2 0 1 6 - 2 0 1 7 : N O VEM BER ED ITIO NT H E K N I GH T LY N EW S

2016 President ial Elect ion: A Countr y

Divided by George Ashji and Jim m y Alam ia

Elector al votes are the ones that real ly m atter . W i th a total of 290 elector al votes on the Republ ican side and 232 on the D em ocr at ic, D onald Tr um p took the w in f ar ther than he needed to, r each ing m ore than the m in im al of 270 . Al though Cl in ton had m ore popular or d i rect vote, Tr um p st i l l won and now presides as Presiden t Elect Tr um p.

Cl in ton won the popular vote by just about a m i l l ion . Accord ing to CN N , she had approx im ately 62,0 0 0 ,0 0 0 votes for wh i le Tr um p had 61,0 0 0 ,0 0 0 votes. H e won around 47% of the popular vote; H i l lar y Cl in ton won 48% of the popular vote.

T he Elector al Col lege gets peop le wonder ing i f the popular vote real ly m atter s. W hy do we cast popular votes i f elector s are the ones who are real ly choosing the Presiden t?

T he reason that the Const i tu t ion cal ls for the Elector al Col lege and does not use popular vote is because the founder s of the U.S.A. were actual ly af r aid of uneducated voter s; they were af r aid that a bad choice would be elected .

W hat do you th ink of the system ? I s the Elector al Col lege as ef f i cien t as the founder s though t or i s i t unnecessar y?

M ost of the world was expecting a different outcome out of the recent 2016 Presidential Election. H illary Clinton, Democratic, and Donald Trump, Republican, fought a fierce battle to get to the Oval Office.

Bu i l der 's Clu b

By : L ogan Josep h SabolD o you wan t to m ake a

d i f ference in your school? A d i f ference in the wor ld? W el l , i t can happen w i th the Bui lder s Club.

T he Bui lder s Club is a club for al l 7th and 8th gr ader s al i ke who wan t to do good. I t focuses on bu i ld ing leader sh ip , car ing for other s, and giv ing back to the com m un i ty. I t i s lead by M r s. Corcor an and M r s. Solar i . T h is club ach ieves th is by or gan izing donat ions, p rojects, f undr aiser s and other posi t ive even ts. W e also m ake poster s for our f undr aiser s to f ur ther show the school our cause. T he club usual ly m eets on Tuesdays af ter school , and i f you wan t, br ing a f r iend! W e som etim es help out the Studen t Counci l to do even ts l i ke Socktober, a f undr aiser to help give to the hom eless. W e?ve reached around over 220 donat ions per gr ade! T hat?s a lot of help . W e also are now doing a T hanksgiv ing Food D r ive, br ing al l i tem s necessar y to help those less for tunate than us. Are you ready to bu i ld your char acter and lend a help ing hand? Join Bu i lder s Club!

Scien ce, Tech n ology, En gin eer i n g, an d M ath em at i cs: S.T .E.M

By : K at i e Sh awStem Clu b i s where you engineer str uctures in

order to solve p roblem s. S.T .E.M . stands for science, technology, engineer ing, and m ath . T hese aspects are im p lem en ted to solve ever yday p roblem s in the real wor ld .

T he S.T .E.M . Club is r un by M s. Sweeney, a new teacher here at W est Essex who also teaches the S.T .E.M . cour se. M s. Sweeney is one of the few peop le who have received a S.T .E.M . degree when she gr aduated col lege. S.T .E.M . i s usefu l because i t teaches us how to th ink , r eason , calcu late, r esearch , wor k together , chal lenge our selves, and exp lore creat ion ideas. O n top of that , i t?s f un !

Ever y day of the S.T .E.M . Club br ings on a new chal lenge. Som etim es, we have f r iend ly com pet i t ion to test the str uctures that we?ve bu i l t . W e have access tools, such as band saws, ham m er s, kn ives, and m ore that we have to have caut ion w i th . To p rotect our selves, we use goggles and gloves when we wor k wh i le m ain tain ing a focused m indset.

O ne of the p rojects we p lan on doing is to create a str ucture out of r ecycled m ater ials that w i l l al low a single m ar ble to m ove down a set of stai r s. Al l of the S.T .E.M . studen ts w i l l put thei r str uctures on d i f feren t stai r s and drop down a single m ar ble. T he object ive of th is act iv i ty i s to see i f we can get the m ar ble down each str ucture to the last stai r .

M s. Sweeney is also p lann ing to conver t the S.T .E.M . Club in to a com pet i t ive club by involv ing the club w i th the Technology Studen ts Associat ion . M s. Sweeney hopes that the S.T .E.M . Club w i l l com pete in a spr ing com pet i t ion against other schools soon .

S.T .E.M . class is one of the four cycles that you do i f you?re not doing band, chor us, or orchestr a. T he S.T .E.M . class is also led by M s. Sweeney. Just l i ke in S.T .E.M . Club, you are gr aded by the str uctures you bu i ld to solve a p roblem . I n S.T .E.M . class, studen ts are cur ren t ly wor k ing on design ing and creat ing a scu lp ture m ade out of foam . M s. Sweeney?s S.T .E.M . class is also going to wor k on creat ing a veh icle that can w i thstand a cr ash in to a cem en t wal l . T here is an egg inside the veh icle that w i l l have to stay safe. T he studen ts in M s. Sweeney?s class w i l l be wor k ing w i th and lear n ing about m agnets and CO 2. I f you?re in terested in S.T .E.M ., then you should def in i tely consider jo in ing next year ; keep look ing in to the oppor tun i t ies W est Essex of fer s!

EXTRA-CURRICULARS

T h e Stu den t Cou n ci l L i f e

By : A b igai l H aen ggiStuden t Counci l i s a club

at W est Essex M idd le School . W hen a new school year begins, recr u i ts com e and qual i f y to becom e m em ber s, and each year the p rev ious 7th gr ade represen tat ives m ove up to an 8th gr ade spot. To be elected , you m ust p repare a speech for your en t i r e gr ade. T h is year ?s 8th gr ade studen ts p resen ted thei r speeches in 7th gr ade. T hose peop le are now in Studen t Counci l l i ke Joe Fano, I sabel la Sm i th , and L ea Bachenheim er. Studen t Counci l used to be in the wonder fu l hands of M r s. M aus-Colucci and M r s. Br am hal l ; now, the Studen t Counci l i s super v ised M r s. Riker and M r. Fer r ar a.

T h is year Studen t Counci l i s exper im en t ing w i th m any new ideas. L ast year ?s requ i rem en ts involved studen t signatures and an essay ; now, becom ing involved is easier than ever . T h is year we have an 8th gr ade execut ive board , and each hom eroom in the school has a represen tat ive that needs to at tend each m eet ing. I f you wan ted to be a hom eroom represen tat ive and you d idn?t becom e one, you st i l l have the chance to com e out to the m eet ings and help out. Studen t Counci l has open ar m s to those who would love to im prove our school and expand our studen t par t i cipat ion .

Look ing Forward!:

Im por t ant Event s t o Mark On Your Calendar

N ovem ber14-22: T hanksgiv ing Food D r ive

14: M P2 Begins

23: H alf D ay - D ism issal at 12:17 PM

24-25: T hanksgiv ing Recess - N o School

D ecem ber7-20 : Jer sey Cares Coat D r ive

8: W in ter Band Concer t - Com e out to see the band per for m thei r w in ter song select ions! Star ts at 7:0 0 PM .

12: 8th Gr ade Field Tr ip to Ber gen Per for m ing Ar ts Cen ter

13: W in ter O rchestr a Concer t - Com e out to see the orchestr a per for m thei r w in ter song select ions! T he concer t star ts at 7:0 0 PM .

13: M P2 Progress Repor ts Com e O ut

15: Ryan?s Stor y - An An t i -Bu l ly ing Presen tat ion

23: H alf D ay - D ism issal at 12:17 PM

26-31: W in ter Recess - N o School

M usic Around the W or ld W r i t ten by Ju l ia Z hang

I n ter nat ional M usic D ay, celebr ated on O ctober 1st , ser ves to connect peop le of d i f feren t cu l tures and f ind har m ony in th is long- last ing for m of ar t . W h i le there m ay be m any gen res of m usic that you m ay recogn ize, there are st i l l so m any out there that you m ay have never heard of , m uch less l i sten to. -

Pop m u si c. Pop m usic, or popular m usic, i s a gen re that consists of songs that are on the trend today. T here is no speci f i c m usic sty le, as each gener at ion has thei r own prefer red for m of pop . I t i s usual ly consisted of m ul t ip le other m usical gen res, such as coun tr y, dance, rock , and ur ban . Foreign pop m usic, such as k-pop and j-pop , i s also gett ing m ore and m ore popular , as peop le have m ore access to other sources. Som e popular ar t i sts today include Just in Bieber, Adele, D r ake, and Katy Per r y.

Rock . Rock and rol l or iginated in the ?50 s, and was popular in the late 20 th Cen tur y. I t 's m usic i s m ost ly cen tered on the electr i c gu i tar . Rock bands are com m on , usual ly consist ing of a lead singer, one or sever al gu i tar ists, a keyboard p layer , and a dr um m er. Speci f ied gen res of r ock m usic include punk rock and heavy m etal . W el l - known ar t i sts include Avr i l L av igne and T he Scr ip t .

Folk m u si c. T h is is p ret ty m uch tr ad i t ional m usic, usual ly r ur al m usic that or iginated f rom a cer tain area. T h is sty le includes sever al d ist inct char acter ist i cs that m ake i t qu i te d i f feren t f r om other sty les. N or m al ly, nobody knows who com posed the p iece, but i t i s so wel l - known that i t has passed th rough the gener at ions. Foreign instr um en ts are used, l i ke accord ions, the Af r ican kora, and the pan f lu te.

H ip h op m u si c. Also w idely known as r ap m usic, th is type of gen re is also a for m of pop m usic, as wel l as a for m of h ip hop cu l ture. I t?s a sty le of m usic that includes r app ing, wh ich is sim i lar to chan t ing a r hy thm ic speech , and som etim es beatboxing. Som e accom pl ished ar t i sts include Kanye W est, Em inem , and D r ake.

Classi cal m u si c. Classical m usic has been in the wor ld for cen tur ies. T he Classical Per iod took p lace f rom 1750 -1820 , but i t began as f ar back as 10 0 0 A.D . and st i l l ex ists today. O r iginat ing in Europe, th is type of m usic i s usual ly p layed by a sor t of instr um en tal sym phony, such as a band or orchestr a. M ul t ip le instr um en ts are used, r anging f rom som eth ing as sm al l as the p iccolo to som eth ing as big as the double bass. W el l - known classical m usic com poser s include Johann Sebast ian Bach , W olfgang Am adeus M ozar t , and L udw ig Van Beethoven .

Jazz. Jazz m usic em er ged in the late 180 0 s to the ear ly 190 0 s. T h is gen re is iden t i f ied by i ts use of im prov isat ion , where p layer s m ake up m usic on the spot, and sw ing notes. Professional jazz m usic has been p layed in bands consist ing of the instr um en ts l i ke the dr um s, saxophone, t r om bone, and tr um pet, as wel l as the electr i c bass. Fam ous jazz ar t i sts include L ou is Ar m strong, D uke El l ington , and Fr ank Sinatr a.

So, whenever you have the f ree t im e, you can always tr y l i sten ing to d i f feren t gen res of m usic, and appreciate the d iver si ty of m usic in the wor ld today.

PAST LOCAL UPDATES

Sep tem ber N ew sby Ad r i an n a L oBasso

L ocal N ew s f or th e W eek of th e 12th :

T he Fai r f ield gi r ls' f i f th and six th gr ade soccer team , the Tor natores, wen t undefeated th is season . T he f inal score for the season was 13 - 0 . T he team consists of Ju l iana Tor natore, Gianna Capasso, Jessica Fi l l ipp in i , H al le Aschencach , Jessica M oresco, M ichaele Baccaro, I sabel la H i ter , N eena M eh ta, O l iv ia D ?Ach i l le, and Cai t lyn M cM anus; not to for get, thei r coaches, Bob Fi l ipp in i and An thony Tor natore. T he Tor natores won against Roseland and N or th Caldwel l in the p layof f s, and defeated the other Fai r f ield team in the cham pionsh ip gam e.

Fai r f ield just got two new pol ice of f i cer s. T he town m ayor, Jam es Gaspar in i , swore in Fr ank Pat ier no and D an iel M or gan on Septem ber 12th . T he Pol ice Ch ief thanked the m ayor for h i r ing before other of f i cer s ret i r e, so the t r ansi t ion goes m ore sm ooth ly.

L ocal N ew s f or th e W eek of th e 28th :

T he W est Essex f reshm an vol leybal l team is undefeated. T hey star ted of f thei r season 3 - 0 . L ead by thei r coach , K i r a M aier , they have beat Ken t Place, Bloom f ield , and M or r is Cathol ic H igh School .

Rew in d f or 8th Gr ader sBy K n igh t ly N ew s Staf f

Seven th gr ade was a great school year . T he teacher s were great and m any exci t ing even ts happened dur ing that year . Star t ing out, we had a f ield t r ip to Fai r v iew lakes. W e lear ned a lot f r om that exper ience and we actual ly spen t t im e outside for a change. Field t r ips are not the on ly th ings that were f un about our 7th gr ade year.

T he teacher s were a big par t in m ak ing the school year easy for the studen ts and that i s one th ing that I loved about 7th gr ade. I was extrem ely scared at the beginn ing of the year ; however, i t was easier than I though t and the school year wen t by f aster than I though t i t would be. I th ink that dur ing the school year , I lear ned m ore than any other gr ade wh ich shows how im por tan t 7th gr ade can be. Ever yone im proved in m ore than one way and i t was al l because of the teacher s and how wel l they wor ked w i th the studen ts.

Extr a-cur r icu lar act iv i t ies were a big par t of 7th gr ade. M ost of the peop le who stayed af ter school for clubs were 8th gr ader s because we were scared of ever y th ing last year . T hat has changed and th is year . N ow i t i s our job to encour age the 7th gr ader s so they can reach thei r f u l l poten t ial . T hat i s al l because the school real ly cares about our educat ion . N ot al l of the other schools have as m uch act iv i t ies that we do and th is i s on ly the m idd le school .

W e were lucky enough to have m any extr a-cur r icu lar act iv i t ies. Jazz Ensem ble, M athCoun ts, Rogate (gi f ted and talen ted), and Random Acts of k indness were on ly som e of the clubs that m ade our 7th gr ade year per fect . Al l that m ade the 7th gr ade year t r em endous and I hope that the studen ts w i l l feel the sam e way about th is year .

W e had a lot of band, chor us, and orchestr a concer ts and they were a big par t of the year. T hey taugh t us (the new 7th gr ader s) how to actual ly behave for once. W e also had som e of the best spor ts team s but I th ink that we have better team s th is year . Another great exper ience was the m usic depar tm en t going to D or ney Par k . T hat was one of the best f ield t r ips I have ever gone on . Even though i t was r ain ing and we cou ld not go to D or ney Par k , th ings tur ned around. Af ter we wen t bowl ing, the r ain stopped so we were able to leave for D or ney Par k .

Al l of th is shows that the 20 15-20 16 year was a real ly im por tan t year that changed us (the 7th gr ader s). T hat year m ade us m ore pol i te and behaved 7th gr ader s. I t m ade us studen ts that can be role m odels for the 7th gr ader s when we are in 8th gr ade. T he year has m ade us better peop le.

Pick Up the Pace: Ten T ips for Success

By Kn igh t ly N ews Staf f

H ave a hom e base: a club, spor t , or any af ter school act iv i ty that you can go to that m akes you feel l i ke you. T his home base should not be the bathroom where you meet with your posse after period four.

Say ?h i? to ever yone in the hal l . Just a qu ick ?hel lo? should do the tr i ck .

Get to know ever yone in your classes. Ever yone deser ves the chance to get to know you. M ake a new f r iend!

D on?t f al l beh ind , especial ly in m ath . Get extr a help im m ediately i f necessar y. T he far ther you fal l beh ind , the harder i t i s to catch back up . Teacher s are avai lable af ter school un t i l 3 o?clock , and w i l l stay later to help you. M ake an ?appoin tm en t? and you?ve got your schoolwor k in the bag.

Know what to watch out for . T he last th ing you wan t to do is get caugh t up in d r am a (un less you l i ke to gossip). Stay out of the petty conver sat ions ? they?re not wor th i t .

Chal lenge your sel f . D o a l i t t le bi t m ore than what?s expected. M ost peop le would say ?no,? but doing a l i t t le m ore can?t hur t , i t m ay even boost that sad GPA. H onest ly, i t?s up to you.

Know your sur round ings. I n the hal ls, don?t be the one to weave around crowds of studen ts. Be the one to avoid the peop le who do.

Set a goal . For exam ple. last year you received a 90 percen t in Span ish , and you wan t to bum p i t up to 91 percen t th is year . Any th ing sm al l coun ts. Just be speci f i c.

H ave a rel iable f r iend group or ?hom ewor k crew.? Gather up som e peop le you relate to when i t com es to m ath , Engl ish , science, etc. and help each other w i th hom ewor k and quest ions ever yone m igh t have. I t wor ks n icely. Real ly.

M istakes get you far ther f r om per fect ion . T hat one B won?t k i l l you. L et go of i t and im prove the next t im e. Just don?t repeat the sam e m istake.

Studen ts of the M on th for O CT O BER

Team 7A Jon ath an D in g

Jonathan is an is inqu isi t ive, though tfu l , and d i l igen t studen t who goes above and beyond what i s expected of h im . H is peer relat ionsh ips are bu i l t on respect and he is seen as a leader in the classroom . H e  i s extrem ely p roact ive and wan ts to f u l ly under stand what i s expected of h im so that he can be successfu l . Jonathan is great role m odel for h is peer s because of h is k ind nature and com m i tm en t to being the best he can be. Jonathan is joy to have in class.  

Team 7B T ian a Pr im en tel

T iana has m ade an extrem ely rem ar kable and seam less tr ansi t ion in to the W est Essex M idd le School . O n a dai ly basis, she exh ibi ts exem plar y social sk i l ls, leader sh ip , and always rem ains on task . She wor ks sign i f i can t ly wel l w i th her peer s and is al ready gett ing involved in her school com m un i ty. O ver al l , she does ever y th ing w i th a genuine and posi t ive at t i tude that i s con tagious to ever yone around her .

Team 7C D on n ie L on g

D onn ie is a m ature, cooper at ive, and sel f -m ot ivated studen t who has successfu l ly t r ansi t ioned to 7th gr ade. H is teacher s en joy h is con tr ibut ions to class d iscussions, h is at ten t ion to detai ls and classwor k , and h is abi l i ty to wor k wel l w i th other s. D onn ie is consisten t ly respectfu l to al l and is a posi t ive role m odel for h is peer s.

Team 8A Ch r i s Rysz

Chr is i s an en thusiast ic studen t who br ings ener gy to the classroom w i th h is f r equen t par t i cipat ion . H e is always wel l -p repared and w i l l ing to help h is peer s. Ch r is?s teacher s en joy hav ing h im in class and appreciate h is char ism a.

Team 8B Sam u el Goldstei n

Sam Goldstein i s a great k id , who par t i cipates w i th en thusiasm , and relates wel l w i th h is fel low studen ts. Sam is ded icated , sel f m ot ivated , and conscien t ious.  Sam is outgoing, f r iend ly, f unny, and wel l l i ke by teacher s and peer s.

Team 8C Ky l i e O ?Con n or

Ky l ie i s a joy to have in the classroom . She consisten t ly d isp lays the v i r tues of an excel len t studen t. She is a d i l igen t, a car ing, and an engaging studen t who wor ks ver y hard in and out of the classroom . Ky l ie i s a m odel for al l studen ts at W est Essex M idd le School on how hard wor k t r u ly pays of f .

KEEPING UP WITH SCHOOL

Studen ts of the M on th for N ovem ber

Team 7A Car ly I acu l l o

Car ly has tr ansi t ioned to W est Essex M idd le School seam lessly. She is incred ibly sweet and respectfu l to both her peer s and teacher s. She par t i cipates in class and is always on task and focused. She not on ly wor ks wel l ind iv idual ly but she sel f lessly col labor ates wel l w i th her peer s. She is m ature beyond her year s and exh ibi ts excel len t leader sh ip qual i t ies. I t?s clear that Car ly takes her academ ics ser iously wh i le m ain tain ing a wel l -balanced schedule, par t i cipat ing in f ield hockey and school even ts. Car ly has an incred ibly br igh t f u ture ahead of her and we are p roud to have her as a studen t here at W est Essex.

Team 7B Ger r y Cr u m

Ger r y has dem onstr ated so m any posi t ive qual i t ies that m ake h im a super ior cand idate for studen t of the m on th . H e wor ks sign i f i -can t ly wel l in groups, has great leader sh ip qual i t ies, and acts as a posi t ive role m odel to h is peer s. Ger r y i s one of the m ost posi t ive, happy, ener get ic, and op t im ist i c studen ts in the 7th gr ade.  O n a dai ly basis Ger r y i s extrem ely respectfu l of both h is classm ates and teacher s, m ak ing h im an absolu te p leasure to have in class.

Team 7C K ate Fi sh bon e

Kate consisten t ly dem onstr ates al l the qual i t ies of a successfu l lear ner who always puts for th her best ef for ts. She faci l i tates in p rojects, th inks cr i t i cal ly, and takes in i t iat ive. She is respectfu l , cooper at ive, d i l igen t and an incred ible role m odel for other studen ts.

Team 8A Fel i ci a L i ch ten stei n

Fel icia i s a phenom enal studen t who is f ar beyond her m idd le school year s. W hether in wr i t ing or d iscussion Fel icia?s responses are always though tfu l , insigh tf u l , and ar t i cu late. She shows k indness and posi t ive leader sh ip whenever wor k ing w i th her peer s. W e are con f iden t that Fel icia w i l l m eet w i th great success th roughout her educat ional career and beyond!

Team 8B A b i gai l Kel l er

Abby is a ded icated studen t. She is always on task , conscien t ious and goes above and beyond ever yday. She is f r iend ly, posi t ive, r espectfu l and engaged in class instr uct ion .  H er f u ture is br igh t because she has the recipe for success!

Team 8C D on n i e Tedesco

D onn ie consisten t ly has p roven h im sel f as a conscien t ious studen t and a young m an of h igh in tegr i ty. H e leads in and out of the classroom in both word and in deed. H e is always ask ing p robing quest ions, and he assists and suppor ts h is fel low classm ates. H e is a joy to have in class.

T h e Peop le You M eetBy Emma Gracen

I n a p lace w i th so m uch d iver si ty as N ew Jer sey, you?re bound to f ind m any d i f feren t types of peop le: som e n ice, som e m ean , som e scar y, and som e that are just p lain annoy ing. But no m atter where you go, you w i l l always f ind f r iends.

Ever yone has that one annoy ing f r iend that?s real ly cl ingy, or that one annoy ing f r iend that won?t stop br agging, or that one annoy ing f r iend that w i l l on ly talk about h im sel f .

Ever yone has that one k ind f r iend who would d i tch ever y th ing they?re doing to com e help you w i th your hom ewor k and/ or em ot ional i ssues. O r that one k ind f r iend who would buy you ice-cream and hug you ever y t im e you?re down . O r that one k ind f r iend who just under stands what you?re t r y ing to say w i thout even talk ing.

T he th ing is, even w i th al l the annoy ing f r iends that peop le have to deal w i th , the k ind f r iends m ake f r iendsh ip wor th i t . H aving a f r iendsh ip m akes your l i fe special and p leasur able, and you being a f r iend m akes som eone else's l i fe special too.

Fal l T reats by M elan ie O 'Bei r ne

I know for m ost peop le, thei r f avor i te th ings to do th roughout the f al l season are tak ing advan tage of the ch i l ly ai r , p ick ing f resh pum pkins, and bak ing. I ?ve p icked out a few m ust- t r y f al l r ecipes, and hopefu l ly you w i l l jo in your f am i ly or f r iends in the k i tchen and at tem pt to m ake these scr um pt ious t reats.

T he f i r st r ecipe is a classic pum pkin sp ice cupcake w i th cream cheese f rost ing. To star t , you w i l l need to p reheat your oven to 350 degrees Fah renhei t and p rep your cupcake pan by p lacing l iner s in i t . Beat the bak ing m ix, pum pkin puree, wh i te sugar, brown sugar, eggs, butter , m i lk , and pum pkin p ie sp ice in an electr i c m ixer on low un t i l i t?s m ixed. Af ter , p lace the batter in to the cupcake pan you p repared ear l ier . Bake for 20 -30 m inutes, and let cool com pletely. T hen beat the cream cheese and butter in your electr i c m ixer un t i l sm ooth , and add 2 cups of con fect ioner ?s sugar as wel l as the van i l la extr act . W hen these last two ingred ien ts are thorough ly incor por ated , tur n your m ixer on h igh un t i l the f rost ing is f lu f f y. Final ly, add the last of the con fect ioner ?s sugar and put your m ixer on m ed ium speed. W hen al l of th is i s done, f r ost your cupcakes and you?re done! En joy these seasonal cupcakes.

T he f inal r ecipe that I p icked is a per sonal f avor i te of m ine, and that i s a pum pkin seed recipe. T h is i s especial ly f un to do w i th f r iends as an autum n act iv i ty ; however, you?re not going to wan t to share the f inal p roduct. Fi r st , p reheat your oven to 30 0 degrees Fah renhei t . Star t wash ing a pum pkin and cut i t in hal f . For the next step , I f ind that an ice cream scoop wor ks best to get out the gooey insides of the pum pkin . O nce th is step is com plete, you wan t to p ick th rough the pu lp and pu l l out the pum pkin seeds. Place the seeds in to a colander and r inse them un t i l they?re clean . Af ter wards, sp read the seeds out on an oi led bak ing sheet and roast them for 30 m inutes. W hen the seeds com e out of the oven , you can season them w i th whatever sp ices you desi re. Per sonal ly, I just toss them in som e sal t and chow down .

Cu p cakes: 3 cups bak ing m ix (such as Bisqu ick ® )

1 (15 ounce) can pum pkin puree

1 cup wh i te sugar

1 cup brown sugar

4 eggs

1/ 4 cup butter , sof tened

1/ 4 cup m i lk

2 teaspoons pum pkin p ie sp ice

Cr eam Ch eese Fr ost i n g: 1/ 2 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, sof tened

1/ 2 cup butter , sof tened

4 1/ 2 cups con fect ioner s' sugar, d iv ided

2 teaspoons van i l la extr act

Recipe Courtesy of Food Network Kitchen. "Pumpkin Seeds : Food Network Kitchen : Food Network." Pumpkin Seeds Recipe : Food Network Kitchen : Food Network. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Oct. 2016.

Stephanyss. "Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe." Allrecipes. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Oct. 2016.

Repeat After Me

by Jack Sceppaguercio

A Special Thanks to The Knightly News Staff:

Editors: Jimmy Alamia, Angelina Monaco, George Ashji, Mar issa Candido, Ms. M. Croce, and Mr. J. Massa

Layout Designers: Jimmy Alamia and George Ashji

Columnists, Wr iter s, and Ar tists: A. Haenggi, A. LoBasso, E. Shaw, E. Gracen, J. Sceppaguercio, J. Zhang, K. Shaw, L. Bachenheimer, J. Alamia, G. Ashji, L. Sabol, M. Candido, & M. O'Beirne

M aking theW or ld a BetterPlaceBy Adr ianna L oBasso

M iss Croce, a W est Essex Engl ish teacher, r aised m oney and par t i cipated in a 5K Run for the Valer ie Foundat ion , an or gan izat ion ded icated to giv ing m ed ial assistance toward those str i cken w i th cancer. Croce and her team of 99 m em ber s took 1st p lace for the m ost par t i cipan ts on a team and the m ost m oney donated. Al l together they r aised over $10 ,0 0 0 beat ing thei r or iginal goal of $1,50 0 .

Croce had been p lann ing the r un since M arch , and before the even t even star ted , she m anaged to r aise $1,50 0 . At f i r st , M iss Croce was on ly able to r aise a few hundred dol lar s, and i t saddened her that she cou ldn?t con tr ibute m ore to th is wor thy cause. ?Any t im e you hear of a ch i ld that?s sick , i t?s hear tbreak ing," Croce said . O n Septem ber 20 th , M iss Croce was in ter v iewed on a r ad io show to spread the news of the even t; th is in ter v iew helped her r aise m ore m oney and go beyond her expectat ions. T-sh i r ts were even ded icated by her f am i ly f r iend.

Jack, who was d iagnosed w i th L eukem ia at the t im e, was M iss Croce?s insp i r at ion for p lann ing the f undr aiser . Because of h im , coun t less other l i ves were im pacted.

T he r ace took p lace on Septem ber 25, 20 16,; i t was the or gan izat ion 's th i r d annual r ace. But, i t was Croce's f i r st t im e par t i cipat ing. Un for tunately, Jack passed away in August at the young age of 12 and was unable to see how h is stor y changed the l ives of so m any. Yet he w i l l always stay in the hear ts of those you knew h im and to those who r an in h is honor.

M iss Croce has also wor ked w i th the A.N .A.D . (T he N at ional Associat ion of Anorex ia N er vosa and Associated D isorder s), and has m ade i t her p r ior i ty to focus on the or gan izat ion and what she can do to help . ?L ots of gi r ls and boys str uggle w i th sel f con f idence? M iss Croce said . She hopes to wor k w i th other associat ions in the f u ture, but r igh t now she says her at ten t ion is on the Valer ie Foundat ion , wh ich holds a special p lace in her hear t .