Santa Fe Prep is offering a week-long summer camp, the Wright Stuff, for 5th, 6th and 7th grade students.  Under the guidance of middle school science teacher and pilot Jim Heidenberger, students will build and fly model rockets, airplanes, and hot air balloons, and explore paragliding, air traffic control and navigation.

Sessions are July 26th - 30th or August 2nd - 6th, from 8:30 am to 3:00 pm daily.  Cost is $300 and includes all materials and lunch.  Register online or contact the School at 982-1829 for more information.

Breakthrough Santa Fe got underway for its 7th summer last week with 55 middle school students, eight high school interns and 16 teachers.  Breakthrough is a tuition-free program in which talented high school and college students teach under-served middle school students with limited educational opportunities the academic, organizational and social skills they will need to succeed in competitive high schools and go on to college.

The students will spend six weeks on Prep’s campus in small learning environments brushing up on science, English, math and history.  They’ll have a chance to learn about career opportunities from artists, lawyers, doctors and other professionals, visit downtown art galleries and head to the beautiful Jemez mountains for camping and experiential education.

Once the summer academic intensive is complete, middle school students will continue to receive support during the school year through weekly tutoring provided by Prep students.  High school Breakthrough students get help with selecting courses, after-school tutoring, and with the college admissions process.

Breakthrough Santa Fe graduated its first class this past May, with 19 of the original 23 students still involved with the program.  All 19 are headed to colleges and universities, many the first in their families to pursue a higher education.

French, Latin, Mandarin and Tewa will be available next year as tutorials for motivated students interested in studying additional languages.  These tutorials will meet during lunch twice every six-day rotation cycle, and students will work at their own level and speed under the guidance of a teacher.  Class time will be devoted to oral practice and clarification of grammar and usage, with students doing much of their work on their own, outside of class. 

Tutorials will be graded on a pass/fail basis and appear on student transcripts, but will not fulfill solid or elective credit or graduation requirements, and do not replace the Spanish language requirement. 

Prep’s language program is designed to create both cultural and functional literacy.  Seventh graders are introduced to the study of language and culture with Latin, the basic building block of English and Romance languages.  Eighth graders then begin a three-year course of study in Spanish with a goal of achieving functional literacy.  Juniors and seniors may choose to continue on in Spanish, or they can choose from a series of rotating language and culture electives--Arabic, Mandarin, Italian, French, etc.--to gain exposure to other languages and cultures that hopefully whets their appetites for further language study, in college and beyond.

Prep parent and renowned author Hampton Sides will talk about the writing of his new book, “Hellhound on His Trail - The Stalking of Martin Luther King and the International Manhunt for his Assassin,” this Thursday, May 27th, in the Prep library from 5 to 6:30 pm.  Copies of “Hellhound” will be available for purchase at the event, courtesy of Garcia Street Books, and Sides will sign copies following the discussion.  A portion of the evening’s book sales will be donated to Prep.

The artwork of some 30 Santa Fe Prep student artists will be on display for one night only this Friday, May 21st, from 4 to 7 pm at Fine Art for Children and Teens (F.A.C.T.).

“This is Your Brain on Art” is a multimedia exhibit curated by Prep seniors Emma Gavin, Madeleine Blake and Maura Milder as their senior internship project.  The girls are hoping to create an accepting and constructive environment for art students, and provide an opportunity for the public to see the work of emerging young artists.

The exhibit features photographs, pottery, stained glass, paintings, drawings and sculptures, and was done in collaboration with F.A.C.T., a non-profit organization that uses the arts to help young people gain fundamental academic and social skills.  F.A.C.T. is located at 1516 Pacheco Street, Santa Fe.

Prep’s annual rummage sale gets underway this weekend, and our storage space is overflowing with great rummage items, from designer clothing to electronics to books, art and other treasures.

There is an adults-only preview sale and reception on Friday, May 21st, from 7 - 9 pm.  Tickets are $10 at the door and the price includes refreshments.  The sale itself runs from 8 am to 2 pm, Saturday, May 22nd.  Sale organizers are still accepting items, and they can be dropped off at school Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, May 19th - 21st, from 8 am to 4 pm.  Proceeds from the annual fundraiser benefit the activities of Prep’s Parents’ Association, including tuition assistance.

Prep’s Middle School Musical Theater Class takes to the stage this Saturday and Sunday with two performances of “Willy Wonka Junior.” The play, based on Road Dahl’s book “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” opens Saturday, May 15th at 7:30 pm and continues Sunday, May 16th at 5:00 pm.  Both performances will be held in the School’s Driscoll Auditorium.  Tickets are $3 at the door.  For more information, contact the front office at 505-982-1829.

The decisions just got tougher for students registering for next year’s courses.  Among the new courses announced for the 2010-2011 school year are a robotics class taught by upper school science teacher Rob Madril, and an Italian language and culture course taught by Latin teacher Carla Westen that will involve not only conversational language skills but a few lessons on Italian cooking.

According to Kendel Fesenmyer, Prep’s director of studies, students have more than 40 electives to choose from to round out their core class requirements.  Other electives being offered next year include Poetry and Songwriting, Flash Animation for Fun and the Web, Anthropology, Stained Glass, Advanced Studio Photography and Advanced Drama.

If you’re a rising 5th, 6th or 7th-grade student in the Santa Fe area, join us this summer for our flight themed make-and-take program and and have a blast!  Prep science teacher and pilot Jim Heidenberger will explore the science of flight, aerodynamics, rocketry, ballooning, navigation and paragliding.  Students will work individually and in groups to make model airplanes, rockets and a hot air balloon, and will learn about paragliding by “kiting the wing” on the Prep field.

The one-week program will be offered twice:  July 26th - 30th and August 2nd - 6th.  The program runs each day from 8:30 am to 3:00 pm.  Cost is $300 for the week, which includes lunch and supplies.  To enroll, contact or complete the online application.  Deadline to register is May 14th. 

Prep’s Sapphires dance team took the state championship in division A-AA over the weekend, competing against three other teams for the title.  This is the first time the Sapphires have captured a state crown.  Teams competed in the required pom category on Friday evening, and finished Saturday with lyrical jazz performances.

Dance is offered as a team sport option at Prep.  Next year, spirit (dance, drill and cheer) will become a recognized sport with the New Mexico Activities Association, the organization that regulates and supervises interscholastic activities in New Mexico.