Wednesday, September 15, 2010

City schools clear state's bar

Sept. 15, 2010

By PATRICK E. LITOWITZ
plitowitz@ncnewsonline.com

Target practice bolstered George Gabriel’s confidence as New Castle prepared for the state’s 2010 assessment test.

The superintendent was pleased, but not surprised, when the school district earned its fourth consecutive Adequate Yearly Progress citation.

“We were able to give preassessment tests that correlated with the (Pennsylvania System of School Assessment test),” Gabriel said. “I knew months ago that we did pretty well.”

The annual testing is required under the federal No Child Left Behind Act. Schools are scored on performances in math and reading in addition to the number of exam participants and school attendance/graduation. Students in grades three through eight and 11 take part.

Math and reading performance are at the core of the PSSA. In reading, 63 percent of the students must attain advanced or proficient comprehension. That goal is 56 percent in math.

The district’s third-grade students in the John F. Kennedy, Thaddeus Stevens and West Side primary centers posted the best results. Thaddeus Stevens students turned in a 81.8 percent showing in reading. The top math effort came from West Side with a 92.7 rating.

Next year, the goals are higher.

“The challenge is that the state has raised the bar in reading and math for the 2011 test,” Gabriel said.

The math standard jumps from 56 to 67 percent, while the reading target increases from 63 to 72 percent.

Using the Pennsylvania Department of Education projections, the district will meet the higher criterion set for math. However, George Washington Intermediate Elementary School and the junior/senior high school are trailing the 2011 goals for reading.

Gabriel said data-driven instruction allows teachers to pinpoint problem areas.
“We could see where there were deficiencies and change instruction accordingly,” he said. “Our math and reading scores are showing that the district’s curriculum teaching techniques are making a difference.”

According to the state, New Castle had an 86.3 graduation rate. The goal was 85 percent.

Students also were tested in math and science. However, those results were not part of the overall scoring. Three grades took part in each section.

Participants in the science section were made up of the fourth grade (65.4 percent were advanced or proficient), eighth grade (33.3 percent) and 11th grade (27 percent). Classes part of the writing exam were fifth grade (54.8 percent), eighth grade (63.3 percent) and 11th grade (72.4 percent).

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Girl wows with muscles, healthy lifestyle

Sept. 14, 2010

By PATRICK E. LITOWITZ
plitowitz@ncnewsonline.com

A New Castle youth’s physique has amazed bodybuilders, fitness experts, classmates and, well, pretty much anyone who sees her.

Genetics are responsible for 11-year-old Mikala Henry’s build — a sculpted appearance that others spend years in the gym to obtain.

Mikala’s impromptu appearance at an international sports festival generated a stir and led to an article in a national women’s fitness magazine. However, the sixth-grader wants to turn the attention from herself and focus on battling childhood obesity while promoting healthy lifestyles.

“She’s a natural,” her father, Alton, said.

Mikala played hard in her mother’s womb.

“The twisting, twisting, twisting in my stomach,” Charmagne Henry said of her pregnancy.

The child’s arrival gave a hint of what was ahead.

“You could see she was muscular. She sat up (on my stomach) and looked like she was flexing,” Charmagne said. “She was born to be an active child.”

People asked Mikala’s parents early on if she worked out.

“Work out? She’s too young,” Alton said. “(My wife and) I were like that, too. Never touched a weight and was in excellent shape.”

“As the years went on, I just got used to it,” Charmagne added.

A trip to Columbus, Ohio, in March placed the George Washington Intermediate Elementary student in an unexpected spotlight. Mikala was there to participate in the gymnastics portion of the 2010 Arnold Sports Festival.

The four-day event is named after famed bodybuilder, actor and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. The festival, started in 1989, features 44 events.

The bodybuilding venue gained Charmagne’s attention.

“I thought Mikala needs to be here,” she said. “I knew she’d fit right in.”

As the family entered the area, Mikala found people converging on her.

“The paparazzi came out of the woodwork,” Charmagne said. “They thought she was a bodybuilder.

“It was just crazy.”

A number of male and female bodybuilders, such as Lou Ferrigno (who played television’s “The Incredible Hulk”), Toney Freeman and Denise Masino approached and posed with the youngster.

“That was amazing. I was excited,” Mikala said.

Robert Kennedy, a bodybuilding guru and magazine publisher, also met the youngster. He profiled her in the July edition of “Oxygen.”

While she enjoys the attention, Mikala said she is concerned about the health of her classmates. She defies the common notion that children dislike healthy food.

“You are what you eat, and that’s how I raised them,” Charmagne said.

Mikala enjoys broccoli — cooked and raw — and eats fruits, vegetables and beans in addition to baked fish and chicken.

“I saw these kids who were obese, and I felt sorry for them,” she said. “I wanted to help them eat right and exercise.

“They can have diabetes, high blood pressure and heart attacks.”

To help others, she is creating Internet videos that focus on exercise and nutrition. Her family is working on a series called “Healthy Choices with Little Mikala.” Her website is http://littlemikala.weebly.com/.