Images and media courtesy of Ms. Ms. Levister, Girls on the Run coach and Conwell Middle Magnet School teacher, as well as Ms. Turner, School Aid.
For the second time in my life I walked, ran, skipped and jogged a 5k at the Philadelphia Navy Yard!. We ran on Saturday, June 3.
For me, Girls on the Run was a fun experience and my running partner was great. She really helped and motivated me. It was great because Mrs. Levister, who is not only a great teacher at Conwell, but also a great coach for the school’s after school program called, Girls on the Run. Mrs. Levister was waiting and pushing me to run and not stop.
It felt good to get to the finish line!
I was mainly scared to start because I thought I was going to get trampled. I was really excited because I had a partner. Overall it was fun and we got new gray shirts and a ten year anniversary medal. I can’t wait to join again next year!
Editor’s Note:The Girls on the Run program is lead by Ms. Levister, and takes place throughout the year during After School All Stars. To join the program, please see Ms. Maria.
The event was held to celebrate all the people who were associated with the After School All Stars Program that have been there since day one, and for those who didn’t hesitate to follow all the ASAS program rules.
During the event, people went outside and played games like football and dodgeball, while Mr. Washington, the school’s Climate Manager, grilled for those in attendance some good food like sandwiches, chips, burgers and hotdogs.
See above photo gallery for snapshots of the ASAS event.
By B. Smith – 83 – CCB Reporter with contributions from A. Mejias-83 and E. Perez-83
It’s been such a great experience and a great year for everyone at Conwell Middle Magnet School. Every student here at Conwell has created great memories and has met great peers, as well. Unfortunately, the Eighth-Grade Class of 2023 has to say goodbye and start a new chapter of their lives.
Please check out the above video to hear what some students of the Class of 2023 want to share with you, along with advice they have for the younger and incoming students of Conwell.
We hope you find this advice to be valuable and take this advice seriously.
Conwell Cougars.Blog Photographer, A. Vega, has put together a photo gallery of the championship game of flag foot ball that took place on May 18 ,
Blue team the Cougar Selects triumphed over the Green team Hawks, 34 – 38
They played a true championship game, and while the Hawks fought and tried super hard, the Cougar Selects fought just a little stronger and only won by four points with just 10 seconds left in the game .
Editor’s Note: 6ABC reporter Matteo did a fantastic story that featured Mr. Washington and how his Police Athletic League experience helped pave the way for the Conwell Flag Football League.
The PA Ballet program ran through September to May, ultimately ending with a final performance on May 5, 2023. Conwell Middle School students were taught three dances to practice, Jazz Dance, Bachata and The Finale Dance. The final dance, There were nine different other schools, all dressed in different colors while Conwell was dressed in green.
“Just the thought of them performing in front of lots of people, makes it all worth it,” Ms. Maria, Conwell School Secretary and After School All Stars coordinator for the school, said.
Ms. Maria has stated that the students learn discipline, cooperation and also learn how to be precise. One of the performers had also received a scholarship to a dance school, however they are going to receive this recognition later during the 8th grade award ceremony.
Ms. Maria also looks forward to more participation in the next school year and she encourages everyone to join, male and female, dancer or not, she still encourages everyone to join.
Check out the above video to see the 2022-2023 Conwell PA Ballet dancers in action, during their performance at the Cherry St. Pier on May 5.
Editor’s Note – Footage from the recital courtesy of Ms. Maria and Conwell Parent Ms. Palmer.
The Conwell Middle Magnet School Flag Football games were an amazing experience to film. It’s because the students look like they are having a blast and the spectators were enjoying themselves. My video can be the second best way to watch the game. So come on down to watch our student athletes play on Thursdays. It’ll be happening after school and we look forward to it continuing year after year.
Editor’s note: reporting contributions by V. Escorza and E. Vega.
Photo Gallery of Shelice’s Angels Field Trip by A. Peralta-62 and R. Rowan -71 CCB Staff
Recently, a group of young women from Conwell Middle Magnet School got the privilege to go out of state to see the Meta Facebook Company in action.
On Friday, May 5, Zaire Franklin, one of the linebackers for the Indianapolis Colts, gave them the opportunity to meet with important workers at the colorful, technology full, Meta Facebook Company, through his nonprofit organization Shelice’s Angels.
According to the Shelice’s Angels website, the aim of the nonprofit is to educate young people about the greater world around them.
The girls on this trip got on a luxury bus and drove 2 hours to New York City. Franklin talked a little about how he named the trip.
“I named you all the ‘Shelice Angels’ because my mother’s name was Shelice, “ Mr. Franklin stated. “She was very dear to me because I grew up with her, and learned a lot.”
Franklin went to Conwell Middle Magnet School before becoming a professional football player. Since graduating Conwell, he has made several visits to our school for motivational talks. One of his recent visits to his alma mater even brough NFL Films.
“I learned to do more than my limits, “ Zaire explained of his time at Conwell. He added that his mother saw his potential in himself that helped lead to his successes.
In the beginning of the Meta Facebook field trip, the girls were allowed to do a Question and Answer to learn more about how the Meta Company operated.
“People make mistakes, believe me I did a lot,” Ms. Lauren, one of the Meta Facebook employees told the students during the Q and A part of the tour. “You can’t take those back, so don’t think about what you could have done, and start thinking about what you can do in the future to make it better.”
All the workers that were in this Q and A, had no idea that they would be working at the Meta company. They all had ideas in being an athlete, or a technologist. In fact, some said that they didn’t even know this company existed!
There were nearly 30 people that went on the Shelice’s Angels trip. There were 7 chaperones, including Principal Green and Ms. Branch. According to Ms. Green, Meta Facebook provided the other chaperones.
The chaperones split everyone into groups, and took them for ice cream and to see the breath-taking New York City skyline on the company’s roof.
“The view was beautiful! “ J. Rivera of section 62 stated. “I would definitely go there again!”
Everyone who participated got Indianapolis Colts hats, and Shelice’s Angels shirts.
By A. Peralta-83 – CCB Lead Reporter with contributions by CCB Staff
Image courtesy of Conwell MMS.
On Tuesday, May 9, from 5:30 through 8:30 PM, Conwell Middle Magnet School will be hosting Philadelphia City Council’s next Public Safety Committee Hearing. At the public event, Council member Curtis Jones Jr. (4th district), chairperson of the Public Safety Committee and Council member Quetzy Lozada (7th district), will be speaking about Kensington’s crises of Crime, Narcotics and overall harmful environment for students and civilians alike.
As explained in an article published in the Philadelphia City Council Weekly Report, the purpose of the hearing is for the public to weigh in on Councilmember Lozada’s proposed Marshall Plan for Kensington. The plan is described as a way for leaders from across the city to develop solutions in collaboration with community residents.
In her resolution, Council member Lozada stated that the plan was so named after, “The Marshall Plan, also known as the European Recovery Program, grew out of the horror and destruction caused by World War II.” Her plan connected the horrors of World II with the current Opioid and gun violence crisis in the neighborhood.
“They chose Conwell because it is in the heart of Kensington and the Opiod Crisis,” Principal. Green said.
“They chose Conwell because it is in the heart of Kensington and the Opioid Crisis,” Ms. Erica Green, principal of Conwell Middle Magnet school, said. “Voices of the parents, students and teachers should be heard because they are all stakeholders.”
Principal Green encourages the public, residents, and especially students and their families to attend the meeting to have their voices heard.
“Voices of the parents, students and teachers should be heard because they are all stakeholders,” Principal Green said, “and the only way we can make change is if we work together for our community.”
According to Principal Green, students are expected to speak and express their concerns, opinions and worries. Some students were also asked what they would say to the City Council members during the meeting.
“Our community needs more police officers around making addicts and the homeless get proper help,” said A. Irizarry-82, Conwell eigth-grade student and president of the school’s Student Council. She added, “and ensuring no more addicts are in our community.”
Many of Conwell’s students walk home, take public transit, and travel from outside the neighborhood, which makes this a major issue and hazard for the safety of the students.
“There should be police officers to at least get people off the street,” said E. Jasper-83, an eighth-grade student. “I once ran into someone high.¨
Video courtesy of Mr. Adams, Conwell Middle Magnet School Track Coach
Conwell Middle Magnet School student athletes triumphantly brought home the bronze cookies at the 2023 Penn Relays on April 27. According to Conwell Track Coach, Mr. Adams, this year marks the sixth time Conwell racers brought home medals and trophies from the 4×100 meter races, as well as the Shuttle Race. Mr. Adams noted in previous years, both the boys and girls relay and shuttle teams won first place, and the coveted gold medals.
This year, racers: L. Waites and D. Hargrove (team anchors), E. Jasper,C. Sudyam, and N. Lewis.brought home the third place medals from among nine other teams from across the School District of Philadelphia. The event was the 4×100 meter Small Girls Race. Watch the video to see the students run on to a winning position.
This photo art gallery, by Conwell Middle Magnet School student art photographer K. Miller – 72, was a beautiful look into the budding spring-time feeling one gets when walking through nature. K. Miller, along with her family, took a trip to Silver Lake Nature Center, in Bristol, where they spent the day exploring and capturing the beauty that is growing right in front of our eyes.
To check out her photo gallery, play the video above.
Editor’s Note: If you’d like to submit your artwork to the CCB, please email gdungan@philasd.org.
Flag Football Highlights Reel from the April 13 games. Footage by A. Vega-81 – CCB Videographer
The late afternoon of April 13 turned out to be beautiful weather for ConwellMiddle Magnet School’s second week of Flag Foot Ball games. Taking place out in the school yard, the student athletes, their family friends, as well as Conwell faculty and staff were out to cheer the matches between the green-flagged Hawks versus the blue flagged Selects and a second game between Unstoppable Force of the red flags and The Elites of the yellow.
Ultimately, the Unstoppable Force proved their namesake with a wide-margin win over the formerly undefeated Elites, and in a surprise upset in overtime both the Hawks and Selects left the flag football field at a tie.
Watch the highlight reel taken by A. Vega-82 – CCB Videographer, as well as check out the rest of the Conwell Flag Football League’s season matchups in the poster uploaded with this article. For more information about the league, contact league commissioner, Mr. Washington.
The McPherson Square Library – Photo Credit to Bryan Belknap
Conwell Middle Magnet students and their families are invited to attend the McPherson Library Job fair on April 13, 2:30 – 5:30 p.m. The Job fair is a collaboration that includes 36 organizations and agencies offering jobs for the youth during the summer.
“Working at the library, I have seen teens struggle to get summer jobs,” said Bryan Belknap Belknap, Lead LEAP/Maker Mentor at McPherson Square Library, said in an email to the Conwell Cougars Blog. “So, we wanted an event that makes it easier for teens to get summer jobs.”
Belknap, who is organizing this event with the help from Philadelphia Parks and Recreation, Impact Services, and the Friends of McPherson group, said that this is the second year the library is hosting the job fair. According to Belknap, the minimum age requirement for youth to be eligible for a summer job is 12 years old. However, Belknap said that all ages and people are welcome to attend the Job fair.
Poster Provided By Bryan Belknap – Lead LEAP/Maker Mentor
“There is no requirement to attend the event. Everyone is welcomed,” Said Belknap. “We encourage all teens that are interested in summer jobs to attend and bring a friend.”
During the job fair, students will need to create resumes and applications in order to sign up for summer jobs. Adults at the job fair will help guide students during the process and help give students valuable information about signing up for a job.
“We want to reduce the barriers that keep teens from summer jobs,” Belknap said. “Creating a resume and filling out applications are important steps in getting a job.”
The McPherson Library encourages teenagers that are interested in a summer job to attend the Job fair with their peers and friends. McPherson library is also giving out $50 and $100 in debit gift cards for the 2 people who bring along the most friends and peers to attend the McPherson Job fair.
Poster Provided By Bryan Belknap – Lead LEAP/Maker Mentor
According to Belknap, The person in first place will receive the $100 debit gift card and 2nd place will receive $50 in debit gift cards. In order to qualify for the gift card prizes, students must tag each other and use a hashtag for the event. Students are encouraged to post a selfie in front of the Instagram wall that will be presented at the job fair. Teenagers can only tag 1 person, if they tag more than one person, then only the first tag will count. People without Instagram accounts are advised to find Mr. Belknap in order for him to count them.
The McPherson Library is located at 601 E Indiana Ave, Philadelphia, PA. According to Belknap, the Job fair will be held there due to the easy accessibility and location of the library, being in a central part of Kensington.
Below is a slideshow gallery list of the attending vendors at the April 13, 2023, McPherson Job Fair.
Editor’s Note: This poem was written by A. Snowden in honor of Women’s History Month. The poem was read in its entirety on the live Friday, “At Conwell We Are On!” Zoom show on 3/31/23.
Better Late Than Never
We celebrate women today Because back then, they weren’t celebrated in any way They were treated unfairly, different from men They did so much, but then …
They still were treated unequally, it wasn’t fair! So, they marched and marched, as they dare
People saw the issue and sought help They kept marching … and, welp …
The women were free to do whatever But til this day, women are still under the weather They are still paid little, more about Someone has to do something, this isn’t allowed! But as I always say, you’ll see one day
Conwelll students during rehearsal with Drum Teacher Mr. Robinson. Footage by A. Vega-81.
Students at Conwell Middle Magnet School show off their great talent by playing the drums with drum teacher Mr. Robinson. Students played three different practice pieces in the above video, and one song called “Boom Cat Samba.”
Students play every Wednesday, throughout the day. If you wish to join drums, please contact Mr. Robinson or Ms. Maria at the main office.
Video Editing by K. Velasquez 83 and Video Footage by A. Vega 81
The Watershed team, as part of the After School All Stars (ASAS) program, visited and played activities with the students present in the program. The Watershed team comprised of four coordinators: Peter, Avarree, CJ and Nathanial. They educate students about the environment, nature and its organisms.
According to Peter, their primary goal is to be able to initiate discussions that help influence the prevention of pollution, contamination and overall harm to water sources. The Watershed team plans to hopefully take students to explore and take trips to visit and work in community gardens.
“I’ve had a lot of fun in the Watershed program, they taught me things in a way I can understand.” – A. Peralta, a sixth grade student, said.
Graphic Art by A.Peralta 83
Activities that Students and the Coordinators have done were games that included hand signs, physical movement, guessing games and a mixture of all. These activities symbolized Nature and environmental related subjects.
They offer other alternative activities for students who wish not to participate in the selected game, such as coloring and paper activities and small science experiments such as kits.
“We’re really excited to get to work with students across Philadelphia to learn about Environmental Awareness” – Peter, A Watershed coordinator, said.
The Watershed program will be available on Mondays in After School All Stars. If you would like to experience the program for yourself, please contact Ms. Maria in order to sign up for After School All Stars.
Have you ever made a tower out of marshmallows and spaghetti sticks or maybe used an Oreo to mimic the movement of tectonic plates? In Mr. Posnan’s STEAM class for sixth graders at Conwell Middle Magnet School has it all .
“I think it’s fun because you have to be creative,” said A. Capetillo section 61.
Conwell teacher, Mr. Posnan, who teaches 5th and 6th grade does projects like building towers, egg drops, and many more. We did a recent experiment, which can be seen in the above photo gallery, in which you had to create something new, using bicycle and a vacuum parts.
Several students thought it was fun and cool to create.
“It was pretty cool how you have to design your own creation,” said J.Boggs -Mendeloski section 61
Editors note :
All images taken by Y.Hiraldo ,graphic artist J.Boggs-Mendeloski
Conwell introduced their first Conwell Speaker Series on Feb. 8. Every other Wednesday throughout the month, people are invited to a Zoom meeting with the students at Conwell.
What is the Conwell Speaker series?
The Conwell speaker series is when a professional comes in to speak to students and teach them about the things they do for their careers. The series is held in every teacher’s homeroom as a whole-school assembly.
The first speaker this year was Ellen Weber, whose job it is to help small businesses.
Weber was talking about how her business, Robin Hood Ventures has a special program called, Angels: Team, Market, & Product.
Weber said, “Most people look at the product, but really you need to look at the people.”
She said it takes 5-10 years for the entrepreneur to get their money back. She invested in: Brilliant Pad, Simply good, & charge it spot.
At the Zoom meeting, Weber was explaining how she helps small businesses get more popular.
Ms Katie – Nurse Practitioner for Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia came to talk to Conwell on Feb. 27.
Ms. Katie went to college twice, and started an early educational job. She went to Korea and learned about her culture and language. She did four years of university and another 2 years to earn a Master’s Degree. In 2005 she got a job as a nurse extern. When she finished she started her job as a nurse. Since 2009, she’s been a Nurse Practitioner. She teaches all types her biggest difference was that Katie never wore a mask before the pandemic.
Ms Katie has taken care of kids with arduous injuries. |
“Don’t get frustrated when you’re doing classes, pay attention to your teachers because it will assist you,” said Ms Katie.
Robyn S was our latest special guest on zoom on March 15th.
She currently works at NBC UNIVERSAL as an associate with Data Strategy.
Robyn breaks down the data and value by common to least common and said that learning how to read data is important.
Robyn first wanted to be a doctor, but she was discouraged to go any further because of how bad she thought she was doing.
Robyn uses data with weather, basketball games and decision making.
They base most data when it depends on how many people are entertained by that specific subject compared by another subject.
She said that she came in to encourage the kids to follow their dreams.
“Not everything might fit you based on your skill set,” she said, explaining that you won’t know until you try.
This article is about the death of the author’s family member, which was reported on NBC 10 news on Jan. 27. These are the words of the deceased’s family member, a fifth grade student here at Conwell Middle Magnet School.
I was born in 2012. I grew up in a very bad neighborhood where there was a lot of gun violence and other violence that no one my age should know about.
At the beginning of this year, my older nephew passed away in a gun shooting. I found out by my mom calling me into her room. After hearing the horrible news, my brother and his girlfriend went to the hospital, and my nephew passed away.
Seeing him lying there deceased at the hospital really broke my heart and made my family devastated.
People think this world is a joke, but it’s not. It’s real to me, and people don’t understand what they’re doing to other people.
All I’m saying is stop.
There are several innocent people out here dying and getting hurt because people are making the wrong decisions. People really need to realize what they’re doing and how terrible they’re making this world.
I just want to live my life as a little kid and have peace. These days nobody can really have that because there are people out here making this world a bad place.
by E. Vega – 82 – CCB Social Media Editor Conwell Middle Magnet School Staff and students celebrated International Women’s Day on March 3 by wearing their proudest purple clothing. Check out the photo gallery here. Posted by Emani.V section … Continue reading →
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