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Advocate
Offical Newsletter of the St. Petersburg High School International Baccalaureate Program• April, 2007
Salutatorians
Michael Wolcott (University of Florida)
Wolcott
Han Zhu (University of Chicago)
Congratulations and all the best to the Class of 2007! Have a wonderful summer!
Donna Sperber
icedoc80@yahoo.com
Academic Team
IB seniors Nisarg Mehta, Evan Schwartz, and Michael Sperber led St. Pete High’s academic team to
a second place finish in the district competition on February 7. Juniors Michelle Law and Rane Kien from
the traditional program also took part in the competition. Six of the sixteen participating high school teams
advanced to the evening final rounds, during which the students tackled challenging problems from the
fields of math, science, technology, fine arts, social studies, language arts, and foreign language. Palm
Harbor finished first with 254 points, followed by St. Pete High with 211 and Largo High with 173. Each
student from the top three teams received a cash prize from corporate sponsors Aegon and Altel. An all-
star team of six, including Michael Sperber and students from Palm Harbor, Seminole, and Dunedin high
schools represented Pinellas County at the 22nd Commissioner’s Academic Challenge state tournament
at Disney’s Contemporary Convention Center, April 12-14, where teams from 46 counties competed. Team
Pinellas finished in fourth place at the Saturday afternoon final rounds.
Coach Peggy Wise also took the St. Pete team to the Spoonbill Bowl, the semi-final regional competition
of the National Ocean Science Bowl, at USF on February 24, where Michael Sperber, Michelle Law, Rane
Kien, and junior Theresa Tomlinson took fourth place in the semi-final rounds. At a third event, St. Leo’s
College Quiz Bowl, Nisarg, Michael, Michelle and Rane advanced to the final rounds and placed sixth
overall.
Fencing Team
Aaron Bennet and IB seniors Katie Mahowski and Alyson Walker participated in the Central Florida
Junior Olympic Qualifying Tournament in December, 2006. Katie’s second place finish and Alyson’s third
place finish earned each of them an invitation to compete in the junior women’s foil division of the Junior
Olympics in Denver in February.
Track Team
IB senior Scott Lee is currently Pinellas County’s fourth fastest runner of the half mile and mile. Last fall,
he was co-captain of the cross-country team, which competed at the state championships in Dade City.
Scott is also an accomplished pianist and composer. He plays in a jazz quartet and is one of four finalists in
the Al Downing jazz competition to be held on April 21. Scott plans to major in music and physics at
Vanderbilt University.
Community Service
On March 24, IB 10th graders and advisor Ms. Vann held a fundraiser for BeadforLife in a donated
booth at the St. Petersburg Saturday Morning Market. Volunteers for BeadforLife sell jewelry crafted by
native Ugandan beaders for the benefit of impoverished Ugandan women and children.
With the encouragement of Gloria Munoz, the Spanish Honor Society and the Key Club organized a
school-wide toy drive for the benefit of over 200 needy children at the High Point Elementary School.
The toys were presented at a Christmas party that featured senior Robert Henderson and IB senior Amanda
Abu-Nab as Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus.
Student Activities continued
Thespians
The Thespians’ annual Winter One Acts on December 13 and 15 showcased the talents of student
directors Alceste Laurenti, Dayna Lazarus, and Jordan Stovall (Schubert’s Last Serenade), Eric Mennel,
David Margittai, Corey Horton, and Carson Zimmer (The Comical Tragedy or Tragical Comedy of Punch
and Judy), Kyle Futch and Madison McGrath (The Mystery at Twicknam Vicarage), and Valerie Cannon and
Kaylyn Brickey (Courting 101). The actors featured during this entertaining evening included IB students
Zack Davidson, Jaclyn Shepard, Alex Inskeep, Celina Cerf, Houston Davidson, Ariella Hartman, Bridget
Siegel, Zach Hartman, Maria Tridas, Christian Verhulst, Chelsea Minieri, Rachel Wolfe, and Stephanie
Pavluk. Behind the scenes, IB students Cristina Amaya, Mike Wolcott, Jeanne Fasan, Jenn Nguyen,
Kristen Perry, Milynn Luong, and Chris Ramos served as production crew chairs.
Inspired by the 1999 Broadway revival of Cole Porter’s Kiss Me Kate, theater director Michael Vasallo
challenged the Thespians to bring this lyrical musical comedy to the SPHS stage for their crowning production
of the year. Jenna Siladie (Lilli/Katherine), SPHS junior and talented classical vocalist, and IB senior Eric
Mennel (Fred/Petruchio) gave beautiful renditions of such classic songs as Wunderbar and So in Love and
masterfully led the versatile cast and chorus between settings in 20th century Baltimore and 16th century
Padua. IB sophomore Julianne Michael (Lois/Bianca) belted out Why Can’t You Behave? and Always Be
True to You in My Fashion to senior Corey Horton (Bill/Lucentio), who followed his Bianca with a skillful solo
dance routine. Seniors Carson Zimmer and Frank Pavluk sang an outrageously funny Brush Up Your
Shakespeare, and senior Jordan Stovall danced and sang through the steamy Too Darn Hot.
Other IB cast members: Kyle Futch, Ben Hockett, Chris Rossbach, Dayna Lazarus, Alex Inskeep,
Nicholas Vitrano, and Andrew Nguyen.
IB chorus members: Lauren Boerwinkle, Jessica Brown, Jazmin Davis, Lindsey Gillette, Ariella
Hartman, Melanie Herzhauser, Ben Hockett, Alli Holder, Alex Inskeep, Lyndsey Johannesen, Marissa
Nicole Koch, Jenna Lawhead, Dayna Lazarus, Mary Mott, Andrew Nguyen, Jenn Nguyen, Amanda
Nickens, Kristen Perry, Miriam Rochford, Christopher Rossbach, Jeanette Rouisse, Gabrielle Rushing,
Alina Sabadish, April Sherwin, Bridget Siegel, Jessica Silva, Michael Sperber, Drew Towey, Maria
Tridas, Nicholas Vitrano, Rachel Wolfe, and Mary-Cathryn Zimmer.
IB production chairs: Katie LeBlanc, Jeanne Marie Fasan, Candace Ng, Alina Sabadish, Erika Hval,
Kristen Perry, Long Nguyen, Victoria Yip, Kaylyn Brickey, Valerie Cannon, Zachary Davidson, Alex
Inskeep, Maria Tridas, Chris Ramos, Savan Shah, and Mike Wolcott.
continued next page
Model UN
On April 4, 44 SPHS students attended the Global Classrooms Conference, the culminating event in
the Tampa Bay area for over 800 middle and high school students who, through the Global Classrooms
curriculum, demonstrate skills of reading, writing, research, negotiation, problem solving, and understanding
of international issues through playing the roles of ambassadors at the United Nations. PIB freshmen Parth
Desai and Houston Davidson representing the nation of Qatar in the Security Council and Anastasia
Austin representing Sri Lanka in the Economic and Social Council received honorable mention awards in
their committees. PIB sophomores Jazmin Davis and Alicia Nassar representing South Africa in the General
Assembly and freshman Christian Verhulst and IB junior David Trigaux representing Sri Lanka in the
General Assembly 2nd committee were recognized as Best Delegation in their committees, the top awards
given.
This is the 5th year SPHS has attended the conference, and those students who enjoy participating in
Model UN have the opportunity to join the school club. Our students have gone on to participate in and
even run programs at schools such as the University of Florida and Harvard, and one former student now
attending Columbia has an internship at the United Nations this year.
IB senior Han Zhu has received the prestigious Barnes Scholarship, which awards up to $15,000 per
year for four years at an accredited U.S. college or university to four students who have overcome significant
obstacles in their lives while achieving academic honors and participating in volunteer community activities.
Han, who was in elementary school when her mother died of lung cancer, is a National Merit Finalist and
has participated in Model UN, UF’s Student Science Training Program, and FSU’s Young Scholars Program.
She has volunteered at Hospice of the Florida Suncoast, SPHS’s cancer support group, Women’s Club
Juniorettes, Great Explorations, and the Science Center.
The American Association of Teachers of French recognized IB senior Jenny Lin with an Outstanding
High School Senior in French award.
IB freshman Jonathan Tanawan, Linda Nhon, Alex Jablonski, Eve Sembler, Amanda Carr, Kristen
Bramlet, Courtney Howard, Logan Manderscheid and Brenton Nash received the Generosity of Spirit
Award from the ninth grade teaching team after being nominated by their classmates for excellence in
respecting diverse cultures, reaching out to others, leading by example, and showing a genuine willingness
to give from within.
Mr. Sam Davis and Mr. William Wolstenholme
Two men of wit and wisdom
Have you ever wondered what the landscape of St. Petersburg High School, or Florida, for that matter, was
like back in 1983, when St. Pete High had just received its approval for the establishment of an IB program? Here
is a first-hand account from Mr. Sam Davis, who accompanied program counselor Don Pemberton to New York
City to gather information from two existing IB schools and from the IB North America office:
“When we arrived at the IBNA office, we informed the secretary that we were from the IB program at St.
Petersburg High School. She said, ‘You are from where?’ We repeated that we were from St. Petersburg. She then
turned and opened a door to a small office and stated that there were some people here from St. Petersburg High
School. The voice in the small office said, ‘From St. Petersburg?’ After a few minutes rapidly rushed by, a man
emerged with a paper napkin tucked in his shirt and a hero sandwich in his hand. He once again asked the question,
‘You are from St. Petersburg?’ I believe if we all remember our early beginning, we will always know how to accept
the accolades and honors bestowed upon the St. Petersburg High School International Baccalaureate program.”
With this flair of the raconteur, Mr. Davis captivates his IB sophomore students through a year of American
history. That his course is legendary was evident during the IB pinning ceremony, when the alumna speaker’s
reference to his challenging curriculum produced loud cheers from the students in the audience. According to a
former student, he not only teaches history, he preaches it, which is to say that he is passionate about his subject
and his mission to inspire his students to love it as much as he does.
Mr. Davis graduated with a master’s degree in history from USF and has spent 24 of his 38 years of
teaching at St. Pete High School. He is married and has a daughter who lives in DC and a 6-year-old grandson who
calls almost every day to check up on him. In 1983 he was ordained as a minister of the Church of God in Christ
and serves as president of the youth fellowship of four churches and on-call pastor for the southwest Florida
congregations. He plans to retire from teaching in 2009 and to devote more time to the ministry, including leader-
ship of his own congregation.
Seven years after Mr. Davis’ historic trip to New York, Mr. William Wolstenholme joined the St. Pete High
faculty. He was raised in Dover, Delaware and earned a graduate degree in education from the University of
Delaware. “By way of background”, he relates, “I have worked in an asparagus cannery, a rubber glove factory, and
have been in the army, but I chose teaching because it is indoor work that involves considerably less heavy lifting
and fewer long marches.” He started teaching in Delaware, but he and his wife, a nurse by occupation, moved to
Florida to escape the cold winters. “I still whine when it gets chilly”, he says.
“When I first started teaching, all male teachers wore suits and ties, all female teachers wore skirts, stu-
dents were allowed to be paddled for punishment, and grades were calculated by hand and hand-written on report
cards. We had no internet, computers, calculators, cell phones, CDs, VCRs, DVDs, or MP3 players. I am not a
person who thinks wistfully of the good old days.” He observes that the internet has enhanced access to informa-
tion and has facilitated communication, though in the end, the student is still left with a pen and a blank page in a
journal.
Mr. Wolstenholme’s classroom, where he teaches English to IB sophomores and juniors, holds a number of
mysterious items, such as a coconut, a pig, and a rubber chicken, which are keys to various inside jokes. His
students are engaged by his understated, dry wit and have been known to play such pranks on him as substituting
a live chicken for the rubber version. “I have always gotten a charge out a teaching,” he says. “Talking about
literature seems to me to be a fine way to spend a day – so fine a way, in fact, that I have never seriously considered
doing anything else. Teaching in the IB at SPHS makes the experience all the more rewarding, because of the
traditions of the school itself, the high quality of the faculty, and the remarkable students, people who are both
exceptional individuals and exceptional scholars, actively engaged in and appreciative of quality literature.”
To sweeten this story, these two extraordinary teachers have become good friends during their tenure at St.
Pete High School, each appreciating the other’s sense of humor. As Mr. Wolstenholme recalls, “It is at SPHS that
I discovered that I am one of a pair of twins separated at birth. As Mr. Sam Davis and I have explored our repressed
childhood memories, he has uncovered vague memories of a baby wearing a Hawaiian shirt in the crib next to him,
and I have vague memories of a crib next to mine containing a baby wearing a Sansabelt diaper. Plus we both wear
glasses, are left-handed, and have similar hair. That is proof enough for me.”
Alumni News
Where are they now and what are they doing?
Alicia Billington, ’02, graduated from Cornell University 2006 with a BS in biological engineering and
a master’s degree in biomedical engineering. She was a member of Delta Gamma sorority and
participated in numerous community service and philanthropic projects. She enjoys running and
has completed two Disney World marathons and a Gasparilla half-marathon. She plans to attend
medical school and pursue interests in sports medicine, infectious disease, and medical device design.
Alicia still appreciates the well-balanced and challenging education that she received from the IB
program and finds her background in writing and communication especially useful in her fields of
science and technology.
Dale Correa, ’02, graduated magna cum laude from Dartmouth College
with degrees in Arabic language and literature and Asian and Middle
Eastern studies. She is in Cairo, Egypt on a fellowship from the Center for
Arabic Study Abroad and will continue her Middle Eastern studies at the
NYU this fall. She phoned her mother on Mother’s Day from atop a camel
in the Sahara Desert near Egypt’s Algerian border. She sends her greetings:
“Al-qird fii ‘aiin ummihi ghazall” (in his mother’s eyes, a monkey is a gazelle).
Ashlee Kidd, ’03, currently a senior at Georgia Tech with a remarkable collegiate career as an elite
sprinter, was named ACC Women’s Indoor Track Most Valuable Performer for the second consecutive
season. At the ACC Indoor Championships in February, she captured first-place finishes in the 200-
meter and 400-meter dashes. She earned All-America honors for her performance at the NCAA
Indoor Championships in March, where she placed third in the 400-meter event with a personal- and
school-record time of 51.96. Check out her amazing bio at www.ramblinwreck.com.
Sherri Weissman, ’02, graduated with honors and a Peer Leadership Award from the University of
Florida in June, 2006. She was a member of the Golden Key Honor Society, National Society of
Collegiate Scholars, Student Government, Student Speakers Bureau, and intramural sports teams,
and on weekends she was “Alberta” the Gator on the football field. Sherri’s IB experience gave her the
foundation, confidence, and desire to achieve academically and introduced her, while she was
completing her CAS requirements at All Children’s Hospital, to her dream career in the field of medicine.
She is currently in her third semester of the Physician Assistant Graduate Program at Nova Southeastern
University and will finish her master’s degree in August, 2008.
IB alumnae Cameron Williams, a junior pre-med and art history major at Duke University and Allison
Knight, a sophomore pre-med major at the University of Virginia, returned to Tampa Bay as cheerleaders
for their college basketball teams during the kick-off of the ACC tournament in March.
Ben Verhulst, ’06, a sophomore at FSU’s film school, reflects on the advantages of the IB diploma:
“While the rest of the 15-person honors class is stressing over the 1,000 word essay paper on voting
behaviors, you’re turning it in early and are the only person with properly-cited endnotes (thanks to
Mr. Davis, of course).” He also notes that “you are one of the few who can analyze a passage in 15
minutes and give at least 5 major themes no one else can see, one which is olfactory. Ten minutes
later, a fellow student asks how the passage relates to factories. The IB Diploma is worth every day of
the world-class education you receive.”
Guidance Corner
IS THERE ONLY ONE “GOOD FIT” OR “RIGHT MATCH” COLLEGE FOR YOU?
When advising students about their college choices, one of the main objectives is to find the “good
fit” or the “right match”, but what does that mean and is there only one “right match” for you?
“Good fit” and “right match” means that a particular college is a place where you feel socially and
academically comfortable. The size, location, weather, level of diversity, degree of competitiveness,
type of student, social atmosphere, all are factors that will enter into whether this is a “good fit” for you.
The availability of majors, internships, study abroad programs, and research opportunities will affect
your academic satisfaction.
But let’s be realistic, there is no absolutely perfect school - therefore there is no perfect fit or match.
Every aspect of a school is not going to fit perfectly into your criteria. It just isn’t possible that every
classroom experience, every personal encounter, every faculty member is going to meet your ideal of
your college experience. Does that mean there can be lots of imperfect matches? I think so. So what
do you do?
First, (and Seniors, it’s not too late to do this) before you start your college search,
have a heart-to-heart talk with yourself along the following lines:
1. Think of why you want to go to college in the first place.
2. Think about what you expect from your college experience, socially and academically.
3. Think about your strengths and weaknesses. Now is the time for honesty
- not the way you wish you were, but how you really are.
4. Think about what interests you and what you enjoy. Not what will make you a lot of money or
what your parents want, but what gives you satisfaction.
5. Give some thought to what you don’t know and want to learn.
PARENT COMMITTEES
IB Parent Advisory Council
The IBPAC supports the teachers, students, and parents of the IB program by
• producing and publishing the IB Advocate Newsletter
• assisting in the orientation of new IB students
• coordinating the IB pinning ceremony
• providing parent volunteers to represent the IB program at the Magnet Fair
and Discovery Night and to proctor the IB and AP exams
Contact Chairperson Sandra Rosenthal at arosenth@tampabay.rr.com
Proctors are still needed for the IB and AP exams, May 2 – May 23
IB Senior Celebration Committee
This committee provides volunteer and financial support to the IB program by
• planning the Senior Celebration banquet that honors graduating IB seniors
• providing juniors with their IB pins
• funding two pages in the SPHS yearbook that feature IB faculty and students
• assisting the IBPAC in their volunteer activities
• supplying IB faculty with small grants
Contact chairpersons Kim Towey and Lynn Porterfield through the IB office
893-1842 extension 1012
Special thanks goes to Mike Blowers, owner of Print City in Largo, for providing his
expertise in the layout of the Advocate and his excellent and timely printing services.