Glen Cove High School junior Danny Casale will be participating in the prestigious First Exposure Film Festival this weekend at the Cinema Art Center in Huntington. Danny has already been awarded Best in Show at the Long Island Media Art Show for his film, “Five Dwellers,” later going on to win first place at the Long Island University Student Video Festival. The Suffolk County Film Commission selected the "best of the best" from the best in show winners at the Long Island Media Art Show to participate in the First Exposure Festival.

The show will take place this Sunday, May 19 at 4 p.m. at the Cinema Art Center in Huntington. Admission is free.

In what made for a festive and exciting event, the Glen Cove School District’s English as a Second Language Saturday Academy culminated with a special celebration in the Finley Middle School Mini-Center, where students received certificates for their hard work in completing the program. Along with the recognition, special group presentations, cultural food and music complemented the finale.

Now in its second year, the ESL Academy was created to help ESL students and students who exited the ESL program within the past two years prepare for New York State assessments in English Language Arts and math. The program welcomes many students for most of whom Spanish is their native language, although not all.
    
Monica Chavez, Coordinator of Foreign Language and ESL for the district and supervisor of the ESL Saturday Academy, welcomed those in attendance to the academy’s closing ceremony. “I’m thankful to the teachers who have sacrificed their Saturdays to come and dedicate their time to working with our children,” she said. “This will be a great benefit for our students.”
    
Ms. Chavez explained that the program is not only geared toward preparing students for the state assessments, but also for providing support for children to become more comfortable with the English language. A variety of writing activities, including essay composition, poetry, reading comprehension and analysis of texts, was conducted in classes to prepare students for the ELA exam, while for mathematics, students worked on problem-solving, computation and other math activities.

Rosita Mallo, Morgan Becht, Amy Mendrinos, Gaetano Vaccaro, Elizabeth Sohanchyk-Nagler, Alexandra Rivera, Briana Fazio, Jennifer Beauchamp, Max Pinsky and Christine Johnson are the teachers who work the academy. “They are the heart and soul of the program,” added Ms. Chavez.  “Without them, there is no program.”

She also explained that this year, the program expanded this year to accept 60 students spanning grades kindergarten through eight, allowing for the younger siblings as well as parents to participate in the Academy, which offered ESL for Adults for the first time.
    
Following presentations from students who discussed their learning experiences at the Academy and how the program helped them develop stronger writing and math skills, certificates for participation were presented to students, parents and teachers of the program, and perfect attendance certificates were distributed to students and parents.
    
“This is a great opportunity for kids to respond to learning,” said Ms. Becht an ESL teacher at Connolly Elementary School who teaches third-grade advanced ELA and math for the ESL Saturday Academy program. “The more exposure they have, the better prepared and confident they’ll be for the assessments. This gives them confidence.”

Ronaldo Velasquez, 15, said that he benefited from taking the eighth-grade math class and an ELA class as part of the ESL Saturday Academy program. “It helped me a lot more with my English,” he said, noting that he speaks Spanish regularly. Of the state assessment in ELA, he said, “It was hard, but the program helped me a little bit more for it.”

Third-grader Katie Arevalo described the program as fun and said she enjoyed learning more about both ELA and math, and being able to go to class with friends. “We did different projects, and this made it easier for me,” she said, referring to the preparation for state assessments. “I would want to do it again next year.”
    
The event concluded with an assortment of delectable treats and drinks, as well as music. Families, friends and teachers gathered to share stories and enjoy the final day of the program.

Martin Luther King Jr, Helen Keller and Abigail Adams were brought to life at Landing Elementary School as part of the fifth-grade living museum, which required students to thoroughly research a person of historical significance or fame, dress up as that character and tell visitors about their life and work.

Parents, family and other students were invited to visit the classrooms to learn more about the famous and historical figures. The fifth-graders were in character for the duration of the living museum, introducing visitors to the main impact and significance of their selected person. Other historical figures and celebrities included Michael Jackson, Walt Disney, Carrie Underwood and Hillary Clinton, among many others.

“Today’s activity helps the kids make a personal connection to someone they have researched in history, allowing them to dig deeper into their character, their contributions to society and their importance,” said Interim Principal Martin Malone. “The fun part for the guests is that they get to hear the kids take on the persona of the character. This is completely in line with the social studies curriculum for grade five and it’s an authentic example of how the students can demonstrate their knowledge.”

Promoting the safety of children throughout the community, the Glen Cove Police Department, in partnership with the Office of the Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice, brought Operation Safe Child to Connolly Elementary School on May 8-9. The program enabled students to get photographed and fingerprinted for a special identification card that can be utilized by law enforcement and other emergency organizations to provide relevant and crucial information quickly in an emergency situation.

The New York State Safe Child Identification Card also features other vital information about the child, such as height and weight. The information stays on record with the police department, with an option for parents to include their child’s information with the New York State Department of Criminal Justice. The program will also be heading to other Glen Cove area schools.

“[Parents] could present the card to a law enforcement officer and we have all of the information we need to disseminate an Amber Alert or any other type of bulletin that we produce,” said Lieutenant Christopher Ortiz. “This gives us a really accurate picture of what that child looks like at the time the I.D. was taken so we can get the best possible description out for the child.”

Just in time for Mother’s Day, students at Deasy Elementary School recognized their gratitude and appreciation of their mothers with the annual Mother’s Day Tea. Through songs, poems and stories, the students thanked their moms and talked about why they are special, expressing their creativity through the presentations. The second-graders, who had been preparing their materials for the past week, created picture frames and books, which featured a variety of written work, for their guests. Students and parents were also able to share breakfast together in celebration of Mother’s Day.
 
“This is a wonderful opportunity for students to spend the week preparing songs, stories and some original work that helps them understand how much work their mothers do and how hard it is to be a mom,” said Principal Nomi Rosen. “I think it really makes them feel a special empathy and appreciation for their moms.”

   Under the tutelage of our favorite Garden Guru, Farmer Brian, Deasy classes worked in Discovery Cove to start our plants for this year's garden. 



Then classes took their newly planted seeds to their classrooms where they are now doing well under our classroom Grow-lights. 

 

Students United for Safe Schools
Robert M. Finley Middle School

The Guidance Department along with PPS are working together with the Robert M. Finley Middle School students to create a team against bullying and violence in schools.  We are going to be working on different topics throughout the year including violence prevention programs, bullying workshops, and student activities in order to help prevent bullying incidents in our schools.

The Glen Cove High School Wind Ensemble and GCHS Jazz Band recently traveled to Richmond, VA to compete in the national “Music in the Parks” competition where both came away with awards of distinction.  The jazz band took 1st place honors and earned the Overall Award, earning the highest point total of all the jazz bands in the competition. In addition, Kristin Ingegno was awarded Outstanding Jazz Soloist for her performance on the alto saxophone.

The wind ensemble earned 1st place in the Concert Band division. Despite stringent adjudication, this group was the only performing group in the entire festival, including orchestras and choirs, to earn the coveted rating of Superior!  

Nicholas Carbuto directs both the wind ensemble and jazz band. Officers of the wind ensemble, some of which are also members of the Jazz Band, are pictured showing off the trophies they won. They are (L-R) Samantha Smith (wind ensemble/jazz band), Maxine Lizaso (wind ensemble), Nicole D'Ambrosio (wind ensemble), Matt Grabowski (wind ensemble /jazz band), D'Metrius Fernandez (wind ensemble/jazz band), Nicholas Carbuto (director, wind ensemble/ jazz band), Claire Lechtenberg (wind ensemble) and Kristin Ingegno (jazz band/recipient of Outstanding Jazz Soloist Award).

   With warm hearts and infectious smiles, students from Tender Talents, a performing arts magnet school in Kampala, Uganda, visited Deasy for a day.

    The day began with a performance for the whole school at the Wunsch Center, where the troupe enthralled us with traditional songs and dances, even bringing the audience on stage to join in. For the rest of the day, troupe members visited classrooms, answering students' questions, teaching songs and dances, and playfully enjoying our students.  Classes also made gifts for their guests and some even showed them their own favorite dances as well.  

  

  

Students at Landing Elementary School recently participated in the American Heart Association’s Jump Rope for Heart fundraiser, raising a total of $4,300 for the 2013 school year. Students collected donations for their jumping efforts, which took place in their physical education classes. Tyler Kaffl raised a school record of $825 and Vincenzo DeGraci raised a personal best of $385. Additionally, Kevin Larkin raised $251, William Merkel raised $250, Taylor Riley raised $194 and Kristen Sita raised $175 for AHA. Karen Serani coordinated this year’s fundraising efforts for the organization.

Congratulations to all the students who participated in this program to raise money for those in need.

Congratulations to Glen Cove High School students Lindsey De La Fuente, Maria Pita and Pierina Grispo for winning 1st place in the Social Science category at the 15th annual STEP (Science, Technology Entry Program) conference in Albany.

Lindsey, Maria and Pierina collaborated on a research project titled “The Prevalence of False Memory in High School Students” in which they tested 10 juniors (five boys and five girls) using a list of 15 different words from 10 different categories. Each test subject was read the list of words, with each word read repeatedly, then asked to repeat them a short time later. Their results showed that the boys had better recollection than the girls, which was contrary to their hypothesis. They concluded that additional research was necessary to determine how the female mind works. The girls also noted that false memory/recall can impact testimony in court, educational testing, and medical procedures, justifying the need for further research.

STEP, which is represented by more than 50 colleges and universities from across New York State, provides middle and high school students with practical experience in the scientific, technical, and health‐related fields and prepares them for the rigors of college and beyond. More than 400 students and 125 program directors/advisors regularly attend this conference annually.

Lindsey, Maria Pita and Pierina are pictured here with their first-place trophy, alongside their science teacher and project mentor, Brendan Clements.

Young writers from throughout Glen Cove were recently honored by the Glen Cove Library for their participation in the 24th annual Write and Illustrate Your Own Book contest. With parents, family, teachers and principals in attendance, 11 students in grades 2-5 from Glen Cove School District elementary schools were honored, in addition to one student from the School of the Holy Child.

Youth Services librarians judged the writings and selected pieces based on grade-level expectations, creativity, imagination, proper sentence structure and good illustrations. Winners received a ribbon, certificate and a book, which was either a Newbury or Caldecott winner. All other participants in the contest received a certificate honoring their entry.

“A special thank you to the parents and families of our winners, who have encouraged their children’s talents by reading to them and helping them with their writing,” said Anna Dunlap, Head of Youth Services at the Glen Cove Library.

Students at Gribbin Elementary School celebrated Earth Day on April 22 by reciting poetry, singing a song and recognizing the planting of four new trees in front of the school. Michael Ktistakis, who owns All-Island Lawn Maintenance of Glen Cove and has a child attending the school, donated the plants, which included two kousa dogwood trees and two yews. The students had been learning about Earth Day in their classes, recognizing the need to continually recycle and take care of the planet.

During the celebration, second-graders read original poems about Earth Day and everyone joined together to sing Raffi’s “Big Beautiful Planet.” Several students ceremoniously shoveled soil to mark the occasion. Additionally, Glen Cove Mayor Ralph Suozzi thanked all students, parents and teachers for their participation in the event.

Deasy School recently celebrated the community’s diversity with an international feast in the Finley Middle School cafeteria.  Families on hand prepared and enjoyed different dishes from countries represented by the student population, the City of Glen Cove and throughout the world. Thanks to the Deasy PTA, children were also treated to a special performance by acclaimed entertainer and music therapist David Gonzalez.

The Glen Cove Council of PTAs recently held it’s annual Community Scholarship Brunch at the Swan Club.  This year, the Council had the pleasure of honoring retired Glen Cove School District teacher, Deborah Butler Pearsall.  Proceeds from the brunch are used to provide scholarships to members of the GCHS Class of 2013.

Ms. Pearsall retired last year after many years of dedicated service to the children of Glen Cove. As advisor to Glen Cove High School’s DECA club, Ms. Pearsall led the club to many successful seasons and many awards, including being named DECA advisor of the year for New York State in 2012.

The day’s events began with a performance by the GCHS Jazz Band under the direction of Nicholas Carbuto.  On hand to help honor Mrs. Pearsall were the District’s incoming Superintendent, Maria Rianna and Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum, Instruction and Technology Dr. Michael Israel.  Also joining the honoree were Glen Cove City Mayor Ralph Suozzi, City Council Members Reggie Spinello and Anthony Gallo, State Assemblyman Chuck Levine and Judge Richard McCord.  

Colleagues, former students and family members offered wonderful stories and glowing tributes to a teacher that made a difference in her student’s lives.  Many members of the school community were on hand to enjoy the day, purchase raffle tickets and help make the day a success. Glen Cove PTA Council thanks all those individuals and businesses that supported the day to help make the future brighter for the graduating seniors of Glen Cove.

More than 1,000 people gathered at Glen Cove High School on April 7, 2013 to help out young Nicholas Pedone, a seven-year-old Glen Cove boy who was diagnosed with the children’s cancer Nueroblastoma back in November. Thanks to many dedicated runners and walkers, as well as 36 influential students from GCHS’s CAUSE club, the Nicholas Pedone 5K Run/Walk raised more than $20,000 to help the Glen Gove youngster in his fight against the disease.

Earlier in the school year, GCHS head custodian Ralph DiMaggio approached CAUSE teacher Susan Poulos about taking up his nephew Nicholas’ ‘cause.’ Nicholas’ older cousin, Anthony Famiglietti, is also enrolled in the CAUSE (Community Action Using Student Empowerment) club, in which students participate and/or organize various fundraisers to benefit non-profit organizations that touch their hearts. As a result, the class was inspired to help coordinate the 5K event. Anthony, his mother Theresa and uncle Joe Greco performed much of the legwork, arranging meetings with the Mayor’s office to secure auxiliary police, EMS, street closure and all proper permits. They also contacted Finish Line Road Race Technicians to create, time and help plan the details of the day which included registration, creating the course, appropriate water stations and snacks for the runners and a children’s “fun run.”

Several CAUSE students and good friends of Anthony stepped up to help, including GCHS Student Senate member Paolo Cuelho, who attended many meetings with Anthony, including one with Land Rover of Glen Cove which resulted in a sponsorship of $2500. The event would not have run smoothly without Paolo and the tremendous support of students Lorenzo Sfoggia, Kayla Basile, Will Kasar, Gabby Erammarino, Stephanie Kasuto, and Antwan Brown, who made phone calls, held meetings, organized registrations, created an excel spreadsheets of all registrants, and picked up bananas and water bottles, as well as some additional heavy lifting to help make the event a reality. Paulo also recruited his fellow GCHS Student Senate members to help the day of the run.

Jimmy Peck of Huntington took first place in the run with a time of 18:55. In a heartwarming gesture, Mr. Peck presented his first-place trophy to Nicholas.

“The event demonstrated the strong bond Glen Covers have for one another and its power to create positive change,” said Ms. Poulos. “I hope this event strengthens the mental, emotional and spiritual well being of all who were involved and touched!”

For more information on how you can help Nicholas, log onto his website at www.nicholaspedone.com.

To view GCTV’s coverage of the Nicholas Pedone 5K Run/Walk, please click below:
QuickTime
Windows Media Player

Below are the names of CAUSE, Student Senate and Anthony’s friends that volunteered the day of the event.

CAUSE students
Anthony Famigletti
Paulo Cuelho
Stephanie Kasuto
Lorrenzo Sfoggia
Gabby Erammarino
Rebecca Morales
Kayla Basile
Joe Rivera
Daniele Pilla
Cristina Facciolo
Danny Betabeurt
Tia Henderson
Lauren Montefusco
Gabby Papa
Maria Pita
Jenna Decarlo
Tanisha Williams
Caterina Ienopoli
Nicole Abbodondolo
Essence Fowler

Student Senate
Briana Leon
Caroline Suozzi
Natalie Tenke
Michelle Melfi
Catherine Hatala
Andrew Gerin
Jenn Ingengo

Anthony’s Friends
Antwan Brown
Elsie Goodman – photographer and videographer
Will Kasar
DeJon Taylor
Samantha Bosworth
Max McCrindle
Nick Cavallone
Antonio Grasiozi
Assata Perkins

For the third consecutive year, the K-Kids Club at Connolly Elementary School has been named a New York Kiwanis Club of Distinction. The K-Kids club was also recognized as first runner-up in New York State for the Single Service Award for its Valentine’s Day lollipop sale that raised money and awareness for the Children’s Tumor Foundation and received third place for their scrapbook.

Students developed and implemented the Valentine’s Day lollipop sale in honor of student and K-Kids secretary Julia Perfetti, who suffers from neurofibromatosis. In an effort to raise money in order to find treatments and a cure for this rare and complicated disease, they sold a total of 659 lollipops, donating about $500 to the Children’s Tumor Foundation. The NY Club of Distinction honor recognizes all of the club’s hard work and the community service projects in which they are involved.

K-Kids is a branch of Kiwanis International that seeks to involve elementary school students in community service activities. The Connolly club is affiliated with the North Shore Kiwanis Club, and is facilitated by advisors Nancy Cox and Sandra Vigliotti.

Several Glen Cove High School student reporters with the school’s newspaper, The Cove-er Times, were honored at Adelphi University's Press Day 2013, an event designed to recognize the best among area high school journalists. Approximately 330 students were in attendance representing over 33 high schools from Nassau and Suffolk counties. Out of the six categories that Glen Cove entered, Cove-er Times staff received awards in four categories:

• Best Opinion Piece -- Silver/second place: Matt Kolbert
• Best Arts Review -- Silver/second place: Natasha Miller
• Best Photo -- Silver/second place: Konrad Backiel
• Best Online Newspaper -- Honorable Mention: Co-editors-in-chief Matt Kolbert and Yaqarah LeTellier

Cove-er Times was one of only a few school publications to garner this many awards at Adelphi. Last month, Matt was also awarded second place in the Commentary/Editorial category at the C.W. Post Media Arts Awards. Matt’s editorial examined the impact of social media and technology on the most recent presidential election and how the Obama campaign’s “Narwhal” project was more effective than the Romney camp’s “ORCA” in reaching targeted voter demographics. This is the same piece Matt was recognized for in the Best Opinion Piece category at Adelphi.

Congratulations to Glen Cove High School junior Rayvaun Satterfield, who recently won first place in the Ceramic Sculpture category at the Nassau Community College Annual Arts Fair, held on April 6.

“Rayvaun is a student with an outstanding attitude,” said his ceramics teacher, Vicki Gordon, who spoke about how his original sculpture was accidently destroyed when it fell from a pedestal while on display at NCC. Rayvaun re-titled the piece "The End of the Journey," which is currently in pieces and on display in a case at the NCC gallery with a picture of the project in its original state.

The theme of the gallery is “Journeys: Travel to Outer Spaces, Middle Spaces and Inner Spaces,” which will be running for the next two weeks at NCC.

“Rayvaun is an exceptionally talented student who visualizes the world around him in a way that enables him to create dramatic and challenging 3D ceramic pieces,” added Ms. Gordon.

“I like the challenge of doing things that people think cannot be done,” said Rayvaun. “I use my imagination to establish my goals."

Congratulations to Glen Cove High School senior Will Kassar who will attend and play football for Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, CT. Will had an amazing final year as quarterback for the Glen Cove Big Red varsity football team, leading the squad to the playoff semifinals with an 8-2 record while also achieving All-County status. Will (seated, center) is congratulated by (standing, back row) Glen Cove High School Principal Dr. Joseph Hinton, Director of Health, Physical Education and Athletics Denise Kiernan, (seated, L-R) assistant coach Tony Gallo and head coach Pete Kopecky.

First graders at Gribbin School learned about sea stars as they touched and observed live "Stars of the Sound." An educator from the Waterfront Center in Oyster Bay brought several sea stars to the school, as well as clams and mussels, shellfish that the sea stars eat, all of which can be found in the Long Island Sound. The children identified the sea stars' parts and learned how sea stars eat, see, and regenerate arms, culminating the session by making a sea star craft.

Fourth-graders at Connolly Elementary School took a trip back to Colonial times with several hands-on activities that highlighted life during the era. Representatives from the Society for the Preservation of Long Island Antiquities visited the school and educated the students on rope and lantern making, as well as quilting. Classes rotated through all of the events, enabling fourth-graders to get a better understanding of the Colonial period through applied learning. All of the activities supported the students’ regular classroom social studies curriculum, currently focused on Colonial times.

“It gives the children hands-on experience in learning about the past,” said Joan McGee, Director of Education for SPLIA, noting that the students were also able to connect the projects with Colonial life, gaining clearer insight on how each item contributed to life during the time period.

A group of Finley Middle School students recently participated in the Long Island Science Olympiad, competing in a multitude of scientific activities against students from across Nassau and Suffolk counties.

Finley’s young scientists competed against participants from over 40 middle schools. Teacher Jeff Eisele served as the lead advisor with teacher Natalie Camisa-Schiraldo and Science chairperson/Finley Middle School Assistant Principal Dr. Thomas Pye providing support. Ryan Telese and Joseph Yee fared well in the Mousetrap Vehicle event, while Amanda Ieraci and Monica Jagustyn gave an impressive showing in the Boomilever event (a device built to hold a specified weight a given distance from a vertical surface).

The complete list of participants from Finley Middle School are:

William Centeno
Szymon Frye
Michael Famiglietti
Mackenzie Edwards
Alyssa Wozlonis
Dominic Brasielo
Ethan Melbinger
Monica Jagustyn
Talia Sakaee
Ryan Telese
Amanda Ieraci
Roselle Cacio
Catherine Ayiko
Krysten Budziak
Michael Floridas
Victoria Ceceri
Joseph Yee

A special thanks to Maria and Danny Filipone for making a great banner to encourage and cheer our students on!
 

Connolly Elementary School fifth-grader Danny DaCosta-Ortiz is the winner of the Glen Cove Boys and Girls Club Tech Digital Arts Festival Award. Danny won in the photo illustration category for his graphic design “An Animation to the Mind,” which showed an animated illustration of himself thinking, with an actual photograph of himself within the thought cloud. Danny won a $50 gift certificate to Best Buy and an opportunity to advance to the national round with a $500 award and trip at stake. Nia Duckett, also from Glen Cove, won for her musical piece titled “A.W.E.S.O.M.E.”

Adopting the theme “Healthy Mind, Healthy Body” for the 2012-13 school year, Gribbin Elementary School has been participating in many activities during the year that highlight the need for proper nutrition, exercise and overall health. Students throughout the school had an opportunity to enjoy an afternoon of healthy eating, featuring a variety of nutritious snacks. Classes made everything from smoothies and trail mix to yogurt parfaits, with students assembling their own snacks. Every class shared their healthy snack with another class in their grade.

Teachers have been discussing the importance of maintaining a healthy diet and lifestyle with their students. The initiative serves to educate the students on healthy choices and food options in everyday life.

Athletes were honored at Glen Cove High School during the Booster Club awards night for winter sports on March 13. Seven winter athletic teams distributed varsity, junior varsity and special awards, including the Booster Club Award, Most Valuable Player and Superintendent’s Award.
 
Dr. Michael Israel, the district’s assistant superintendent for curriculum, instruction and technology, presented the Superintendent’s Award to two players for the first time ever: varsity wrestler Robert Krisch and varsity cheerleader Emily Anderson. Varsity basketball player Michael Accera and kickline member Yaqarah LeTellier were also nominated for the prestigious award, which recognizes outstanding senior scholar-athletes.
 
Esmeralda Benitez Amaya of girls varsity basketball, Christian Klimaszewski of varsity wrestling, Katherine Martinez of varsity cheerleading, Francesca Sharper of kickline and Thomas Ziegen of boys varsity basketball were recognized as Booster Award winners. The Booster Club Award is given to a senior athlete who possesses school spirit and is conscientious and dedicated.

The Booster Club presents the Most Valuable Player award to a player from each sport who is voted on by his or her team members and coaches as the most valuable asset on the team. MVPs included Kewan Beebe and Franklyn Mickens on boys varsity basketball, Grace Blinkoff and Brandon Fribbley on winter track, Calogero Guastella on varsity wrestling, Taylah Hudson on girls varsity basketball, Yaqarah LaTellier on kickline, Hans Ring on rifle and Caroline Suozzi on varsity cheerleading. Matthew Pemberton was recognized as the Most Improved Player on the rifle team.

Girls basketball also won the New York State Scholar-Athlete Team Award with a cumulative academic average of 90 or better. Cheerleading placed third in the country in the Large Varsity Non-Tumble Division.

Glen Cove High School honored its “Students of the Month” for the months of February and March 2013. Every month, students are recognized by grade level for their hard work and achievement. Additionally the Glen Cove Rotary and local chapter of the Knights of Columbus each name their own student every month. Pictured, front row (L-R) Madison Dratch (11th grade), Kristin Ingegno (10th grade), Christina Ng (9th grade), Taylah Hudson (10th grade), Gillian Farnan (11th grade). Pictured back row (L-R) Yosin Mejia Fuentes (10th grade), Gabriel Vertiz Trigoso (11th grade), Jeremy Santana (9th grade), and Mike Tweed, Coordinator of PPS/Guidance Services.

Students at Gribbin Elementary School recently participated in “The Souper Bowl of Caring,” the fourth year in a row the school participated in the event. The Souper Bowl is a nationwide food drive that calls on schools, churches, and other organizations to collect non-perishable food items and donate them to a charity of their choice. The event coincides with the NFL’s Super Bowl to bring awareness to the needs of food pantries across the countries, which are traditionally depleted following the holiday season. Gribbin School families donated 305 pounds of food over the two-week collection period. The collected food was donated to the food pantry at Saint Rocco’s Church in Glen Cove. Pictured are some Gribbin School students with the collected food before it was delivered to the church.  

Two Glen Cove High School students were distinguished and recognized for their videos at the Long Island Media Art Show, which was held March 19 at Five Towns College.

Juniors Danny Casale and Shalyn Cabaroy were awarded with best in show for their pieces “Five Dwellers” and “The Bodies Still Fell,” respectively. Danny worked on his project on his own time and Shalyn completed her piece as part of the TV Production 4 Independent Study class. Both students spent about four weeks writing, filming and producing their works from start to finish and their videos are eligible be screened at an upcoming professional film festival sponsored by the Suffolk County Film Commission this spring.

“The Media Arts Show is really a confirmation of the work the students have been doing all year,” said Media Communications Teacher Christopher Barry. “Seeing the judges react to it so positively is another huge affirmation to the fact that these students are doing great work. This is one of the best examples of a festival where the students can really feel good about the work they are doing.”

The showcase provides high school students with an excellent opportunity to showcase their work and gain inspiration from their peers. In its 24th year, the show features students from approximately 20 high school television and film production programs across Long Island in an innovative showcase among peers and industry professionals, displaying videos in several different rooms. Judges selected about 12 best in show films at the conclusion of the showcase, viewing them in a larger room with everyone in attendance watching at once.

Additionally, three of the four students who exhibited work for the show interviewed for the prestigious New York State Summer School for the Media Arts – a highly competitive four-week intensive television and film program held at SUNY Oswego. Danny, Shayln and senior Michael Montesantos met with the representative, who is only on Long Island during the show, and recommended all three students for admittance into the program this summer. They are pictured in the lead photo with Mr. Barry, while Danny and Shalyn are seen separately displaying their L.I. Media Art Show awards.

Our very own Matthew Pemberton was a major part of the Glen Cove High School Varsity Rifle team this season.  He helped contribute to the team winning the most improved team award for Nassau County. This award is presented to the team with the biggest increase in their season average from the first 2 matches of the season.  Glen Cove's average increased by 30.1 points

He was ranked 29th out of 29 at the county tournament and finished 6th after shooting a score of 185 out of a perfect 200.  This is a great accomplishment, but even a more phenomenal one for an 8th grader.  Congratulations to him and coach Richard Bullis.

Pictured left to right: Juan Molina, Guidance Counselor, Mathew Pemberton, and Richard Bullis, Coach

Glen Cove High School recently hosted the PTSA-sponsored Red vs. Green Games, an evening of traditional and non-traditional sporting activities in which students represented their schools of past and present allegiance by donning either red- or green-colored attire. Students of all ages came to their schools the day of the event wearing either red or green. Gribbin and Connolly elementary schools are traditional green schools while Deasy and Landing are red schools.

During the Red vs. Green Games, points were awarded for the best representation of team through colored shirts, posters in the crowd, the loudest cheering fans and of course, how the team members performed in competition. Current elementary school students were invited to share in the fun. Current Glen Cove High School students represented their former elementary school in the games, with proceeds raised from the gate donated to the Glen Cove Community Scholarship Fund for the awarding of scholarships to deserving graduating seniors in the Class of 2013.

All tied up at the end, a game of co-ed handball determined the victor. The Green Team emerged the winner and advanced to play the Faculty Team in volleyball, which the Green Team also won. Many thanks to the students and faculty who participated, all Glen Cove PTA units and the GCHS Student Senate who helped make the evening a success.
 

Members and officers of the Glen Cove High School Student Senate and Class of 2013 who comprise the school’s City 2 City committee welcomed 15 students from Long Beach High School for breakfast and a tour of the GCHS facilities. The City 2 City committee was created in the wake of Superstorm Sandy to help students and other residents of Long Beach, which, as the only other incorporated city on Long Island, is Glen Cove’s sister city.

The GCHS Select Chorale also treated Long Beach students to a performance. Through various activities, City 2 City raised more than $2,000 in gift cards for stores that supply much-needed goods and services to aid those Long Beach students whose families suffered losses in the storm. They also collected much-needed school supplies and coats, conducted a toy drive, held a dinner-and-show fundraiser, a chain link sale and volleyball tournament involving neighboring Locust Valley and North Shore School Districts. City 2 City is currently organizing a prom dress drive for Long Beach, collecting gently used dresses which can be dropped off in Room 118 at GCHS between now and April 15.  

Other Glen Cove schools supported the effort, with Gribbin School raising an additional $200. Appreciative Long Beach students presented GCHS with a plaque and a remaining piece of the historic Long Beach boardwalk, which was destroyed in the storm. The piece was painted white and blue (LBHS colors) and signed by LBHS student leaders.

Paul Coelho is the City 2 City committee president.  Emily Anderson, Nicole Bedell, Allie Cappiello, Gabriella Ermmarino, Jenifer Ingegno, Kristen Ingegno, Brianna Leon, Caroline Suozzi, and Carina Zupa are City 2 City committee members.

Landing Elementary School hosted 17 guest readers on “Community Readers Day,” in celebration of the PTA sponsored Parents as Reading Partners (PARP) initiative.  Each community reader visited a classroom to read a book to students to share their love of reading and reinforce that reading is the single most important activity in a young child’s education. Guest readers included Superintendent of Schools Dr. Joseph A. Laria, Interim Principal Martin Malone along with several other school administrators and staff members, Glen Cove City Mayor Ralph Suozzi, multiple members of the Glen Cove City Police Department and Glen Cove PTA Council Co-President Suzanne Anderson, among others of local notoriety.

Schools throughout Glen Cove celebrated PARP during the month of January. As part of the annual two-week national celebration, parents are encouraged to read with their children for at least fifteen minutes daily, stressing the fact that reading can be fun as well as informative.

This year, Principal Malone issued a PARP challenge to Landing students: to surpass a combined 38,000 minutes of reading over the two-week period. The students shattered the goal, reading more than 48,600 minutes. Their reward was to watch Mr. Malone kiss a 50 lb pig named Junk. Special thanks to Micah Danney for allowing Junk to participate in the challenge!

Recently Mr. Kenneth Williams, father of current GCHS student Tara Williams, donated this wonderful picture he painted. Thank you Mr. Williams!