Nassau notebook: Hewlett team wins county math tourney

A team from Woodmere Middle School in Hewlett took first place last month in the inaugural Nassau County Middle School Math Tournament, held at Kellenberg Memorial High School for seventh- and eighth- graders.

The competition required 23 teams from Nassau County to complete 10 individual and 10 team math problems in subjects that ranged from algebra to Venn diagrams.

"We didn't know what to expect since it was the first year, so we were surprised to win," said the school's math chairwoman, Dara Addonizio, who noted that the team earned medals, certificates and a trophy. "The kids were really ecstatic."

Woodmere's winning team - Adon Chowdhury, Alex Gordon, Mike Green, Sarah Green and Jasmine Pei - earned spots on the squad after having the school's highest scores earlier this year in the Mathematical Association of America's American Math Competition 8.

"This [tournament] lets kids engage in a friendly competition," said event coordinator Andrea Nordquist, who is assistant principal of St. Martin de Porres Marianist School in Uniondale. "It also shows them that it's OK to be smart."

Merrick Avenue Middle School and New Hyde Park Memorial High School finished second and third, respectively. Joe Taglic, an eighth-grader at Long Island Lutheran Middle & High School in Brookville, was the only student to score perfectly on all 10 questions.

The tournament was sponsored by the Museum of Mathematics in Setauket.

GLEN COVE

First career day

Glen Cove High School's guidance department recently coordinated the school's first Career Workshop Day, a series of seminars that enabled teens to interact with local professionals in fields ranging from graphic design to business. Students also learned etiquette and interviewing tips from Frank Casale, CEO of the Outsourcing Institute in Syosset.

Others in attendance included representatives from Savannah College of Art and Design in Georgia, SUNY Maritime College in Throgs Neck, and Briarcliffe College in Bethpage.

LONG BEACH

City high school interns

Ten Long Beach High School students are participating in internships with the City of Long Beach this spring that will give them a taste of fields such as law enforcement, public relations and construction. Students will earn a one-fourth credit for 40 hours of work.

The program recently kicked off with a reception in which City Manager Charles Theofan spoke of the government's role in the community and introduced students to mentors.

NORTH BELLMORE

Make-A-Wish fund event

Students in Mepham High School's Participation in Government classes raised more than $10,000 this winter for the Make-A-Wish Foundation through a series of fundraisers that included the sales of bracelets, candygrams and star-shaped cutouts hung throughout the school's hallways.

A check was presented to foundation officials on Feb. 25.

SEAFORD

Showing kindness

Seaford Manor School students are learning the importance of kindness this school year by working to complete large heart-shaped puzzles displayed outside each classroom. When children complete acts of kindness at home, they receive jigsaw pieces to add to their puzzle.

Other recent charitable efforts included a food drive that raised 2,000 pounds of food for Island Harvest, and spare change donations and craft sales to benefit the Red Cross and Make-A-Wish Foundation.

"Heartprints abound at Manor School as we work together to make the world a better place," said principal John Striffolino, noting the school's heart theme stemmed from the children's book "Heartprints" by P.K. Hallinan.

ISLANDWIDE

Scholar-athlete teams

A total of 408 athletic teams from Long Island schools have been named Scholar-Athlete Teams by the New York State Public High School Athletic Association for having a cumulative grade point average of more than 90 percent during the winter competition season. Local winners were:

Bethpage: boys' basketball, bowling, indoor track, swimming and diving, and wrestling, and girls' basketball, bowling, gymnastics and indoor track of Bethpage High School; East Meadow: boys' indoor track and wrestling, and girls' basketball, bowling and indoor track of East Meadow High School; Farmingdale: boys' basketball, bowling, indoor track, swimming and diving, and wrestling, and girls' basketball, bowling and indoor track of Farmingdale High School; Hicksville: boys' basketball, indoor track and wrestling, and girls' basketball, bowling and indoor track of Hicksville High School; Levittown: girls' basketball of Levittown High School; girls' basketball of MacArthur High School; Massapequa: boys' basketball, bowling, indoor track, riflery, swimming and diving, and wrestling, and girls' basketball, bowling, gymnastics and indoor track of Massapequa High School; Merrick: boys' basketball, indoor track and swimming and diving, and girls' basketball, bowling and indoor track of Sanford H. Calhoun High School; North Bellmore: boys' basketball, indoor track and wrestling, and girls' basketball and indoor track of Mepham High School; Plainedge: boys' basketball and indoor track, and girls' basketball, bowling and indoor track of Plainedge High School; Seaford: boys' indoor track, and girls' basketball and indoor track of Seaford High School; Wantagh: boys' basketball, bowling, indoor track, swimming and diving, and wrestling, and girls' basketball, gymnastics and indoor track of Wantagh High School; Westbury: boys' basketball, indoor track and wrestling, and girls' indoor track of W. Tresper Clarke High School.

Baldwin: boys' riflery of Baldwin High School; Floral Park: girls' basketball of Floral Park Memorial High School; Franklin Square: boys' indoor track and girls' basketball and indoor track of H. Frank Carey High School; Hewlett: boys' bowling, fencing, indoor track and swimming and diving, and girls' basketball, bowling, fencing, gymnastics, indoor track and wrestling of George W. Hewlett High School; Lido Beach: boys' indoor track and swimming and diving, and girls' basketball, gymnastics and indoor track of Long Beach High School; Lynbrook: boys' indoor track and wrestling and girls' basketball, bowling and indoor track of Lynbrook High School; Oceanside: boys' basketball and indoor track and girls' basketball and gymnastics of Oceanside High School; Valley Stream: boys' basketball, indoor track and wrestling, and girls' basketball, bowling and indoor track of Valley Stream North High School; girls' indoor track of Valley Stream South High School.
Carle Place: girls' basketball, bowling and gymnastics of Carle Place High School; Garden City: boys' basketball, bowling, fencing, indoor track, riflery, swimming and diving, and wrestling, and girls' basketball, bowling, fencing, gymnastics and indoor track of Garden City High School; Glen Cove: girls' basketball of Glen Cove High School; Glen Head: boys' bowling, indoor track and wrestling, and girls' basketball, bowling and indoor track of North Shore High School; Great Neck: boys' basketball, bowling, fencing, indoor track and swimming and diving, and girls' basketball, fencing, gymnastic and indoor track of Great Neck South High School; Herricks: boys' indoor track and girls' basketball and indoor track of Herricks High School; Jericho: boys' basketball, bowling, fencing, indoor track, swimming and diving, and wrestling, and girls' basketball, bowling, fencing and indoor track of Jericho High School; Locust Valley: boys' basketball, bowling, indoor track and wrestling, and girls' basketball, bowling and indoor track of Locust Valley High School; Manhasset: boys' basketball, fencing, indoor track, swimming and diving, and wrestling, and girls' basketball, bowling, fencing and indoor track of Manhasset High School; Mineola: boys' basketball and indoor track and girls' basketball and indoor track of Mineola High School; Old Westbury: boys' basketball, fencing, indoor track and wrestling, and girls' basketball, fencing and indoor track of the Wheatley School; Oyster Bay: boys' fencing, indoor track and wrestling, and girls' basketball, bowling, fencing and indoor track of Oyster Bay High School; Plainview: boys' bowling, indoor track and swimming and diving, and girls' bowling and indoor track of Plainview-Old Bethpage High School; Port Washington: boys' basketball, bowling, indoor track, swimming and diving, and wrestling, and girls' basketball, bowling, gymnastics and indoor track of Paul D. Schreiber High School; Roslyn: boys' basketball and indoor track and girls' basketball, gymnastics and indoor track of Roslyn High School; Westbury: boys' basketball, indoor track and wrestling, and girls' indoor track of W. Tresper Clarke High School.