School News

Sag Harbor

The Sag Harbor School Board voted unanimously to change the name of the former Stella Maris Regional School to the Sag Harbor Learning Center on January 28.

The auditorium/gymnasium was separately named Sage Hall, after Margaret Olivia Slocum Sage, the noted Sag Harbor benefactor who donated the money and land for Pierson High School, the John Jermain Memorial Library, and Mashashimuet Park in the early 1900s.

The school building, located on Division Street, was purchased by the school district in 2016 from St. Andrews Catholic Church. Renovations, which will bring the school up to New York State’s standards for daycare and prekindergarten, are expected to be completed later this year.

Bridgehampton

The Bridgehampton School District has named Dr. Angela Austin as director of pupil personnel services and Michael Cox as assistant principal.

Austin, who will also lead the special education and English as a New Language programs, has previously had administrative experience in the Westhampton Beach School District and the Connetquot Central School District. She earned her doctorate in administrative leadership with a focus on special education, transition planning, and at-risk youth from St. John’s University.

Cox joins Bridgehampton after six years of teaching experience in the Shelter Island School District. He earned an advanced graduate certificate in educational leadership from Stony Brook University and a master’s degree in literacy education from Dowling College. His philosophy for education enters on the whole child concept, supporting the unique qualities of each individual, their passions, and educational experiences, according to a press release.

“We are pleased to welcome Dr. Austin and Mr. Cox as we move ahead in our educational goals of inspiring lifelong intellectual curiosity and teaching our students the essential skills necessary to be productive citizens in our global community,” Superintendent Robert Hauser said. “Their progressive ideas and leadership abilities will continue to guide our students in a stimulating and challenging learning environment.”

Lt. Susan Ralph from the Southampton Town Police Department visited high school students to talk about the Law Enforcement Career Exploring Program, a

national program that provides educational training programs for young adults on the purposes, mission, and objectives of law enforcement.

Sebastian Mir, a Bridgehampton senior, is currently in the program that offers lessons in leadership skills and law enforcement procedures and protocols and opportunities to network with various aspects of the police force and participate in community-related activities.

Rohan Murphy, a professional motivational speaker, also spoke to students at schoolwide assembly.

Murphy shared his life story of being born with a physical disability to becoming a star wrestler and Ivy League graduate. He encouraged students to have a positive attitude and work to overcome challenges in life through motivation and perseverance. After the presentation, he also shared some of his winning wrestling moves with students and toured the school after his speech.

The Bridgehampton Elementary Student Council also held a dance marathon as a fundraiser. The event, which was organized by reading teacher Hamra Ozsu, raised $118 to help fund the club. Sabrina Manglavitti, the volunteer fitness instructor, led students in a group dance.

Riverhead

Riverhead High School’s third annual Empty Soup Bowls event raised more than $2000 for the Phillips Avenue Elementary School food pantry on January 31.

The high school’s ceramic and cooking clubs raised the money through their sale of handcrafted soup bowls made by ceramics students, while cooking club members prepared soup.

Riverhead School District’s K-4 schools participated in a Global Play Day on February 6.

The students were encouraged to step away from books and play with toys, board games, and art supplies that they brought to school. The initiative was brought up by a group of third-graders from Riverhead’s Roanoke Elementary School in hopes that it would inspire families to plan for more unstructured play time during non-school hours and also develop students’ social and imaginative skills.

Westhampton Beach

Westhampton Beach High School’s Virtual Enterprise team “Team Sway” has advanced to the final round of the Virtual Enterprises International Long Island Business Plan Competition.

The virtual firm became one of eleven semifinalists after competing against 96 teams from across Long Island at VEI’s 2019 Long Island Regional Conference and Exhibition on January 9.

The team’s virtual business plan focused on the development and promotion of hammocks from recycled fibers, and included donating a portion of their profits to combating suicide and depression in teens.

The final round will be on February 26 at American Portfolios in Holbrook.

Mattituck-Cutchogue

Cutchogue East Elementary School’s fifth and sixth grade students performed the play “Seussical Jr.” on January 25 and 26.

The students spent several months of rehearsals to perform the play that tells the story of how Horton the Elephant saved the town of Who. A stage crew and technology team designed and built the sets and created the appropriate lightning and sound.

Hampton Bays

Hampton Bays High School will host the South Fork’s first presentation of “The Ugly Truth” on March 7 at 6:30 PM.

The multiagency presentation will center on the opioid epidemic on Long Island and feature representatives from the Suffolk County Police Department, Suffolk County Medical Examiner’s Office, and Suffolk County Office of Mental Health.

Experts will offer information related to the opioid epidemic and a complimentary Narcan training for all attendees over 18 years of age. The police department will also be available in the auditorium lobby before and after the event to collect unwanted medications in order to properly dispose of them.

Eleanor Whitmore Center

Teachers and staff from the Eleanor Whitmore Early Childhood Center attended training sessions in first aid, CPR, and dealing with blood-borne pathogens.

The training, which was attended by all who work with the center’s students, extended instruction beyond minimum requirements.

Arlene Pizzo Notel, the school’s program director, also began a new semester as an adjunct professor at the SUNY Old Westbury School of Education, where she is teaching an interdisciplinary course on “Contemporary Issues in the Lives of Children and Families” that looks at the impact of culture, ethnicity, gender, history, and more on the lives of children and families.

Springs

Third graders celebrated the Chinese New Year last week by eating noodles with chopsticks and acting out traditional Chinese plays. The students in Mrs. Dellapolla and Ms. Firemark’s third grade classes learned about Chinese legends and the Chinese zodiac, as well as what foods are eaten symbolically for the Chinese New Year. Long noodles, they learned as an example, are a symbol for a long life.

Springs students will also be celebrating this upcoming Valentine’s Day. The first graders in Ms. Havlik’s class transformed the room with a Valentine’s Day theme and will participate in activities that will be related to love and kindness.

Submitted by local schools