As the school year drew to a close, Southdown Primary School faculty and staff members presented the final round of Splash Awards before everyone headed for the exits and the official start of summer vacation.
Splash Award recipients are Southdown’s Stars of the Month. The recognition is coveted around the building and received with pride by students, who are celebrated for their all-around effort both in and out of the classroom.
The Splash Awards are a spinoff of the school’s mascot, which is a dolphin, an aquatic mammal that’s known for flipping around in the water and splashing anyone nearby. Think 1960’s television show Flipper.
June’s honorees include:
Universal Pre-Kindergarten: Mason Joel Ortez Galvez; Kindergarten: Caroline Duffy, Hendrix Evans, Liliana Baez, Brian Aguilar Bonilla; First grade: Alejandra Cerrato Orellana, Angel Bonilla Maldonado, Valentina Evans; Second grade: Valeria Medina Ramirez, Olivia Lanzilotta, Theodore Lewis, Evelyn Sanchez Cartagena, Kaileen Silva; Third grade: Nathaniel Kelly, Melvin Cordero Rivas, Ramon Velasquez Zavala, Scarlett Maldonado Carbajal
Southdown students marched out of the building last Friday for the last time of the 2021/22 school year. Many had tears in their eyes. They were already missing their friends and all the familiar faces they see around the building each day. Third graders are headed to either Woodhull Intermediate School or Jack Abrams STEM Magnet School. Principal Jill Amott-Erwig led faculty and staff members outside where they all waved to students as they rode off to summer vacation. It was an emotional experience for many.