Merrick
HERALD library seeks new trustee
JFK alum uses pod-given talents
Merokean moves up at NCC
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OCTOBER 15 - 21, 2020
VOl. 23 NO. 42
Local steps up for L.I.’s Latino community ment positions,” Milgrim said. “People have more faith in the system when they see their own Between her time as a person- — they trust more that justice al injury attorney and her new will prevail.” role as president of the Long Milgrim is the first and only Island Hispanic Bar Association, Hispanic partner at Sullivan and Liza Milgrim supports and advo- Papain, acting as a lifeline for cates for the Island’s Spanish-speaking Hispanic communiclients who are often ty. uneducated and at a By day, Milgrim, severe disadvantage 42, of Merrick, repwhen facing an intriresents clients who cate legal system are mostly Spanishwith a language barspeaking — includrier, she said. ing many who suffer “You build trust major injuries and immediately with are navigating an someone when unfamiliar legal sysyou’re able to speak tem — at the firm in their own lanliza Milgrim S u l l iv a n P a p a i n g u a g e, ” M i l g r i m Block McGrath Cofsaid, “where they finas & Cannavo P.C. in Garden feel like they’re speaking directCity. ly to the attorney and that the She has also volunteered at attorney understands their posiLIHBA for five years, helping tion.” Hispanic law students adjust to a As LIHBA president, Milgrim profession that largely lacks said, she planned to continue the their ethnic representation, she association’s mission to advance said. In both venues, she pro- the status of Hispanics in the vides important community out- community and the legal profesreach for local Latinos. sion. The organization provides “I think people want to see mentorships, networking and their own in a position of power education to law students while and leadership. We need to see hosting food drives and a prom more Hispanic attorneys as partners and judges and in governContinued on page 9
By aNdREw GaRCia agarcia@liherald.com
Alyssa Seidman/Herald Life
MaRy MuRphy BROwN, a Merrick School District occupational therapist, gave fourth-grader Marcus Cilibrasi, 9, a push on the platform swing in the OT/PT room in Chatterton Elementary School’s new addition.
Chatterton unveils $5.2M addition, first in decades By alyssa sEidMaN aseidman@liherald.com
Members of the Chatterton Elementary School community joined district administrators and Board of Education trustees on Oct. 6 for an inside look at the building’s first addition in decades. The 5,800-square-foot addition, which voters approved in a December 2016 bond referendum, houses a multipurpose room and classrooms for academic intervention servic-
es, including occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech therapy, and reading and math programs. Construction of the addition began in 2019. Last Tuesday, school officials held a ribbon-cutting ceremony to open the $5.2 million addition in time for the 2020-21 academic year. “This building will be around for a long time, and many children, families and staff will benefit from this new space,” said Dr. Nancy Kaplan, the Board of
Education president. Janet Balkunas, a district physical therapist, said Chatterton did not previously have adequate space for therapy sessions, and at times, faculty had to give up the space when sessions were held in places like the auditorium and another activity took place there. She also said there wasn’t enough room for therapy sessions in certain areas of the building. Now, however, her students have a designatContinued on page 3