Local students are getting a free education in how to manage their money. The Polish National Credit Union is working with Banzai, a national award-winning financial literacy program, to make the curriculum available to 54 schools in the Valley free. Hampshire County schools using the program include Amherst, Belchertown, Easthampton, Northampton, Granby, Hatfield, South Hadley and Westhampton.
“Banzai is a web-based financial literacy program. Kids have their own bank accounts, and they work through assignments that are based on real life,” Morgan Vandagriff, co-founder of Banzai, said.
Because The Polish National Credit Union is sponsoring the program, local schools get it for free.
Banzai is an interactive, online program which aligns with state curriculum requirements for personal finance education. It has become the largest program of its kind, servicing more than 40,000 teachers and available in all 50 states.
Students using the program are exposed to real-life scenarios where they learn to pay bills and balance a budget, but it’s not always easy. Students must learn to manage unexpected expenses such as parking tickets, interest charges and overdraft fees. The educational program also introduces students to auto loans, bank statements, entertainment costs, savings and more.
Teachers interested in using the Banzai program can visit polishncu.teachbanzai.com or call 888-8-BANZAI.
Smith Academy gets new
scoreboard
HATFIELD — Smith Academy recently received a new portable scoreboard purchased by the Smith Academy Athletics Booster Club in conjunction with a donation from the Smith Academy Class of 2018.
The scoreboard arrived on Sept. 19., and can be used for a variety of sports both outdoor and indoor. The scoreboard was prominently displayed during Smith Academy’s homecoming games last weekend.
Allison Slysz, athletic director and biology teacher at Smith Academy, said the new scoreboard will be able to keep the time as well as the score, and it comes with a wireless controller that will make it easier for the timer to use. She also said that the board has velcro strips that will allow it to be configured for other sports, and that it is higher off the ground than most portable scoreboards, making it easier to see.
“I’m very excited to have it,” she said.
David Ghareeb, a member of Smith’s Booster Club, said that purchasing the scoreboard was part of the club’s mission to support athletics at the school.
“We feel that the scoreboard will provide a better experience at sporting events for players and fans alike,” he said.
In the future, Ghareeb added, the Smith Academy Booster Club plans to raise money to build dugouts for the softball and baseball teams and to “continue improving the SA athletic facilities when needs are identified.”
SOUTH HADLEY — The South Hadley Cats cheerleading team are participating in the annual Cheer for Dana-Farber fundraiser, supporting patient care and cancer research at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston.
Cheer for Dana-Farber is an annual fundraising program that grants New England cheerleading programs — including Pop Warner, middle and high school teams, as well as all-star teams — the opportunity to show their team spirit and support the fight against cancer at Dana-Farber. Participating cheer teams raise money in their local communities through car washes, bake sales, canister collections and similar activities. The South Hadley Cats cheerleaders will fundraise until Dec. 1.
The top nine fundraising teams will win the chance to attend a cheer clinic run by the New England Patriots Cheerleaders at Gillette Stadium. Teams that reach the $500 fundraising level receive Cheer for Dana-Farber T-shirts. Teams that raise $250 will receive Cheer for Dana-Farber bows supplied by Simply Unique Bows.
Since its launch in 2013, Cheer for Dana-Farber has raised over $350,000. To learn more about Cheer for Dana-Farber or register a team, visit: www.cheerfordanafarber.org.
SOUTH HADLEY — South Hadley schools dedicated its new Principal’s Playground at Michael E. Smith Middle School earlier this month to Paul Plummer, who served as principal for four years until his sudden death in April of 2017.
Plummer joined the South Hadley schools in 2013 as middle school principal. He began his career in education as a science teacher at Amherst Middle School in 1994, where he later served as Science Department head and assistant principal from 2002 to 2006. Plummer also worked as assistant principal at Birchland Park Middle School in East Longmeadow from 2006 to 2013.
SOUTH HADLEY — Luke Petrosky, a South Hadley High School senior, received the Superintendent’s Certificate of Academic Excellence from the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents.
South Hadley Superintendent Nicholas Young presented the award to Petrosky at a School Committee meeting on Oct. 1.
Petrosky currently ranks first in his class. Young said the senior was selected for the honor because he “exhibits a combination of character, community engagement and academic ability that make him a standout among his highly competitive and impressive classmates.”
Petrosky displays academic rigor in taking Advanced Placement and honors courses and performing at the highest level of achievement across academic disciplines; participates in a plethora of student activities; and takes leadership roles in athletics, student government, and community service, Young said.
BELCHERTOWN — Chestnut Hill Community School is expanding its breakfast program this school year to include a Grab-n-Go option outside the cafeteria.
The school was awarded $3,310 in grant funding by New England Dairy & Food Council through the Fuel Up to Play 60 program last June. The school plans to use the funding to purchase a mobile breakfast cart, which officials anticipate will increase school breakfast participation.
The current research demonstrates that students who consume school breakfasts show improved attendance, behavior, and academic performance.
Chestnut Hill’s mobile cart will stock nutritious items such as low-fat milk, yogurt, fruit and cheese sticks.
A survey conducted at the school found that students said they would get breakfast at school, but do not have enough time to purchase and eat the meal before classes begin.
According to Kelly Slattery, nutrition director of Belchertown Public Schools, about half of the students who currently participate in the school’s breakfast program arrive right before the bell, and it can take several minutes to get from the cafeteria to the wing where the classrooms are.
“By having a mobile kiosk, we can accommodate students for breakfast in more than one location. It also gives students who arrive just before the bell a chance to enjoy a delicious meal, even if they don’t have time to go to the cafeteria,” she explained.