Seniors win top regional award for writing portfolios

Seniors Julia Quintero and Joanie Greve have both been presented the Gold Key for Excellence in The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards of 2011 for their portfolios for nonfiction writing that they submitted to a national competition. This is the top regional award which qualifies them for the national competition. English teachers Angelique Burrell and Jared Friebel have been recognized by the competition as important sources of support for these two student authors.

ELL Student wins first place in TESOL Essay Contest

ELL Tutor Geraldine Deliva received first place for her essay from the Illinois Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages Association. Her essay was number one out of all the area high school submissions. Geraldine, whose family is from the Philippines, is graduating this year and will be attending the University of Illinois at Chicago. Congratulations to Geraldine! Congratulations also to Amy Profetto, Hinsdale Central Director of TPI.

English Teacher and Librarian to Present at National Conference

English Teacher Jared Friebel and Librarian (and honorary English Department Member) Myles Laffey have been working together for two years on developing broad and deep critical research skills for freshman at HC. Their work has influenced English 1 curriculum.

This year they applied to present at the AASL (American Association of School Librarians) National Conference, and were accepted!

Their proposal entitled Research Curriculum Gymnastics: Using TRAILS as a Springboard to a FLIP (Freshman Level Interest Project) will be presented at AASL’s 15^th National Conference & Exhibition, October 27-30, 2011 in Minneapolis, MN.

Congratulations to Jared and Myles! And thank you for being teacher leaders in critical literacy at Hinsdale Central.

Two English Teachers Present at Reading Conference

English teachers Jan Bujan and Jim DiDomenico presented today at the 35th Annual Reading Conference "From Our Roots to Our Branches" sponsored by Concordia University and the West Suburban Reading Council.

Their topic was "Visual Literacy in the High School English Classroom," a topic that both have become experts in during the last couple years.

Congratulations to both of them for sharing their expertise outside the walls of HC!

El Diablo brings home hardware!

If you've seen the new yearbook, El Diablo, you probably were impressed with its fabulous design. The theme "Story of my Life" was ingenious! You weren't the only one that was impressed, however:

• The 2009-2010 El Diablo Yearbook won the Columbia Scholastic Press Association’s Gold Medal, which is awarded to the top one percent of yearbooks.
• The National Scholastic Press Association awarded the 2009-2010 El Diablo yearbook the honor rating of First Class with Two Marks of Distinction.
• The Kettle Moraine Press Association awarded Hinsdale Central High School’s 2009-2010 El Diablo the Honor Rating of All-Kempa.
• The American Scholastic Press Association awarded Hinsdale Central High School’s 2009-2010 El Diablo First Place.
• Walsworth Publishing inducted Hinsdale Central High School's 2009-2010 El Diablo into its "Gallery of Excellence"

Congratulations to the entire Yearbook Staff, including senior editors Hayley West (Editor in Chief), Holly Moran (Design Editor) and Erin Guth (Managing Editor). Congratulations, too, to the sponsors, English teachers Stephanie Hiffman and Erin Timmons!

English Teacher Michael Palmquist Earns National Board Certification

Teacher Michael Palmquist has recently earned his National Board certification. This is a prestigious designation.

Like board-certified doctors and accountants, teachers who achieve National Board Certification have met rigorous standards through intensive study, expert evaluation, self-assessment and peer review.

Congratulations to Michael, a highly-respected teacher leader in the department!

(He joins Jan Bujan as a Board-Certified teacher in English.)

NCTE Achievement Award in Writing

The National Council of Teachers of English Achievement Award in Writing was established in 1957 to encourage high school students in writing and recognize publicly some of the best student writers in the nation. The selection process is intense. The winning writers are selected for independence of thought, fresh insight, concern for expressiveness, keen observation and reflection, and sensitivity to nuances of word meaning. This year two young women were judged to be among the best young writers in the nation. This number is unprecedented in HC history is the top school for Illinois. The English Department is honored to recognize the following young women as NCTE Achievement Award Winners:

Senior Julia Quintero. Julia wrote an essay entitled “The Benefit of the Doubt.” Julia’s essay begins with the guilt she feels for not measuring up to her own expectations for what it means to be a “religious enough.” It is an exploration of her developing relationship with her faith and how some of the things that she thought were weaknesses are actually strengths.

Senior Grace Walsh wrote an essay entitled “Becoming What I Always Was.” Grace begins with the fact that she has always been “her father’s daughter” to others and works to define her complex and changing relationship with her mother.

Congratulations to Julia, Grace, and the teachers who have helped them become the writers that they are!