Three Village Central School District English as a New Language Department recently hosted two programs to bridge learning opportunities for students. 

A “Welcome Breakfast” was held for ENL elementary students at W.S. Mount Elementary School. The program allowed students from several new families in the district this school year to meet with other students who may speak their native language, to provide comfort and a sense of home in their new surroundings. 

Additionally, Ward Melville High School recently welcomed a group of students from Italy during a meet and greet breakfast and then were invited to shadow several Ward Melville students as they attended classes. In the afternoon, the group gathered back together to share their thoughts about the day and compare experiences. The following day, the students accompanied the visitors to a workshop on migration at Stony Brook University.

R.C. Murphy Junior High School seventh grade students came together and got to know their peers better during a grade-level recreation night hosted by the building’s Student Government. 

The evening event included musical entertainment and a variety of sporting games, including volleyball, basketball, dodgeball and board games. Students also enjoyed several snacks and a pizza dinner. The program was organized by Student Government members and advisers Tyler Gries and Jeanne Hill. 

Ward Melville High School’s Team Polaris – made up of students Elyas Masrour, Christopher Moore, Rohan Nagavardhan and Abdullah Nauman – won the “Best Health Hack” in the annual hackathon event at Stony Brook University. 

At this intensive, 24-hour event, the students developed a smart accessory to enable safer navigation for the visually impaired. The product is a smart speaker that can be clipped onto a cane, an everyday necessity for the blind. This speaker uses a single button and voice commands to bring the conveniences of GPS to the blind. The students’ booth was one of two visited by Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone upon recommendation of the tournament organizers. 

“Being the only high school students participating at the event and having been selected out of over 200 college students, we are incredibly proud to have represented Ward Melville High School,” Nauman said. “We feel that this achievement is a testament to the math and computer science programs at Ward Melville. [Taking] Multivariable Calculus last year provided us with the background of knowledge to build machine learning and navigation systems at a collegiate level.”