Summer Reading at Birchwood
Students at Birchwood Intermediate School in the South Huntington district hauled away a selection of books to read this summer and beyond this week. Families were asked to bring a non-perishable food item to help stuff a bus to take the foods to a food pantry.
Internships With Rescue Squad
Half Hollow Hills High School West seniors Azaan Bilal, Akul Prajapati, Anthony Torrelli and Michael Steinberg participated in an internship this spring as part of their Senior Experience coursework with the Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs) of the Dix Hills Fire Department’s Rescue Squad. This internship enabled the students to develop and refine their medical knowledge and skills, while preparing for pursuing collegiate work and careers in the medical field or law enforcement, and doing a great service to their community.
The group of seniors chose the Dix Hills Fire Department for their internship, after having started in the department’s junior program when they were in 8th grade. Through their modified class schedule as part of the Senior Experience program, the students were released from school early twice a week to attend their internships where they were on-call for medical emergencies. Bilal and Prajapati had completed their 6-month EMT course prior to the internship, and Torrelli and Steinberg served as observers while on-call, and are scheduled to complete their EMT course this summer.
“Each of us have learned a tremendous amount about our Dix Hills community as well as lessons on dedication, accountability and hard work,” said Bilal, who will attend UCLA next fall and is pursuing a career in medicine. “Through the Senior Experience course and the internship with the Dix Hills Fire Department, we were able to gain key skills that will benefit us when we are looking for jobs in the future.”
In addition to going on calls during their internship hours at the firehouse, the students also went over lessons on medical training, emergency response and learning about the parts of the ambulance with their mentor, Rescue Captain Maresa Spizzirri, who is also a 2014 alumna of High School West. “Without the Senior Experience course, we would not have had the tools to find an internship in a professional manner, nor the time to put our full attention towards it during the week,” added Prajapati.
Senior Year Experience is an interdisciplinary class in Half Hollow Hills that provides real-world application of the skills and knowledge students acquire prior to entering twelfth grade. In unique and meaningful ways, the course connects the learning that happens in the classroom to the larger world and business community. The course promotes independence, self-discipline, initiative, advocacy and the ability to be an effective communicator and leader.
The curricular portion of Senior Year Experience is taught by an English and Social Studies teacher and is designed around modern global issues that affect students’ daily lives. The internship portion of the class gives students hands-on work experience in their chosen profession/interest for a minimum of four hours per week. The curriculum bridges themes that students study in class with their internship experiences.
“Our district encourages all of our students to participate in service learning programs to learn about the importance of volunteering, while building a life-long love of giving back to your community,” said Dr. Patrick Harrigan, superintendent of schools in Half Hollow Hills. “I commend Azaan, Akul, Anthony and Michael on finding a creative way to combine their Senior Experience internship with a way to significantly give back to the community through their time and skills.”
Elwood Honors
117 high-achieving Elwood-John H. Glenn High School seniors recently earned the President's Award for Educational Excellence. Founded in 1983, the President’s Education Awards Program is awarded on behalf of the U.S. president and secretary of education. To be honored with this award, had to achieve a weighted grade point average of 90% or higher. Each student received a letter from President Joe Biden, recognizing their hard work, tenacity and perseverance.
Money for Autism
Students in Harborfields High School’s career transition class raised $1,1000 for the Nassau Suffolk Autism Society of America.
Baking dog biscuits and creating greeting cards to sell to the school community, the students were involved in every aspect of running their own business, learning about designing products, taking orders, keeping inventory, selling directly to customers, and monitoring business expenses and profits.
For Autism Awareness Month, the school’s varsity softball team also chipped in and
sold T-shirts during one of their games for donations to NSASA.
A parent-run organization serving over 4,000 families on Long Island, NSASA works to support individuals with autism in local communities, providing free educational, social and recreational opportunities to families touched by autism.
College Day at Harley Avenue
School district photo
Elwood’s Harley Avenue Primary School recently dressed up like college students or wore their favorite college shirts.
Language Lessons at Boyd
District photo
Three dozen students from Elwood-John H. Glenn High School’s World Language Honor Society visited James Boyd Intermediate School on May 19 to teach world language lessons to the younger students. Lessons were taught in Spanish, Italian and American Sign Language and included
topics such as basic greetings, weather, calendar, sports, food, school and animals. The high
schoolers created lesson plans, slides and a game for each lesson. Each participating class at Boyd received from one to three different lessons.
Anti-Bullying Scholarship
Elwood-John H. Glenn High School senior Alex Myles was recently selected by the Long Island Coalition Against Bullying as the winner of the 2022 Asaf German Spring Anti- Bullying Scholarship.
A member of John Glenn’s Anti-Defamation League, Myles and plans to join the LICAB Youth Board. Myles was presented with his award on May 23 at LICAB’s annual golf outing dinner reception at Woodside Club in Syosset, where he had the opportunity to meet with professionals in his field of study.