At the onset of the recent 2^nd Annual Jazz Festival, SAS students put on a show of their own. They eagerly displayed some of the mechanical-engineering skills acquired through school courses and clubs centered on STEM and robotics education. Guests at the event had the opportunity to meet students who built their own robots and enthusiastically explained how they function. The fundraiser was a special evening of great food and great music, with dinner by Carrabbas Italian Grill and jazz by world-renowned bass guitarist Gerald Veasley, accompanied by several local musical artists, including vocalist Danielle Evans, saxophonist Malik Clanton, keyboard player Daniel Pugh and drummer Jose Varona. The SAS high school band led the musical portion of the event, with Believer by Imagine Dragons, arranged by Kelly and Carlson, under the direction of music teacher Ms. Lexi Carlson. We thank everyone who made this special event possible—sponsors, parents, students and staff—and we look forward to next year’s event!

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Celebrating the school year’s first Students of the Month, SAS Middle School staff and administrators recently awarded select students certificates for their hard work and achievement in core classes, along with special presentations for classes called “specials.” The monthly ceremony provides a great opportunity for faculty and students to recognize the amazing efforts of our Atoms. In addition to student awards, a special award was given to Ms. IIlynn McLauren for her outstanding demonstration of citizenship. Keep up the great work, Atoms!

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Searching high and low for elusive gem stones, students in all three grades of SAS Middle School visited the Herkimer Diamond Mines on Wednesday, September 26th. Each grade was given a tour of the facility and an introduction to the quartz-based "Herkimer Diamond." Students enjoyed the fun, educational trip and many of them brought home multiple samples. They look forward to future visits with us—and so do we! Go ATOMS!

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Building skills in communication, problem solving and listening, all SAS Middle School students participated in team-building activities held in the school’s gym on Wednesday, September 20^th. Called the Olweus Anti-Bullying Event, it is held annually and its goal is to bring bullying out of the shadows and show students how to be upstanders instead bystanders.

The first activity focused on communication and cooperation, with students working in pairs to give their partners verbal direction on how to draw a simple image. The entire group shared their images to see which pair was able to communicate and re-create the image closest to the actual picture.

Three activities followed and focused on trust, communication and listening skills. Students worked in pairs to guide their partners through a "mine field" while blindfolded. Students had to get to the other side of the gym without hitting anything in their paths. A variation of this game required students to walk to a location blindfolded and retrieve as many items as they could as their partner guided them verbally. Additionally, students worked in teams to get from one end of the gym to the other through a "sea of hot chocolate” as they stepped on "marshmallows." The last station was a photo booth in which students formed many group poses with props to convey a "No Bullying" message. The students were good sports and enjoyed working in a variety of groups and pairs. They all showed they can be effective upstanders. Go ATOMS

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On Friday, October 20, 2017, SAS Middle School held their annual Girls Empowerment Night at the middle school from 6pm-midnight.  The night began with pizza and snacks for dinner and then proceeded with two guest speakers on how to be a strong, confident, and empowered woman.  The guest speakers were Pearl Petty, advocate at McMahon/Ryan Child Advocacy Center, and Heather Douglas, caseworker with Onondaga County and one of our parents.  Following the presentations, students participated at different stations throughout the night.  Stations included making kindness rocks, creating t-shirts/pillowcases, painting nails, doing each other's makeup, watching movies and eating popcorn, singing and dancing, a photo booth, and games.

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On Saturday, October 14th, 2017, Syracuse Academy of Science Charter School took third place in the third division, and first place in the second division of the third annual CNY Steamboat Challenge, which was held at the Milton J. Rubenstein Museum of Science & Technology.

A total of 68 students comprising 34 teams participated in the design, build, and compete STEM event. Students built a boat out of recycled materials, including a metal engine that produces stem to propel the boat when heated by a tea light candle. Teams of between one and four students in grades four through 12 raced their boats on 3 inches of water inside 10-foot-long inflatable tracks.

The student STEM competition was divided into three divisions: first division is grades 4-6, second division is grades 7-8, and the third division is grades 9-12.

Winners received a medal and the winners' schools received a plaque.

We competed in the second and third divisions of the competition. The first place winners of the second division were Michael Scheer and Tahirah Abdul-Qadir, from the Syracuse Academy of Science. In the third division, the third place winners were Umesh and Lalita Dahal, from the Syracuse Academy of Science.

CNY Steamboat Challenge is organized by the Central New York Chapter of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) and sponsored by the MOST and OBG. Support is provided by Lockheed Martin, NASA, Syracuse University's College of Engineering and Computer Science, the Technology Alliance of Central New York (TACNY), and Carrier.

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Click here to see pictures of Steamboat Challenge by The MOST

On Monday October 9^th, 2017, SAS juniors and Seniors joined a field trip to SRCTec during the "Manufacturer Career Day". They had a chance to visit the SRCTec facility and observe different career groups who are working as a part of Manufacturer Careers. Every students was able to listen to 5 different professionals from different careers and observe what they do. They have expressed their joy seeing what people are doing and how it helped shaping their goals. Event was concluded with a few short speeches from the directors and some treats. 

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On Tuesday October 10^th, 2017, SAS Kindergarteners in Room K-A, with their teachers Mrs. Garza and Mr. Skemaker, talk about the importance of kindness with Mr. Alamin Muhammad, founder of We Rise Above the Streets Recovery Outreach, Inc., a nonprofit organization serving the homeless in Syracuse. Putting concern for others into action, the children made bagged lunches for the homeless that included turkey sandwiches and paper hearts made by hand. Lunches are distributed each Saturday, and this batch is made with extra special care and attention.

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 Click here to view photos of the event