The Locust Valley High School French, Italian and Spanish honor societies welcomed 53 new members during a ceremony on April 11. Inductees achieved a grade of 88 or above in their language class and an 85 overall grade cumulatively.
As they entered the auditorium, inductees were met with a beautiful introductory piece from the high school chamber orchestra. Students Catie Blackman, Rebecca DiDomizio, Kai Hoy and John Zatwarnicki performed songs and poems in each language represented.
In April, Locust Valley Intermediate School students learned about some amazing resources in their neighborhoods, as representatives from the Locust Valley Library, Nassau County Police and The North Shore Land Alliance visited for Community Day.
Locust Valley librarians took third graders on a virtual tour of the library to show them where they can find age-appropriate books, games and movies in the building. They also introduced students to different clubs hosted at the library where students can meet new friends with similar interests.
Fourth graders learned about the benefits of nature preservation from a representative of the North Shore Land Alliance. The representative showed students programs where they can get involved in cleanups and plantings in their neighborhood with their friends and family.
Fifth graders learned how to be safe and kind to each other online through examples shown by a Nassau County police officer.
Locust Valley Middle School recently honored nine students for their acts of kindness throughout March. Justin Acosta Pineda, Dila Agir, Lauren Baxter, Jameson Blydenburgh, Liam Doherty, Hayden Elferis, Gavin Hoban, Thomas Simon and Eliana Wieczorek were observed by classmates and staff performing acts of kindness around the school.
The acts of kindness included asking the teacher how they could help a new student get up to speed in class, sharing supplies to help another group finish their project and helping a student on crutches around the hallways all day.
On April 8, students and staff from across the district converged at Locust Valley Middle School/High School to get a glimpse of the partial solar eclipse. Students were sent home with special eclipse glasses by their schools the Friday before so they could gaze at the rare and wondrous event. Eclipse glasses were also donated to the schools by our local libraries.
Locust Valley High School welcomed student filmmakers from 16 high schools from across Long Island for its 18th Annual Film Festival on April 11.
Locust Valley students took home 20 of the 38 awards, including Best in Show, as judged by industry veterans and educators from Five Towns College. The judges awarded the winners in each category a full scholarship to the 2024 Summer Scholars Program at Five Towns College.
The young film makers spent the day in the Harold A. Schmock Auditorium watching each other’s’ animation, broadcasting, comedy, commercial, documentary, drama, horror, music video, PSA and trailer short films. They also enjoyed a lunch cooked by the Locust Valley High School culinary club.
Best in Show winning film “L’Estanger Urbain” from Locust Valley High School students Liam Grohman, Molly Bowden, Lucie Nixon and Andreas Kennedy will have the honor of being screened at the 27th Annual Long Island International Film Festival in July.
On April 4, Locust Valley Middle School welcomed 88 new members of the National Junior Honor Society. New inductees recited the Pledge of the National Honor Society, and current NJHS officers lit candles representing scholarship, service, leadership, character and citizenship during the ceremony. Talented middle schoolers Stella Fraser and Maya Karagiannakis also performed songs from “The Wizard of Oz” and “Annie,” respectively.
“Scholarship is the foundation upon which this society is built,” Superintendent of Schools Dr. Kristen Turnow said. “It is the commitment to intellectual curiosity, the pursuit of knowledge and the dedication to academic excellence that sets these students apart. Their thirst for learning and willingness to push the boundaries of their understanding inspires us all.”
April is recognized nationally as the Month of the Military Child as a time to honor the sacrifices made by military families with parents serving in the armed forces, highlighting the tremendous impact children have among the armed forces community. The Month of the Military Child allows us to applaud military families for the sacrifices that have been made for the good of others and the United States with respect, service and leadership.
To recognize and honor the efforts of military and families, the high school is asking that students and staff “Purple-Up” by wearing purple on Monday, April 15.
Please share this message with family and friends to help turn our district and community purple for a day.
Read about the amazing accomplishments students and staff achieved in the classrooms and on the fields during the winter in this edition of Soundwaves. Go to the Newsletters section of the district website to catch up on all things L.V. at https://www.locustvalleyschools.org/page/newsletter.
The Locust Valley Central School District has been honored with the Best Communities for Music Education designation from the National Association of Music Merchants Foundation for its outstanding commitment to music education. Now in its 25th year, the Best Communities designation is awarded to districts that demonstrate outstanding achievement for providing music access and education to all students.
To qualify for the designation, the district answered detailed questions about funding, graduation requirements, music class participation, instruction time, facilities, support for the music program and community music-making programs. Responses were verified by school officials and reviewed by The Music Research Institute at the University of Kansas.
“Our recognition as a NAMM Best Community for Music Education for the sixth consecutive year highlights the collective commitment of our educators, students and community to excellence in music education,” AnnMarie Buonaspina, Coordinator of Instructional Technology and the Fine and Applied Arts, said. “It validates our success in creating an enriching environment where music is an essential and vibrant part of our school community.”
More than 40 student films in categories such as animations, commercials, dramas, horrors and music videos will premiere at Monday Night at the Movies on April 8, at 7 p.m., which will take place in the Locust Valley Middle School/High School auditorium. Admission is free to all. Please come to support our student filmmakers before they screen their films at the 18th Annual Locust Valley High School Film Festival on April 11.
Six Locust Valley High School students traveled to Rochester, New York for the Distributive Education Clubs of America (DECA) Competition in March. Freshmen Harry Fraser, Dominic Spina and Nicholas Vebeliunas and sophomores Aman Arora, Evan Rafiy and Adhvaith Sreenivas were Locust Valley’s first representatives at the state-level conference. Over the course of two days, the trailblazing students competed in several business competitions and sat in on valuable lectures and workshops.
Locust Valley has been a part of DECA for three years, and the participation in the state event is just a prelude to what the program could soon be. Club adviser and business teacher Lara Olotka is in her first year in the district and has quickly helped students find their interests within the business world. “I always tell the students that business is everywhere,” Olotka said. “The skills that they learn will benefit them whether or not they choose business as a major.”
The marketing and personal finance and investment courses, which each had one class section this year will expand to two each next year. A Virtual Enterprise course is also on its way next year and will task students to run a mock business as a class.
Locust Valley Middle School families, please submit your yearbook parent ads and grade 8 baby pictures here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd8RPweqof-hNfJXe15ufrQw_27L9_gY0M2gTU_uDyil7m3yA/viewform by Sunday, March 31. Tuesday, April 16, is the last day to purchase a yearbook at the current prices. You can pre-order a yearbook here: https://apptegy-alerts-attachments-production.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/330e7434-c3c5-4eb8-87a0-3782ca104560/Yearbook%20Pre-Order%20Form%20Follow-Up%2024.pdf. If you have any questions, please email the middle school adviser Mr. Loizides at cloizides@locustvalleyschools.org.
Young scientists took over the Locust Valley Intermediate School gym on March 19 to show off their creative and informative projects for the annual science fair.
Third to fifth grade students brought in tri-fold boards and innovative creations such as DNA strands made out of nail files, robotic arms and clay recreations of the brain to show to their parents and the high school student judges. While one grade stayed in the gym and presented their projects to the judges, the other two grades learned how to make safe chemical reactions and mechanized creations from the Locust Valley High School robotics teams.
Each group of students did an incredible job going through the scientific process and putting together their intricate projects.
Locust Valley High School’s student government welcomed members of the Bayville Senior Citizen Club and LV Seniors to the cafeteria on March 24 after the last production of “Chicago: Teen Edition” for the annual Intergenerational Dinner. The student government members served delicious pasta, vegetables, desserts and coffee catered by the Bayville Deli for their guests. Members of the “Chicago” cast surprised seniors during their meal to talk about the show.
Ann MacArthur Primary School students took part in one of their favorite school traditions last week as they traversed the decorated gym on scooters for one last set of Disney Days during March. Students rolled through the highways to each station, which featured Disney-themed books, games and activities such as the drive-in movie theater and a gift shop with hundreds of items collected by physical education teacher Maribeth Miller.
For 23 years, Miller has shared her love of all things Disney with her students. The event has created incredible memories for students over the years, as seen by the letters from previous classes lining the walls that thanked Miller for her creativity and hard work.
“Over the years, I saw the smiles and happiness and the memories being made,” Miller said. “I vowed to share the magic of Disney until I retied, which happens to be this June. I can only hope that the wonderful world of Disney experience lives on in my absence.”
Locust Valley Intermediate School fifth graders spent the week of March 11 learning circus skills from scratch, culminating in a performance in front of classmates, friends and family on the evening of March 15 at the high school gymnasium.
Students worked all week during their gym classes with members of the National Circus Project to perfect their balancing, clowning, hula hooping, diabolo stick throwing, juggling and stilting skills.
The Locust Valley Elementary Parents Council continued their partnership with the National Circus Project to help students work on their focus, timing and coordination, as well as their teamwork, confidence and communication skills. The parents council and several school clubs also sold refreshments and toys before and during the annual event.
After months of preparation and a visit from Broadway “Chicago” stars Angel Reda and Jeff Gorti for a workshop, the Locust Valley High School Jesters are excited to perform “Chicago: Teen Edition” for the community. Come see the amazing talent of our actors and the incredible sets and costumes of 1920s Chicago.
Performances take place on Friday, March 22, at 7 p.m., Saturday, March 23, at 7 p.m. and Sunday, March 24, at 2 p.m. in the school auditorium. Purchase your tickets today at https://www.showtix4u.com/event-details/82355. Tickets are $12 in advance and $15 at the door.
Bayville Primary and Intermediate School students took a short break from their classes on March 14 to take part in a fun, fast-paced trivia game show from Hollyrock Entertainment called the Brain Challenge.
Students gathered in the Bayville Primary gym to compete in fun games such Brain Challenge, a hula-hoop competition, a word scramble, Simon Sez and tug-of-war, that challenged their coordination, concentration and teamwork.
Teachers also got in on the fun, showing their knowledge during their own rounds of the Brain Challenge when they were nominated by students to represent their teams.
Locust Valley High School’s drama club, the Locust Valley Jesters, welcomed Broadway stars of ‘Chicago’ Jeff Gorti and Angel Reda for a workshop on March 13 ahead of their own teen version of the show from March 22 to 24. Gorti currently plays the roles of the doctor and judge, while Reda performs as Annie.
Earlier in the month, the cast took a trip to Broadway to see Gorti and Reda in action and took part in a talkback after the performance. This time, Gorti and Reda led the cast through vocal and physical warmups and a number of scenes and songs from the show, as well as a question and answer session at the end of the workshop.
During the question and answer portion, Reda advised one cast member who is new to acting to “immerse yourself in anything you find that is theater related,” such as books, films and shows based on the show, past performances of the show and more.
“Every moment you are on stage needs to be important,” Gorti told students during the question and answer. “Whether you are the judge or one of the cell block girls, you are so pivotal to this piece so make sure that each moment you step on the stage you know exactly who you are, where you are and why you are there.”
Students were ecstatic to work with the talented performers and the visit helped some connect better with their characters, though all got a huge boost in confidence before they enter the final week of rehearsals.
The cast and crew are excited to present ‘Chicago: Teen Edition’ on March 22 and 23 at 7 p.m. and March 24 at 2 p.m.
Locust Valley High School seniors took to the runway wearing a host of different styles from local businesses as part of the annual Senior Fashion Show at the school auditorium on March 5.
With the help of the Locust Valley High School Parents Council and class advisors Michael Gilbert and Deniz Gumusdere, the senior class partnered with local boutiques to showcase formal wear, sportswear and casual wear. Other local businesses also contributed donations that will help the seniors put together events for their graduation season.
