MAKING HEADLINES
AMBASSADOR FOR DIPLOMACY
Rising senior Sharaf Munaf (in suit
and tie), pictured with his family and
ESL teacher Jessica Bartholomew
(second from left), attended the 10th
annual Luminari Ambassador Camp
this past summer. Sharaf and 15 other
selected students from different ethnic
backgrounds and schools met daily at
the Ellis School in Shadyside for a one-
week session to learn
cultural competency,
negotiation skills, and
conflict resolution.
The students
then traveled to
Washington, D.C.
and toured four embassies, the U.S.
Capitol, and other national sites. The
non-profit Luminari camp is designed
to help teens in grades 9-12 master the
skills of a successful ambassador while
learning and understanding diplomacy.
As the camp drew to a close, each of the
participants were asked to speak about
their experience. A well-spoken Sharaf
expressed gratitude for the experience
A group of Carnegie Elementary
teachers and several high school
students traded in their pencils for paint
brushes the morning following the last
day of school to paint the asphalt surface
near the school playground. Using a
bright pallet, the volunteers decorated
the area to define a basketball court, a
kickball court, four-square game, hop
scotch, a long jump area, and a walking
A zone for children to play four-square has
been added to the playground surface.
Other painted surfaces not pictured include
a hop scotch game and a walking trail.
trail. Funding from a Healthy Schools
mini-grant enabled the purchase of the
paint. The fresh coated surface will now
provide a designated area for play when
students return to school in August.
The area for a basketball court is now defined
with bright colors and lines.
46
CARLYNTON
Carnegie Elementary fifth grade
teachers Erin Cummings, Scott
Donnelly, and Renee Gaydos guided
students through a project to celebrate
Carnegie Borough’s 125-year anniversary.
Students spent several weeks completing
an assignment that featured all facets of
the borough, its history, its people, and its
landmarks. As part of the project,
individuals composed poems about living
and conveyed his desire to bring
peaceful solutions to his home country.
Sharaf’s sister (pictured, second from
right) attended the camp last year as an
ambassador.
in Carnegie, created scaled maps of
neighborhoods within the borough, and
researched the rich history of the
municipality. They conducted interviews
with residents who were born and raised
in Carnegie, and held conversations with
the past and current mayor. As a
culminating task, the students produced a
Google slide show titled “Celebrate 125”,
and presented their work to Carnegie
Borough Council in June. The project in its
entirety will be on display in the Andrew
Carnegie Free Library during the
borough’s Quasquicentennial celebration
in August.
Jacob Floyd, Carlee Hughes, Carsen Dunlap,
Bella Lucci, Harita Venkatesh, and Diego
Tuapante stand before members of Carnegie
Borough Council following a presentation
designed to celebrate Carnegie’s 125th
Anniversary.