Alberici, Steele, Mitroka top finishers
Last month, students from West Point Middle School competed in the school’s 6th annual Speech Contest. This year’s topic asked, “Should Standardized Testing Be Abolished?”
The contest was open to all students’ grades 6-8. Finalists competed in a virtual school-wide competition.
The winners are;
1st place – Isabella Alberici
2nd place – Colin Steele
3rd place – Kaelyn Mitroka
Finalists: Kiera Crowell, Katelynn Finocchiaro, Dylan Jackson and Ines Nunez
Chad Haley, an O’Neill High School freshman, served as the speech contest’s coordinator and worked hand in hand with Dania Gallagher, a WPMS teacher, to ensure a successful competition.
Chad is the brother of Maggie Haley, who founded the competition in 2016.
“A huge thank you to this year’s judges who represented the USMA, West Point Community, and Highland Falls/Fort Montgomery Community: Mrs. Amy Marson, Mrs. Jill Mitchell, and O’Neill Principal Debbie Brand,” Haley said. “Thank you to the West Point Spouse’s Club for awarding a grant to fund trophies for three more years of speech contests! As always, special thanks to the WPMS staff and PTO for their support and money contributed for prizes and certificates.”
Due to the pandemic, last year’s competition was organized a bit differently with no judges or winners. Emme Richards, an O’Neill alumnus, took the lead in coordinating the virtual event, where the entire student body was invited to submit a video or slide with a piece of art, writing, picture or song that highlighted the theme of, “Finding Perspective and Hope in a Pandemic.”
The final product celebrated the perseverance and resiliency of all WPMS students as “Bulldog Strong!”
