Members of Travis White’s studio art class at Copiague Middle School participated in the annual chalk mural day at Copiague Middle School. Students conceived and drew designs using chalk ranging from portraits to cartoons on the large cement squares at the school’s entrance.

Sixth and seventh graders at Copiague Middle School participated in a writing contest sponsored by Young Writers in June. As part of their English writing assignments, students were tasked with writing their own mini saga of 100 words or less. This year’s contest theme was “Mission Catastrophe.” Students worked to develop their own storylines and teachers provided sentence starters to get the essays in motion. More than 150 entries were submitted from Copiague Middle School. 

As a culminating activity to physical education and sports week, Copiague Middle School held a pentathlon competition. Students were awarded plaques for their outstanding achievement in the pentathlon unit. The events were the 50 meter dash, 100 meter dash, 400 meter dash, long jump and shot put. From left: Amber Ramirez (seventh grade), Madison Sims (eighth grade), Isiah Harris (eighth grade), Kamar Birthwright (seventh grade), Asiah Carroll (sixth grade) and Montasia Byrd (sixth grade).

Members of the Copiague Builders Club at the Copiague Middle School worked together with their school and local community to collect shoes for those in need. The club partnered with Give Your Sole, a nonprofit agency that provides men, women and children with moderately worn sneakers, shoes, boots and footwear. The organization then teams up with local rescue missions and shelters in New York City to distribute the shoes.

The club collected 775 pairs of shoes since starting its initiative in January. Students sorted the shoes, tied them together and bagged them for transport. Builders Club adviser Maria Ostrofsky said the club has been organizing the shoe collection for 19 years and hopes to reach 10,000 pairs donated next year. 

Copiague Middle School’s native language learners recently presented their projects on environmental issues. The eighth grade students read the novel “La Catrina,” where they learned how many of the main characters were affected with different medical issues. The students chose an environmental topic to explore and research – whether it was local to their community or a global issue – and created poster boards which were presented during class.

Copiague School District celebrated the many accomplishments of its student body during the Student Recognition Awards and Superintendent’s Art Gallery at the Copiague Middle School auditorium.

Board of Education members, administrators, friends and family gathered to recognize these select students for their contributions to both the district and community. Thirty-seven students from throughout the district were chosen for the special recognition by the Copiague Board of Education for their outstanding achievements. These awards are only presented twice year to a small number of students for their accomplishments. 

The district congratulates the following Student Recognition Award winners: Deauville Gardens East Elementary School: Jazlyn Bonilla and Emma Turcios; Deauville Gardens West Elementary School: Carolina Acosta-Rivera and Payton Lewis; Great Neck Road Elementary School: Flauren Marcelin and Jocelyn Mejia Salazar; Susan E. Wiley Elementary School: Savannah Myszke and Kayden Quinones; Copiague Middle School: Hadasa Argeuta Botzok, Wailin Baez Polanco, Ana Maria Cruz Hernandez, Rebekah Dorfeuille, Vaiva Kean, Tamia Robert and Kaylie Rodriguez; Walter G. O’Connell Copiague High School: Jennifer Reyes and Carol Rodrigues-Rodriguez. 

Members of the Walter G. O’Connell Copiague High School Math Research Group were also acknowledged: Joseph Falco Jr., Zaiba Ismael, Liam Mahabir, Myra Mendoza-Rodriguez and Austin Nunez. Members of the Walter G. O’Connell Copiague High School robotics team were honored: Ziair Clark, Tyrese Glen, Derik Gonzalez, Sebastian Grajales, Leslie Guzman-Nunez, Amelia Henningham, Gregory Jean Baptiste, Nolan Johnson, Gabrielle Kaufman, Oleksa Klymovets, James Marmol, Raul Mena, Carol Rodriguez-Rodriguez, Arianna Tirino and Adam Wiszowaty.

The Superintendent’s Art Gallery winners were also acknowledged as a special way to celebrate student achievement. This year, Superintendent of Schools Dr. Kathleen Bannon selected 40 works of art, which will be on display throughout the entire school district. The pieces of art are framed and feature a brass plate, nothing the student-artist’s name, grade level and the year the piece was completed.

Three special works of art are chosen as “crowd favorites.” Each year at the Fine Arts Festival, the district displays various pieces of student artwork and the Copiague community votes for their favorite selections. Winners are chosen at the elementary, middle and high school levels and receive a $100 gift card. This year’s crowd favorites are pieces by Raffy Maloloy-On (Walter G. O’Connell Copiague High School); Madalyn Molina (Copiague Middle School); and Kayla Cooper (Great Neck Road Elementary School).

The district congratulates the following student-artists: Deauville Gardens East Elementary School: Deanna Demeo, Alexandra Monell and Jailah Rix; Deauville Gardens West Elementary School: Gianni Espinal and Delilah Larios; Great Neck Road Elementary School: Genesis Hylton, Hunter Natoli and Leanny Soto; Susan E. Wiley Elementary School: Derek Skadel; Copiague Middle School: Lisbeth Adames Estevez, Eliud Bonilla, Lena Fleckenstein, Cathalene Garafola, Isabella Greene, Angeni Hernandez, Emily Krysiak, Kenneth Meza Betanco, Jennifer Molina Salazar, Aleyda Olivia, Annamaria Pepe, Karen Pierre, Stephanie Velasquez, Mariely Vinas Marte and Alexa Zephirin; Walter G. O’Connell Copiague High School: Shani Bennett, Jeudy Collado, Jahnay Cuffy, Skyy Edwards, Robert Elias, Tiffany Gallinat, Kayla Kelly, Olivia Krzyzoszczat, Joseph Maloloy-On, Piotr Piatkowski, Katherine Rivera Isaquirre, Evelin Ruiz, Breon Sutton, Arianna Tirino, Marlin Valerio and Johanna Vargas Baez. 

Copiague Middle School’s eighth graders celebrated the end of their middle school years and the start of their academic journey at Walter G. O’Connell Copiague High School during their moving up ceremonies on June 25 at the Copiague Middle School auditorium.

The students marched into the ceremony to “Pomp and Circumstance” played by members of the Tri-M Music Honor Society. Copiague School District Superintendent of Schools Dr. Kathleen Bannon addressed the soon-to-be middle school graduates. 

“When you moved up from the elementary schools to the middle school three years ago, I am sure you never thought the time would pass as quickly as it did,” Dr. Bannon said. “Because the time goes so quickly, we want to be sure that you take advantage of what the high school has to offer you. High school isn’t only about academics; there’s so much more to do outside the school day. There are more than 40 clubs at the high school, musical groups and sports – find something that interests you. I encourage you to get involved. You don’t want to be someone who looks back four years from now and says, ‘I wish I had or I should have tried.’ Instead be someone who says, ‘I did it all and I have no regrets.’”

Class representative Emmylie Coreas spoke during the first ceremony of the day about her three-year middle school journey. “As we went through middle school, we all started to build character, maturity, responsibility and growth,” she said. “The immense support of the teachers, staff and administrators helped us to grow. I hope we leave the middle school with a feeling of achievement and each one of us feels proud of their hard work.”

Middle School Principal Andrew Lagnado then introduced the students as the Walter G. O’Connell Copiague High School Class of 2023. “As you enter this next phase of your education, be sure to remember a few important things that will set you up for success,” he said. “Stay involved in all the positive things that are offered at our high school. There are so many wonderful academic and extracurricular activities for you to take advantage of. Try a new activity, a new sport, take an interesting elective, get out of your comfort zone and take a risk. Stay motivated, focused and goal driven. Go that extra mile because what you put into it will determine what you get out of it. These next few years will lay the groundwork for your futures. So, remember to always make positive decisions, work hard and simply be a good person.”

Middle School assistant principals Stephanie Valeiko and Michael Ferretti then announced each student’s name as they walked across the stage and received their certificates from Mr. Lagnado and a congratulations from Dr. Bannon.