Making the Grade: LI student literary magazines win national honors
Jericho High School's Pegasus was one of three student literary magazines from Long Island to win the highest honor as part of the National Council of Teachers of English's REALM (Recognizing Excellence in Art and Literary Magazines) contest. Credit: Denise Nash
Seventeen student literary magazines from Long Island were among 50 statewide recognized in a national competition that celebrated the art and craft of writing.
The magazines were honored as part of the National Council of Teachers of English’s REALM (Recognizing Excellence in Art and Literary Magazines) contest, which received 375 entries at the middle school, high school and college levels. Judging was based on criteria ranging from graphic design to literary quality, and awards were issued in four categories.
Jericho High School’s Pegasus, Long Beach High School’s Fragments 2023: The Chakras and Syosset High School’s KEN Literary and Art Magazine were among seven magazines statewide to earn the highest honor of first class.
“The wonder of a high school literary arts magazine is it gives students the opportunity not only to be deeply personal, but to step away from their identity to explore other people and situations,” said Michael Hartnett, adviser for Jericho’s Pegasus. “The combination simultaneously to examine and escape their lives is what makes the creative process so satisfying.”
Long Island high schools with winning magazines in the superior category were Bay Shore; Sanford H. Calhoun in Merrick; Cold Spring Harbor; Eastport-South Manor; Garden City; Kings Park; Wellington C. Mepham in Bellmore; and Ward Melville in East Setauket. Winners in the excellent category were from Harborfields in Greenlawn, Herricks in New Hyde Park, Smithtown West and Valley Stream South high schools, while local winners in the distinguished category were from Floral Park and Oceanside high schools.
BELLPORT
Independent living
Eastern Suffolk BOCES’ Brookhaven Learning Center has unveiled a new classroom designed to provide students with developmental disabilities the opportunity to learn to live more independently.
The space consists of a working kitchen and studio apartment complete with a bed, vacuum and washer and dryer. Weekly lessons cover topics ranging from how to use various appliances to what belongs in a refrigerator.
“They are exposed to many life skills and have hands-on instruction about it, so they may develop a level of familiarity with things in their own homes,” said the center’s principal, Nicole Drinkwater.
SETAUKET
New high-tech space
Setauket Elementary School has unveiled a new makerspace area for students to collaborate on projects and explore high-tech tools. It is the first such space in an elementary school in the Three Village Central School District.
One of the space’s first activities was to have students work in small teams to code paths for an Ozobot, a small programmable robot, to navigate.
“It’s a place to design, create and make with emerging technologies, such as the 3D printer and robotics,” said the school’s librarian, Joannie Lauria. “This hands-on experience is empowering.”
ISLANDWIDE
Bright Lights
Twenty-six Long Island educators have received Bright Light Awards from the Association of Suffolk Supervisors for Educational Technologies for their efforts in integrating technology into the classroom.
Winners and their school districts: Stephanie Cox, Bay Shore; Daniel Meo, Brentwood; Melissa McLees, Cold Spring Harbor; Susan Abbott, Commack; Nicole Taormina, Comsewogue; Christine Joneleit and Jennifer Paduano, Deer Park; Patrick Hurley, East Williston; Meredith Kramer, Eastport-South Manor; Brittany Chalmers, Elwood; David Schaeffler, Hauppauge; Lorraine Radice, Long Beach; Connor Munisteri, Mattituck-Cutchogue; Nicole Valvo, Mineola; Christina Sciarotto, New Hyde Park-Garden City Park; Debra Iannacci and Christine Talbot, North Merrick; Matthew Gorman, Northport-East Northport; Debbie Fallon, Plainedge; Philip Caputo, Plainview-Old Bethpage; Michael Kerr, Seaford; Peter Esposito, Shoreham-Wading River; Daniel Maresca, South Country; Nicole Honovich, South Huntington; and Maria Cristantello, West Islip. Victoria Bardin of Mill Neck Manor School for the Deaf also won.
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.
