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Competitions and Achievements 2006-07

Ilana Tavshunsky winner of Robert Bateman contest

June 4, 2007

UTS student Ilana Tavshunsky was named a winner of the Robert Bateman Get to Know your Wild Neighbours contest. Named for Canadian naturalist and artist Robert Bateman, the contest aims to raise awareness about conservation, sustainability and biodiversity among Canadian youth.

Ilana’s winning art entry was a watercolour and ink drawing of a deer, a species found locally in her neighbourhood. It will be published in the 2008 Robert Bateman Contest Calendar as well as in the Canadian Wildlife Federation’s WILD Magazine. Ilana will also receive a personal written congratulation from Robert Bateman and a wildlife gift bag.

Click here to see Ilana Tavshunsky’s winning entry of a watercolour of a white-tailed deer.

Kael Deverell and Lujia Lin pass the renowned DSD2 German exam

June 4, 2007

UTS students Kael Deverell and Lujia Lin have both passed the prestigious Das Deutsche Sprachdiplom 2 (DSD2) German exam. The DSD2 is an internationally recognized test of fluency in German that goes far beyond any level competence normally achieved through a high school German program. In fact, university students majoring in German still have difficulty passing it! Kael and Lujia are now able to register for courses taught in German at a German university!

To prepare for the DSD2, Kael and Lujia met weekly with Ms. Nicola Townend, UTS German teacher, for 1-2 hours of practice since October, as well as doing a great deal of independent practice and research.

The test is in two parts, with Kael and Lujia first writing 6 hours of written test in December, followed by oral tests in January. For her oral presentation, Kael did an in-depth analysis of Rilke's poem "Requiem for a Friend", including a discussion of Rilke's life, art and philosophies. Lujia prepared a presentation on Germany's Foreign Policy since the Second World War, covering the development of the new German constitution right through to recent current affairs.

Typically the DSD2 is written by students of German-speaking background. Both Kael and Lujia aroused great interest with test organizers as neither have German-speaking family backgrounds. Kael has spent a total of only 7 weeks in Germany, while Lujia lived for a short time in Germany and Switzerland as a young child, but has not returned since.

Both Kael and Lujia will be invited to the German Consulate to receive their diplomas, which will be presented by the Vice Consul.

Last year Kael won first place in her category at the Ontario Provincial German Contest, receiving a 4-week all expenses paid trip to Germany. This year she won first in her category at the Toronto regionals, but did not compete at the provincial level.

This year, Lujia also won first place in his category at the Ontario Provincial German Contest, and won second place last year at the Regional.

UTS wins first place at Provincial German Contest

May 22, 2007

Four of UTS’ top German students performed admirably, with two taking first place, at the Ontario High School German Contest Provincial Finals at York University on Saturday, May 12th. Students were invited to compete based on their excellent results from the February GTA Regionals.

Group 3
For students who have spent little or no time in a German-speaking country

Amy Lu won 1st place and receives an all expenses paid, 3-week course in German this summer, courtesy of the Goethe-Institut. Sarah Truong took 4th place and received a pair of Zeiss sunglasses and a silver pen and pencil set.

This is a considerable achievement as both Amy and Sarah are only second year German students and both placed higher than many students with three or more years of German!


Group 1
For students who have spent considerable time in a German-speaking country

Lujia Lin won 1st place and received a digital camera and an elegant Mercedes Benz scarf.
Thomas Menzefricke was unranked in the same category, but is highly commended for his performance as he was the first grade 9 student invited to compete in the Provincials Finals in quite some time.

Gratulation to all students who participated!

UTS Chess successful at Championship

May 22, 2007

The UTS Chess team performed superbly at the Ontario High School Chess Association Championship at Trent University in Peterborough the weekend of Saturday, May 12th. UTS earned the Top Team prize and third place in the Intermediate Division after three days of matches.

Because of their playing skill, UTS’ novice division players were promoted to the intermediate division! Sherwin Wong (F1), a late team addition and novice chess player, won his first game at the Championship, and received a medal for his individual result.

Congratulations to the team:
Jeffrey Ho
Martin Ho (UTS Chess Club Executive)
Particia Ho
Chalini Lankage
Sashi Lankage
Patrick Lung
Yiming Ma
Michael Noukhovich
Sherwin Wong
Jeffrey Yu
Eric Zhan

UTS wins third place at Reach for the Top Provincials

May 22, 2007

UTS’ Reach for the Top team had an impressive third place finish at the Provincials (the team placed fifth going into the televised rounds). Reach for the Top is a trivia competition where students buzz in to win.

The Provincials started out with the team easily winning their exhibition game against Centennial CVI. Afterward they played seven intense round robin games, losing only to London Central Secondary School. The team entered the TV rounds in fifth place.

As the fifth-seeded team, the team faced off against long-time rivals Lisgar Collegiate Institute from Ottawa. The rivalry goes back to 2005, where Lisgar kept UTS out of the TV round by 40 points. The following year, UTS entered the TV rounds seeded ninth, and in a massive upset, knocked second-seeded Lisgar out of the tournament. This year, UTS and Lisgar were tied for fifth and sixth place, but UTS won the nail-biting tiebreaker, beating Lisgar 500-340.

Unfortunately the team lost the quarter final 400-330, but came back as the wild card, keeping pace with London Central throughout the game. The teams were tied going into the final ninety-second round of play, but in the end, London's brilliant captain was faster than team, winning 430-370.

Despite their third place finish, the team should be commended on their amazing efforts this season, where they broke old patterns and forged new records. The team recaptured the city title which had eluded UTS for years and UTS was the only team in the Provincial tournament to post a score of over 600 in the round robin. For the first time in several years, the team won six out of seven round robins games instead of five.

Seven UTS students qualify for U of T Provincial Chemistry Training Camp

May 22, 2007

Seven UTS students qualified for the provincial Chemistry Training Camp at U of T the weekend of Saturday, May 19th. Their scores on the Chemistry Olympiad exam were among the 20 highest in the province. The training camp consists of intense lab practicals and theoretical tests.

Congratulations to:
Gordon Bae
Matt Li
Anthony Yu
Sacha Mangerel
Kyle Tsang
Hanna Retallack
Rafael Krichevsky

Four students from the 20 chosen for this weekend's training will go on to the National Training Camp.

Fern Ramoutar wins the Middletons speech competition

May 14, 2007

Congratulations to Fern Ramoutar for winning the Middleton Medal for Junior Public Speaking on Thursday, May 3rd. Ten F1 and F2 students competed, speaking on a variety of topics:

Una Jefferson	Playground Architecture
Richard Liu	"People should be our greatest fear"
Karishma Manji	Poverty
Adrienne Meyers	Music Lessons
Nida Noorani	"There is no real meaning to life"
Eliza Pope	"Why we should ban SPAM"
Fern Ramoutar	"Heroes are the villains"
Adam Robarts	"Why an Amish lifestyle is the best"
Julia Romanski	"I'm hatin' it: Why we should boycott McDonalds"
Marilyn Verghis	To clone or not to clone?

 

The competition was fierce and each speaker did an outstanding job. The judges had a very hard decision to make, but Fern’s performance earned her the top spot!

UTS Debaters top National Debate Seminar

May 7, 2007

Congratulations to Lujia Lin and Alexandra Aliferis for their outstanding performances at the National Debate Seminar in Ottawa from Wednesday, April 25th to Friday, the 29th. Students from across the country competed, debating resolutions relating to the theme of Parliamentary Democracy in Canada.

Lujia won the Chief Justice of Canada Award as top bilingual debater. Lujia now holds the distinction of being top Ontario and top Canadian Bilingual Debater of 2007!

Alexandra was named top Ontario debater in the English speaking category at last week's event, and she placed among the top three in Canada!

The Canadian Student Debating Federation host National Debating Seminar which aims to expose students to the art of debating while providing an opportunity for cultural exchange between young people from all regions of the country. During the week-long event, delegates attend workshops, are paired with other students for various styles of debate, perform public speeches and sit as members in model parliament.

Mark Krass wins Tory Shield

May 7, 2007

Congratulations to Mark Krass, this year's winner of the John A. Tory Shield for Intermediate Public Speaking. The judges had an extremely difficult time distinguishing the five fine performances. All contestants showed a great deal of talent and commitment to their readings, as the audience would agree. Many thanks to Mr. David Cope and Mr. James Campbell for giving their time and expertise to the judging.

UTS students’ community service recognized

May 7, 2007

Congratulations to Jonathan Leung and Lester Liao for being named Volunteer Ambassadors for Bloorview Kids Rehab. As Volunteer Ambassadors, they will help promote volunteerism at UTS and the recruitment of volunteers for Bloorview’s summer program. Jonathan and Lester were offered the position because of their exemplary level of volunteer commitment and outstanding performance.

UTS Bloorview volunteers Lester Liao and Jonathan Leung

Both Jonathan and Lester work as recreation therapy volunteers. The program is designed so that the children have fun while developing their motor and sensory skills and promoting social interaction. Jonathan and Lester act as both assistants and friends in a wide variety of activities, from baking and crafts to sports and board games.

Bloorview Kids Rehab is Canada’s largest children’s rehabilitation hospital, serving children and young adults with disabilities and complex medical needs and their families. World-renowned for its care, research and education, it gives children with disabilities the tools to reach their goals. Their summer programs include Summer Camps such as the Spiral Garden Creative Arts Camps and Therapeutic Recreation programs, such as the ones both Jonathan and Lester volunteer in.

UTS student’s video art recognized

April 30, 2007

 UTS student Claro Cosco’s film Genderpunk won 1st prize at Doc it!, a showcase for young filmmakers at the Hot Docs festival, on Saturday, April 28th. Claro’s piece was featured as one of nine youth documentaries chosen from dozens of submissions.

Doc it! is an initiative of the Hot Docs festival to stimulate non-fiction short filmmaking among youth and provides a forum for their perspectives on their experience and their understanding of the world.

Genderpunk documents the struggle of a teenage transboy in his attempts to make sense of personal questions of gender, boyhood and the nature of identity. It takes the form of a video journal, using fractured narrative and imagery to explore the limitations of mainstream notions of gender and identity.

Claro receives Final Cut Pro and Studio II, film editing software valued at over $2000, and a year of Cineplex movie tickets.

A tough playoff game for Intermediate Reach for the Top

April 30, 2007

 UTS’ Intermediate Reach for the Top team met with fierce competition at the city championships on Tuesday, April 17th. In their first game of the playoffs, UTS’ novice team performed valiantly against this year’s powerhouse team, Marc Garneau.

The team’s student coach in attendance, Morgan Ring, provided a wealth of strategic advice and inspiration.

It was a tight game all three rounds, with UTS often in the lead. But in the end, the Marc Garneau veterans edged out our brilliant novices, winning 380-300.

The last time UTS faced Garneau, they won 450 to 260, so the team is closing the gap. Garneau went on to second place overall, only losing to St Michael's in the final match. UTS performed impressively against very strong competition.

This year's Intermediate team was entirely composed of new recruits and they have shown great advances in their individual and team skills. They will be a force to be reckoned with in next year's season.

Congratulations to the team for their great efforts: Kevin An, Dennis He, Christine Farquharson, Leslie Newcombe, Nitarshan Rajkumar, and Cindy Zhu.

Staff advisor, Mr. Mark Timmins, would like to thank student coaches Morgan Ring and Lujia Lin, “who have rendered sterling service throughout the season as well as during this year's playoffs.”

UTS’ Senior Reach for the Top team wins the Metro South Championships

April 30, 2007

The Senior Reach for the Top team trounced Leaside to win the Metro South Championships on Wednesday, April 18th.

The team felt the pressure as the entered the finals – in the past few seasons, the Sr. Reach team has dominated the season only to run out of steam at the city finals. This year they finally broke that record!

In their first game, UTS handily defeated Oakwood C.I. 580-110.

Next came the fast-buzzing Marshall McLuhan, and after some second-round setbacks, the team roared back to beat them 410 - 230.

The nail-biting final match against Leaside started out neck and neck, with Leaside in the lead by 10 points at the end of the first round. But the team focused and proved unstoppable, finishing with a decisive win of 510-310.

Congratulations to Andi Jin, Rafael Krichevsky, Lujia Lin, Morgan Ring, Samir Shivji, and Helena Whyte for their stunning victory.

Staff Advisor Ms. Susie Choi is incredibly proud of team “for representing UTS so well by showing focus, guts, dignity, and great sportsmanship.”

The team now moves onto the Provincials in May. Good luck!!

UTS students bring home Silver and Bronze medals from the ISOMA Math Olympics

April 30, 2007

 UTS teams won Silver and Bronze medals at the Independent Schools of Ontario Mathematics Association (ISOMA) Mathematics Olympics, hosted by the Crescent School on Saturday, April 14th. The Mathematics Olympics challenge bright grade 7 and 8 students to engage with mathematics in meaningful and concrete way, both individually and as a team.

The teams had very strong performances at all events, including individual, team and relay. UTS’ teams collected two of three awarded medals! Team A won Silver and Team B won Bronze.

Team A:
1. Salvator Hutira
2. Melody Guan
3. Robert Guo
4. Neha Arora

Team B:
1. Tina Yuan
2. Adarsh Gupta
3. Clinton Wang
4. Sophie Quian

UTS team A will go to Ontario Mathematics Olympiad in Ottawa June 1st and 2nd. Best of luck!!

UTS students receive video art honours

April 23, 2007

Congratulations to Claro Cosco and Kael Deverell for having their video art selected by a jury to be publicly screened across Toronto – a wonderful way to kick off Arts Week!

Kael’s piece Pigeon Studies is a nominee for the Toronto Student Film Festival Award.

Claro’s piece genderpunk will be featured at the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Film Festival (screening at the ROM), Sprockets: International Film Festival for Children (screening at Canada Square), Delisle Youth Gallery and the Lennox Contemporary.

Nicole Li and Cissy Zhou perform at the 2006 National Canadian Music Competition Gala Concert

April 23, 2007

Talented UTS musicians Nicole Li , violinist, and Cissy Zhou, pianist, performed at the Canadian Music Competition Annual Gala Concert on Saturday, April 14th. Both girls were 2006 National Canadian Music Competition winners.

Cissy played Frdric Chopin’s Andante spianato and Grande Polonaise in E flat Op. 22, while Nicole performed Francesco M. Veracini’s Sonata in E minor, 1st & 2nd mvts and Fritz Kreisler’s Praeludium and Allegro accompanied by a pianist.

Cissy also recently played at 2007 Music Teachers National Association's Conference here in Toronto from March 23rd to 27th, where she played Beethoven's Sonata Op 81a. In January, she also had the honour of a master class with world renowned pianist Lang Lang.

UTS launches sustainability initiative

October 9, 2007

On September 26, the UTS community launched its year-long sustainability initiative by coming together to confront an environmental crisis unprecedented in scale and urgency: climate change. The morning featured a special assembly, where Anne Parker, one of Al Gore's Canadian presenters ran the Inconvenient Truth workshop for F2-S6 students. That afternoon, the student executive of the Social Issues Council ran an open forum where students brainstormed proactive measures that our community can take to reduce its ecological footprint. It was an enormously productive session, and UTS looks forward to a host of student-led initiatives to engage staff, students and parents on this issue in the year ahead.

UTS’s sustainability initiative is one of six developed to further UTS’s aim of fostering social responsibility and global citizenship in its community. Each academic year a different theme will be explored through special activities and presentations: Human Rights, Global Village, Creativity, Community/Leadership, Health, and Sustainability.

UTS Debating strong at the Spring Fulford 

April 23, 2007

 

UTS Debating had a strong performance at the Spring Fulford Debate Tournament at De La Salle College Oaklands on Saturday, April 14th. Both Junior and Senior Teams competed, each placing third out of 20 teams. Junior Debater Mark Krass earned a citation for standing third highest among the individual debaters. Congratulations to Ali Damji, Mark Krass, Sana Mehrani and Rameez Sewani on their excellent performances.

UTS' Spring Fulford debaters

UTS Debating is quickly winding down for the year. The focus will now be on preparing our three competitors for the National competitions coming up in Ottawa later this month and in Montreal in early May.

Gordon Bae wins aBetterEarth Essay Contest 

April 23, 2007

Gordon Bae won 1st place in the aBetterEarth Fall 2006 Essay Contest – a great achievement, considering he was competing against graduate student essayists.

aBetterEarth.org examines alternative approaches to environmental concerns and is a project of the Institute for Humane Studies, a non-profit educational organization affiliated with George Mason University. It is committed to supporting~interdisciplinary research and education in the classical liberal traditions of individual liberty, voluntarism, and peace.

Gordon’s essay thoughtfully examined the Endangered Species Act, its goals and incentives as well as proposing new approaches to protecting endangered species.

Gordon receives a $2000 prize and an environmental book.

In November, Gordon also won the Partners Research Essay Contest for the Greater Toronto Region for his essay entitled “Genetic Testing: Advance in Science or Ethical Dilemma.”

UTS students sweep the Metro Toronto Sci-Tech Fair 

April 2, 2007

 Congratulations to our F1 students who swept the Metro Toronto Sci-Tech Fair at U of T’s Scarborough Campus over the weekend. UTS’ top ten F1 Science Fair projects competed at the Fair, which brings together over 500 students from across the city. Top projects will go on to the National Science Fair in May.

UTS made a clean sweep of the Gold, Silver and Bronze Medals in various categories. Congratulations to:

Michael Lemanski, who won a Gold Medal for his project "Relation of Atomic Mass, Density and Crystal Structure to Elasticity." Michael will go on to compete at the National Science Fair in Truro, Nova Scotia May 12th to 20th.

Salvador Hutira, who also won Gold for his project "Is Salvatores aquaticus the Answer to Global Warming?"

Katie Lawrence, who won a Silver Medal for her work on "Preserving Roses."

Jessica Zhung, who also won Silver for her project "The Effect of Energy on Plant Growth & Seed Germination."

Alice Wang and Karishma Manji who won a Bronze Medal for their project "Which Water and Water Filter Provide the Cleanest Water?"

Adarsh Gupta and Kevin An, who won Bronze for their work on "Food Additives" and Marilyn Verghis who also took home Bronze for her project "Energy Conservation."

Again, kudos go out to all who represented UTS at the Fair, and good luck to Michael at the National Fair in May!

Fierce competition for the Intermediate Reach for the Top team

April 2, 2007

UTS’ Intermediate Reach for the Top team faced powerful competition in its series of three games at St. Michael's Choir School on Tuesday, March 27th.

In game one, the team was against Leaside in a tight game, ending 340-320 for Leaside. UTS was up against Marc Garneau, who proved to be fierce competitors, winning 450-260. But the team brought it back in the third and final game, squeaking by St. Michael’s Choir School 320-310.

Congratulations to the team for their enthusiastic efforts:

Kevin An Woody Boychuk Nitarshan Rajkumar

Chystine Farquharson Leslie Newcombe Cindy Zhu

Staff advisor Mr. Mark Timmins would also like to thank student coach Morgan Ring (S6) for all her hard work.

UTS student winner at Provincial Debating Championship

March 27, 2007

Fern Ramoutar won 2nd place in the Grade 6-8 Division at the Ontario Jr. Provincial Championships in Ottawa on Saturday, March 3rd. Because of the weather, Fern's partner, Rachel Park, was unable to attend, so Fern debated with a swing debater and qualified based on individual speaker results in her debates.

Mark Krass and Nicola Yang also competed in the Grade 9 Division, with Mark finishing in 8th place and team standings still outstanding.

A great performance at National Debating Championship

March 27, 2007

Congratulations to UTS student Jake Brockman and his Ashbury College partner for placing 6th in Canada at the National Debate Championships at UCC on Friday, March 2nd to Saturday, March 3rd.

The pair had 4 wins and 2 losses going into the quarter finals, but were unable to compete further because they were a cross-school team. However, Jake gained valuable experience and was one of the youngest debaters at the event! This is an excellent showing for him.

Reach for the Top teams keep going strong!

March 27, 2007

 UTS’ Reach for the Top teams continue a great season, with UTS A in 1st place in the Toronto league and UTS B not far behind in 3rd!

On Tuesday, March 6th, UTS’ Intermediate Reach team brought two more victories home, winning 370-290 against Chaminade and 380-200 against Don Bosco.

Congratulations to the team: Christine Farquarson, Leslie Newcombe, Nicola Yang and Cindy Zhu of M3 and M4 Brian Gracie. Special thanks to Student Executive Rep. Helena Whyte (S6).

F1 Chess Team wins bronze

March 27, 2007

Congratulations to the F1 Chess Team for winning bronze at a tournament on Sunday, March 3rd. Considering they were playing against many students in grade 9, this is quite an achievement!

Again, congratulations to Chalini Lankage, Patrick Lung, Michael Noukhovich and Eric Zhan.

Coach Mr. Serguei Ianine wants to extend a special thanks to the UTS Chess Club Executive Martin Ho.

Senior Play a Success!

March 26, 2007

 

This year’s senior play, 7 Stories by Canadian playwright Morris Panych, had a very successful run from Friday, February 23rd to Saturday, February 24th. Thanks to the newly refitted sound and lighting system, the senior play returned to the UTS auditorium for the first time in years.

7 Stories cast with Ms. Catherine Hannon

Many staff and students from M3 to S6 had been working hard since last October in the production as actors and crew. Highlights of the show included dramatic and comedic performances by the actors, as well as great lighting, sound, music, props and costumes. Each student is to be commended for their talent and their dedication!

Congratulations to all involved and thanks to those who came out to see the show!

UTS students winners at the DECA Conference

February 27, 2007

On February 12th and 13th, thirty-three UTS students participated in the DECA Conference, an annual provincial competition where students defend business proposals, compete in oral events and attend sessions. DECA is an organization dedicated to developing future leaders in marketing, management and leadership.

UTS had an impressive performance, with students qualifying for both the Provincials and Internationals.

DECA Provincial finalists and DECA International qualifiers: For defending a 30 page written proposal and oral business proposal: Jamie Besant Jeff Kuperman Ricky Kuperman For Spontaneous Case Study: Kiva Dickinson Brett Henderson Top marks in exams: Alex Aliferis Lawrence Batmazian Kiva Dickinson Brett Henderson Simu Liu Mark Walker Top 20 in spontaneous event role-play: Anthony Vaz

Top scoring participants: Dan Berbecel Andrew Chan Terrence Chin Amy Chow Khalid Esmail Martin Ho Ivan Hui Mark Krass Jenny Leung Jason Lum Yiming Ma Avanti Ramachandran Rameez Sewani Sameer Shivji Lyndon Shopsowitz Michael Tong George Weekes April Xie Josie Xu Stephanie Young

 

Congratulations to all students who participated!

F1 Science Fair success

February 27, 2007

F1 students presented an amazing array of science projects during this year’s Science Fair on Friday, February 16th. It was an exciting afternoon with a wide range of projects in six categories: Biotechnology, Computers & Engineering, Environment & Earth, Health Sciences, Life Sciences and Physical Sciences & Mathematics. Over 90 Science Teacher candidate volunteers judged this year’s projects.

The top 10 projects will go on to represent UTS at the Metro Toronto Sci-Tech Fair on March 30th and 31st. The Sci-Tech fair brings together over 500 students from across the city, with top projects going on to the National Science Fair in May. UTS’ top 10 projects were:

1st	Michael Lemanski	Affects of Atomic Mass
2nd	Salvador Hutira	Is Salvatores Aquaticus the Answer to Global Warming?
3rd	Katie Lawrence	Preserving Roses
4th	Patrick Lung	Natural vs Synthetic Plastic
5th	Marilyn Verghis	Energy Conservation
6th	Kevin An & Adarsh Gupta	Effect of Additives on Growth of Microorganisms
7th	Jessica Zung	The Effect of Energy on Plant Growth & Seed Germination
8th	Alisa Ugodnikov	Mathematical Models as Predictors of More Complex Behaviour
9th	Karishma Manji & Alice Wang	Which Water and Water Filter Provide the Cleanest Water?
10th	Cassandra Douglas	The Effects of Caffeine and Sugar on Blood Pressure and Heart Rate

 

Special thanks go to Science teachers Ms. Mary Hall, Mr. Shawn Brooks, Ms. Meg O’Mahony and Ms. Angela Vavitsas for helping make this year’s fair such a success.

Congratulations to all who participated!

UTS dominates regional German Contest

February 27, 2007

 Yet again UTS students dominated the regional Ontario High School German Contest at U of T on Wednesday, February 21st. 13 UTS students competed against four Toronto area schools. Many 2nd year UTS German students competed against 3rd year German students in their categories.

Gratulation to the winners:

Group 3 (largest category)
For students having spent limited or no time in a German-speaking country and with little or no exposure to German outside the classroom.

2nd place	Natasha Pirani
3rd place	Amy Lu
4th place	Sarah Truong
6th place	Kalyna Franko
8th place	Mihai Chelaru-Centea
13th place	Matthew Chan

 Group 2
For students with 3 weeks or more spent in a German-speaking country

1st place

Kael Deverell

Last year Kael won the contest's top prize, a 4-week trip to Germany!

Group 1
For students with extensive time spent in a German-speaking country and other enrichment activities

1st place	Lujia Lin
2nd place	Thomas Menzefricke

Students will be receiving their invitation letters in April for the Provincial Finals which will be held at York University in May.

Danke schn to all participating students!

UTS students winners at the Concours Oratoire

February 27, 2007

 Flicitations to Sima Atri , Kajori Chakravorty, Mihai Chelaru-Centea, Benot Cyrenne, Rahim Noormohamed and Tasha Stansbury for winning at the Concours Oratoire, hosted here at UTS on Tuesday, February 20th. The Concours is a French public speaking contest for Independent Schools, from grades 7 to 12.

UTS’ winners will move onto the Provincial Concours Oratoire on May 12th at Glendon College, and finally the Nationals in Ottawa.

Last year UTS students Rachel Johnston and Ching See Lau went on to compete at the National Concours. Rachel won first place in her category and a $20,000 University of Ottawa scholarship while Ching See placed second in hers, receiving a $2000 University of Ottawa scholarship.

Flicitations et bonne chance!

UTS debating success at the Winter Fulford

February 20, 2007

Five UTS Debaters participated in the Winter Fulford Debate Tournament at Toronto French School on Saturday, February 17th. Benoit Cyrenne was called into action as Junior Swing Debater and came away with a citation for Third Place in the Individual rankings. Alexandra Aliferis took Fifth Place in the Individual rankings of the Senior Division. Together with Jacob Barrett, UTS finished as the Fifth Place team in the Senior Division. UTS was represented in the Junior Division by Kevin Lee and Khalid Esmail. Both of these debaters finished in the top half.

A great show for the Intermediate Reach for the Top team

February 20, 2007

UTS’ Intermediate Reach for the Top team played their first season matches on Wednesday, February 14th. They encountered tough opposition but emerged victorious in their second round. Reach for the Top is a high school student trivia competition where contestants buzz in to win.

In Round One, UTS played Marshal MacLuhan, losing 380-110. But the team bounced back in their second round, winning against North Toronto 280-270.

Congratulations to our F1 contestants: Emily Chen, Woody Fraser-Boychuk, Melody Guan, Dennis He, Campbell Langlois and their student coach, Lujia Lin.

UTS tops Regional Bilingual Debate Tournament

February 12, 2007

UTS students Sima Atri and Lujia Lin swept the Regional Bilingual Debate Tournament in Peterborough on Saturday, February 10th. They spoke confidently, eloquently and convincingly in both languages, dazzling the judges and their opponents alike.

After two rounds of prepared debating and one impromptu round, Sima and Lujia came in first and second place respectively, qualifying for the upcoming Provincial Debate Seminar in Thunder Bay.

Flicitations et Bonne Chance! Congratulations and Good Luck!

Bilingual Debate winners with Ms. Melanie Gagnon

UTS takes first place the Metro West Regional Debate Tournament

February 6, 2007

UTS hosted and won the Metro West Regional Debate Tournament on Thursday, February 1st. Congratulations to Alexandra Aliferis, Sima Atri, Jake Brockman and Sana Mehrani, whose eloquent arguments and combined scores won UTS the MSDU Cup.

UTS debaters present
Principal Michaele Robertson with the MDSU Cup

Alexandra was ranked second in individual performance, while Jake was ranked third and Sima fourth. Alexandra and Jake were also named Metro Toronto delegates to the Ontario Provincial Debate Seminar to be held in Thunder Bay at the end of March.

Another UTS debating success at the Gavel Tournament!

January 31, 2007

 

Two UTS teams debated at the Gavel Tournament at Branksome Hall on Saturday, January 27th. UTS’ debaters were Nida Noorani, Rachel Park, Rabea Parpia, Fern Ramoutar with Jake Brockman attending as a judge.

Rachel placed 3rd among the Grade 8 debaters and she and Rabia placed 6th overall in the team standings. Fern and Nida placed 4th overall in team standings.

Congratulations to these rising young debaters!

UTS Debaters

Debating success!

December 12, 2006

UTS students Jake Brockman and Scott Wang had an amazing five rounds of debating this past weekend at the Ontario Provincial Championships. They were up against very experienced senior debaters from all across Ontario and still qualified for the National Championships!

This was a tough event that was scored by win-loss record on the basis of conferral judging, where all the judges have to agree on the winning team for each debate. It was also a "bracketed" tournament, so as Jake and Scott progressed through the tournament, they played progressively more experienced debaters. Coach Mrs. Diane Lang is “very proud of the mature way in which they represented our school at this event.”

Congratulations gentlemen!

Amir Safavi winner at the Burlington Music Festival

December 12, 2006

Congratulations to Amir Safavi, who was awarded the Strings Trophy of 2006 at the Burlington Music Festival on Saturday, November 25th. Amir performed and competed in four categories including Concerto, Showpiece, solo Bach and Canadian Contemporary work at the Associate Level in violin. He received the highest mark overall in Strings and was awarded three scholarships.

A new UTS Biotech record!

December 12, 2006

This year, six UTS student teams submitted proposals to the Sanofi-Aventis Biotech Challenge and four have been accepted – a new UTS record! The Biotech Challenge gives students the opportunity to perform cutting-edge biotech research while working with the faculty and facilities of Canada’s top universities.

The research committee that reviews these proposals is made up of some of the top Biotechnology Scientists at U of T, MaRS, Toronto Research Hospitals and industry.

Congratulations go to:

Gordon Bae, Sacha Mangerel, Kyle Tsang, Justin Wong for their proposal "Modelling Apoptosis of Human Oncogenes vis E2F Transcription Factor Reactivation in Schmidtea mediterranea Autosomal Cells." Reviewers called their proposal “very professional looking” and say it “suggests that [the team has] already obtained the help of a mentor,” while they actually did the work without one! Bravo!

Pamela Leung, Amy Lu, Farheen Manji for their project "Impact of Herb Extracts on Beta-Amyloid Plaque Reduction in Alzheimer's Disease."

Cathy Dai and Farah Jaffer for their proposal "Australian Tea Tree Oil: A Safe and Effective Alternative to a Dangerous and Commonly Used Antibacterial?"

Laurie Charpentier, Kelly Chin, Jeffrey Ho, Michael Wan for their proposal "Enabling Composting by E. coli Bacteria in Cold Weather with Use of Antifreezing Proteins"

The 2 proposals that were not accepted this year were both because recent research results have been published in their project area. But both of the teams will be able to continue their research experiments:

Sarah Truong, Sonia Zhang, Cissy Zhou will work on "Phytoremediation of Nickel using Plants from the Brassicaceae family."

Valerie Ho and Julie Ting will determine "The Effects of Genistein and Daidzein on the Mean Fat Cell Volume of 3T3-L1 Fibroblasts."

Congratulations to ALL of the above 18 students!

UTS launches sustainability initiative

October 9, 2007

On September 26, the UTS community launched its year-long sustainability initiative by coming together to confront an environmental crisis unprecedented in scale and urgency: climate change. The morning featured a special assembly, where Anne Parker, one of Al Gore's Canadian presenters ran the Inconvenient Truth workshop for F2-S6 students. That afternoon, the student executive of the Social Issues Council ran an open forum where students brainstormed proactive measures that our community can take to reduce its ecological footprint. It was an enormously productive session, and UTS looks forward to a host of student-led initiatives to engage staff, students and parents on this issue in the year ahead.

UTS’s sustainability initiative is one of six developed to further UTS’s aim of fostering social responsibility and global citizenship in its community. Each academic year a different theme will be explored through special activities and presentations: Human Rights, Global Village, Creativity, Community/Leadership, Health, and Sustainability.

Gordon Bae wins Partners Research Essay Contest

November 7, 2006

Gordon Bae won first prize in the Partners Research Essay Contest for the Greater Toronto Region for his essay entitled “Genetic Testing: Advance in Science or Ethical Dilemma.” The contest’s theme was “The Scienctific Journey: Pathways to Discovery” with an emphasis on the role of biomedical research in Canadian Society.

Partners in Research is a Canadian charity dedicated to educating young people across the country about biomedical health research since 1988.

Gordon receives a Certificate of Merit and a $250 prize.

UTS students winners at Brebeuf College Pro Con Debate

November 7, 2006

UTS debaters had great success at the Pro Con Debate at Brebeuf College on Saturday, October 28th. Twelve students participated, and did especially well in the Novice division. Nicola Yang landed first place in the individual Novice standings and the Novice team, consisting of Nicola, Khalid Esmail, Mark Krass and Kevin Lee won second place in the team standings.

In the Junior division Lujia Lin earned an Honourable Mention and the team, consisting of Lujia, Jacob Barrett, Benoit Cyrenne and Justin Wong, placed third. The Senior division team consisting of Alexandra Aliferis, Natasha Pirani, Rameez Sewani and Eleanor Vaughan placed third in the team standings - an excellent result given that most of this team consisted of S5's who were "debating up" against grade 12 students. Despite the tough competition, Natasha, Rameez and Eleanor also earned Honourable Mention awards.

Nicola Yang wins Regional Biotech Brain Game

October 31, 2006

UTS student Nicola Yang won first place in the Sanofi-Aventis National Biotech Brain Game Toronto Regionals in late September. The Brain Game explores the latest in biotechnology across Canada and the world. Students from across the country answer multiple choice questions about biotechnology issues, recent advancements and Canadian initiatives.

Nicola receives an achievement certificate and an HMV gift certificate.

UTS students to compete in the CanWest National Public Speaking Tournament Provincials

October 31, 2006

Congratulations to Jake Brockman, Anjan Devaraj and Lujia Lin for qualifying for the CanWest National Public Speaking Tournament Provincials, taking place this Friday, November 3rd at Trinity College. Top high school debaters and public speakers from across Canada compete in this event, engaging in discussions about important issues and giving them the opportunity to develop excellent communication and research skills. The Provincials will feature Impromptu Speaking, Parliamentary Debating and Persuasive Speaking.

UTS has outstanding results at the University of Toronto French Contest

July 13, 2006

 UTS performed superbly at the University of Toronto French Contest for Grade 12. The Concours test students' skills in reading comprehension and writing as well as listening and speaking. Participation is by invitation only with three students per school and no more than two in each category. This year, 100 grade 12 students from private schools spanning across eight school boards spent a day competing at St. Michael’s College at University of Toronto.

UTS French Contest winners with Mlle Amiot

UTS' Kate Gerster won 1st place in the Core French Plus Category, with the best overall average from all the categories - an amazing achievement. She receives a $3000 University of Toronto Scholarship and a $1000 bursary.

Sarah Bradley won 2nd place in the Core French Plus Category and receives an $800 bursary.

In the Extended / Immersion Category, Rachel Johnston won 2nd place as well as the prize for Best Essay with a mark of 97%. She also receives an $800 bursary.

This is truly an achievement extraordinaire given that none of these students are in an Extended or Immersion program.

Flicitations!

UTS wins 2nd place at the Reach for the Top Nationals!

July 6, 2006

UTS’ Reach for the Top team won 2nd place at the National competition, held in Edmonton from Saturday, May 27th to Tuesday, May 30th.

UTS' winning Reach for the Top team

In a repeat of the Provincials, UTS and Woburn eliminated the other teams from across the country and once again faced off for a Toronto-Toronto National final. In the final game the scores seesawed back and forth, with finally Woburn getting 51 questions correct to UTS’ 47.

Nonetheless, a score of 47 in a Reach for the Top game is impressive, and is usually a winning score in which a team has trounced its opponent (such as a score of 47 to 23). The score speaks to the intense level of competition at the final game.

The audience was awed by UTS' prowess throughout the competition with UTS’ average scores being the highest of all teams.

Congratulations to UTS’ Reach for the Top team for an outstanding performance:

Andi Jin
Lujia Lin
Jenn Luong
Morgan Ring
Sameer Shivji
Helena Whyte

Jonathon Athayde wins 2006 Robert Bateman Writing & Art Contest

July 6, 2006

 Jonathan Athayde won the 2006 Robert Bateman Writing & Art Contest. The contest centered on National Wildlife week, with entries focused on Earth’s future and all the living things that share it.

As a winner, Jonathon will receive a personal written congratulations from Robert Bateman and have the opportunity to have his work published in newspapers across Canada as well as in the Nature Canada's and the Canadian Wildlife Federation’s WILD Magazine. He also receives a prize package including signed prints, magazine subscriptions and a WWF gift pack. Jonathon will receive his prizes at the award ceremony in Ottawa on Friday, June 9th.

UTS’ School Captains 2006 Nesbitt Medal Winners

July 6, 2006

 

Cynthia Smithers and Julie Hwang, UTS’ School Captains, were awarded the Gold and Silver Nesbitt Medals on Tuesday, May 30th and Thursday, June 1st, respectively.

Nesbitt Medal winners Julie Hwang and Cynthia Smithers

Arguably two of UTS' most prestigious awards, the Nesbitt Awards are annually given to students in the graduating class who, in the opinion of faculty and students, have best exhibited the following throughout their career at UTS: scholarship, example, discipline, interest and participation in school activities, and involvement in athletics.

This year seven students were nominated, with the top four students neck and neck for Gold. Winners were determined by student votes, weighted by grade.

Congratulations!