The Column

• Thursday, December 1: PALCS MP 2 Progress Check
• Wednesday, December 7: PALCS Senior Picture Day and HS Re-Take Day (at Enterprise)
• Thursday, December 8: Opening Night of the CPFA HS Play "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night"
• Monday, December 12: MS Picture Re-Take Day (at CPFA)
• Monday, December 12 - Friday, December 16: CPFA Interim Update, MP 2
• Wednesday, December 14: MS Holiday Extravaganza
• Tuesday, December 15: HS Holiday Extravaganza
• Friday, December 16: CPFA Winter Vocal and Instrumental Concert
• Monday, December 19: NO CPFA CLASSES (PLEASE NOTE: There will be a mandatory script read-through for all Ash Girl cast and crew members on Monday, December 19 from 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. in Mrs. Rottman's Zoom Room).

The next Pillars meeting of the year will be held in Dr. Dziekonski's Zoom Room on Monday, December 5 from 6:00 - 7:00 p.m.

At this meeting, we will be discussing upcoming volunteer opportunities for the Holiday Extravaganza and CPFA Music Department Cabaret Fundraiser! The Middle School Holiday Extravaganza is being held on Wednesday, December 14 with the High School celebration following on Thursday, December 15. As a reminder, there will be NO CPFA CLASSES on Monday, December 19.

The Holiday Extravaganza is quickly approaching (December 14 and 15) and it is our goal to bring this event back to life after the pandemic! In previous years, the Holiday Extravaganza included a huge pasta bar hosted by parent volunteers during the lunch period, before performances began. Due to the pandemic, many of CPFA's traditions have been re-imagined to fit into our evolving school system. This is where we are calling on our Pillars community to help us get back into the spirit of volunteerism and community engagement by helping us plan this extravagant annual holiday celebration once again.

Three amazing High School parents/Pillars members have begun preparation for a CPFA Holiday Extravaganza theme: "Holiday Around the World." They have graciously taken the lead in creating a sign-up form for both the Middle School and High School events and are asking for a Middle School parents to volunteer to be the point person on the day of the MS party. If you are interested in filling this role, please reach out to Jennifer Bail at jenny77997305@yahoo.com.

• Middle School Volunteer Sign-Up
• High School Volunteer Sign-Up

To learn more about how you can help, join us at the next Pillars meeting being held on Monday, December 5 from 6:00 - 7:00 p.m. in Dr. Dziekonski's Zoom Room.

December 12 - 16 is Interim Update Week for Marking Period 2. If a teacher has any concerns about your child's academic work in their class, the teacher will reach out to you by email or phone. As always, please contact your teacher if you have concerns of your own.

This year, CPFA will be hosting virtual parent teacher conferences to discuss student progress in class and any barriers to their learning that they have faced so far this year. Conferences will be held on January 20. A link to sign up for time blocks will be made available soon!

Winter weather is upon us, and that means snow days! Please make sure you have downloaded the Remind app on your phones and any other mobile devices you may have. This is the platform we use to best communicate with our students and families in case of school closings or emergencies.

If you are not on the Remind group for CPFA, you can text @palcscpfa to the number 81010 to get text messages, or download the app and search for @palcscpfa or CPFA Parents. Once you have downloaded the app you will be prompted to enter your email address, enter an emailed verification code, and select your school and role. We are identified as Pennsylvania Leadership Cs and the class is called CPFA Parents. If you have any questions, please reach-out to Ms. Sophia Severson (sseverson@palcs.org)

Water bottles, tissues, hand sanitizer, and Lysol wipes are always in high demand in the classrooms. Any donations are always greatly appreciated! Feel free to leave any donations with Ms. Severson in the lobby.

Here are just a few tips to stay healthy this season:

• Wash your hands often with soap and water. Don’t have soap? Use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
• Cover your nose and mouth when you cough or sneeze.
• Throw your used tissues in the trash. Then wash your hands.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth.
• Do not share towels, utensils, cups, straws, etc.
• Get a flu shot every year in the fall

Senior Picture Day is officially scheduled for Wednesday, December 7. All students in the Eastern region should reserve their spot in West Chester (1332 Enterprise Drive, 19380). All Remote Access students who live near the Western Regional office should reserve their spot in Pittsburgh (55 Alpha Drive West, 15238).

Seniors are asked to come dressed in business and/or elegant attire and will be photographed with and without the cap & gown (cap & gowns will be supplied by PALCS for photos). Please reserve your spot no later than Monday, December 5 and complete the Picture Day Consent Form (West Chester Participants ONLY).

High School picture re-takes will also be held on Wednesday, December 7 at the Enterprise location. Please register for a time slot here.

Middle School picture re-takes will be held at CPFA on the morning of Monday, December 12. No need to register.

Please reach out to Mrs. Daphne Okcuoglu with any questions.

The PALCS Middle School Community Service group is hosting another amazing community service event! This time, students will be collecting non-perishable foods at all PALCS' locations [There is a box located in the CPFA lobby for donations]. Remote Access students who live further away are encouraged to donate to a local food bank or pantry close to them. You can post images of what you donate to the Food Drive Padlet page. Thank you for helping us spread Holiday Spirit and Community Support!

On Tuesdays and Wednesdays, Mrs. Duncan offers Yoga & Mindfulness to all CPFA students from 7:40 - 8:05 a.m in Dance Studio B. Students should arrive at 7:35 a.m. to participate in yoga postures (asanas), gentle movement sequences, breath work (pranayama), and relaxation (savasana). The objective of the practice is to bring awareness and mindfulness to the breath and the body. Yoga mats will be provided or feel free to bring your own. Links to sign up will be posted each month in the newsletter and on the CPFA Facebook page.

Please sign up for December here:

Middle School Yoga Sign Up

High School Yoga Sign Up

Tri-M hosted the second Friday Night Café of the school year on Friday, November 18. It was also a success, with 10 acts and an audience of around 30. Thank you to everyone who participated, and to Pillars parent Kandy Hughes for supplying the intermission concessions. Our next FNC is at the end of January.

December means that the Music Department is in concert preparation mode! Students in vocal, orchestra, and guitar classes will be receiving a letter to take home at the beginning of December with winter concert logistics. These details will also be in the Music Department module of the CPFA Homepage in Canvas.

• The Combined Winter Concert Dress Rehearsal is Friday, December 16 beginning at 3:00 p.m.
• The Combined Music Concert will be from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m.
• The concert is free admission and will occur at Calvary Lutheran Church, 730 S. New St. in West Chester.

All students participating (including Remote Access students) have submitted a Concert Commitment Form and must be present for the entirety of the Dress Rehearsal as well as their performance in the concert. NOTE: Because this concert is happening on a Friday, CPFA will not be offering carpooling from the school to the church as in the past for the Dress Rehearsal. The concert will be live-streamed via Zoom for friends and family who can not attend in person at http://bit.ly/CPFA-CW2022.

11 vocal music students and 3 instrumental music students submitted audition videos to qualify for the PMEA District 12 Band, Chorus, and Orchestra Festivals, which occur in January and February of 2023. Audition results will be available on Saturday, December 3. Each PMEA festival is hosted by a high school in Chester, Delaware, or Philadelphia Counties and features a 3-day rehearsal schedule and concert with a guest conductor from a higher education institution. We wish them all good luck, as District 12 is one of the most competitive Districts in the state.

The Music Department will be producing a special Music Department Cabaret on January 21, 2023 to raise funds for the CPFA Chorale and CPFA Jazz Mavericks trip to the WorldStrides Heritage Music Festival in Virginia this spring.

Pillars Parent Group needs parent volunteers to assist with soliciting local businesses to advertise in our program and to put together donated prizes for a basket bingo and silent auction. You can watch this recording of the first parent information session about this event, as well as other information about the spring trip. Please sign up for one of these important volunteer opportunities at this link. “It takes a village” to make a successful fundraiser, and as the old saying goes, “many hands make light work.”

Please consider volunteering to help support our outstanding high school performing ensembles:

• Soliciting businesses for advertising using our ad placement sheet
• Communicating with participating advertisers to get their digital artwork suitable for printing
• Donating prizes for basket bingo and silent auction (bring them to CPFA)
• Soliciting donations for prizes from local businesses for basket bingo and silent auction (picking up and bringing to CPFA)
• Putting together baskets and auction forms for basket bingo and silent auction
• Running the basket bingo and silent auction tables during the Cabaret performances at Footlighters Theater in Berwyn

Congratulations to Ms. Gore and the entire cast and crew of the CPFA Fall Middle School Play She Kills Monsters! The production was adventurous, timely, and fun. The students gave four dynamic performances and we are very proud of everyone involved. Bravo!

Next up is the CPFA Theatre Season is the CPFA Fall High School Production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, based on the novel by Mark Haddon, adapted by Simon Stephens, and directed by Jason Greenfield. The Broadway production won the Tony Award for Best Play in 2015 and the book is an international bestseller.

For tickets go to http://cpfa.booktix.com. Be sure to get your tickets asap to reserve the seats you want. The shows will sell out!

Show dates:

Thursday, December 8, 7:00 p.m.

Friday, December 9, 7:00 p.m.

Saturday, December 10, 2:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m.

The story is about a 15-year-old named Christopher who has an extraordinary brain: He is exceptional at mathematics but ill-equipped to interpret everyday life. He has never ventured alone beyond the end of his road, he detests being touched, and he distrusts strangers. Now it is 7 minutes after midnight, and Christopher stands beside his neighbor’s dead dog, Wellington, who has been speared with a garden fork. Finding himself under suspicion, Christopher is determined to solve the mystery of who murdered Wellington, and he carefully records each fact of the crime. But his detective work, forbidden by his father, takes him on a thrilling journey that upturns his world

CPFA parents and siblings are now invited to purchase tickets to the CPFA NY Theatre Field Trip on Wednesday, March 22, 2023! The New Broadway Musical Kimberly Akimbo will most likely win the Tony Award for Best Musical this year! The reviews are fantastic and it has already garnished every Off Broadway Award possible! Check out the Itinerary and guideline for what to bring here.

Trip tickets are available at https://quickclick.com/r/oc6z1 and the total cost comes to $214.08 per person. This trip is always extremely popular at CPFA. Get your tickets as soon as you can. There is a no refund policy.

The Trip Includes:

• Bus Trip
• Broadway Workshop for the CPFA students and siblings
• Lunch at Hardrock Cafe
• Ticket to Kimberly Akimbo on Broadway

CPFA Thespian Society members are participating in the PA State Thespian Conference December 1, 2022 - Dec 2, 2022. Students are participating in a wide variety of performance and technical theatre workshops taught by college professors and theatre professionals; submitting performance / tech theatre pieces for jury assessment and feedback; and seeing a multitude of high school productions. Specific information will be provided by email to the thespians and their parents.

Auditions for the Middle School Winter Play, "The Ash Girl", will be held on Monday, December 12 from 2:45 - 5:30 p.m. While there will be no CPFA classes held on Monday, December 19, all cast and crew members should plan to attend a mandatory read through of the script that day from 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. in Mrs. Rottman's Zoom Room.

Congratulations to all the middle and high school dancers who participated in the Dance Showcase! We were thrilled to have the studios filled with family and friends for a wonderful afternoon filled with exciting dance demonstrations. The Dance faculty is so proud of the students’ hard work and professionalism. A special Thank You to our Dance Department Liaison, Colleen Saul, and all the parent volunteers who helped to make the showcase so wonderful! We appreciate your support and donations!

[See featured photos from the Showcase in the background of this months newsletter!]

Thank you to NHSDA for organizing Love Your Body Week that was celebrated the week of November 14. In our Unity Groups we watched a video of Luca “Lazylegz” Patuelli, one of the founders of a dance company called “Ill-Ability.” Luca is a dancer, choreographer, and activist who decided to focus on his positive abilities rather than his disability. We participated in group discussions and wrote down ways we can contribute to a positive, accepting environment at CPFA on our Kindness Wall. NHSDA provided Hershey Kisses to show that everyone is loved and Starbursts to remember to shine!

Congratulations to our new National Honor Society of Dance Arts members who were inducted on Thursday, November 18, before the High School Showcase!

Annie O'Rourke-Tallman, Dylan Bail, Leah Rehrman, Keyaira Tozer, Ethan Zieff, Chloe Lee, Kennedy Miller, Caylee Brenner, and Malloree Marshall!

The next NHSDA meeting will be held on Tuesday, January 3, during lunch.

Join the AP Photo Challenge from December 6 - January 1: AP Photo Challenge Word List 2022! Each year during the winter holidays the AP Photography students create a “challenge” for all photography students, and any students, faculty, or parents who want to join in this daily photo taking fun! You will see this link updated to begin officially on Tues., December 1st. All the directions to join the fun will be on view along with a special photo “word of the day” for you to think about creatively with your camera/cell phone - come and join the PHOTO FUN! #cpfacomfort22

Congratulations to Senior Sage Pohlhaus! Sage’s fine art portfolio was accepted “on the spot” at National Portfolio Day in early November by Temple University/Tyler School of Art

Also, congratulations to Ciana Bergey! We are proud to hear of her college acceptances to Temple University & Savannah College of Art & Design.

Anna Layden, Photojournalist and PALCS/CPFA Alumni, was a visiting guest artist to all CPFA Photography classes last month. At just 23 years old, Anna is the youngest photographer taking photographs “on the hill” with a Press Pass! Anna is a PALCS/CPFA 2017 graduate who attended RIT (Rochester Institute of Technology) and is now a freelance photographer working for The New York Times, Getty Images, and other newspapers. Anna discussed her experiences at CPFA that led her to RIT and to a career as a photographer. We were honored to receive a framed NYTimes newspaper with Anna’s photo covering the lead story on the front page!

The Winter Art Exhibit opening event will be held on Thursday, January 26 from 4:00 - 7:00 p.m. We are just 10 art making class days away, so students are encouraged to work at 100% effort in class and look out for dates TBA for after school and Friday open labs in January. If you/ your child is in a fine arts class, please sign up for a pot-luck buffet for all on the eve of the Jan 26th Opening Event here: 2022 Winter Art Exhibit Food Sign up

The annual AP Photography class students CARD SALE is coming up! The AP students and Mrs. Okcuoglu are creating photo cards of their work to sell as a creative CPFA holiday gift for your friends and family. The cards will be sold individually and in packs of 3 that will make for holiday giving fun! Look out for the cards in the CPFA lobby the last week of classes before break from December 12 - 15!

(Photo by Peyton Woznicki)

Mrs. O (Daphne Longo-Okcuoglu) will have a photograph featured as part of the ‘Art for Gifting’ exhibit opening this Friday, December 2 from 5:00 - 8:00 p.m. with the closing night on January 6. Stop by this local art gallery in the heart of West Chester to see a wide variety of art, and consider giving the gift of art this holiday! The Ginko Arts Gallery is located at 21 South High Street in West Chester, Pennsylvania.

The Toys for Tots Holiday Cruise for Kids is supported by NAHS (National Art Honor Society) President Dylan Bail’s efforts to collect toys from the CPFA community. If you would like to join Dylan, his cool truck, and the Delco Cruisers this Sunday, December 4 from 9:00 - 11:00 a.m. at Rose Tree Park -please come with an unwrapped toy (NO stuffed animals) and join the giving fun!

The toy collection will begin at Rose Tree Park, followed by an escort for the toy drop with Santa! Rain, snow or Shine, we hope to see you there!

Four of our very own CPFA Seniors, Peyton Woznicki, Sam Palladino, Katherine Horoho and Sage Pohlhaus, were featured in the Chest County Medicine magazine, the oldest medical journal still in publication in Pennsylvania. We are very proud to have these 4 students represent CPFA. Read the article here!

As a reminder to all students, the Marking Period 2 Progress Check 1 was Thursday, December 1st. At this time, the deadline for extension requests has passed.

Mx. Matchett, PALCS College Advisor, will be back on-site at CPFA on Tuesday, December 6! They will be available for 1:1 meetings about any and all things college and career! This would be a perfect opportunity for last-minute help with college applications, as well as specific questions about the FAFSA. Sign-ups for a meeting with Mx. Matchett can be found here.

Attention all students applying for college for the 23/24 School Year: the deadline for transcripts to be sent directly to schools (meaning not via Common App) before winter break will be Monday, December 12. Any transcripts requested after that date will be sent and arrive after the winter break. The transcript request form can be found here.

• If you are planning to apply by the January 15, 2023 deadline, please have all requests for recommendation letters and transcript request forms submitted to Ms. Mazzio by Wednesday, December 14.

Thank you to the students who attended the first virtual counseling lesson of the year, hosted in collaboration with the University Scholars Program! December’s virtual counseling lessons for both middle and high school will be held on Monday, December 19. The times and links for these lessons will be posted closer to the date.

Mia Wickersham was accepted and will be attending the Theatre Arts Preparatory School (TAPS) in Las Vegas next year! We are so incredibly proud of all of her hard work. Congratulations Mia!

Mrs. Duncan went to Georgia for the National Dance Education Organization’s Annual Conference from October 28 to October 31. The theme of the conference was Let’s Make Dance Together: Reigniting the Creative Spark. This was the first time since October 2019 that NDEO met in person. The conference offers over 250 workshops, master classes, panel discussions, and paper presentations.

A few of the highlights of Mrs. Duncan’s trip was a master class with Dante Puleio, artistic director of the José Limón Company where attendees learned a section of Danzas Mexicanas. She also attended a workshop Shifting the Power Dynamic in the Classical Classroom, presented by Jennifer Sommers of the Houston Ballet. In this workshop participants experienced an approach that shifts the power dynamics from Master/Apprentice to Facilitator/Community Member. Another workshop worth noting was Implicit Bias in Teaching Dance, presented by Crystal U. Davis. This workshop was an introduction to what implicit bias is, how it relates to and manifests in our work in the field of dance, and how we might combat its effects in our work. Mrs. Duncan purchased her book, Dance and Belonging: Implicit Bias and Inclusion in Dance Education, and looks forward to reading and implementing the material. It was a wonderful trip and of course Mrs. Duncan was supporting the Phillies while she was away!

The 2022-23 CPFA Student and Parent Handbook of Policies and Procedures will be released next week. In the meantime, please check out the following department handbooks:

Remote Access Program

Theatre Department
Music Department
Dance Department

Fine Arts Department

Check out the November edition of The Column HERE for more information on Unity Day, CPFA Spirit Week and Fall Festival, and updates about the new Student Lounge and facility learning spaces!

Email: info@palcs.org
Website: https://www.palcs.org/cpfa/about-cpfa/
Location: 211 Carter Drive suite c, West Chester, PA, USA
Phone: (610) 430-6525