Clinton Baseball Eyes Playoffs

(Photo by Adi Talwar) Clinton’s baseball team needs to overcome inconsistency to make a run in the city playoffs.Coming into the home stretch of a season filled with inconsistency, not just weather-wise, but with the team’s play as well, the talented DeWitt Clinton High School varsity baseball team is looking to secure a playoff berth in the PSAL Championship.

Making Reading Fun, One T.I.G.E.R. Day at a Time

About halfway through his pivotal starring role as a life-sized, book-loving tiger at Norwood elementary school PS 94, Joe Lawliss removed his foam-rubber mascot head and breathed deeply. It’s all worth it, he thought. Lawliss runs an after-school tutoring program at PS 94. He has two kids of his own. He realizes how important reading is for the development of young minds. It’s the reason he doesn’t have a TV at home and is willing to dress up in a cumbersome tiger costume that makes him feel like he’s living in a sauna. It’s why he will spend the entire day prancing around to various classrooms at PS 94 preaching: Reading is fun!

Off to College, With Posse in Tow

For high school seniors, springtime brings more than showers and flowers — it brings college acceptance (or denial) letters. While many students anxiously await fat envelopes or fear the arrival of thin ones, there are some, like northwest Bronx resident Adolfo Abreu, who are already celebrating and plotting out future plans to put their education to work.

Op-ed: Show Me the Teachers!

“Mayor to Kids: Say Goodbye to Your Teacher” is the glaring headline on the front page of the Feb. 17 edition of New York Teacher, a bi-weekly periodical for teachers. Its sub-head reads “Bloomberg would rather lay off teachers than extend millionaire’s tax.” This state tax is due to expire at the end of this year, and my immediate thought on this sub-head was: I wonder if the mayor objects because he himself is a millionaire, which would mean his own taxes would be higher. It has been reported that this tax could add billions of dollars to the state budget which could prevent layoffs.

New School Library Has PS 8 ‘Believin”

As guests filed down the aisles of the PS 8 auditorium during the Bedford Park school’s celebration of their new library, the Journey song, “Don’t Stop Believin’,” blared from a boom-box. “I love this song,” said 5th grader Iris Bermudez. “It just feels hopeful.” For many, the new library is just that — a symbol of hope.

State Budget Saves Some, Cuts Others

New Governor Andrew Cuomo and the legislature in Albany officially passed a state budget at the end of March, a day before the start of the new fiscal year. It marked the first time in five years that a budget has been approved in New York before its April 1 deadline and will eliminate a $10 billion deficit, Cuomo boasted in a press release. For the Bronx, the $132.5 million budget contains a mix of ups and downs. Certain funding that was on the chopping block was restored, while other cuts will mean major setbacks for a number of agencies, social service programs and local organizations.

Juilliard Instrumental in Ursula Music Program

When 11th grader Mayira Rodriguez heard The Juilliard School would be offering free instruction in playing musical instruments at her high school, The Academy of Mount St. Ursula, she was one of the first to sign up for the program.

St. Brendan Boys Fall Just Short of State Hoops Title

With time running out in the first half of the biggest game of his young life, St. Brendan School hoopster Brian Ortiz launched a one-handed desperation shot from the other end of the basketball court. The Hail Mary-type shot, fitting for a boys Catholic league state championship match, was perfectly on target. Just a tad long. It bounced hard off the back rim.

Lady Mustangs Reign!

Last month, the Monroe College Lady Mustangs won the women’s junior college (Division II) national championship in an upset victory over the top-seeded Pima College (Ariz.), 78-74.