_________________ FREEPORT _________________
CommUNItY UPDAtE Infections as of June 23 6,128 Infections as of June 22 6,127
$1.00
HERALD
Ceremonies in person at last
Rotary Club gets a new president
Freeport fireworks July 1
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Vol. 86 No. 27
JUlY 1 - 7, 2021
Success in the days of Covid Freeport students piled up achievements during pandemic By REINE BEthANY rbethany@liherald.com
Courtesy Freeport Public Schools
mEmBERs oF FREEPoRt High School’s class of 2021 were all smiles after receiving their diplomas during the school’s 128th commencement on June 18. More than 500 graduates took part in a majestic graduation ceremony in Hofstra University’s James M. Shuart stadium.
Students, teachers, administrators and the Board of Education of Freeport Public Schools confronted the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic over the past 15 months and, by all accounts, overcame them. Students lost months of sports, socializing and in-class learning. Yet they and their teachers mastered the technology required to keep up with c o u r s ewo rk , a n d e a r n e d national recognition for their accomplishments.
“It was the entire school community of students, parents and staff coming together,” district Superintendent Dr. K i s h o r e Ku n c h a m s a i d , “ensuring the developing of our kids in all respects.” At the annual Superintendent’s Conference Day last Sept. 1, held remotely due to the pandemic, late school board President Ernest J. Kight welcomed administrators, teachers and school staff, saying, “As our students return, we will socially, emotionally and educationally carry out our misContinued on page 9
Freeport students’ success linked to summer reading By REINE BEthANY rbethany@liherald.com
Every schoolteacher knows how critical reading is to a successful education, and at the same time, how intensive the work of learning to read can be. The website #FreeportReads fosters children’s reading in two major ways: by helping children enjoy their reading experiences, and by helping their parents understand their role in the learn-to-read process. “We launched #Freeport Reads as a community literacy initiative,” said Gloria Engel, the district’s assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruc-
tion. “A very important part of students’ academic achievement is linked to the number of books they have in their home before they even come to school.” For parents who may have trouble building a home library, the teachers who administer #FreeportReads have a multipronged solution. They distribute books free, they educate parents using the #FreeportReads website, and they provide material in both English and Spanish. “One of our major goals is to get books in the hands of our kids to keep at home in their home libraries, as well as a variety of titles that they can be
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ne of our major goals is to get books in the hands of our kids. GloRIA ENGEl
Assistant superintendent reading,” Engel said. She and her colleagues want to “separate reading from being associated so much with schoolwork, and just make it something fun and exciting for the kids.” The book distribution hap-
pens in a number of ways. Parents and children can freely take books from house-shaped boxes mounted on poles outside several of the elementary schools. Families may keep the books, or bring them back and take another — or even exchange them for books they don’t need anymore. Another method is having a table full of books at community
events like the annual Peace Walk. When all events went virtual at the start of the school year, Engel, Director of English Language Arts Mary LaMotta and others got creative. Several times throughout the school year, when students went to get the grab-and-go lunches supplied by the district, the book table Continued on page 4