Ruth Gruener is a Holocaust Survivor. She has lived through Soviet occupation and Nazi Rule, spending 8 months inside a cramped closet space to survive the latter. Through Project Witness, a Holocaust education and resource center, we were able to hear Ruth speak once again.  Ruth began by retelling her story, recalling her feelings of loneliness, fear and gratitude for having survived such a calamitous event. She managed to endure isolation by telling herself stories and talking to God. “I felt that God was my friend, why not talk to God, ” she said, as she didn’t have anyone else. Ruth was often left alone and ignored in the Schziggle household, the Polish Christian family that braved the risk of hiding her. As Ruth puts it, “I … [Read more...]

Project Witness is a non profit Holocaust resource center, dedicated to Holocaust education. Their mission is to create a better future, one that has learned from the horrors of the past, through the communication of Holocaust survivor stories. Through Project Witness, the WHSAD community was blessed with the privilege of hearing Holocaust survivor, Ruth Gruener, speak. Organized by the WHSAD Humanities Department, this event was held Wednesday May 13th, via Google Meet, with a plethora of special guests, students, and WHSAD faculty. In a video call lasting a little over an hour, Ruth Gruener was able to share something special with us that greatly impacted the WHSAD community. Over 50 people took part in the virtual event. Students … [Read more...]

In the midst of a global pandemic, it's clear that not everyone is okay. There’s a lot to worry about, and so it's no surprise that a lot of us are feeling down, hopeless, scared, and uncertain of the future. We worry about our family members who may not be in the best physical condition, the state of our future academics with the SATs and AP exams, and those who are seniors, wonder if they’ll ever see friends again before going to college. With so much negativity and uncertainty in the air, the Community Service Club decided to do something about it. Seeing that our community needs a break from the worries of this pandemic, they went to work. During the first week of April, The WHSAD Community came together to spread positivity. … [Read more...]

As the COVID-19 Pandemic continues to affect the globe, mandatory social distancing and quarantining grow rapidly throughout the nation. NYC in particular is taking a huge blow with over 38,000 confirmed cases, along with the 914 deaths as of Sunday, according to the New York Times. Schools are shut down, leaving many students stranded in terms of activities to do (outside of online school sessions). I sympathize with this, as I too hadn't any idea of what I was going to do being stuck at home all day. I know it can be tempting to brush off warnings of not going outside during these trying times, when you're a bored teenager who doesn't think they'll be affected. But, I should reiterate that NYC has the most confirmed cases in the U.S. (and … [Read more...]

Career Discovery Week is a time for NYC sophomores to explore the job world and engage in the discovery of different career paths. As a part of career week, WHSAD students explored the corporate job world at Vornado Realty Trust. Students enjoyed presentations from Vice Presidents and Recruiters while they also toured one the Farley building, one of their big projects under construction.  On Thursday, Feb 11, the sophomore class took a trip to Vornado Realty Trust company. Senior Vice President, Josh Glick discussed the history of Penn Station and the company's main objective for the future plans of 2 Penn plaza in a presentation. Vornado is a real estate company whose main focus is on transforming New York City’s buildings and growing … [Read more...]

This past Tuesday, a group of art-interested WHSAD students ventured to the Brant Foundation Art Study Center. The Brant Foundation, located in the East Village Manhattan, is an art museum that houses various pieces throughout the year\. Last year, we came here for the Jean Michel Basquiat exhibit.  Surreal, abstract, and modern art, can be seen cascading throughout each floor level as visitors make their descent down the heart of the museum. It's quite immaculate. The history of the structure is quite rich as well, as it was originally a Con Edison building inhabited by an artist in the 1930s. Much of the architecture from the Con Edison building is preserved today like the neoclassical exterior and some interior walls. Though the … [Read more...]

The Lake Como project is a perfect example of what WHSAD is all about: students putting their creative quirks to use. For the past year, WHSAD students have been working with the residents in the New Jersey town, Lake Como, to redesign the lakefront. The design for the lake done by our students has been picked up by the mayor of Lake Como, Kevin Higgins, and is actually going to be constructed. Right now, we're working on finalizing the plans.  Student Narrative - By Mahalia Sainteloi Working on this community project is really exciting because we get to put all of our creative minds together and create something for the Lake Como community. We all have different attributes that serve a purpose to the design. It's not just the … [Read more...]