Steel pans must be tuned at least once a year to maintain sound quality and playability. With only seven professional tuners in the United States, it is essential to schedule tuning appointments well in advance. This month, Alan Coyle, a renowned steel pan maker and tuner, was in Michigan and visited our program to tune the class instruments. Students in the Steel Pan Ensemble, the SASA Steelers, had the unique opportunity to observe the tuning process firsthand and engage in a Q&A session about steel pan construction, maintenance, and performance. We also learned that Alan was personally trained by Ellie Mannette, the pioneer of the modern steel pan, an especially exciting connection to the instrument’s history.
We are grateful to the Saginaw Choral Society for their continued sponsorship of the SASA Steelers program, which helps make experiences like this possible.
SASA WEEK 35 GAME SCHEDULE
Turns out macaroni art isn't just for Kindergartners. Students in Miss Leneway's Algebra 2 class are hard at work using spaghetti noodles to discover the relationship between the unit circle and the graphs of sine and cosine.
#SASAMath
We’re thrilled to announce that FIVE outstanding SASA students have been selected for the prestigious Germany For You Scholarship, offered by Youth For Understanding USA (YFU)!
These deserving students will spend two weeks this summer immersed in German culture, attending vocational classes, touring historic and cultural sites, connecting with host families, and building friendships with peers abroad.
This life changing, full scholarship is awarded to students who meet high academic and character standards. We couldn’t be prouder of their achievements and initiative.
Way to go, Dragons! We can’t wait to hear about your adventures!
#GermanyForYou #YFUUSA #StudyAbroad #SaginawStrong #GlobalClassroom
Representatives from Central Michigan University's College of Medicine taught a lesson about the heart and circulatory system to Mr. Miller's Anatomy and Physiology and Biology classes. Students were given a presentation, had a question and answer period, and completed a dissection on a pig heart.
#SASAScience
Congratulations to Senior level SASA Global Studies!
On Saturday, April 18th, eight senior-level teams from Saginaw Arts & Sciences Academy competed at Michigan History Day at Central Michigan University, the most competitive contest in the program’s history. We are proud to announce that five teams earned honors, with three advancing to the National History Day Finals in College Park, Maryland in June. Let’s cheer on these students as they represent SASA and the state of Michigan with their hard work, insight, and dedication. These remarkable young people are what make education, and our future, so bright!
Group Website, National Qualifier: Logan Dashkovitz & Lukas Hill
The Armenian Genocide and the Struggle for Recognition and Responsibility
Group Documentary, National Qualifier: Anton Lauinger, Ahmad Williams, Yousef Williams
Refugee Resilience: The Vietnamese Boat People and The Intersection of Rights and Responsibilities
Group Performance, National Qualifier: Walter McCall, Brooklyn Odoom, & Amarion Simms
Reckless at Heart: The Rhymes of the Rights and Responsibilities at Tuskegee
Group Documentary, National Alternate: Erin Crawford, Mankisha Ghotra
From the Streets to Schools: Boston's Battle for Equal Education
Individual Exhibit, National Alternate: Sebastian Melick
Thomas Sloan: Fighting for Fairness, Freedom, and an Inclusive Future for Native Americans
#SASA #MichiganHistoryDay #NationalHistoryDay2025 #NHD #RightsAndResponsibilities #ProudEducators #StudentSuccess #SaginawStrong
On Thursday, April 17, SASA students participated in Foreign Language Day at SVSU. Congratulations to the following students on your success:
First Place in Skits and Musicals: The Legend of San Jorge written by Abigail Park, Isha Dasgupta and Brennan Dunn. Performed by: Brennan Dunn (the knight, San Jorge), Abigail Park (the king/el rey), Isha Dasgupta (the princess/ la princesa), Evander Crawford (the dragon, el dragón) and Hannah Sincissen/Zoey Santoya (townspeople).
First Place in Poster: Chloe Lee
Second Place in Poster: Aniah Bethea
Third Place in Poster: Reyna Silveira
Second Place in Dance: Joy Humes and Gabriella Gutierrez: Míng yue jishi you
UPCOMING SPRING CONCERTS
SASA WEEK 34 GAME SCHEDULE
Congratulations to SASA’s Environmental Club/Team for competing in their first Envirothon competition and qualifying for STATES at the Regional competition!
Envirothon is a competition for high-school aged students from around the state. Subject areas for the event correspond closely with those of the National Conservation Foundation (NCF) Envirothon, but focuses on Michigan. Subject areas are 1) Soils and Geology, 2) Forestry, 3) Wildlife, 4) Aquatic Ecology, 5) Sustainable Agriculture, and 6) Renewable Energy. The mission of the NCF-Envirothon is to educate students about the environment and conservation of natural resources through hands-on outdoor experiences.
SASA students were so thrilled to spend the day at Hartley competing. A massive THANK YOU to Saginaw Conservation District (Zack, Emma, Steve, and Heather Hart) and Livingston Conservation District (Debra Holmes and Clark Humrich) for all of their support for our students.
If any students are interested in joining Environmental Club and the Envirothon team please contact Ms. Wagner at cwagner@spsd.net.
April 15, 2025 - The SASA HS Girls Soccer game has been cancelled for this evening, as well as MS Track practice.
SASA Week 33 Game Schedule
Mrs. Ransford's 7th grade ELA concentration class recently wrapped up their Influencer Presentations on our Harlem Renaissance unit. The class conducted a brainstorming session where they determined what would be the most important aspects to cover in their individual Influencer Presentation. The class chose a presentation layout following the aspects of background, career challenges and triumphs, major contributions and/or awards, and the influencers lasting impact on society. Each student researched, complied, and then presented their findings.
SASA’s NHS students participated in Saginaw County’s Community Action Committee’s 12th Annual Walk for Warmth, supporting families facing financial hardship with heating and electric costs. Let’s keep the warmth going!
#WalkForWarmth #CommunityLove #SaginawStrong
The SASA Middle School Global Studies/ELA concentrations with a total of 12 projects, competed at the Michigan History Day - District 5 competition on Saturday, March 8, 2025, held at the Chippewa Nature Center in Midland. Students who competed in this district event presented their projects to panels of judges in the following project categories: Individual Documentary, Group Documentary, Individual Website, Group Performance, Individual Exhibits, and Group Exhibits.
Mrs. Ransford, along with Mrs. Faulk and Mrs. Fauble-Alston are overjoyed to announce 19 of the students who competed at MHD - District 5 are advancing to the 2025 State Finals Event, which is held on the campus of Central Michigan University on Saturday, April 19.
The following is the list of projects, topics, and individuals and small group members who will be participating at MHD State Finals this year:
Group Documentary:
Ancient Athenian Democracy
Joshua Eriobu, Finnigan Gilbert, and Leo Randolph (7th grade)
The Barnes vs. Train Case and How it Affected Culture Cases
Talia Abou-Ezzeddine and Madisyn Kellogg (8th grade)
Integration of the Armed Forces 1940-1965
Lorenzo Cirilo and Bentley Toth (8th grade)
Individual Documentary:
Haymarket Affair
Santino Rodriguez (8th grade)
Individual Website:
We Can Do It: Michigander Women in the Workplace
Claire Simons (8th grade)
Group Performance:
Love Knows No Color: The Lovings’ Fight for Justice
Tarryn Jones, Carleigh Kellogg, and Fatimah Shabani (7th grade)
Individual Exhibit:
Calculating to the Stars: How “Computers” Contributed to the Space Race and Showed What Women Can Do
Nana Ama Yeboah (8th grade)
River Rights
Gabriel Hunter (6th grade)
Group Exhibit:
The Jim Crow Laws: The 100 Years of Segregation in the United States
Dominic Moya, Ananya Uppuleti, and Aubrey West (7th grade)
WAAC (Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps)
Evin Glover and Carter Lyles (8th grade)
Congratulations to all of the Michigan History Day participants and we wish you luck this coming weekend as you compete at the State competition!
#Dragonslovehistory
Through a culmination of their season’s incredible efforts, SASA's Pantheon 5193 robotics team has qualified for the FIRST Championship in Houston, Texas, taking place April 16-18, 2025. The students that make up Pantheon 5193 have gone through significant growth this season through the many exciting challenges of the FIRST Robotics program. They have not only been given the opportunity to hone their math and science skills through engineering, building, and coding a successful robot; they have also been learning problem solving, teamwork, communication, leadership and many other skills that will help propel them into a STEM career. This growth is measured by their success this season. Contributing to the rank needed to be invited to the FIRST Championship event, are Pantheon 5193’s two Rising All-Star Awards. This award is given to a team with new beginnings that understands the ethos of Gracious Professionalism, is a role model for other young robotics teams, and stands out as a team with a sustainable future. In the State Championship event, their qualifications for what makes a great team were recognized by their peers as they were chosen to join an alliance in the playoffs to become finalists of the event. This, along with their performance overall this season, has placed them 77th of 619 in the state of Michigan and has awarded them placement at the FIRST Championship event in Texas. Only one other Saginaw Public team, SCC’s Phoenix 703, had accomplished this feat, and that was 18 years ago, before this team’s members were born! We are so excited and wish them luck next week in Texas!
#GoDragons #Pantheon5193
SASA Week 32 Game Schedule
Attention Juniors/Seniors and Parents:
🚨ATTENTION SASA STUDENTS AND PARENTS! WE STILL HAVE OPENINGS FOR FRIDAY'S BLOOD DRIVE! PLEASE REGISTER TODAY ⬇️
SASA Week 31 Game Schedule
