PARSIPPANY — Parsippany-Troy Hills School District has been honored with the Best Communities for Music Education designation from The NAMM Foundation for its outstanding commitment to music education.

The Best Communities for Music Education designation is awarded to districts that demonstrate outstanding achievement in efforts to provide music access and education to all students. To qualify for the Best Communities designation, Parsippany-Troy Hills School District answered detailed questions about funding, graduation requirements, music class participation, instruction time, facilities, support for the music program, and community music-making programs. Responses were verified with school officials and reviewed by The Music Research Institute at the University of Kansas.

This award recognizes that Parsippany-Troy Hills School District is leading the way with learning opportunities as outlined in the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). The legislation guides implementation in the states and replaces the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) which was often criticized for an overemphasis on testing-while leaving behind subjects such as music. ESSA recommends music and the arts as important elements of a well-rounded education for all children.

Research into music education continues to demonstrate educational/cognitive and social skill benefits for children who make music. In a series of landmark studies by scientists and researchers at Northwestern University a link was found between students in community music programs and life-long academic success, including higher high school graduation rates and college attendance. In another study from the University, it was discovered that the benefits of early exposure to music education improves how the brain processes and assimilates sounds, a trait that lasts well into adulthood.

Beyond the Northwestern research, other studies have indicated that music education lays the foundation for individual excellence in group settings, creative problem solving and flexibility in work situations, as well learning how to give and receive constructive criticism to excel.

A 2015 study supported by The NAMM Foundation, “Striking A Chord,” also outlines the overwhelming desire by teachers and parents for music education opportunities for all children as part of the school curriculum.

The NAMM Foundation is a nonprofit supported in part by the National Association of Music Merchants and its approximately 10,300 members around the world. The foundation advances active participation in music making across the lifespan by supporting scientific research, philanthropic giving, and public service programs. For more information about the NAMM Foundation click here.

RANDOLPH — The Youngtown Edition, County College of Morris’ (CCM) award-winning student run newspaper, recently added seven more awards to its long list of accolades from the New Jersey Collegiate Press Association (NJCPA), this time for the 2017-2018 academic year.

Competing in the two-year college category, the newspaper won top honors in news writing, editorial writing, enterprise investigative reporting, layout and design and third place in photography and overall website. On April 14, at the NJCPA’s awards luncheon held at the Courtyard Marriott in Jamesburg, The Youngtown Edition received second place in General Excellence for the third consecutive year.

Formed in 1952, the NJCPA’s mission is to advance the prestige and integrity of NJ college newspapers. NJCPA is the charitable arm of the New Jersey Press Association.

Youngtown advisor and CCM adjunct professor Russ Crespolini, who is also the editor of The Progress newspaper, is proud of the student journalists for their hard work, due diligence in reporting and their dedication in producing a bi-weekly campus newspaper.

Crespolini respects the judgement of the NJCPA stating that the association members are an incredibly dedicated and talented group of journalists who take their craft very seriously.

“To be acknowledged by them is a big validation to these students. Their work, I feel, speaks for itself, but it is nice to be acknowledged by those whose job it is set the industry standard. It echoes the compliments from the campus community and local officials the staff received this past year.”

The 2017-2018 awards received were as follows:

First Place – News Writing for “Student Government Shutdown: ‘Petty’ disagreements, ‘dysfunction’ and misconduct allegations see group disbanded,” published April 26, 2017– Beth Peter of Califon, Jannat Sheikh of Hopatcong, Moe Rahmatullah of Parsippany

First Place – Editorial Writing for “Support proposed New Voices of New Jersey legislation,” published April 26, 2017 – Brett Friedensohn of Morris Plains

First Place – Enterprise / Investigative Reporting for Youngtown’s fire safety certificates investigative series published in October and November of 2017  – Brett Friedensohn, Jannat Sheikh

First Place – Layout and Design for the Halloween issue published October 25, 2017 – Staff of The Youngtown Edition

Second Place – General Excellence – Staff of The Youngtown Edition

Third Place – Photography for Youngtown arts section in the Wednesday, November 8 issue – Arianna Parks of Bedminster

Third Place – Overall Website for work on youngtownedition.wordpress.com – Alexa Wyszkowski of Rockaway, Marisa Goglia of Madison

“These newswriting awards are not easy ones to get,” Crespolini said. “We had some stiff competition. But we challenged ourselves there and with our design this year so those were standout awards for me.”

The Youngtown Edition is produced completely by the students at The County College of Morris with the assistance of a faculty advisor and technical advisor. The students decide on the content and no experience is required to get involved.

“That is one of the things I love about Youngtown. Every semester is different. We have new faces who come in with new ideas and interests and that informs what ends up in our pages and what awards we end up being recognized for,” Crespolini said. “Some of our members take what they learn in Professor (John) Soltes classes and expand on it with us but many come to use with no experience. They just have an interest in writing or photography or graphic design.”

According to Crespolini, another benefit of Youngtown is immediate clips and marketable skills.

“I’ve personally hired multiple students directly from the Youngtown for full time and part time and freelance work,” Crespolini said. “And some of them have used their work samples for internships and to get jobs other places as well.”

Crespolini said there are always openings at the paper, and anyone interested can email by clicking here.

The Youngtown Edition can be found on the CCM website by clicking here.

PARSIPPANY — Allison Davanzo, a 2016 graduate of Parsippany High School, was recently initiated into The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, the nation’s oldest and most selective all-discipline collegiate honor society. Davanzo is pursuing a degree in Public Health at The College of New Jersey.

Davanzo is among approximately 30,000 students, faculty, professional staff and alumni to be initiated into Phi Kappa Phi each year. Membership is by invitation only and requires nomination and approval by a chapter. Only the top 10 percent of seniors and 7.5 percent of juniors are eligible for membership. Graduate students in the top 10 percent of the number of candidates for graduate degrees may also qualify, as do faculty, professional staff and alumni who have achieved scholarly distinction.

Phi Kappa Phi was founded in 1897 under the leadership of Marcus L. Urann who had a desire to create a different kind of honor society: one that recognized excellence in all academic disciplines. Today, the Society has chapters on more than 300 campuses in the United States and the Philippines. Its mission is “To recognize and promote academic excellence in all fields of higher education and to engage the community of scholars in service to others.”

Since its founding, 1.5 million members have been initiated into Phi Kappa Phi. Some of the organization’s notable members include former President Jimmy Carter, NASA astronaut Wendy Lawrence, novelist John Grisham and YouTube co-founder Chad Hurley. Each biennium, Phi Kappa Phi awards $1.4 million to qualifying students and members through graduate fellowships, undergraduate study abroad grants, member and chapter awards, and grants for local, national and international literacy initiatives. For more information about Phi Kappa Phi click here.