South alumnus, actor and writer for NBC’s show, “The Office,” BJ Novak presented at a Southside fundraiser on Nov. 22.
Members of Southside, a special education program at South that operates as a smaller learning community for select students, cooked for the bake sale, ran the ticket sales, made posters, set and cleaned up the event.
Southside director Dr. Steve Feinberg said he was pleased with the outcome of the event. “It was a lot of hard work [by the students] … but a lot of fun as well,” he said.
According to Feinberg, hundreds of people, including students and parents from towns other than Newton, attended the event, some waiting outside for hours beforehand in anticipation.
Several students sported “Dunder Mifflin” T-shirts in reference to the fictional paper company featured on “The Office,” showing their enthusiasm towards Novak’s appearance.
South parent Marcia Bergman attended the event to show support for Novak because she felt a sense of personal connection and pride for the celebrity, who originated from the same high school and town.
“We really wanted to come and see him because he is very famous [and] he’s … from Newton,” she said. “We’re Newtonites, so we wanted to … come to hear all about what he’s been doing.”
Freshman Nathan Reider said he attended because he knew of BJ Novak from “The Office.”
“I heard that this was going to be a blast and that [Novak] is brilliant, so I got here early,” he said. Although he is a fan of “The Office,” Reider said he does not know much about Southside.
Sophomore Madeline Meyer felt similarly. “I adore BJ Novak and love ‘The Office,’” she said.
During the event, Novak showed exclusive footage from “The Office,” enthralling and engaging the audience. He ran a lengthy Q-and-A session, during which he described the advantages and disadvantages of being in the public spotlight. Novak also recalled the mischievous pranks he pulled as a child and reminisced about his time spent as a student at South, explaining how South Stage drastically influenced his career choice. He also offered thoughtful advice to students regarding anything they asked.
Most of the money raised during the event will go towards Southside’s funds.
“Some of [the money raised] is going toward… incentives and rewards for students when they are doing well,” Novak’s mother, Linda Novak, a Southside teaching assistant, said. “Some of those funds are going to be used to pay for trips and to help pay for some of the students who are in need of an a little extra boost so that they can join the trips.”
According to Feinberg, the remaining money, about 25 percent of the profits, will be given to the “student in need fund” that the school organizes. This money will be available to all students, not only students within Southside.
Novak said he got involved with the program because his mother is so devoted to the program.
He agreed with Southside’s mission to encourage and motivate students to reach their full potential, no matter what their individual circumstances may be.
“It’s great [that] whatever level of attention anyone needs to succeed, South can give it to them,” Novak said. “If you need a little, if you need a lot, if you need a little some days and not others, there are actually people there to help. It’s not condescending … it just takes people seriously. I think [Southside is] a great program.”
Southside member junior Bryce Summers said he appreciates the sense of community that the program provides. “Southside is a program for anyone who has made some bad decisions in the past, but is trying to turn it around,” he said. “It has a lot of different supports in place for kids with different needs. Some of us are here for academic reasons, some for behavioral. It’s like a one size fits all for everybody.”
“Southside provides a structured learning environment for all kinds of students and can develop an individualized way of working with kids that helps meet their varying learning styles,” Feinberg said.
The event did not only entertain the crowd, but also brought in a large sum of money that will be used for Southside programs.
“The event was wonderfully successful,” Feinberg said. “Enough money was raised through this event to help cover many of the operating costs of running a program like Southside.”
