When Laurie Salimbeni attended her first Relay for Life four years ago, it held a special meaning for her.She had been diagnosed with advanced ovarian cancer only a week earlier.At the time she was nervous, unsure about how her own encounter with cancer would turn out.But thi......

Cheryl Yerkes and her family have a sense of humor about breast cancer. They've named their team for the Relay for Life — an annual 24-hour walk/run American Cancer Society benefit to celebrate survivorship and raise money for research — "Team Boobie." And befo......

Conestoga Valley Superintendent Gerald Huesken harkened back to "The Wizard of Oz" to impart advice to the high school's graduating class. "You notice how, in all the time Dorothy's gone, Auntie Em and Uncle Henry are never worried?" Huesken asked the 314-student cla......

The sweet memories of high school won't fade for Conestoga Valley High School graduates.More than 300 seniors graduated during the school's 51st commencement Thursday at Calvary Church on Landis Valley Road. While students said they are ready to move on, they will not forget the fr......

The week Allyson Esh spent in Costa Rica was "very life-changing." Esh went with Liv180, her youth group at the Worship Center, to San Jose in the summer of 2007 to spend a week running a daycare. Back then, she was entering her junior year. But even now, as Esh is set to graduate from Con......

As children, Samuel Deng and Del Akech Del traveled thousands of miles from their home across rivers and deserts and picked fruit off trees to survive.Deng and Akech Del spoke to Conestoga Valley high school and middle school world cultures students Friday about their experiences being par......

Ronks native Jonathan Groff knows he'll never again have the amazing experience he had with "Spring Awakening," the off-Broadway musical that took Broadway by storm and earned him a Tony nomination in 2007. But his movie debut is nothing to sneeze at. The 2003 Conestoga Valley Hig......

In the eyes of civil-rights activist and author K. Coralee Burch, football legend Ernie Davis was faster, stronger and just plain better than anyone else she knew.And 46 years after Davis' untimely death, Burch, who was a high school and college classmate of his at Syracuse University,......

Rent a limousine to ride to the prom? For many teens this year, that's one expense they're going to skip. "It's not worth the money," Penn Manor High School senior Nicole Henderson says. Her classmate Christi Taylor says, "I'll drive my Honda, I'm co......

Dig out the cameras and the box of tissues. Your babies are grown and are graduating from high school. High school graduation season begins in Lancaster County in a little over a month. Here's a list of graduations for public and private high schools in the county.

W......

For Conestoga Valley High School 10th-grader Taylor Burkey, taking a beginning guitar class was natural because he's loved music his entire life.Taylor said he feels lucky to be able to express himself through music at CV, which recently was named one of the "best communities"......

Brandon Stone encountered a little bit of an obstacle while setting up his science fair project Monday afternoon.Hindered by a cast on his right arm, he enlisted the aid of his mom, Sandy, who helped out by carrying her son's large cardboard display into Mayser Gymnasium at Franklin &a......

School boards across Lancaster County are crafting their 2009-10 budgets and facing some tough financial decisions in light of the frail economy. At Conestoga Valley, the school board is reviewing several scenarios to reduce costs and keep tax increases nominal. The school board reviewed a......

Conestoga Valley School Board seems poised to approve a proposal to extend the district's elementary school day by a half-hour — though logistics regarding such issues as transportation, athletics and clubs have not yet been worked out.Monday night, board members spent nearly two......

The federal Environmental Protection Agency has announced a plan  to test air quality at schools nationwide to determine if students are at risk from airborne pollutants.But whether that testing will include schools in Lancaster County is not known.EPA administrator Lisa Jackso......

Despite its notorious reputation among adults, the department of motor vehicles is one of the most anticipated destinations to which a teenager may travel. On any given day, teenagers make their long-awaited entrance through the doors at a state Department of Transportation Driver License Center ......

Adventurers follow a wanderlust that's more seductive than most people understand.The family of the late Joshua C. Powers, the 27-year-old Conestoga Valley High School graduate who died in Iraq last month, says it's coming to terms with how Powers' fate grew out of that kind of......

Joshua Powers didn't even wait to officially graduate from Conestoga Valley High School before going off to see the world. While he eventually got a high school equivalency degree, the 27-year-old son of Church and Cathy Powers remained largely self-taught, learning about the world through ......

On Sunday afternoon, Jonathan Groff might just as easily have been sitting at the Fulton Opera House.That he wasn't, though, is something he largely attributes to the late Fulton artistic director Michael Mitchell."If it wasn't for Michael Mitchell, I wouldn't be he......

Editor's note: Many teens have written for Freestyle over the past 11 years. We take a look at what some of them are doing now that they have moved on from writing for the teen section.It's been five years since Kristy Buller suited up in "haunt couture" on a fir......

Jordan Steffy might not have a long white beard, a round belly and bellow "Ho, ho ho," but Tuesday night he was able to play the role of Santa Claus with hundreds of presents in hand.Steffy, the former Conestoga Valley High School star athlete and current quarterback at Universit......

A cluster of schools near some of the most pristine farmland in Lancaster County may be harboring hidden health hazards, according to USA Today.In a special report running this week, the newspaper identified Locust Grove Mennonite School as one of 435 schools in America that might be expos......

A federal judge ruled Wednesday that Millersville University was correct to deny a former student a teaching degree in May 2006.Stacy L. Snyder, a former student teacher at Conestoga Valley High School, filed suit against Millersville University and five of its employees after the school d......

Lancaster's popular Relay for Life cancer walk has a new date and a new home, but organizers hope it will maintain its remarkable success.The 2008 walk raised the most money of any Relay for Life event in Pennsylvania — there are more than 200 — and was No. 3 in the nation ......

On Nov. 11, self-proclaimed Nerdfighters John and Hank Green will come to Conestoga Valley High School from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. as part of their cross-country "Nerdfighters" tour. A Printz Award-winning author and a singer respectively, John and Hank also connect with each other via t......

For John and Hank Green, "nerd" is the word. John, 31, and Hank, 28, can't get enough of nerdiness. The brothers celebrate all things nerdy on their videoblog at nerdfighters.ning.com, a viewer-driven website that began as a way to keep in touch but has grown into a site devo......

Nearly two-thirds of all Lancaster County public schools have achieved academic excellence this year, based on their students' PSSA scores.Schools in every county district have qualified for Keystone Achievement Awards, which honor schools that make "adequate yearly progress"......

Indulge your inner thespian, and check out these performances at schools throughout the county. From drama to comedy to musicals, there's something for everyone.
OCTOBER
• Elizabethtown Area High School, 600 E. High St., presents "High School Musical&qu......

Conestoga Valley School District wants this homecoming to be bigger and better than ever with as many alumni attending as possible.To boost alumni participation in homecoming festivities and all-around school activities, the district is organizing an alumni association.The first eve......

Floyd Landis is preparing his own comeback.The Lancaster County native who won the 2006 Tour de France but then had his title stripped for a positive doping test is looking to return to a team run by Momentum Sports Group."We are in negotiations with Floyd Landis to ride for th......

A tenor saxophone can cost more than $1,000.A tuba can cost 10 times that much.Add to that more than 10 other instruments, multiply by the number of students who play them, then throw in the amount of money it costs to fill a bus's gas tank every weekend and it's easy to see......

Correction — The story below, posted on LancasterOnline Friday, about SAT scores contained the wrong number for Warwick High School's total average score. The total average score for the Class of 2008 was 1575.......

Eighth-grader Mary Peck isn't used to lockers, lunch lines or hall passes, but she's quickly making the necessary adjustments.Wednesday — the first day of school for Conestoga Valley students — was the first time Mary ever attended a public school.Mary, ......

The promise of a memorable senior year rests on the shoulders of four, the officers for the Class of 2009 at Conestoga Valley High School. A few minutes before they were to address the entire senior class this morning in the auditorium — the first day for the Conestoga Valley School Distr......

Coach Craig Esbenshade vividly remembers Kim Glass' freshman season of volleyball 11 years ago at Conestoga Valley High School."I don't think she had ever touched a volleyball before, let alone played the game," Esbenshade said. "But you could tell she had tremendous......

Garden Spot High School principal Carol Kelsall says students are more inclined to stay in school if they believe their education is relevant to their lives — both today and in the future.They also need to feel they are succeeding in the classroom, said Kelsall, whose school has been......

Conestoga Valley graduate Jordan Steffy was picked to start at quarterback for Maryland in the season opener against Delaware by coach Ralph Friedgen on Monday.Steffy lost his starting job last year when he left the fifth game of the season, against Rutgers, with a concussion.In fiv......

(AP)Jonathan Groff races up and down the aisles through the audience, dripping with sweat, singing his heart out and shaking his long wig with manic glee.It's the revival of "Hair" at Central Park's Delacorte Theater, and it is Groff's big moment as Claude Hooper Buko......

Shawn Stafford has turned a weekend and evening hobby for exercise into a very successful amateur career.Stafford, 28, a graduate of Conestoga Valley High School and a Lancaster resident, recently finished fourth in the expert class of the USA Cycling Mountain Biking National Championships......

Kim Glass has been named an All-American three times and was an All-Pac-10 selection in all four of her collegiate volleyball seasons at the University of Arizona.The Conestoga Valley graduate competed in tournaments all over the world.Yet, her résumé got a substantial......

The teachers wear T-shirts, shorts and tennis shoes. The kids sip Turkey Hill lemonade. This summer school "is not anything to complain about," Conestoga Valley High School student Kayla Wanamaker says. In fact, she hopes other students will get to enjoy it next year. It's Tu......

A navy blue book is the focus of anger and complaints at Lampeter-Strasburg High School.Recent graduates and current students are upset about mistakes in their 2007-08 yearbook. There are numerous typographical errors, photos of students from other schools and missing sports team stats....

For a trio of young men at Conestoga Valley's graduation Thursday, the ceremony was more than just a commencement.Seniors Kyle Victor and Joel Glass were traveling with fellow senior Gary Gerlach Wednesday morning after CV graduation practice. En route to the senior picnic, Gerlach'......

When Kris Wiltsey entered the Science Olympiad, he immersed himself in an event dedicated entirely to biology, chemistry and technology. Just the place for a student who spent most of his high school career in the tech-ed room. A self-proclaimed "science nerd," Wiltsey graduates this eveni......

Laughter. That's how members of Solanco High School's senior leadership group responded last year to the idea of holding its June 3 commencement at Clipper Magazine Stadium this year.Little did the then-junior students know high school principal Gerard Rosolie's on-a-whim inqui......

By its very nature, the Lancaster County Academy is about change. At the public alternative school for high school dropouts located at Park City, students come and go. But for at least a decade, there has been a constant for the school, a place where each student is required to do voluntee......

Making music
Celebrate spring with the Lancaster Mennonite High School music department's spring concert. Scheduled for 3 p.m. Sunday, the concert will feature the Campus Chorale, Junior Chorale, concert band, orchestra, string ensemble, flute ensemble and jazz band. ......

Conestoga Valley High School senior Jesina Santiago has a global perspective. World cultures is her favorite subject. "It would be gym, if it could be," she says. "But I like learning about what's going on in the world." The Spanish honors student, who is fl......

Instead of retrieving lost recess balls in the stream behind Fritz Elementary School on Tuesday, students picked up plastic bags, cardboard boxes and cans.Fritz students in fourth and sixth grades cleaned up a section of the East Lampeter Township stream as the first step in creating an ou......

An ethanol plant like the controversial corn distillery proposed in Conoy Township won't produce the biofuel that eliminates our dependency on fossil fuels, but it is a start.That's was the message from Kathleen A. McGinty, state secretary of Environmental Protection, in Lancaster ......

A Conestoga Valley alumnus returned to his alma mater Friday to teach the next generation the importance of volunteering."The best and most noble thing you can do is give your talents away," Don Eberly told about 50 high school students at a talk organized by the social studies department.......

FBI Special Agent Scott Sutherland knows how online predators try to lure teenagers into inappropriate situations.On Monday, Sutherland told ninth-grade students at Conestoga Valley High School how to avoid being trapped by individuals who use the Internet to prey on young people.Du......

"Spring Awakening" added to its extensive list of honors Sunday night when it took home a Grammy award for best musical show album.The cast recording featured the musical's star and Ronks native Jonathan Groff. The 22-year-old played Melchior, the leader of a rebellious group......

Students studying Chinese at Hempfield and two other area high schools marked the beginning of a new year Thursday.Underneath hanging scarlet lanterns and brightly colored parasols, 61 students of the language performed short skits, songs and dances as part of a Chinese New Year celebratio......

In case their allowing an L-L League-best 32 points-per-game so far this season didn't do it for you …In case holding defending L-L and reigning Section One champion Cedar Crest to a mere 23 points on Jan. 28 just wasn't enough …Hempfield's girls' baske......

Lancaster Catholic girls' basketball coach Lamar Kauffman knows how to win.Utilizing the press game that has been a Kauffman staple, the Crusaders turned back a scrappy Garden Spot team, 62-56, in a Lancaster-Lebanon League quarterfinal at Conestoga Valley Monday night.With the ......

Considering she's a sophomore who was about to start in the biggest game of her high school career, it was only natural for Erin LaVenice to have her share of butterflies Friday night.After all, there was the huge crowd, which was bigger than any she'd likely seen all year.T......

It's often said that high school sports are an extension of the educational process, but the "Three Rs" in student-cheering sections these day could stand for rude, rowdy and reckless.Zac Kraft, first year athletics director of Conestoga Valley High School, said fewer student......

It took a hammer and a teacher to turn around Matt Krupa.Talking about it can make him emotional.A senior at Pennsylvania College of Technology in Williamsport, Krupa, 25, knows how dangerously adrift he was before a carpentry instructor believed in him and set him on a new course....

Local students soon will become more business savvy and give a few political leaders a run for their money by playing the stock market.It's part of Millersville University and EconomicsPennsylvania's third annual Stock Market Game Legislative Challenge.EconomicsPennsylvania is a non......

The new Lancaster Science Factory will be enjoyed by children and adults alike if Thursday night's invitation-only open house is any indication.While 4-year-old Isabella Dubble was totally engaged with the sand pendulum exhibit, her grandmother, Linda Price, said she loved the fact tha......

Thirteen guitarists sit strumming a variety of tunes. Dexterous fingers glide over the nylon strings of the classical guitars, but barely a sound emanates from them. In fact, the music reaches a decibel only slightly louder than a whisper inside the Conestoga Valley High School classroo......

Two young Lancaster County missionaries caught in the turmoil that engulfed Kenya following a disputed presidential election were flown Sunday to a safer part of the country.Monica Stoltzfus, 18, and Melissa Eby, 19, had been living in Songhor, a small village in the western part of the Af......

The term "wide-area network" doesn't exactly get the heart pounding.But Janet Dubble couldn't be more excited about the WAN — a network of high-speed Internet connections — she's helping develop for local schools.Dubble is instructional technology coordinator for Lancast......

Some Conestoga Valley High School students were rewarded with a pizza party Friday a few hours before the start of their holiday break.They were members of three classes contributing the most money during a school contest that raised more than $10,000 for the Lancaster chapter of the Make-......

A 4-foot-high vertical placard in Kathy Phillips' office reads: "I totally agree with myself."That's a mantra earned by Phillips, 39, chief executive and founder of the wholesale rustic craft empire Primitives by Kathy, which celebrated its 10-year anniversary this year....

A year ago today, "Spring Awakening" opened to rave reviews on Broadway, and Jonathan Groff's life hasn't been the same since. "I know I will never experience anything ever like this again in my life," says the 2003 Conestoga Valley High School graduate, who learned ......

His first professional goal, a position change and a broken nose.A hat trick of sorts, right?That, in a nutshell has been Chris Snavely's introduction to professional hockey. Snavely is believed to be the first Lancaster County native to play pro hockey.Snavely was in Rea......

Brian Ginter, principal of Conestoga Valley High School for the past five years, is planning to take the same job at Warwick High School.Ginter would replace interim principal Michael O'Hara shortly after Jan. 1, pending approval of Warwick school board, according to a news release....

Conestoga Valley High School students have found a way to link themselves with kids who live in a war-torn land halfway around the globe.The local students recently raised $1,776 through a "spirit chain" competition, in which students purchased links in a paper chain to raise mon......

More than 200 colleges, universities and postsecondary schools — from Albright College to the University of Vermont — will be represented Monday at the 34th annual College Night at Conestoga Valley High school.The free event is scheduled from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. in Rill Gymnasium......

This is a critical time for the School District of Lancaster. The district needs to hire a superintendent, prepare for a $150-million districtwide improvement project and improve academics. Hoping to lead the district through these challenges are seven candidates for five seats on the scho......

The roster of 21st World Jamboree Troop 110 was typical, with one exception.A Lancaster woman led the group's recent 17-day trip to the birthplace of the 100-year-old Boy Scout movement in England.Scoutmaster Karen Goswell took on the jamboree goals, preparing the group to learn......

Warwick School District has hired consultant Quay Hanna, a self-proclaimed "reformed racist," to help the district address bigotry in the wake of two racial incidents at district schools this month.Hanna, who will be paid $10,000 through the end of the school year, has helped schools, coll......

When Conestoga Valley High School opened its doors for the first time in the fall of 1958, principal Robert Rill knew he was in for a wild ride.Recently, as Conestoga Valley School District was gearing up for tonight's 50th-anniversary homecoming festivities, Rill gathered with a few f......

Conestoga Valley High School sophomore Justin Radanovic will tell you he's a math and science guy.Still, the 16-year-old was recently named a winner in the 2007 America Library of Poetry Contest for a poem he wrote called "A Sense of Thunder."The poem, which was among hundreds of en......

Sources: Conestoga Valley Middle School and Conestoga Valley High School teachers Sharon Nolt, Candy Boyer, Desiree Fasciana, Matt Brubaker, Deann Buffington.Explain plagiarism and ask students to sign a plagiarism pledge.

Have an honor code.
...

Josh Decker spent a good portion of this summer standing atop a podium, clutching a megaphone."You have five seconds to get in formation. Faster! Faster! We don't want to do push-ups, do we?" Decker said recently to about 50 students standing on the athletic fields of Conesto......

Aside from game-day field shows and in-school concerts, many Lancaster County marching bands participate in county- and statewide competitions.Two main competitions are the Tournament of Bands and Cavalcade of Bands.Tournament of Bands, founded in 1972, is one of the largest competi......

School District of Lancaster wants to get more of its high school students to take college courses this year.Penn Manor School District wants to add a career center to its high school and improve the math and reading skills of its vocational-technical students.And Conestoga Valley H......

Beginning this fall, Conestoga Valley High School students will have the opportunity to learn Chinese through a distance learning partnership with Hempfield School District.Eight juniors and seniors have expressed interest in taking Chinese I. They will participate in the class via videoco......

A strong wind blew atop the bluff at Chiques Rock as gazers watched the sun swallowed by the horizon and a dark cloud bank across the Susquehanna River.More than 50 people from around the county gathered near the rock, at Breezyview Overlook, Thursday evening to celebrate the summer solsti......

April Shaub was just starting her senior year at Conestoga Valley High School when her world fell apart.On Sept. 22, her mother died of stomach cancer, less than a year after her grandmother died of liver cancer.Shaub, 18, was president of the National Honor Society and was doing we......

Through the words of 19th century poet Walt Whitman, Conestoga Valley's graduating speakers challenged their classmates Thursday to be creative while exploring their futures.The theme of this year's ceremony at the American Music Theatre was "Gossamer Threads: Where Do We Go f......

In January, Laura Onsgard invited clients over for lunch to her home in Dallas. They decided on Chinese food.At the end of the meal, Onsgard opened her fortune cookie and read, "You will soon hear applause."At the time, she had an inkling of what it probably referred to....

The Shermans' home in Ephrata, much like any other house, has just one dining room. But unlike other families, the Shermans are forced to eat their meals in another room."The poor house is like a science laboratory; it's all in the dining room," said Donna Sherman, laughing slightly. "I ju......

The next hurdle for three area high school boys' volleyball teams takes place Tuesday with a single-match to start the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association tournament. Tuesday's winners advance to pool play at Penn State's Rec Hall on Friday.Hempfield, crowned the ......

Zac Kraft is returning to Conestoga Valley, this time as athletic director, and the Buckskins graduate and former three-sport star athlete couldn't be happier."They made me an offer and I accepted," said Kraft, who expects to be officially named by the CV school board on June......

Many Lancaster County families will be celebrating high school graduations over the next two weeks.Students of public, parochial and private schools will march through stadiums, auditoriums and sanctuaries. Bad weather may force postponement or relocation of ceremonies to overcrowded, over......

Jonathan Groff woke up in his midtown Manhattan apartment Tuesday morning and heard news some actors wait a lifetime to hear: He was nominated for a Tony Award.Groff, 22, a Ronks native and 2003 graduate of Conestoga Valley High School, has been recognized with one of the American theater ......

After countless hours of playing the harp at district and regional orchestra competitions earlier this year, Laura Stoltzfus' fingers had blistered.But that didn't hinder the Conestoga Valley High School junior's performance.All those hours of practice helped Stoltzfus e......

The woman who filed a federal lawsuit against Millersville University after the institution refused to award her a teaching certificate said Friday photos used against her show her drinking alcohol.Meanwhile, Stacy Snyder answered more questions about the lawsuit, which she filed 10 days a......

The future of the Lancaster County almshouse on the grounds of Conestoga View nursing home is a lot more certain today.Complete HealthCare Resources, which owns the property at 900 E. King St., on Wednesday officially granted to Historic Preservation Trust of Lancaster County a "fa&cc......

An attorney for Conestoga Valley School District on Tuesday disputed a Strasburg woman's contention that the district pressured Millersville University to punish her for alleged unprofessional conduct.Stacy L. Snyder, a former student teacher at Conestoga Valley High School, filed a la......

A 27-year-old Millersville University graduate filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday against the college for denying her an education degree and teaching certificate after a controversial Internet photograph surfaced last year shortly before graduation.The picture shows Stacy Snyder of Strasbu......

Lancaster Area Habitat for Humanity has awarded Conestoga Valley High School's National Honor Society with the "Friends of Habitat" award for raising more than $32,000 after last year's hurricanes.About 30 members of the National Honor Society helped raise the money and b......

 Boyd to join river cleanupState Rep. Scott Boyd will mark Earth Day by helping to clean up the Conestoga River.Boyd will be joined by 70 students from Conestoga Valley High School who will pick up trash from 11:30 a.m. to 1:45 p.m. April 20 in West Earl......

Only four years ago, Jonathan Groff was a regular at Ephrata Performing Arts Center, taking on roles like the ugly-duckling-turned-swan in "Honk."These days, the 22-year-old is the star of the sizzling Broadway musical "Spring Awakening," which has been nominated for si......

Lancaster County's brightest young minds competed for honors Thursday at the 54th annual Lancaster Newspapers Science & Engineering Fair.A total of 369 students from 13 county high schools and 13 middle schools, both public and private, took over Franklin & Marshall College'......

Between volunteering, teaching Sunday school and studying for her AP chemistry course, Abigail Groff managed to put together an impressive project for the 54th annual Lancaster Newspapers Science & Engineering Fair.Titled "Reconstruction of a Foreign Metabolic Pathway in E. Coli,&......

About 100 racing fans waited for more than an hour for a chance to meet 67-year-old racing legend Mario Andretti during a brief visit to Lancaster County Wednesday.Andretti, in town to promote H&F Tires, received countless accolades, but none more timely than the kudos delivered by Ric......