_____________ ROCKVILLE CENTRE ____________
SAVE WHE N YOU BUNDLE AUTO & HO ME INSUR ANCE
at 2 a.m. on Sunday. Remember to change your smoke detector batteries.
HERALD
Theatre director debuts lost play
Red team comes out on top
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Pages 6-7
Vol. 34 No. 11
MARCH 9 - 15, 2023
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Village officials decry Hochul’s ‘one-size-fits-all’ housing plan By DANIEl oFFNER doffner@liherald.com
The Village of Rockville Centre held a special meeting on March 1 to inform residents about the New York Housing Compact and what it would mean for the community. Gov. Kathy Hochul’s statewide strategy to address the housing crisis, announced in January and included in her executive budget proposal, sets a goal of building 800,000 new apartment units in the state by 2027. The plan would also require municipalities such as Rockville Centre with Metropolitan Transportation Authority rail stations to rezone to allow for higher-density residential development. If approved as par t of Hochul’s spending plan, under the Transit Oriented DevelopContinued on page 9
Super Cyclones
Neil Miller/Herald
SouTH SIDE KNoCKED off defending state champion Manhasset, 57-46, to capture the Nassau County Class A boys’ basketball title last Saturday at Hofstra University. Story, more photos, Page 12.
High school establishes partnerships with local businesses By KEPHERD DANIEl kdaniel@liherald.com
South Side High School’s business department and the Rockville Centre Chamber of Commerce recently joined forces to help promote the school’s budding business clubs and courses. Chamber members, who met with school officials, business teachers, students and South Side alumni on Feb. 28, were encouraged to hire students who are interested in business careers as interns. The interest in business at district schools has been growing for the past few years. When the International Baccalaureate
business program was introduced at the high school six years ago, a couple of dozen students registered to take the courses. More than 140 students are registered for next year — one-third of all South Side juniors. Students who meet I.B. course requirements receive an I.B. diploma in addition to the state Regents diploma when they graduate. Business and marketing are the most popular courses. As a result of the program’s growth, and the addition of a virtual enterprise course, the school has doubled its business teaching staff, from two to four.
“We knew the community was interested in it,” Assistant Principal Ben Moss said. “We had really high enrollment in our business courses, and so we grew the business program.” Students want to learn realworld skills, Moss added. “It’s by far our most popular elective,” he said of I.B. Business. “Kids want to feel that what they’re learning is practical, not only for college but for real life, and that’s what they’re learning.” The I.B. classes include partnerships with local businesses, and students write papers that address those businesses’ challenges. This year, businesses are l o o k i n g t o b e eve n m o re
involved. “We’re working with them in theory, and we could be doing more,” said Peter English, who was hired to teach the school’s first I.B. Business class. “We love working with these businesses, but we want to take that a step further and see what connections we can make through internships, job possibilities,
and ways we can work together in unison.” The school has reached out to several members of the village chamber, including Polka Dog Pound Cake and Backyard Players and Friends, and Ferring Deli in Baldwin, a member of the Baldwin chamber. Administrators and students have also Continued on page 27