Newly appointed Superintendent of Schools David Schneider was sworn into his new position as the leader of the Bethpage School District during the Board of Education’s annual reorganization meeting on July 10.

Along with Schneider’s swearing-in, re-elected Board members James McGlynn and Sandra Watson took oaths for new three-year terms. 

Following their nominations and unanimous elections, Michael Kelly and Watson were sworn in as Board president and vice president, respectively. The elections mark the eighth straight term as president for Kelly, while Watson will serve her ninth consecutive year as vice president. 

Bethpage High School celebrated its 63rd annual commencement on June 22 to honor the Class of 2018 on a near-perfect evening at the Bethpage Athletic Complex. 

The ceremony was the final for Superintendent of Schools Terrence Clark as he prepares for retirement after 32 years in the district, spending the last nine as superintendent. 

“I have loved every minute of being your superintendent,” Clark told the Class of 2018. “I was honored when you dedicated your yearbook to me. I will cherish that forever.” 

Clark’s was among several speeches throughout the night, including the final commencement speech as principal from Michael Spence, who is transitioning to the role of assistant superintendent for instruction for the district.

“Don’t live a life of should have and could have. Your possibilities are endless, your reach far and wide,” Spence said to the graduates. “Don’t doubt yourself – and if you do, which is natural, go forward anyway. Failure is okay; your attempt builds character, grit and ultimately where you need to be.”

Joshua Danzinger, senior class president, and Marco Cunha, student council president, delivered opening remarks before handing off to the class’s salutatorian, Gillian O’Boyle, and valedictorian, Smiti Shah.

“There’s more to standing out in the world than natural talent or being a genius. It is my firm belief that to achieve any success, it is critical to work hard,” Shah proclaimed. “Persistence is far more valuable than any notion of talent; there is no substitution for hard work.” 

Each student was presented with a diploma and pronounced graduates before the traditional cap toss ended the evening and put a punctuation on the tenure of the Class of 2018. 

The district congratulates its newest alumni and wishes them the best of luck in the future!

Anticipated since the spring 2016, the first of three new STEM labs in the Bethpage School District debuted on June 19 with a formal public ribbon cutting ceremony. The event was held at the first lab to be completed, at Charles Campagne Elementary. The other two labs, at Central Boulevard and Kramer Lane, are scheduled to be finished in the near future.

Held as part of the district’s monthly Board meeting, Superintendent of Schools Terrence Clark delivered opening remarks that included thanking all those who helped in the development and construction of the labs.

The project was approved by the public in May 2016 with goal of completion before Clark’s retirement as superintendent. The district was able to get ready for the opening of each STEM lab by having a team of teachers attend workshops and conferences of their interest in addition to developing a curriculum.

Select fifth-graders from each elementary school were invited to the ceremony to help cut the ribbon in addition to demonstrating STEM experiments. The Bethpage High School robotics team, which claimed third place at the FIRST Robotics Competition in Detroit this past April, was also on hand to demonstrate how the advancement in STEM curriculum can benefit current and future students. 

The students in Erin Austin’s first-grade class at Bethpage’s Central Boulevard Elementary School delved into a hands-on, ecological adventure through a citizen science class project involving Northern bobwhite quail, a species native to the area. This marks the second straight year that Austin’s class has completed the assignment in conjunction with the Islip-based Seatuck Environmental Association.

The adventure started on May 1 with a 25-day incubation and observation period. Once the seven quail eggs hatched, the students were tasked with maintaining optimal temperatures inside the brooder, in addition to providing food and water. 

The experience culminated on June 15 with a class trip to the Suffolk County Environmental Center at the Scully Estate in Islip. During the trip, the group hiked through a salt marsh and examined microorganisms in the pond behind Scully Mansion before releasing the quail into their natural habitat. 

The interactive project gave the students an up-close look at the stages of the quail’s life cycle. They also gleaned the importance of the species’ impact on the local environment, as Northern bobwhite quail eat ticks, which were at a record high last year.

At their meeting on May 29, the Bethpage Union Free School District Board of Education announced the appointment of Erin Hayes as assistant principal of JFK Middle School, effective July 1. She will be a familiar face in the school, having served as one of the building’s social workers for the last five years, in addition to one year at Central Boulevard Elementary School. 

Hayes has been an integral member of the Bethpage staff since joining the district in October 2012. Her knowledge of the students and their families, as well as her genuine concern for the school community, will serve as valuable assets in her new position.

In total, Hayes has 15 years of experience as a licensed clinical social worker. She has also served as a Dignity Act coordinator at the middle school and co-chair of the Character Education Committee. In addition, she has played a key role in the expansion of the social-emotional learning curriculum that helps incorporate mindfulness practices into the classroom and led to the creation of a “mindfulness room.”

Seniors in Bethpage High School’s engineering class put their robots to the test on June 1 with an underwater submersion challenge in the school’s pool.

Grouped in teams of three, the students were given motors, propellers and a camera to manufacture an underwater robot that could pick up and retrieve objects from the pool floor. The teams were also allowed to use tape, Velcro and polyvinyl chloride piping, based on buoyancy calculations, in their designs.

The project was one that engaged engineering practices modeled after real-world challenges. To execute the successful design and build of their robots, the teams had to employ a high level of collaboration and communication skills, along with physics and math concepts. Drivers were only allowed to view their robots on a monitor during the competition to mimic real conditions researchers face when working deep below the ocean’s surface. 

Two groups emerged victorious from the challenge, as the robots Bubba, made by Ingy Inc., and Beta, created by Wellbound Inc., tied for scoring the most points in the course. 

The athletic department at Bethpage High School enjoyed success and achievements from individuals and teams throughout the 2017-18 academic year as select accomplishments were recently highlighted.

Three individual seniors recently signed national letters of intent to continue their athletic journeys at the college level. Jason Seiter declared his intent to play lacrosse at the University of Delaware after earning All-County honors this past season. A three-sport athlete, he was also named second team All-State and first team All-Long Island in football in addition to All-Conference for basketball. He was selected as this year’s Jay Fiedler Award recipient, awarded to the top scholar-athlete in Nassau County. 

Seiter’s teammate Max Groom elected to join the men’s lacrosse program at the United States Merchant Marine Academy. Groom was an All-County honorable mention pick this past year. Additionally, Alex Freedman decided to continue his studies and play golf at the Catholic University of America. Freedman recently qualified for the Metropolitan Golf Association’s Ike Stroke Play Championship that will take place June 25-26 at the Meadow Brook Club. 

Another individual in the spotlight is cross-country and track performer Clayton Santiago. Santiago qualified for all three state meets this past year by earning spots in the fall’s cross-country meet, the winter indoor competition and the upcoming outdoor race on June 8 in Syracuse. The senior is slated to compete in the 800-meter race. He also holds the Bethpage cross-country school record in the 5,000-meter and is an All-County for both indoor and outdoor track.

For the third year in a row and ninth time in school history, the women’s marine fitness team were crowned national champions. Led by individual champion, senior Kaitlyn Chua, the John Como and Deb Rut-coached team claimed a margin of victory of 255 points to earn the title. 

This year’s Maritime Festival is dedicated to our longtime friend and educator Sue Rankin.  Mrs. Rankin has onboard from the very first year, teaching the third grader’s all about the marine food web and the vital role of plankton.  This Maritime Festival was her last, she’s retiring in June and we wish her great happiness.  Mrs. Rankin’s energy, creativeness and love of all things related to the sea will be missed.  A special thanks to all the building and grounds, custodial, clerical and teaching staff who help make this event possible every year.

Photo Gallery

Abby Ouslander an 8th grader at JFK middle school nominated Ms.Sciara on K98.3’s Teacher of the month competition. Ms. Sciara went against one other teacher on Long Island where everyone was able to vote once a day. At the end of the month Ms. Sciara won and is now taking 25 students to a Long Island Ducks game on June 17th where she also gets the throw the first pitch! 

Three classes of first-graders at Kramer Lane Elementary School acknowledged Earth Day with a project titled “Small Hands Can Change the World.”

The young students embraced the annual event by creating cutouts of their hands from old magazine pages and gluing them around a painting of the earth on a poster board. The final project was framed and displayed in the first-floor hallway of the school.

Lessons from the assignment included how to turn potential trash into pieces of art and an activity related to the three R’s – reduce, reuse and recycle.

Congratulations to Joey Gilio for being recognized as the Long Island Student of the Year by LISEA.  It was a great honor and Joey gave a great speech thanking his family and all his teachers!  Joey works hard and deserves this honor!

Bethpage was honored to be represented at the Nassau County celebration of academic excellence by 2018 BHS Valedictorian Smiti Shah and BHS Salutatorian Gillian O'Boyle.  All the valedictorians and salutatorians in the county were present.  Mr. Spence and Mr. Clark were proud to stand alongside Smiti and Gillian and their parents!  Congratulations to both and thanks for being such fine students!

For the 10th consecutive year, sixth-graders in Monica Klein’s social studies classes at John F. Kennedy Middle School held debates to see which god, goddess or hero would become the new ruler of Olympus when Zeus – played by Klein’s father, Ben Morselli – retires from the throne.

Each student dressed the part of their mythological figure and delivered a persuasive speech on why they deserved the royal position and the distinctive characteristics that qualified them. The students also engaged in a debate with one another to question their competitors’ eligibility. Based on this rhetoric, Zeus determined the next ruler.

This unique activity, a tradition in the Bethpage School District, reinforces the sixth-grade curriculum on ancient Greece while developing students’ oral presentation skills and persuasive writing techniques. 

At recent physical education classes at the Charles Champagne Elementary School, Mr. Posch and Mrs. Bohringer created an environment for current kindergarten students to learn various outdoor activities.

During the “Fun in the Sun” session on Thursday, May 17, students learned how to fish, crab, camp, kayak, life jacket safety and fire safety in generated scenarios throughout the gymnasium. The lesson is also provided for every kindergarten orientation.

Our 21st Century Scholars trip to the AIDS Walk NYC was a huge success!  29 students, accompanied by Ms. Bertolotti, Mrs. Gagliardi and Ms. Prager, walked 6.2 miles in and around Central Park and raised $1,650 for this worthy cause!  Thank you to all of our caring supporters.  Great job to all!

Bethpage School District successfully hosted the Long Island Special Olympics North Division with the help of over 400 volunteers!  While we would have preferred better weather, the day was still a great success for the athletes who still came out to compete and persevere!  The spirit of the day was fantastic and everyone had a great time!  Thanks to the volunteers, the corporate sponsors, the Town of Oyster Bay and special guests TOBAY Supervisor Joe Saladino and Nassau County Legislators Rose Walker and Laura Schaefer.  Congratulations to all the athletes for showing us how to compete with such grace!

Click here for a video made by the JFK Eagles Eye students and advisor Zach Levy.

Adina Rahman, a Bethpage High School sophomore, raised $600 to benefit the Lupus Alliance of Long Island/Queens. This is the third year Adina has collected money for this worthy organization, garnering a total of $1,600 over that time. Adina said she was motivated to raise money for the alliance because of family members who struggle with the disease.

Patricia D’Accolti, executive director of the alliance, thanked Adina for her generous donation and explained that the funds will contribute to the alliance’s efforts to promote education and public awareness as well as provide support-based programs for those living with lupus.

The New York Yankees honored Bethpage resident Lawrence "Bud" Steubing as their Veteran of the Game this past Saturday!  Bud has been a frequent guest in the Bethpage Schools over the years to talk about his service in World War II.  His children and many of his grandchildren attended Bethpage Schools and he loves the Golden Eagles!  Congratulations to Bud and his family!

Congratulations to the Bethpage Hockey Team for an outstanding season!  We took a picture of them just as they were heading to the state competition!  They gave us some thrilling games this year!!!  Congratulations to the team and Coach Schmier! 

Thanks once again to the Harlem Wizards for coming to Bethpage and putting on a great game!  The CBS PTA did a great job organizing the event and thanks to Mrs. Wodicka and her team of volunteers!  Thanks also to the Bethpage teachers, administrators and staff for agreeing to play in the game!  A great time was had by all!