The Holidays are in Full Swing. What Now? More Snow.

A beautiful view of Soldiers' Monument Circle from Gramatan Avenue South on the snowy morning of December 11th, 2019. The Mount Vernon City School District operated on a 2-hour delay. (PHOTO: Bryan Santiago / The Journal MVSA)

This article is part of our seasonal "Celebrate the Holidays" series. For more, click here.

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(MOUNT VERNON, N.Y. / The Journal) — After many weeks of seasonal spirit flying through the air, from the largest dance in school history to the #GlobalGoalsMVSA 2019-2020 campaign's kickoff, most of December has been filled with only one sight: snow blanketing the city, everything covered in cold white fluff and icicles. Also, IT'S ONLY THE SECOND DAY OF WINTER!

The countdown to the 2019 Tree Lighting Ceremony at Ridge Hill in Yonkers. A view from the second level, atop the Yard House restaurant. (PHOTO: Bryan Santiago / The Journal)

Mount Vernon City Hall really "decked" out all of their halls! Roosevelt Square is bright and wintry for the holiday season, with this year's tree positioned in front of the Merchant Marine and World War II memorials. (PHOTO: Bryan Santiago / The Journal)

Well, it's that (most wonderful) time of year again. Yonkers, southern Westchester County's home of outdoor shopping centers, has been lit up once again in lights and garland. Cross County and Ridge Hill start the season ever so early; this year, it was the week before Thanksgiving. Meanwhile, the tree at Mount Vernon City Hall was lit with an early December ceremony on Roosevelt Square, with acting mayor André Wallace.

An amazing team was in the cafeteria on November 15th. Special thanks to the Class of 2021 Student Government and Dance Planning Committee, as well as Mr. Claro, Ms. Fishlock, Mr. Middleton, Ms. Rustin, Mr. Visconti, Ms. Abbey, and Ms. Rhodes for making our countdown to Thanksgiving an awesome time! (PHOTO: Bryan Santiago / The Journal)

Weeks before, the Class of 2021's Harvest Dance was the largest in the almost 1 ½ years of school history. A bit more than 100 tickets were sold, and this year had improved in management. Free water and chips were provided with every ticket, but the prices soared (a bit) from $8 to $10 in advance and from $10 to $12 at the door.

This year, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals projects here at the Mount Vernon STEAM Academy will achieve a dual purpose: to make sure students excel in creative, out-of-the-box work, and to advocate for all of the SDGs as 2030 looms closer. That is why there is a cohesive design theme associated with this year's return of the UN SDG yearlong project initiative. Posters and an audio-visual campaign will take over the school starting in the new year.

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals projects are back for their second year, this time tying in with a new school-wide campaign, #GlobalGoalsMVSA. Using the framework of the United Nations' 17 Sustainable Development Goals for 2030 (also called the SDGs or Global Goals), MVSA students will focus on how to make their city and world better for the future. This year's #GlobalGoalsMVSA themes are SDGs 9 (9th graders) and 11 (10th & 11th graders). SDG 9 is Innovation, Industry, and Infrastructure. SDG 11 is Sustainable Cities and Communities. We have talked with Humanities chairperson Ms. Rhodes on the implementation of this year's SDG themes, with assistance from UNICEF USA's New York Regional Office with Monica Olveira, UNICEF USA's New York Community Engagement Associate. The second year of #GlobalGoalsMVSA, the 2019-2020 yearlong project initiative, is presented by the Mount Vernon STEAM Academy in association with the AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination college-readiness curriculum) department with resources from Project Everyone's World's Largest Lesson as well as UNICEF USA (which itself is one of the 33 National Committees across the globe supporting UNICEF, the United Nations Children's Fund).

Dismissal was a bit abysmal... the snowstorm of December 11, as captured on the famed Theodore Roosevelt Balcony at the STEAM Academy's main entrance. (PHOTO: Bryan Santiago / The Journal)

Around the area, we also had a record number of snowstorms before the start of winter break. Three in total, one on December 2nd, one on December 11th, and one on December 18th. All of them wrecked the morning commute with slush and black ice on the road. The snow on December 11th was bad enough a 2-hour delay was called with the teachers' professional development day (and students' half day) being postponed and rescheduled. The new date has been announced as Wednesday, January 15th, 2020.

Finally, the District's 3rd annual High Schools of Choice Night was held at the Mount Vernon High School on the rainy evening of December 8th. The MVHS cafeteria was filled with booths showcasing everything from 3D printers to hairstyling, athletics and theatrical puppets. Principal Sharon Bradley welcomed 8th graders and their parents alongside Ms. Abbey, vice principal of student affairs, Mr. Ritacco, STEAM chairperson, Ms. Rhodes, and a collection of STEAM Academy teachers including Ms. Rustin (English), Mr. Pollard (Earth Science / PLTW Engineering), Mr. Smith (Social Studies / AVID / PLTW Engineering), Mr. Palij (Math / Robotics), and Ms. Vasquez (Social Studies / AVID). It was safe to say with many of our students attending as representatives for AVID, District Athletics, PLTW, Forensics, and the Pipeline to College Partnership Program (PCOPP) with Lehman College, the STEAM Academy was out in full force to educate these families on how their children will benefit from the school. A highlight video from the District's YouTube channel is below: