The San Francisco Bay AFS Team is looking to place thirteen additional foreign exchange students around the Bay Area. Would you be interested in adding a new member to your family for the year? Please take a moment to look at the pool of incredible students and also feel free to tell your friends and family about this incredible opportunity!  Here’s more information about hosting an exchange student. And here are the biographies of students looking for host families.

Education and entertainment await visitors of all ages at the U.S. Geological Survey’s Open House in Menlo Park on Saturday, May 19 and Sunday, May 20, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is free.

Scientists will share their latest work via hands-on exhibits, displays, web-based animations and virtual tours. Visitors can view demonstrations of cutting-edge science, and speak with our staff about their work in ecosystem health and restoration, volcanoes and earthquakes, natural-resource and water-quality studies, and historic mapping techniques.

“The USGS-Menlo Park Open House is the perfect answer for ‘what to do with the whole family that is different, fun, engaging, active, and free?’” said USGS Director Marcia McNutt.

Visitors will be able to:
•    Explore the tools and equipment scientists use to understand our world, from boats to microscopes, airborne LiDAR and satellite imagery
•    Find out about water quality, earthquake probabilities, and mineral resource assessments
•    Collect science trading cards and find all the locations to get them stamped
•    View rocks collected from various locations around California
•    Dress like a scientist, and get their photo digitized into the research environment of their choice
•    Listen to presentations on recent earthquakes and tsunamis, land change in the U.S., volcanic hazards at Yellowstone, unconventional oil and gas resources, and projects related to restoring South Bay salt ponds
•    Buy topographic maps, earthquake hazard zone maps and other scientific publications
•    Bring in rocks, minerals, or fossils for identification
•    Try to guess the locations of popular U.S. landmarks using satellite imagery and aerial photography.

In addition to science, the Open House will offer live bands performing bluegrass, ethnic, and traditional music from around the world. Tours of the USGS gardens will be offered, giving visitors a chance to see the second-largest collection of rhododendron varieties in California. Visitors are encouraged to bring a picnic and enjoy our gardens in full bloom. The onsite café will also be open with a range of food and drink for purchase.

The USGS Menlo Park Campus is at 345 Middlefield Road in Menlo Park.

When jewelry maker Cathy Wentz walks around, she looks down. “I get inspiration from everything,” she says, “but I especially enjoy gathering found objects I spot on the ground — seed pods, twigs, that sort of thing.”

The Atherton resident, who will be exhibiting her jewelry on May 19 and 20 as part of the Silicon Valley Open Studios, admits to having a lifelong artistic bent. She painted acrylics for many years and also spent time as an interior designer at Menlo Park’s Flegel’s Fine Furniture. “I’m always into something,” she says.

That something became jewelry seven years ago when she took a metal smithing class, not because she wanted to make jewelry but was just interested in the process. “The class was just for fun, but then someone introduced me to silver metal clay and I got hooked,” she recalls. “I mold the clay and stamp it with all sorts of things.”

Today most of Cathy’s pieces are beaded, although she often incorporates silver clay elements, working in her well-lit studio that was once the pool house. “What’s most time consuming is the concept and design,” she says. “I build a piece up and tear it down a number of times before it is done.”

She’s just started showing her work — first at Fort Mason and then at a show featuring Atherton artists at Holbrook Palmer Park. This is the first year she’s been accepted as a Silicon Valley Open Studios artist.

“I love the creativity and the exploration of different elements that goes into each piece,” she says. “It’s wonderful to work with the various textures and color. I can sometimes work for hours with completing a piece. I guess I’m a great starter of things but not always a finisher!”

Other local artists will also be having open studios this weekend. Here’s a recap.

Photo by Irene Searles

One of the most popular end of school activities, Oak Knoll’s Otter Run, takes place this year on Sunday, May 20. Last year, Heather Tanner, who just won the Preakness 5K, participated, winning the women’s division. (She’s pictured with last year’s male division winner John Hale.)

Organizers say there are options for every ability, including a 1.5 mile, family friendly loop. Walkers and strollers are welcome. Kids who complete one loop receive a finisher’s ribbon. Those who finish two loops compete for prizes from Fleet Feet Menlo Park. Registration is available online and day of race.

Editor’s note: Evidently it’s the day for local student musical theatre. Soon after we posted the story on Grab Bag Theatre below, we received word about these high school musical nominations.

Musicals produced by Menlo-Atherton High School and Menlo School have been nominated for the 2012 Bay Area High School Musical Theatre Stage Top Honors Awards. The awards program, sponsored by the San Jose Stage Company, encourages and rewards exceptional accomplishments in the production of high school musical theatre. Sixteen private and public high schools competed for the 2012 Awards, which are modeled after Broadway’s Tony Awards.

MA’s four nominations for the musical Once Upon a Mattress include Hannah Berggren for Best Leading Actress (pictured top) and Zachary W. Abt for Best Supporting Actor. The school also picked up nominations for Shayda Abadi for Best Graphic Design and Kent Kurrus for Student Orchestra.

Menlo School received seven nominations for its production of Spring Awakening, including Best Leading Actor Andrew Klingelhofer and Director Beth Orr (pictured right). Other nominations include Best Chorus; Best Supporting Actor, Brett Caplan; Choreography, Jan Chandler; Lighting Design, Tripp Robbins; and Costume Design, Kim Klingelhofer.

Winners of the 2012 Stage Top Honor Awards will be announced on Monday, June 4 at 7:00 pm at the California Theatre in downtown San Jose. More information and tickets are available online. Winners of the the Best Actress and Best Actor categories will be sent to the National Musical Theatre Awards in New York City.

Photo of Hannah Berggren by Gillian Bostock

Photo of Beth Orr courtesy of Menlo School

Mentors and students in the Academy Program at Menlo-Atherton High School wrapped up the 2011-2012 academic year with a breakfast — and group photo op — last Friday. The 70 mentors who participated in the program this year were recruited from the greater community. They work one-on-one with “at risk” students to help them improve academically and increase the number going on to college. M-A teacher Chris Rubin (front row, second from left) began the program in 2005 and hopes to eventually have a mentor for each of the 150 Academy students. You can read more about the program in this InMenlo post. To volunteer for the next academic year, contact Chris via email at crubin@seq.org.

Photo by Irene Searles

When Nina Lozinski talks about Grab Bag Theater, the emphasis is on “community,” the word she uses to describe the many people who are involved in what just may be the only totally student-run theater company in the nation.

“We haven’t found another company like us, and we’ve gotten invitations to open duplicate companies in other cities,” she says.

The Grab Bag community includes actors, technicians, people who plan and take part in open Mic nights, and the parents who support the group. “It’s really about anyone who participates in Grab Bag activities and that includes our audiences,” said Nina.

About 60% of the students who are involved with Grab Bag are from Menlo-Atherton High School, with another 30% from Summit and the remaining 10% from other local high schools.

When it came to picking their spring musical production, Anything Goes, Nina says the whole Grab Bag community was involved. “The first thing we did was make a list of all the musicals we’d ever heard of,” Nina said. “To narrow it down, we looked into how much it would cost to stage the various productions. Once the research was done, we had three finalists. We opened the voting to the whole Grab Bag community, and the choice was Anything Goes.

The musical’s cast numbers around 25. “I love the moments at rehearsal when the whole cast is involved in one of the musical numbers,” Nina says. “It just hits me — we’re a bunch of students making this all happen. Call it my ‘proud parent’ moment.”

Adds stage manager Margaret Ringler: “Given all the musical numbers, we’re sometimes  rehearsing three different scenes all at once. But it still works and that’s amazing.”

Anything Goes will be presented May 18, 19, 25 and 26 at Veterans Memorial Senior Center in Redwood City Tickets ($10) are available online in advance or at the door.

Following their historic league win over Menlo School (11-5), the Menlo-Atherton High School boys’ lacrosse team shaved the head of their coach, Steven Kryger.

Nicky Mullen, who fathered the idea as a bet with the coach, decided on the hairdo to “honor the Mohawk Indians, who created the sacred sport of lacrosse.”

He added: “It’s also for intimidation. And because this is our first league title, we’re going to make the Mohawk a tradition for future championships.”

Photo by Annalise Deal

Article and photo from M-A Bear News; used with permission