It was a morning of community pride, as Copiague Public School hosted its annual Community Summit for more than 600 invited guests on March 16. Among those in attendance included the Copiague Board of Education, district administrators and staff, representatives of community organizations, local politicians and students and their families.

“The summit is an opportunity to showcase some of the things that are going on within our schools, celebrate the success we’ve had and collaborate on ways we can make things better,” board of education trustee Brian J. Sales noted in his address. Continuing, Mr. Sales shared a number of the district’s and student accomplishments. “For this board, our administration and staff, our top priority is putting children first. We are extremely proud of our results, we have spent our money wisely and effectively and we have delivered with excellent results.”

Echoing Mr. Sales’ message of success, Superintendent of Schools Dr. Kathleen Bannon presented her annual State of the Copiague Public Schools. During her address, Dr. Bannon provided an overview of district highlights, including various student accomplishments, expansion of the pre-K program and the completion of the community-approved capital project. She also provided an update on the budget process and the district’s funding.

“Over the last several years, we have stayed within the New York State tax cap,” Dr. Bannon said. “We continue to contain our costs and budget conservatively, so we can maintain the programs and services we have. If we were to see an increase in state aid, we would expand and add to our offerings, which would positively benefit our students. In a perfect world, there would be adequate and equitable funding for public education. Funding which is predictable, transparent and sustainable so that we can plan for the long term rather than year-to-year.”

With the theme “Copiague Students Soar,” the summit also featured student performances, spotlights on elementary, middle and high school programs, clubs and projects and an introduction of the Class of 2019 top ten students.

Fifth-graders in Jennifer Rosario’s class at Susan E. Wiley Elementary School used their math and critical thinking skills to “break out” on Feb. 4.

Using Breakout EDU – which is the educational version of an escape room challenge – the learning came alive as students worked in small groups to unlock the clues. The class was given clues to unlock a series of locks of the boxes. Students used collaboration, critical thinking, creativity and communication to challenge themselves, all while having fun and learning at the same time.

Thirteen Copiague School District students were recognized at the Feb. 11 board of education meeting by members of the Knights of Columbus in the organization annual poster and essay contests.

The poster contest, now in its ninth year, had a record number of entries at 104 from Copiague student-artists. The goal of the contest is to raise awareness about drug and alcohol abuse. The winners, who received certificates and prizes were: Deauville Gardens West: Carolina Acosta-Rivera and Sandavi McCants; Susan E. Wiley: Ivanna Gonzalez Rodriguez; Deauville Gardens East: Kiarisleidy Baez Fabian; Great Neck Road: Jazlyn Batista, Justin Martinez Canas and Rayana Gooden; Copiague Middle School: Jayden Risch, Joseph Risch and Eliud Bonilla. 

Three Copiague Middle School eighth-grade students were presented with certificates and prizes for their essay contest entries. The contest is in its third year and essays are focused on religious freedom. Paulo Gonzalez was the first-place winner. Diana Carbajal placed second and Ari Chervony was named the third-place winner.

 

It’s an idea that had really “stuck” through the years so the Parent-Teacher Association at Susan E. Wiley Elementary School annually holds a fundraiser to benefit its fifth-grade Booster Club. For $1, students could purchase a piece of duct tape to stick Principal Cynthia Florio to the wall. On Feb. 14, students had the opportunity to place their duct tape and raised more than $300 for the cause.

Fourth-graders in Kelly Lambert’s class at Susan E. Wiley Elementary School recently expressed their creativity when they designed their own longhouses. The longhouses could be constructed of any items; some designs featured tree bark, popsicle sticks, straws or branches. The lesson was a culminating activity to their English Language Arts module on the Iroquois.

The students learned about how the men and women worked together to build the longhouses and how some of the houses could be hundreds of feet in length to hold different members of their clan. The fourth-graders showed off their knowledge of the Iroquois and their architectural creations during a visit with the third-grade classes. 

The Copiague Board of Education hosted their biannual Student Recognition Awards ceremony to honor the outstanding accomplishments of its students on Jan. 28 in the Copiague Middle School auditorium.

The event is a way for the board of education to recognize excellence and the successes of students throughout the district. During the ceremony, board members read a list of accolades and accomplishments that students achieved this school year. 

Each of the 17 student-honorees was presented with a framed certificate presented by Superintendent of Schools Dr. Kathleen Bannon. The district congratulates the following students: Deauville Gardens East: Amelia Bright and Darlene Herrera; Deauville Gardens West: Kieran Erickson and Ny’Shawn Legette; Great Neck Road: Hunter Nicholas Natoli and Hailey Wendel; Susan E. Wiley: Kaitlyn Caldwell and Jonathan Marine Suarez; Copiague Middle School: Iran Sophia Gonzalez, Vaiva Kean, Andrew James O’Connell and Neisy Rivera Garcia; Walter G. O’Connell Copiague High School: Ajhani Carroll, Wilson Murcia, Arelee Ramirez, Brenda Reyes and Kyree Scott.

Thirty-one student-musicians will represent the Copiague School District at the 2019 Suffolk County Music Educators’ Association All-County Music Festival in March. Each of these students received outstanding scores on their performance at the NYSSMA solo and ensemble evaluation festivals last May.

Selection to the All-County band and chorus is the highest honor a student of music in grades 5-10 can attain. The district congratulates the following students:

SCMEA All-County I West Band
Esmeralda Claros Sanchez (flute)
Eve Estevez-Rivera (baritone/euph)
Alyson Tenebro (flute)
Rhianna Coleman (Bb clarinet)
Andrew Wagner (Bb clarinet)
Ismael Garcia (trumpet/cornet)
Raisaun Gibson (trombone)
Analiz Rosario (alto sax)
Dyson Brown (alto sax)
Hannah Alara (Bb clarinet)

SCMEA All-County II West Band
Shenn Barredo (flute)
Philip Popielarz (baritone/euph)
Sadia Velasquez (Bb clarinet)

SCMEA All-County II West Orchestra
Alice Sztabinski (flute)

SCMEA All-County III West Band
Ryan Bott (tenor sax)
Zuri Milliner (baritone/euph)

SCMEA All-County I West Chorus
Daniella Jiminez
Mykelle Moore
Linda Paiz Romero

SCMEA All-County II West Chorus
Sydney Forbes
Adam Guglielmelli
Ava Reichelt
Dominique Tetlak
Anthony Woods

SCMEA All-County III West Chorus
Jessica Chochorek
Jaheim Garcia
Shannon Greenlee
Denison Rosa
Ariana Tirino
Morgan Weeks
Oktay Yildiz