THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – Friday, October 13, 2017
Page 15
~ Special to The Saugus Advocate ~
Students share their stories EDITOR’S NOTE: Three stu- The Saugus Advocate in this dents from Megan Agola’s jour- week’s edition. nalism class at Saugus High Students in the class submitSchool contributed articles to ted their articles to Ms. Agola,
who, along with Saugus High School Assistant Principal Brendon Sullivan, selected the articles to be published in The Ad-
vocate. These are the first in a series of articles contributed by Ms. Agola’s class written about the high school and Sau-
gus from a student perspective. The articles reflect the writing and the viewpoint of the student writers.
A student’s profile of “Mrs. Knudsen,” Saugus An interview with new Saugus High School’s new adjustment counselor High School Assistant By Sam Lopez Principal Kim Politano
W
ho is the new and mysterious adjustment counselor at Saugus High? Her name is Mrs. Knudsen and she is a very interesting person. I sat down with her in her office the other day and got to know this family-oriented woman very well. With the calming scents of lavender flowing into the room, she told me about her life. Mrs. Knudsen went to Duke University in North Carolina for undergrad and majored in psychology. She expressed to me that she’s always loved learning how the brain works and even in college she loved working with high school students and helping them solve problems in their daily lives. After Duke she got her masters at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. Billerica High School was her last job, and she now commutes to Saugus from the North Shore every day. Outside of school, Mrs. Knudsen loves to go to the beach and kayaking with her husband and four kids. She told me that two of her kids are adopted and I am still amazed that she can keep up with four kids. The happy family has a schnoodle, and she explained to me that they named him Maccabee because it’s a Jewish name which is also her religion. Her favorite vacation destination is Rome because of the
By Gabby Garcia-Mendoza
K
A NEW FACE AT SAUGUS HIGH SCHOOL: Katie Knudsen is the new adjustment counselor. (Courtesy photo from Megan Agola’s journalism class at Saugus High School to The Saugus Advocate)
food and history (but mostly the food). She loves decorating her house and the only sport she’s good at is skiing. She told me that her favorite movie is “Shawshank Redemption” and her favorite book is “Gilead” by Marilynne Robinson. Her favorite color is green and she absolutely loves Indian food. Her favorite way to wind down is exercising, especially walking. Although she grew up in New Jersey, her mom grew up in Peabody so she knows the area here well. She is very excited to work at SHS and can’t wait to get to know all the stu-
dents. About the writer Sam Lopez has been reading and writing since preschool. She has two cats and a dog and spends her free time reading, writing and drawing. She lives with her parents and sister, and is a senior at SHS. She is the president of the SHS Book Club and her dream is to own a bookstore. She moved to Saugus from Revere when she was five and plans on moving to New Hampshire to complete her studies and become either a psychologist or an English teacher.
im Politano, the new Assistant Principal at Saugus High School, transitioned into her position in August. After former Assistant Principal Dawn Trainor moved on to a different position, Politano gladly stepped forward to fill her shoes. In 1989 Politano graduated from high school and then shortly attended Essex Tech and Salem State University with her goals directed at obtaining a career in fitness and nutrition. “While I was working as a personal trainer and food expert, I finally understood how much I enjoyed teaching others. But what I really wanted to do was teach the young.” After returning to school and earning a master’s degree in education from Cambridge College, she was hired in 2006 by the Belmonte Middle School to be a health teacher, until taking in a new place at SHS. Saugus High School added in a freshman house this year as a way to help middle school students adjust to high school. Houses are responsible for the well-being of students during freshman year. Politano felt this was the right time for her to make her way into the high school, as she was a familiar face to the new freshmen.
I
’m sure most people have already heard about Hurricane Irma that struck Florida. It was a very tragic and horrific experience for most. Hurricane Irma was actually one of the most powerful Atlantic hurricanes to be recorded. Irma pushed inland through Florida as it hit the area with high winds and floodwater. Irma left a deadly path of destruction along the Caribbean according to the National Hurricane Center. About 6.5 million homes and businesses lost power due to this storm. Twenty-five percent of the residents stayed through
the storm despite evacuation orders and some sadly didn’t make it through. I spoke to an anonymous student in Saugus High School whose uncle stayed through the storm. The source said, “My uncle and his wife’s home didn’t make it through the storm. A tree fell right on top of the home instantly damaging it.” However, the source claims her relatives are alright because at the time they were in their second home on the other side of Florida. Tragically an estimated 68 people passed away during this hurricane and many more are injured. As of Monday, Irma was labeled as a tropical storm.
Most of the residents are safe as of now and dealing with the devastation. About the writer Jade Fernandes was born in Melrose on May 8, 2003. When she was little she moved houses a lot, from Chelsea to Revere to Winthrop and then Saugus. She is currently 14 years old and attends Saugus High School as a freshman. She is into traveling and rescuing animals. She is living with her mom, step dad, her three siblings – Crystal, Anthony, and Guiliana – and her three pets: dog Tyson and cats Cinnamon and Sammy. She is into drawing and helping people.
About the writer Gabriela Garcia-Mendoza, better known as Gaby Garcia, the child of Gabriel and Gloria Garcia, who gave birth to her on the second of October 2002, later to give birth to a brother in 2006. Coming up as a self-taught artist, the honor roll student decided to join a journalism class. Joining the class allowed Gaby to express her ways not only with art, but with words too. When not spending her time drawing, she often goes ahead and practices piano, reading, and keeping up with the latest news. Oddly enough, she might not strike you as an athletic type, but surprisingly she does play a single sport, volleyball. And on she lives as a 9th grade student just trying to get by in Saugus High School.
LITTLE RICKY FOUNDATION FOR AUTISM ANNUAL GOLF FALL CLASSIC Saturday October 28, 2017 Ould Newbury Golf Club 319 Newburyport Turnpike (old route 1) Newbury, MA 01951
Hurricane Irma Update
By Jade Fernandes
Politano does miss her Belmonte family, but adjusting to her new job has been a breeze. She states, “The faculty is amazing, having worked with many in the past, everything including my new schedule has been easy thanks to their help.” Today she continues to grow closer with her new family, and sometimes, all Politano wants to do, according to her, is to “Find five minutes to sit and eat my salad.”
Tee Time is set for 1pm Sharp Please arrive at 12pm for check in Cost is $125 per person Fee includes Golf with cart, Little Ricky Windbreaker, Goody Golf Bag, Dinner, and More. This is a unique Golf Outing as we are limited to only 72 Golfers. Please reserve your spot today. Not interested in Golf but want to participate, no problem. Join us for the after golf party with dinner and raffles in the beautiful clubhouse for only $50. These tickets are limited so contact us today. Did I mention the raffle items are each valued at over $250. Plus a hole in one on the golf course could win you a brand new car! Join us for a great day out for golf and fun and help us continue to support the Autism community. Thank you,
Rick Freni 781 704 1300 Little Ricky Foundation 37 Madison Street Revere MA 02151
rickyfreni@msn.com littlericky4autism@gmail.com littlericky.vpweb.com