18 The QUENS Courier • may 14, 2015 for breaking news visit www.queenscourier.com Bayside’s P.S. 46 finds success with traffic safety initiative BY ALINA SURIEL [email protected] @alinangelica There won’t be any more morning road rage for parents at Bayside’s P.S. 46. The School Leadership Team of P.S. 46 began restricting street access for non-residents on 218th Street between 64th and 67th avenues in an effort to reduce dangerous traffic congestion. Cones are placed between 7:30 and 8:30 a.m. to only allow one-way traffic from 67th Avenue, and the street is blocked on both sides from 1:45 to 2:45 p.m., and parents must find parking in surrounding areas and walk to the school after student dismissal. On May 12, the second day of the school partially blocking street access for morning drop-off, not even one parent seemed to mind the potential inconveniences of the safety initiative. Parents lined up patiently down the street as school staff, parent volunteers and student council members escorted children from their family vehicles into the school for early morning breakfast. “This is what happens when the community gets together and makes a decision,” said P.S. 46 principal Stamo Karalazarides. “It’s nice to see that it’s a very collaborative effort.” Everyone agreed that the new system was better than the previous one, with parents sometimes triple-parking in a row and the 111th Precinct regularly called to issue citations. Children no more than 10 years old would often have to navigate the traffic alone as their caretakers rushed to quickly find space for their cars. “This is the best situation The fourth- and fifth-grade student council members at P.S. 46 escorted children to school doors in a new traffic safety initiative. out of this whole ordeal because it was a nightmare coming to school,” said Linda Ray, who was dropping off her grandchildren. “They don’t even look, they just pull out. It was just chaotic.” Jeremy Hilaire, a fourthgrader in the student council, took part in the safety initiative to reduce the risk of accidents and prevent younger children from running into the street as before. “I’m helping out by causing less traffic so that kids will be safer,” said Hilaire. Fifth-grader Emmi Lu, president THE COURIER/Photos by Alina Suriel of the student council, said that helping out with community safety was a fun way to set a good example for other children. “You can help them shape into leaders and they can make a change in the world,” said Lu. CELEBRATED VIOLINIST ROCKS ASTORIA HIGH SCHOOLERS WITH GOLDEN VIOLIN AND HIS MESSAGE BY LIAM LA GUERE [email protected] @LiamLaGuerre Award-winning violinist Alexander Markov gave a free concert to students at Frank Sinatra School of the Arts on May 6 as a part of his effort to spread classical music to youngsters. Ahead of his Carnegie Hall concert on June 5, Markov played pieces by Bach and Paganini for about 50 students of an orchestra class at the Astoria high school. The free performance was the latest of his series of outreach trips to city performing art schools. “Nowadays if you go to classical concerts there aren’t many young people coming,” Markov said. “What I’m hoping is with this school outreach I’m doing before big concerts kids realize good music is good music.” Markov took questions from the students and lectured them on a variety of subjects, such as how long to practice each day and about finding their own style. Students enjoyed the violinist’s visit not only because of his performance, but also because he made jokes and surprised them. For example, when someone asked about his bow, he pulled out one that lit up bright red like a light saber wielded by a villain from the dark side of the Force in the Star Wars universe, to their amazement. They had the same reaction when Markov took out his custom gold-plated electric violin, which he uses for his “Rock Concerto” shows. It makes a sound similar to a rock guitar and reflects how he blends the classical and modern eras, showing students how to be open to a wide variety of music. “That’s his style. It’s very attractive,” said Logan Vrankovic, a senior, who wants to be a composer and conductor. “He carved his own path and it’s a really inspiring message for young musicians.” Although Markov stopped by to teach the children, he ended up learning something himself. “The main thing I’m learning is that music should be fun,” he said. “If you do it right, it’s fun, you enjoy it and THE COURIER/Photo by Liam La Guerre it becomes one big party.” Award-winning violinist Alexander Markov gave a free concert to students at Frank Sinatra School of the Arts.
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