Long Valley Middle School Hosts First Fun, Educational EXPO

Who says school can’t be fun?

The students and faculty at decided that was the place to be on Thursday, April 14 from 5 to 7 p.m.

Students of all ages were welcome to the Middle School to take part in a variety of fun activities, like a giant inflatable bounce house, to a life-size chess board and puppet shows.

This was the inaugural EXPO, put forth by representatives from the school’s student government. “It came from the kids, really,” said Principal Mark Ippolito. “It was their idea, and (teacher) Crista Smith did a great job coordinating all of it.”

Ippolito said that all funds came from the student government. There was a charge of $10 to at the EXPO which included unlimited use of all activities.

At the center of the event was the unveiling of the media center renovation, which was funded by the student governmnet, PTA, and Long Valley Junior Women's Club.

“The great thing about the project was that the PTA, Long Valley Junior Women’s Club and Student Government all worked together to make this happen,” Ippolito said.

In addition to games, there were plenty of learning opportunities to go around. Nearly 20 different classrooms were set up to house different educational experiences, including Spanish Club games, forensic science, and wordly wisdom.

“We’re giving (the EXPO) a shot,” Ippolito said. “And we’re hoping this works out. We’d love to do it every year, so we’ll see how it goes.”