School News

Hampton Bays

Hampton Bays High School has named Christina Coulton and Ava Bianchi as class of 2019 valedictorian and salutatorian, respectively.

Coulton received the Suffolk Zone Leadership Award and AP Scholar recognition. The president of the Interact Club and the captain of the cross-country team, she is also a member of the National Honor Society, the Key Club, Leo’s Club, the jazz band, and the lacrosse and track teams. She has not decided on a college yet, but plans on studying engineering in the fall.

Bianchi is an AP Scholar and a member of the National Honor Society, as well as a varsity cheerleader, for which she earned an Academic All-County award, and a majorette for the school band. Bianchi also participates with the mock trial team and in school and community theater. While she has also not decided on what college she will attend, she plans on studying musical theater with a minor in Spanish and possibly a double major in communications.

Both students are active in the school’s science research program.

The Hampton Bays School District held a Child Find program for free at the Hampton Bays Public Library on March 8 to screen children not yet enrolled in kindergarten for educational, language, and motor skills.

Speech pathologists provided the language and motor skill screenings, while school district representatives and librarians offered information on school readiness and library services.

Southampton

Southampton Intermediate School students attended “The Resource Force,” an educational theater performance sponsored by PSEG Long Island on March 5 that teaches about energy efficiency and conservation. Elementary school students participated in a similar program on March 12.

The Southampton Mariner Athletic Club recently sponsored a dodge ball tournament at Southampton High School to raise funds for two $500 senior scholarships. In the double elimination tournament, 11 teams competed against each other and enjoyed pizza and refreshments.

The winning team was comprised of students Cooper Brindle, Carly Cenzoprano, Dermot Meany, Taylor Pike, Chris Pilaro, Ayanna Ray, Shawn Stelling, and Kristian Wheeler.

Riverhead

The Riverhead Central School District held its eighth annual Crazy Sports Night on March 1.

District teachers competed against each other in a hula-hoop race, a three-point basketball shoot-off, a balloon race, a ball hop relay, and a “Human Hungry Hippo” game. The sold-out event raised $500 for the Simonsen family after NYPD Detective Brian Simonsen was killed in the line of duty in February.

The Riverhead Middle School Blue Masques will present “Willy Wonka, Jr.” on March 29 and March 30 at 7 PM in the school’s auditorium. Tickets are $5 for students and $7 for adults, and can be purchased in the school’s cafeteria from 3 to 5 PM, or available at the door for $10 each.

Roanoke Avenue Elementary School capped off the annual Reading Week when Principal Thomas Payton plunged into a kiddie pool filled with water on March 8.

The event was a reward for the students surpassing their goal of reading 105,000 minutes by 963 minutes. The students also took part in other literary activities, such as “Poem in Your Pocket Day,” for which they wrote poems, stored them in decorated pouches, and shared them with their peers throughout the day.

The Riverhead School Board and administration are asking residents to participate in a short, anonymous survey through April 1 about the safety of its schools. The survey, available in English and Spanish, can be accessed on the announcements section of the district website, www.riverhead.net.

Westhampton Beach

Westhampton Beach Middle School students learned how to stamp tote bags for Justin’s Chop Shop, a local business, as a way to give students an opportunity to learn about business through a hands-on activity.

Mattituck-Cutchogue

Students at Mattituck Junior and Senior High School participated in the annual Adopt-A-Platoon program to raise money for Mattituck alumni William Goggins and Zachary Hinsch, who are currently serving overseas.

The SADD Club, CSO/Interact club, and the Leo’s club all joined to spearhead the program sponsored by the Southold Youth Bureau and the Brookhaven Veterans Association and exceeded last year’s efforts with two truckloads worth of donations. Students collected books, toiletries, socks, hand warmers, games, candy, soups, and hot cocoa.

Students at Cutchogue East Elementary School also helped collect items, by decorating and personalizing old VHS plastic cases for each of the platoon members that contained letters written by third-graders thanking the platoon members for their service.

Springs

Springs School will observe Autism Awareness Month (April) with the annual “Give a Buck for Autism” fundraiser, in which families donated $1 to support the Flying Point Foundation for Autism. The students who give dollar will put their name on a poster that will be displayed in the front lobby of the school.

Springs junior high students recently had a St. Patrick’s Day-themed dance, where they enjoyed music from a deejay with props such as green glow sticks, beads, and hats.

Springs will host a faculty versus faculty basketball game at East Hampton High School on April 5 at 6 PM. Tickets are $5 each and can be purchased from any eighth grader. Proceeds will go toward the eighth grade trip.