Second-graders in AnnMarie Ayerle’s class at Tooker Avenue Elementary School celebrated their love of literacy by publishing their own books. Students put together two “Classroom Gazette” newspapers and a compilation book of stories and poems. The second-graders shared limerick, acrostic, couplet and quatrain poetry at the Poetry Cafe, while others enjoyed reading adventure, mystery, fiction and nonfiction stories at the Book Nook.   

Seniors Francis Volz and Paige Keefer, pictured here with director of athletics Lou Howard, were recently honored at the 17th annual Butch Dellecave Awards ceremony for being named West Babylon Athletes of the Year.

Junior High School eighth-graders were recently recognized at an awards ceremony for the spring Babylon Citizens Council on the Arts judged show. The following students took home awards: Isabella Villacis (first place), Louis Foley Jr. (second place), Marta Jimenez (third place), and Blake Ung, Edwine Maurice and Julia Aguanno (honorable mentions). They are pictured (from left) with Principal Dan McKeon, art teacher Jennifer Tomeo, K-8 art coordinator William Doran and Assistant Principal Jessica Yawney-Kohler.

The West Babylon School District extends its best wishes to the 2016-17 staff retirees. These individuals have dedicated themselves to the students and their education, and they will be greatly missed. With more than 550 years of combined dedication to West Babylon Schools, the district bids farewell to the following 23 retirees. Click here to read about what retirees will miss most about working in West Babylon:

Administration Office:
Amy Jones, senior clerk typist/school district clerk, 17 years

Business Office:
Diana Carroll, principal clerk, 20 years
Kathleen Scelfo, account clerk typist, 20 years
Patricia Woolsey, account clerk typist, 16 years

Forest Avenue:
Lisa Warren, paraprofessional, 14 years

Junior High School:
Louise Benvenuto, senior clerk typist, 22 years
Kenneth Butler, music teacher, 33 years
Thomas McCormack, custodial worker, 29 years

Santapogue:
Joan Kaiser, speech teacher, 29 years
Grace Meo, paraprofessional, 18 years
Susan Soldano, special education teacher, 29 years
Nancy Turano, elementary teacher, 30 years

Senior High School:
Bernadette Gisonda, special education teacher, 27 years
Arthur Layman, chief custodian, 45 years
Josefina Nigro-Brustad, cook, 29 years
Beatrice Weegar, paraprofessional, 24 years

South Bay:
Melinda Fischer, art teacher, 30 years

Tooker Avenue:
Robert McDonald, custodial worker, 15 years

Transportation:
Kerry-Ann Ambos, school bus monitor, 22 years
Henry Bianco, school transportation supervisor, 37 years
Hugo Canedo, school bus driver, 9 years
Janet Otte, school bus driver, 16 years
Elizabeth Wild, school bus driver, 24 years

Senior High School sophomore Charles DeGennaro will be attending the National Youth Leadership Forum: Engineering and Technology in Boston, Massachusetts, from June 24 to July 1. DeGennaro was nominated because of his academic excellence and is interests in majoring in engineering in college. 

Administrators, board of education members, faculty, family and friends gathered on the Junior High School field to celebrate the commencement exercises of the Class of 2017 on June 23.

Led on to the field by administrators, the soon-to-be graduates marched to “Pomp and Circumstance” courtesy of the band, which then led “The Star-Spangled Banner” and “God Bless America.”

Mary Chasen, president of the Class of 2017, welcomed guests to the ceremony. She spoke to her classmates about living in the present and enjoying the time right here and now. “Look at the person you are right now,” she said. “This ceremony will end and we will all be different. We all have pieces of this community and when we leave here, we will carry them off with us.”

Salutatorian Michael Lee talked about what lies ahead as they enter college or the workforce. “High school is full of challenges and obstacles that seem unconquerable,” he said. “I believe hard work and dedication are the keys to success. When new challenges arise, don’t fear them; face them.”

Superintendent of Schools Dr. Yiendhy Farrelly acknowledged different individual students in the Class of 2017 who left their mark on West Babylon Senior High School. “Throughout this school year, I have seen, heard and witnessed many of these accomplishments,” she said. “ As you begin your next chapter, you will find easy days and you will find challenging ones. Be resilient; don’t forget to take care of yourself. Find gratitude and appreciation in every day.”

Before valedictorian Christina Capobianco took to the podium, the chorus performed their senior medley – featuring “Breakaway,” “Fix You,” “I Hope You Dance,” “Home” and “Unwritten” – before the band ended with “Like an Eagle.”

Capobianco urged her fellow classmates to take risks. “This is the ending of the first chapter of your life,” she said. “Some of us have an idea of where we want to be five, 10, 20 years from now. Even if you have planned every detail, be open to change and keep an open mind or you might miss an unexpected opportunity for greatness. You will never know the journey that awaits you if you never leave the comfort and safety of your home. Keep true to who you are and where you come from. Remember what your values are and never forget your roots. It takes fortitude and self-awareness to succeed. Sometimes it’s going to be hard to go against the crowd and make the right decisions.”

Before conferring the diplomas to each member of the Class of 2017, Principal Dr. Ellice Vassallo told them: “Your four years have gone quickly but you have made the most of them. You leave the high school a better place because you were here.”

After tossing their caps high in the air, friends and family joined the graduates on the field to celebrate.

Introducing the Class of 2017 valedictorian and salutatorian. Here’s an inside look at their high school accomplishments. Congratulations to the Class of 2017! Check out the video:

​To incorporate learning about communities around the world, third grade students in Mrs Gottlieb's class corresponded with pen pals in Muzillac, France throughout the year. They recently arrived at school before school hours to SKYPE with their new friends. It was 8:00 a.m. here and 2: 00 p.m. in France. They discussed many topics including favorite foods, music, sports, school and visiting each other. The students were nervous and excited and learned many things during their exchanges.

Kindergarten and first-grade students in Krista Granieri’s class at South Bay Elementary School took a walk to the local Stop & Shop supermarket on June 14. The students learned about healthy food choices and how fresh foods go from farm to tables.

First-graders in Lisa DeGennaro’s class at John F. Kennedy Elementary School held a star-studded literacy celebration on June 13. Sporting their star-shaped glasses, the published authors invited special guests into the classroom to walk the red carpet. The authors unveiled their newly written fictional series displayed in their boxed set. The boxed set contained a QR code that links directly to a video of the students reading one of their stories.

At a recent ceremony, West Babylon honored its student-athletes. All-Around Outstanding Athletes were Leonardo Innamorato and Shannon McGurie. Eagle’s Trophy winners were Francis Volz and Dana Beggins. They are pictured with Athletic Director Lou Howard, coach Frank Ging, Superintendent of Schools Dr. Yiendhy Farrelly, Senior High School Principal Dr. Ellice Vassallo and coach Debbie McGuire. 

Bringing classroom learning to life, the Junior High School technology department took a field trip to the Cradle of Aviation Museum in Garden City on May 24. The learning experience tied into the technology curriculum, as students were surrounded by old and new aviation technologies much of which originated on Long Island. 

The Senior High School recently ranked first place in the nation in the Math Fax competition with seniors Matthew Reyes and Kunzhe Li tying for first place. Math Fax is a national exam that consists of four exams taken throughout the year. Each exam contains 25 multiple choice questions that students must solve in 30 minutes without a calculator.

At the Suffolk County Senior High School Math League, the Senior High School ranked 15 out of more than 300 schools. In addition, Reyes placed third in the Suffolk County Senior High Math League. During each of the five competitions, students must solve six problems and are ranked according to their success. 

Junior High School students Isabella Villacis, Ella Henson, Amanda Rosario and Jourlen Chery were recently named Suffolk County winners in this year’s New York Association for Pupil Transportation Safety Bus Transportation poster contest. 

Every year, NYAPT hosts this contest to promote bus safety across New York State. This year’s theme was “My Driver: My Safety Hero.” Villacis will move on to compete in the New York State competition.

Thank you to West Babylon for helping support the district’s Relay for Life! Through a combined effort, West Babylon raised more than $25,000 for Relay for Life!

At the start of the school year, Forest Avenue Elementary School Principal Patricia Acocella challenged the students in Kristen Wilken’s class to collectively read 3,000 books by May 15. If the students accepted the challenge and shared the reading equally, Ms. Acocella would treat the class to a pizza and ice cream party. At the May 15 celebration, Ms. Acocella was surprised to learn the students surpassed her challenge by reading 4,222 books. The class is already thinking of a new challenge for next year.

The varsity girls track team participated in the state qualifying meet in Port Jefferson on June 3 and 4. Brittany Korsah is the county champion in the 400m dash and advances to State Championship in Binghamton and Paige Keefer is the county champion in the 800m run and advances to the states as well.

The 4x800m relay team of Dana Beggins, Noela Franco, Tara Hauff and Paige Keefer won the 4x800m relay in a new New York State time of 8:59.01. This is the first sub-9 minute girls 4x800 time from Suffolk County in 12 years. They are also now ranked third in the United States. They advance to Binghamton with a chance to win their first state championship. 

The 4x400m relay team of Nadja Ashley, Dana Beggins, Paige Keefer and Brittany Korsah won the 4x400m relay breaking their own Suffolk County record set last year in a time of 3:45.60. They advance to Binghamton with a chance to win their third consecutive state championship.

Approximately 200 students from the Senior High School were recognized on May 15 at the school’s annual Principal’s Achievement Awards ceremony.

After welcoming students and their invited guests, Senior High School Principal Dr. Ellice Vassallo presented each of the department chairs to present awards to the student receipients. Awards were presented in the areas of art, business, family & consumer science, technology, English, foreign language, health & physical education, mathematics, music, science, social studies, vocational education and leadership.

Guest speaker Thomas Verni, a 1987 West Babylon graduate and a retired New York City Police Department detective, addressed the audience following the award presentations. The West Babylon Senior High School string ensemble, directed by Barbara Kelly, provided the musical accompaniment throughout the event before guests headed to the cafeteria for a reception.

For a full list of award receipients, please click here.

At the end of May, Citi Field held its Memorial-Military Appreciation Day. West Babylon Senior High School students Jailene Duarate, Haley Higginson and Gage Finn were among the crowd of students who retook their oath to enter the Navy.

The Senior High School held a career fair on May 12 featuring more than 20 career opportunities from law enforcement, manufacturing, nursing, sales, technology and real estate. The fair was organized and coordinated by Senior High School business education teachers Colleen Kilgus and Katharine Reilly-Johnson.

Approximately 500 students attended the career fair where they learned about these careers through small group sessions. Some students also completed job applications for local businesses offering part-time employment opportunities.

Congratulations to the following West Babylon students who successfully performed at this year’s NYSSMA solo festivals. For a complete listing of student-musicians, please click here.

Students in grades K-2 at South Bay were able to watch butterflies develop from the larva stage through the pupa stage until adulthood. Second graders held a butterfly with supervision before releasing them into the wild.

The district congratulates the girls varsity track team for being named the Suffolk County champions. Here’s some highlights from the season:
Paige Keefer – First in 1500m, 800m, 4x400, 4x800
Brittany Korsah – First in 400m, 200m, 4x400, third in triple jump
Dana Beggins – First in 4x400, second in 400m, fifth in triple jump
Tara Hauff – First in 4x800, second in steeplechase, third in 800m
Nadja Ashley – Third in 400m, fourth in long jump, fifth in high jump
Noela Franco – First in 4x800, fifth in 1500m
Nadine Keefer – First in 4x800
Jessica Boos – First in 4x400
Cansel Cebeci – Sixth in pentathlon

The team will compete at the state qualifiers on June 2 and 3 in Port Jefferson to advance to the state meet in Binghamton.

The district held its 13th annual Wellness Fair and Fun Run on the West Babylon Junior High School track on May 15. The event encouraged families to join together to get active and learn about different community organizations that are available. Watch the video for more on this event.

The student council at South Bay Elementary School recently facilitated the annual Pennies for Patients program and raised $627.30. Advised by Stacey Bushinkski, the student council will donate the money to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.