha Ahluwalia and Kaneeka Shenoy.Tanishka Chellani and Ron Gupta.Tara Tran and Yuvi Mahadeshwar.

cougAr AThLeTicS: focuS iS The key To Long Term SucceSS

Cooler weather does not slow down the athletics program at Quarry Lane. In fact, Athletic Di-

rector Phillip Harr is excited to recapitu-late this winter’s sports program with a successful conclusion of girls’ basketball and a promising season for boys’ Var-sity and Junior Varsity teams, includ-ing students from 5th, 6th and 8th grades.

In Coach Harr’s opinion, this winter’s highlight has been the renewed com-mitment on the athletes’ part. He attri-butes this to a new structure in which students interested in joining the sports

program must attend a mandatory meeting. At the meeting, they’re pro-vided with detailed information about their expected level of commitment as well as the length of the season. The new structure provided students with ample time to make an educated deci-sion on whether they are ready to com-mit.

The first results included about eight of the athletes attending practice during the winter break and their hard work has paid off: they have been noticeably calmer and much more confident at

recent games.“Consistency is key to a successful

sports program,” said Coach Harr. “By combining our dedicated coaches who love what they do with our students’ commitment, we have been able to de-velop young players and keep them on our teams year after year.”

As a result of Coach Harr’s efforts, Quarry Lane Athletics has been able to develop younger players to move up to Varsity. As a result, they’ll soon be able to join local Sports Leagues and play against stronger teams.

Quarry Lane School Cougars in action.

QuArry LAne SchooL’S firST SemeSTer hALL of fAme

evening of The ArTS ...Continued from Page 1