On Feb. 2, Jr.-Sr. High School students learned the story of Moshe Furshpan, the only survivor in his family of eight who escaped the Nazis at age 10 by hiding in a forest in his native Poland during World War II. During the school assembly, his son, Dr. Bernie Furshpan, provided a second-generation testimony about human survival and confronted the rising intolerance throughout the world in his presentation, “The Little Boy in the Woods: An Incredible Story of Survival in the Face of Evil.”

Dr. Furshpan asked students the question, “Why haven’t we learned to be better [as a society]?” He stated that 50 million people have been killed in genocide since the Holocaust and that all genocide starts with words of hate. He also conveyed his idea that good people are capable of doing bad things, and the Holocaust is an example of how society can turn on its citizens.

Dr. Furshpan also weaved together historical facts and intimate testimony to the story of his late father’s survival. He explained how his father ate tree bark and berries to survive and covered himself with twigs and leaves at night to hide from the Nazis. Most importantly, Dr. Furshpan’s story advocated against hate and rising intolerance throughout the world.

“You don’t have to inherit hate,” Dr. Furshpan said. “Hate is not congruent to what we are as a society.”

Eastport Elementary School Spanish students have taken their knowledge of Spanish and applied these acquired words and skills in units related to real estate and pet adoption.

After learning vocabulary and grammar pertaining to a house or home, fifth graders worked as teams of real estate agents. They created listings for different homes and presented the information to their classmates. The students were also able to individually place “bids” on the houses based on their presentations.

Additionally, third grade classes completed an adopt-a-pet writing project to practice their animal vocabulary and description words. The students visited the class "pet adoption center" to choose a pet, planned and drafted a description of their pet, edited their draft to earn an “accessory” for their pet, and created their final drafts in the form of an adoption certificate.

Foreign Language in the Elementary School teacher Tiffany Patterson congratulated the students on their advanced foreign language skills and for the students’ abilities to apply vocabulary and grammar to these units of study.

Click here to view the Learning Real World Spanish Vocabulary slideshow.

The Jr.-Sr. High School Science Olympiad team made an impressive debut at Hauppauge High School on Jan. 31. The inaugural team competed against 65 teams and placed 23rd overall. Coaches Amity Baum and Kristin Visconti congratulated the team on a strong first-year performance. 

Several team members earned top 10 finishes in their events. Andrew Santangeloand Ava Reehil placed fourth overall in the Materials Science division. Andrew Santangelo and Mariah Maekhyla Ryder earned eighth place in Robot Tour. Sam Zheng and Shae Pepey secured eighth place in Water Quality.  

“With such a promising start, the future looks bright for the Eastport–South Manor Science Olympiad team in the years ahead,” District Director of K-12 Science Dr. Jessica Mintz said. “These accomplishments highlight the students’ hard work, dedication, and growing skill set.” 

 

Date Added: 2/2/2026

Sam Nowack, currently a ninth grade student at the Jr.-Sr. High School, was named a Merit Winner in the 2025 New York State Student Research Awards Competition. The annual competition is designed to empower students to become historians by encouraging their engagement in original research through exploration of primary resources found in archives, libraries and historical societies across the state.

Mentored by eighth grade social studies teacher Mr. Joe Pfeffer, Sam researched the role of the oyster industry on Long Island. His research was prompted by stories from his family’s role in the industry during the late 1800s to early 1900s.

The competition is open to students in grades 4-12 and assists students in developing critical thinking and analytic skills and the ability to communicate their findings through a variety of formats. Student researchers also engage in thoughtful inquiry and purposeful storytelling that connects historical events to broader themes and human experiences.

The district congratulates Sam on this outstanding academic achievement.

Eastport-South Manor varsity athletes lead on every stage, celebrating postseason wins while maintaining top academic achievement. This fall season, 154 varsity athletes were designated as Scholar-Athletes with all 11 teams being named by the New York State Public High School Athletic Association as Scholar-Athlete Teams. Five of the 11 varsity teams also qualified for Section XI postseason contests. Additionally, there were three County Championships, one Long Island Finalist, 22 All-County athletes, five All-Long Island athletes, nine All-State athletes and one Federation Finalist.

“We are extremely proud of our Fall 2025 champions for everything they accomplished this season,” said Director of Health, Physical Education and Athletics Patrick Hayes said. “Championships don’t happen by accident, they are earned.”

The following is a breakdown of the season’s accolades:

Girls Varsity Soccer – Scholar-Athlete Team and Section XI Playoff Qualifier

Layla Bloxon – All-County, All-State

Sophia Colavito – All-County

Gianna Da Cunha – All-League

Maeve Gayer – All-County, All-Long Island, All-State 

Ava Golden – All-League 

Juliana Hille – All-League

Sabrina Pelo – All-League

Boys Varsity Soccer – Scholar-Athlete Team

Jameson Ackley – All-Academic

Felipe Alarcón – All-League

Antonio Poggi – All-Conference

Girls Volleyball – Scholar-Athlete Team

Madyson DesLauriers – All-League 

Madeline Litchhult – All-League

Boys Volleyball – Scholar-Athlete Team, Playoff Qualifier 1st Seed, Division Champions Section XI Champions and NYSPHSAA Division II Finalist

Tyler Betner – All-Division Honorable Mention

Tyler Bottcher – All-County, All-Long Island and All-State

Jack Cain – All-County, All-Long Island and All-State

Andrew Dragos – All-County, All-Long Island and All-State

Mason Gatchalian – All-Division

Memphis Lanier – All-County 
Andrew Santangelo – All-Division

C.J. Spatz – All-Division Honorable Mention

Mikey Spitzner – All-Division

James Talamini – All-County

Girls Field Hockey – Scholar-Athlete Team, Division II Champions, Section XI Class B Champions and Long Island Champion Finalist, finished season 14-2.

Ella Dragonette – All-Classification

Madison Heaney – All-County

Sarah Langdon – All-Classification

Natalie Longo – All-Academic

Cait Masera – Honorable Mention All-County

Molly McGuire – All-State and All-Long Island 2nd Team

Katelynn Murtha – All-State and All-Long Island 2nd Team

Taylor Murtha – All-Long Island and All-State

Angelina Pulcrano – Unsung Hero

Lexi Quiery – Honorable Mention All-County

Kate Valenti – All-County 

Lauren Valenti – All-County

Girls Cross-Country – Scholar-Athlete Team

Maddie Laezza – All-Division, All-County, All-State; Suffolk County Champion; Top 6 of all time in Sunken Meadow history; NYS Race second place; third place in Federation; 29th in the country at the Oregon Nike Nationals; and Number 1 NYS Runner out of nationals. 

Mya Quinn – All-Division

Boys Cross-Country – Scholar-Athlete Team, Division Champions and Section XI Class B Champions

Brian Methven – Class B Coach of the Year

Timothy Dodd – All-League

Blake Fiori – All-League and All-County

Matthew Keller – All-League and All-County

David Metz – All-League and All-County

Jack Mikula – All-League and All-County

Sam Zvolensky – All-League and All-County

Gameday Cheer – Scholar-Athlete Team

Jillian Gmelch – All-County and All-Classification

Matthew Lukas – Academic All-County

Girls Tennis – Scholar-Athlete Team

Makena Wood – All-League

Julia Ver Straten – All-League

Boys Golf – Scholar-Athlete Team

Daniel Brown – All-League

Zackery Coach – All-League

Tyler Ellis – All-League

Brody Maniaci – All-League

Hudson Tucci – All-League

Football – Scholar-Athlete Team

Zachary Alfonso – All-Division 2nd Team

Nolan Douglas – All-Division 1st Team

Max Ferraro – All-County and All-State

Collin Fessel – All-Division 2nd Team

Joey Hershey – All-Division 1st Team

Cole Klein – All-Division 2nd Team

Tommy Powers – All-Division 1st Team

 

Date Added: 1/29/2026