Mr. John C. McNamara
During the Board of Education meeting held on June 14, the trustees and administration announced and accepted the retirement of Francine Browne, John Cuiffo and Gloria Petersen. Browne, a high school special education teacher, has served the district since 2001, while Cuiffo, an elementary physical education teacher, served the district since 1984. Gloria Petersen joined the district in 2005 as a part-time school monitor.
The Board of Education and central administration announced the tenure of five teachers during a May 3 reception with colleagues and family, marking the most important milestone of their educational careers.
As swimmers took to the lanes of the Nassau County Aquatic Center in East Meadow’s Eisenhower Park, Horizons Program students from Mandalay launched remotely operated vehicles in the water upon completion of an engineering unit. Under the direction of Horizons teacher Renee MacDermott and marine scientist Brett Curlew, the teams of students submerged their ROVs with the intention of collecting various objects during an allotted amount of time.
As shoppers perused the Westfield Sunrise Mall in Massapequa on March 18, they also enjoyed the artwork of the district’s finest student-artists displayed in the annual Art In HeArt exhibit. Sponsored by the Long Island Art Teachers Association, the exhibit celebrates Youth Art Month. Exhibitors in grades K-12 were selected by their teachers for this community exhibit.
The acoustics of more than 100 string instruments resonated throughout the high school gymnasium on March 15 as elementary, middle and high school students collectively played for administrators, faculty and parents during the second annual All-District String Festival.
A 15-pound lion with bulging eyes, a bright red tongue and a long, wispy tail thrilled Wantagh Elementary School second-grade students as they learned about the lion dance, a Chinese New Year custom to scare away evil spirits. On loan from the Chinese Center of Long Island, the handmade piece of cultural history entertained the students as they watched teacher Henry Chiu manipulate its expressions during a presentation on traditional lion dancing and his family’s traditions during this holiday, which is also known as the Lunar New Year.
Horizons Program students in grades 3-6 attended Horizons Conference Day at Mandalay Elementary School on March 3, an annual enrichment day that allows gifted and talented program students to partner with their parents in hands-on activities. During the rigorous workshop offerings, participants were challenged to think and perform at a high level while exploring technology, physics, engineering, anthropology, hydraulics and art.
Throughout the District, elementary students celebrated the writings of Dr. Seuss and his March 2 birthday as part of the Read Across America initiative, the world’s largest reading celebration. In Elizabeth Shevlin’s first-grade class at Wantagh Elementary, students immersed themselves in Dr. Seuss books throughout the week. Dressed in green, they read “Green Eggs and Ham” and tasted a snack of green pudding and vanilla wafers.
During the Feb. 15 Board of Education meeting, New York State Sen. John Brooks presented a proclamation to members of the varsity wrestling team, congratulating the student-athletes for having been named the first New York State Division I Dual Meet Champions.
Eight of the District’s finest and long-standing teachers officially announced their retirement during the board of education meeting on Feb. 15, marking a collective 261 years of service to the district. Superintendent of Schools John McNamara thanked the teachers on behalf of the district’s students for their “service and all the lives they have touched.”
