Commack School District

Commack Middle School students helped launch Police Week in Yaphank on Monday.

Students studying forensics and science history cinema and in leaders of tomorrow attended Day 1 of the week-long event at Suffolk County Police Department headquarters. In total, more than 1,000 students from across the county joined police officers at assorted stations during the opening morning. The SCPD then invited groups to a grandstand to watch an exhibition of police vehicles and police dogs.

The CMS students visited stations that included a mock crime scene and CPR and NARCAN training and spoke with pilots for a pair of SCPD helicopters. They got to see the inside of an ambulance, try on SWAT gear, use police robotics equipment and try to lift the jaws of life hydraulic rescue tool.

Evan K. made county history on Wednesday.

The Commack varsity baseball pitcher set the Suffolk County consecutive scoreless-innings record with his 54th straight frame without surrendering a run on Wednesday afternoon against Sachem North.

He surpassed the county record previously set by 2016 Mets first-round pick Anthony Kay (no relation), who pitched at Ward Melville.

Anthony Kay has made a combined 44 major league appearances (seven starts) with the Blue Jays, Cubs and Mets.

As part of their Earth Day Celebration, third graders at Burr planted a new butterfly garden on Friday in collaboration with the Town of Huntington. With shovels in hand, students were able to help each other in the process of digging and planting to complete the garden.

 

“This has been really great watching everyone working together,” Burr principal Daniel Ciccone said. “With the creation of the garden, we can allow our students to be able to create a legacy each year and eventually come back and show their kids.”

 

Third grade classes are currently raising caterpillars in their classrooms and will have the opportunity later this school year to safely release the insects into their new natural habitats.

The entire school gathered in front of the building in the afternoon to hear students read original poems about Earth. Town of Hempstead Supervisor Ed Smyth and Councilwoman Theresa Mari were in attendance, along with a crowd of more than 1,000 people.

The Commack Schools family officially welcomed its newest member at Thursday night’s Board of Education meeting.

Victoria Hogan was appointed the next assistant principal at Commack Middle School.

She will succeed Frank Agovino, who is retiring at the school year’s completion.

Hogan has served for the past two school years as a district-wide instructional leader with the Mineola Union Free School District. In that role, her duties included collaborating with teachers and administrators on the creation and implementation of competency-based learning scales for kindergarteners through eighth graders as well as coaching new teachers.

“Her energy, enthusiasm and experience separated her from more than 200 applicants for the position,” assistant superintendent for human resources Scott Oshrin said.

Hogan earned a bachelor of arts in English with a minor in secondary education from Queens College, a masters in reading instruction from Goucher College and an advanced certificate in school building and school district leadership from The College of Saint Rose.

“The most exciting thing about being able to come to Commack is being welcomed into the Commack family itself,” Hogan said. “I’m excited to get to know everybody — the students, the staff, the community — and really make this my home.”

A transition plan is currently being implemented at CMS.

“We wish both Ms. Hogan and Mr. Agovino much luck and happiness as they begin the next journeys in their professional and personal lives,” Oshrin said. 

Indian Hollow Students participating in the Challenge Island STEAM program on Thursday played the part of interior designer, working in groups to design a bedroom diorama that would appeal to a 10-year-old child. 

 

Students were given play money to purchase their materials and focused on integrating different textures into their diorama. Each bedroom had a theme, and the students were tasked with providing a backstory of what went into the room. Currently, Challenge Island students are participating in a "career island" unit and are learning about various career paths that they can take when they get older.

The Commack Teachers Association led a food drive in conjunction with the Suffolk Y JCC's food pantry after school on Thursday. Students and their families, teachers and other community members stopped by throughout the afternoon to donate food items.

"We can't think of a better cause," Sawmill fourth grade teacher Rob Ciani said.