News

Chick-fil-A Leader Academy: The Big Thank You

Leadership comes in many forms, and for PCA, one program that is helping create future leaders is the Chick-fil-A Leader Academy, a group of 15 students whose goal focuses on leadership insights: vision and values, servant leadership, teamwork, communication, innovation, and impact. 

Chick-fil-A Leader Academy members kicked off the year by adding some joy into the lives of our community's first responders by way of the "Big Thank You" project.

When asked what exactly a "Big Thank You" entailed, member SarahAnne Horne explained, "The Big Thank You project is a way to thank you to the first responders. Chick-fil-A Leader Academy members are sending thank you notes to first responders we know in the community or relatives thanking them for their amazing leadership and courage they show every day."

Students gathered at lunch to come up with a plan and went home to construct and mail their cards. They also wanted to make sure that National First Responders Day on October 28 was not forgotten. The group came together and made a thank you sign, placing it on the front lawn of the Fire Station close to PCA.

It is clear from these servant-hearted students that there is hope for the future leaders of tomorrow. 

Discovering Diffusion In AP Biology

What do diffusion and osmosis inside living cells mean? If you don't know the answer, simply ask the students in Dr. Finneran's AP Biology class, who recently completed a hands-on lab on the topic.

 "The AP exam requires that students not only understand biological concepts," explained Dr. Finneran, "but also requires simulation of cellular processes that require students to analyze data and draw conclusions. It provides a real-life application and a more in-depth understanding of a popular AP Biology topic." 

It all started when students measured dialysis tubings that were pre-filled with varied concentrations of sucrose solutions. The tubing bags were placed in distilled water overnight and were re-measured to determine how the rate of diffusion varied with different molarities of sucrose.

Students then took porous tubes filled with starch solution and placed it in a small cup filled with distilled water and iodine. As students looked on as spectators, they began to see the once cloudy water inside the dialysis tubing turn an inky black.

This evidence that diffusion, movement of molecules from high concentration to low concentration, was taking place, reinforcing the AP Big Idea of cellular transport.

Junior Bess Weinheimer said, "I learned a lot from [this] hands-on experiment... in this lab, I was able to watch diffusion happen!"

Thanks to the technology of the iPad, those who were zooming in from home were also able to observe, with a little tablet angling help from their fellow classmates. All of the students wrapped up their day with a better understanding of diffusion as they watched the concepts in their textbooks come to life.