“We increased the number of presenters and took feedback from students on what professions they wanted,” Career Center specialist Ms. Hurlburt said. “This year we have a veterinarian, health care person, accountant, dance therapist, entrepreneur, and even a detective from the Howard County police department.”

Not only will Langley students be presented with a variety of occupations, they will also have the chance to listen to Scott Thuman, the Senior Political Reporter and anchor covering the White House and Capitol Hill for ABC 7 News and News Channel 8, as the keynote speaker.

Students have expressed their excitement for the upcoming event. “It’s interesting to learn about people’s perspectives of their jobs,” junior Madeline Osburn said.

Another new change: students will have the chance to sign up for their sessions electronically before the event. Each session will be around 35 minutes long.

Coach Hess’ daughter, Gianna, is fighting hepablastoma, a form of cancer.

Carol Zumada, a Langley and Forestville parent, said that “chains of cranes are often given to someone suffering from illness as a prayer for their recovery.”

A group of Forestville parents and students came to Langley and displayed the cranes across from the main office.

Parents from Forestville ES who planned the gift mentioned that the gift of folded origami cranes were given after the terrorist attacks of September 11^th.  After the attacks volunteers folded thousands of cranes, linked them together, and delivered to fire and police stations across New York City as a gesture of support and healing.

Photos by Harris LaTeef

During his visit, Mr. Hertzler took a walking tour with current Langley Principal Mr. Matthew Ragone.

Hertzler began as principal when Langley opened in 1965 and remained until 1971. In Hertzler’s ‘Principal’s Message’ in the 1970 edition of the Shire yearbook, Hertzler said, “Innovation is not a luxury; it is a necessity if we are to meet student needs.”

Mr. Ragone, who escorted Mr. Hertzler on his tour of Langley, said, “He had some amazing stories to tell.”

Mr. Hertzler in  the 1970 Langley Yearbook.

Senior Staff Writer Yaasmin Goudarzi contributed to this report.

Langley received a 74.0 out of 100 in the college readiness index. It also received a strong rating in math and reading: 3.5 out of 4 in geometry proficiency and 3.8 out of 4 in reading proficiency.

In the Virginia rankings, Langley was ranked behind Thomas Jefferson HS in Alexandria, George Mason HS in Falls Church, Marshall HS in Falls Church, McLean HS in McLean, and Robinson Secondary School in Fairfax.

Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology was ranked 2nd in the nation, behind The School for the Talented and Gifted in Dallas, Texas. TJHSST was ranked 1st in the nation from 2007-2010.

In a poll of 100 Langley students, 46% said that they would give Langley a 75-100 on the college readiness index and 10% would give it a 0-25.

In another poll, 36% of students surveyed thought that it was surprising that McLean HS ranked higher than Langley, 36% were surprised that Marshall HS was ranked higher and 17% were surprised that Robinson was ranked higher.

The acts were:

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Photos by Na He Jeon

The novel, about a 16 year old girl suffering from cancer, was released in January 2012 and was a New York Times Bestseller and #1 on Amazon.com.

Students were encouraged to make recommendations and the list of potential books was narrowed down to five in late April.

After a round of online voting, The Fault In Our Stars beat out A Time of Miracles by Anne Laure Bondoux, King Peggy by Eleanor Herman, The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls, and The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot.

The book is focused on 16 year old Hazel Grace Lancaster, a student in Indianapolis who was diagnosed with terminal thyroid cancer at 13.

After Hazel develops clinical depression, Hazel’s parents put her in a support group with other children who are dealing with cancer.

At the meetings, she meets Augustus Waters, a 17 year old who lost a leg to osteosarcoma, a form of childhood cancer, and the two quickly fall in love.

The New York Times called A Fault In Our Stars, “a blend of melancholy, sweet, philosophical and funny.” Fox 2000 has purchased the movie rights to the novel.

Senior Brendan Schmidt and juniors Skye Toor and Aishvar Radhakrishnan competed against the two other schools for a spot at the It’s Academic Superbowl.

It’s Academic coaches Ms. Puhlick and Mr. Kissling, along with Langley Principal Matthew Ragone, joined the contestants at the studio.

The show, taped at NBC 4 Studios in Washington, is in its 51st season.

To watch the match and see the results, watch It’s Academic on NBC 4 on June 16 at 10:30 am.

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Photos by Harris LaTeef

The covers, eleven in all, are equipped with a piercing siren that sounds as soon as the cover is lifted. Fire alarms with covers cannot be pulled without the cover being removed and the siren sounding.

Currently, there is a delay between the time the fire alarm is pulled and the time it sounds, so people can pull the alarm and walk away without bringing attention to themselves.

With the new covers, there is no delay between the pull and the siren sounding.

Rufus Allen, a Fire Alarm Technician for Fairfax County, installed the covers on Thursday. Each cover cost the county $300, $3300 total for all eleven covers.

According to Allen, schools that have had problems in the past with people pulling fire alarms have installed the alarm covers.

Students and staff can wear their PJ’s to school all week long. Buttons, lollipops, and granola bars have been distributed to students each day as part of the festivities.

Photo by Harris LaTeef

The festival featured appearances by Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman, the Mythbusters and Bill Nye “The Science Guy.”

Organizations including NASA, Lockheed Martin, The National Institutes of Health, and The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration all had booths at the festival.

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Photos by Harris LaTeef