Nassau School Notebook: Hicksville student wins art contest
Stephanie Lopez, a junior at Hicksville High School, has been named the best-in-show winner of this year's "Long Island's Best: Young Artists at The Heckscher Museum." Her winning piece is an acrylic on canvas artwork titled "Prismatic Bubble." Credit: The Heckscher Museum of Art
A Hicksville High School student's painting was named the overall winner in a competition coordinated by The Heckscher Museum of Art in Huntington.
Stephanie Lopez, a junior, won the Celebrate Achievement Best in Show Award in "Long Island's Best: Young Artists at The Heckscher Museum," a juried competition for students in grades 9 to 12. Her winning piece was an acrylic painting titled "Prismatic Bubble."
This year's competition received 386 submissions from 58 schools across Long Island, with 100 selected for an exhibition in celebration of the museum's 100th anniversary. A virtual opening for the exhibition was held last month because of the coronavirus outbreak.
"I wanted to demonstrate how when light hits a bubble, it reveals an array of prismatic colors that highlight the fragility of both a bubble and a light bulb," Lopez said. "A light bulb can be shattered into pieces with one drop, just like a bubble can be popped in a second with the slightest movement of one's hand."
Second place went to Matthew Diesing, a junior at John F. Kennedy High School in Bellmore, for his oil-pastel painting titled "A Seat at the Table." Third place went to Micarlys Ramirez, a senior from Brentwood High School, for her acrylic painting titled "Ydelim in a Green Chair." Fourth place went to Bridget Buckmaster, a junior at Northport High School, for her digital photography titled "Check Mate."
BELLMORE
Dance champs
Stephanie Lopez's acrylic on canvas artwork "Prismatic Bubble" won a juried competition for students in grades 9 to 12. Credit: The Heckscher Museum of Art
Wellington C. Mepham's Pirettes varsity kickline team won a national title in the large varsity kick division of the National Dance Alliance's Dance National Championships in Orlando on March 8. This is the school's first-ever national dance title.
To win, the team earned a score of 95.03 in its division while also placing third and sixth in the large varsity team performance and large varsity pom categories, respectively. The team's first-place performance also earned it a Superior Showmanship Award, school officials said.
In addition, Mepham's Pirettes received the Sportsmanship Award from among all of this year's teams based on voting by staff members of the National Dance Alliance.
COUNTYWIDE
Students from Denton Avenue Elementary School in the Herricks School District recently created cards and letters of support for local senior citizens in response to the coronavirus outbreak. Credit: Herricks School District
Best music communities
Thirty-four Nassau County school districts are among 754 nationwide named Best Communities for Music Education by the NAMM Foundation. The designation recognizes efforts demonstrating an "exceptionally high commitment and access to music education," the organization said.
Selected school districts were Baldwin, Bellmore, Bethpage, Carle Place, East Meadow, East Rockaway, East Williston, Farmingdale, Freeport, Garden City, Great Neck, Herricks, Hicksville, Island Trees, Jericho, Lawrence, Levittown, Locust Valley, Long Beach, Lynbrook, Malverne, Manhasset, Massapequa, Merrick, Mineola, North Shore, Plainedge, Plainview-Old Bethpage, Port Washington, Rockville Centre, Seaford, Syosset, Uniondale and Valley Stream Central.
ISLANDWIDE
'Schools to Watch'
Kindergartners at the Birch School in Merrick recently created rainbow illustrations for display in the windows of Runway Couture in Bellmore to help spread hope and happiness during the coronavirus outbreak. Credit: Merrick School District
Five Long Island schools — Carrie Palmer Weber Middle School in Port Washington, Garden City Middle School, Island Trees Middle School, Jonas E. Salk Middle School in Levittown and Memorial Junior High School in Valley Stream — are among 167 nationwide named 2020 Schools to Watch by the National Forum to Accelerate Middle-Grades Reform. Designations last for three years.
Selections were based on applications that required schools to show academic excellence, responsiveness to adolescents' needs and interests, and a commitment to helping all students achieve at high levels. Schools meeting the criteria were then visited by state teams that observed classrooms, interviewed administrators and reviewed achievement data, among other things.
"These schools have proven it is possible to overcome barriers to achieving excellence, and any middle-grades school in any state can truly learn from their examples," said the forum's executive director Ericka Uskali.
— MICHAEL R. EBERT
Michael R. Ebert is an education researcher and has worked for Newsday in various capacities since 2003. He was part of an 11-person team named as 2008 Pulitzer Prize finalists for investigative coverage of the LIRR's platform safety issues.
