WEST ORANGE, NJ - For the past several years, Math teachers at Edison Middle School have been able to engage students so successfully in researching Pi that they were cheering and clapping with joy during the annual Pi assembly.

For years, the scientific community has obsessed over Pi. In numeric form, Pi is 3.14, and was the reason for the selection in 1988 of March 14 as Pi Day.  Albert Einstein's birthday was also March 14, adding to its mathematical credibility. It's an irrational number that goes on ad infinitum and the Pi value plays a crucial role in understanding universal truths and some mathematical concepts in trigonometry, geometry and other concepts like probability, complex numbers and statistics.

The Greek letter Pi is the symbol used in mathematics to represent a constant — the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter — which is approximately 3.14159. Pi has been calculated to over one trillion digits beyond its decimal point. Without the Pi concept, mathematics loses its core.  

These lofty concepts were not at the heart of Edison's gleeful celebration, however. Those had already been discussed in class. Organized by Math Club advisors Nicole Shipitofsky and Christina Ferinde, the event began with eight students reciting memorized digits of Pi. In spectacular fashion, Aria Glazer took first place with 300, Omotolani Orukotal took second with 224, and Avery Mercer with 75. A few weeks prior to the assembly, raffle tickets were sold to select the students that would "Pi" the teachers who bravely volunteered. The $275 collected was donated to Holy Trinity-West Orange Food Pantry.

The main attraction then followed: pie-making atop teachers' heads. Even Principal Steve Melendez, Vice Principal Keri Orange-Jones, and several teachers were not immune from the pie-ing, which included apple pie filling, graham cracker crumbs, and whipped cream. Let it be noted that the teachers appeared to be having as much fun as the students.

Pi Day Memorization Finalists 

Mahalia Joseph, Aria Glazer, Avery Mercer, Lyric Bailey, Omotolani “Tolani” Orukotal, Joshua Naaeke, No media release, Lyla Baker

First place: Aria Glazer: 300 digits

Second Place: Omotolani “Tolani” Orukotal: 224 digits

Third Place: Avery Mercer: 75 digits

Green Team Math Teachers: Floyd Gray, Jessica Byrne, Mariam Obeidallah, Erika DeVos, Zarah Ahmad, Francis Rocco 

Yellow Team Math Teachers: Wioletta Baluta, Eric Mains, Kevin Wilton, Kim Jackson

Math Academic Support Teachers: Christina Ferinde, Jessica Corino 

Teachers (Pied) and Students (Pie-ers):

SEE ALL THE PHOTOS FROM PI DAY AT EDISON HERE.

Math Club Advisor Christina Ferinde and Principal Steve Melendez

Aria Glazer, Omotolani “Tolani” Orukotal, Avery Mercer

Principal Steve Melendez and Assistant Principal Dr. Keri Orange-Jones get pied.