School Notebook: Plainview-Old Bethpage wins moot court

A team from Plainview-Old Bethpage JFK High School has won a competition that challenged students to demonstrate their knowledge of constitutional law and their ability to use advocacy skills to persuasively argue their position.

Plainview-Old Bethpage defeated Northport High School last month in the championship round of this year’s Long Island Mentor Moot Court Competition, which asked teams to present arguments about an imaginary lawsuit with real-life judges questioning them as they would in appellate court proceedings.

The competition included 30 teams from more than 20 high schools across Long Island. The championship rounds were presided over by three judges at the federal courthouse in Central Islip.

“This experience was so beneficial for our students to hone their advocacy skills and get a glimpse into their future career paths,” Plainview-Old Bethpage teacher-coaches Nancy Rogers and Gina Farrell said in a statement. “Their level of poise and professionalism . . . was impressive.”

The fictional case involved a Supreme Court argument about the constitutional rights of a high school student to wear a certain emoji T-shirt at a school assembly and the Fifth Amendment right of the student during questioning by the principal and a school safety officer.

Plainview-Old Bethpage’s winning team included Blake Becker and Eli Lev, shown in photo, back row, second and third from left, and Valerie Kandel and Nicole Gleicher, front row, fourth from left and far right, respectively.

Northport’s team members were Kailey Ciszek, Samuel Rosenfeld-McMahon, Ava Mir and Molly Zambri.

“This was a great experience for all involved,“ said David Scott, the law program coordinator for Northport, which was the Suffolk County champion. “Every aspect of the tournament was educational and focused on helping students see the law and the legal system come to life and to inspire students to achieve excellence.“

ROCKVILLE CENTRE, GREENLAWN

Hispanic Heritage essay winner

Giana Canales, a seventh-grader at South Side Middle School in Rockville Centre, was one of four grand-prize winners nationwide in a Hispanic Heritage Month essay contest sponsored by Optimum and TelevisaUnivision. She received a $3,000 scholarship.

The contest invited students to share, in 500 words or less, an account of a person or group of Hispanic heritage that has kept their community connected. It was held in conjunction with Hispanic Heritage Month, which spanned Sept. 15 through Oct. 15.

Brynn Gerde, an eighth-grader at Oldfield Middle School in Greenlawn, was among a dozen runners-up.

VALLEY STREAM

Leaders of Tomorrow

The Valley Stream School District 30 recently launched a Global Leaders of Tomorrow Advisory Council in which students will collaborate to make their community a better place. The council will meet regularly with Superintendent Roxanne Garcia-France.

During their first meeting, members discussed the United Nation’s 17 Sustainable Development goals and decided to create civic action projects to bring awareness and solutions to childhood hunger and food insecurity.

“They come prepared to share their thoughts, listen carefully to different perspectives and make decisions using their collective voices,” said Garcia-France. “I leave the meeting inspired and hopeful the next generation of leaders has the ability to achieve peace and prosperity for people and the planet.”

WEST BABYLON

Tooker 100 Club

Tooker Avenue Elementary School has launched a new club designed to recognize positive behaviors both inside and outside of the classroom.

The club, called the Tooker 100 Club, will see teachers issue tickets to students who exhibit kindness or “follow the rules during unstructured time,” school officials said. The tickets will then be placed on a number between 1 and 100 on a bulletin board, and once a whole row or column is filled everyone in those spots will receive a mystery prize from Principal Charles Germano.

“The students and staff are very excited about this new program, and we have already seen an overall improvement in student behavior and effort,” Germano said.

ISLANDWIDE

Presidential Scholar nominees

Four Long Island seniors — Luke Dickhuth of Earl L. Vandermeulen High School in Port Jefferson, Sabrina Guo of Syosset High School, Nicholas Milau of MacArthur High School in Levittown and Chloe Phillips of Southampton High School — were among 25 students statewide nominated by the New York State Education Department last month for the 2023 U.S. Presidential Scholars Program.

The White House Commission on Presidential Scholars selects scholars annually based on academic achievements, artistic excellence and community service, among other things. Applications are by invitation only, based on recommendations from legislators.

“I am deeply impressed by the effort and dedication shown by these young people who exemplify what our students can achieve with hard work and opportunities to thrive,” said Board of Regents Chancellor Lester W. Young Jr.