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Half Hollow Hills Central School District

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Half Hollow Hills Central School District (#5) is located in Dix Hills, New York. The district includes parts of both Huntington and Babylon townships. The school district contains eleven schools (seven elementary schools, two middle schools, and two high schools). The current superintendent of schools is Dr. Sheldon Karnilow.

The district continues to annually have large population increases due to extensive development within its borders. As a result, most of the schools have recently undergone expansions to accommodate additional students.

Schools

[1] High Schools (9-12): High School East ("Hills East" or "HSE"), High School West ("Hills West" or "HSW")

Middle Schools (6-8): Candlewood Middle School, West Hollow Middle School

Elementary Schools (K-5): Chestnut Hill Elementary School, Forest Park Elementary School, Otsego Elementary School, Paumanok Elementary School, Signal Hill Elementary School, Sunquam Elementary School, Vanderbilt Elementary School

High School East

High School East is located at 50 Vanderbilt Parkway in Dix Hills, New York [2], across the street from the Dix Hills branch of the The Half Hollow Hills Community Library. Hills East is fed from West Hollow Middle School and is the larger of the two high schools in the district. The current principal is Jeffery Woodberry, who started in Fall of 2007. The building was once used as both a middle school and a high school, which were located side-by-side and connected to one another, so the building is sprawling. For the same reason, Hills East has (or once had) two each of many facilities: two main offices, two nurses' offices, two gymnasiums (and two pairs of men's and women's locker rooms), two auditoriums, and two cafeterias (one has since been converted to a weight room).

Facilities

One rather unique feature of High School East is its Planetarium, located one floor above the main office. It features a Spitz A3P planetarium projector, and is usually used to host class trips from the middle and elementary schools; it is also home to High School East's Astronomy Club. [3]

Another unique feature of High School East is the Auditorium which seats over 9,000 on each of the two levels [4], making it the largest not-for-profit auditorium on Long Island. It hosts various school events throughout the year, including Comp Day (talent contest between grades), the Spring Musical, and Athletic Awards. The space is also rented out to local companies for events throughout the year. The stage is a full Broadway-sized stage (88 feet wide, 49 deep, three stories tall for fly space (hanging scenery)).

The school also has a recently-renovated Lecture Hall. It hosts the Fall Drama and Senior Theatrical Production and other smaller gatherings and meetings. Advanced Placement exams are also hosted in the lecture hall.

In February 2007 the district approved the Capital Project and Field Improvement plan. This plan updated many athletic facilities throughout the district, including the football fields at HSE & HSW. This included putting in synthetic turf fields. [5]

Student life

The school mascot of Hills East is the Thunderbird , which struts the school donning the school colors, Red and Black. The students at Hills East are known for having a lot of spirit. The main pride of the school is it's football team, which won their 2007-08 homecoming, making that their 1st win this season. Another pride-inspiring school virtue is it's theatre program, with three highly regarded productions yearly. There are facilities on both ends of the building for socialization: the student center on the west end and the library on the east end. The student center features a small bookstore and candy counter that is open after school hours and staffed by students in the business leadership clubs. There are also computer facilities on both ends of campus, in the library and in the math wing. The school recently got a new principal along with new rules as well. These new improvements will better maintain safety and a better learning environment for the school's students. However, this has incited justifiable controversy amongst the student body. These new roles show a complete lack of regard for student's maturity, especially regarding the new zero tolerance policy regarding cell phones and iPods in schools. The administration's unwavering loyalty to these rules is admirable, however the rules themselves are sloppy, hasty and shockingly unjustified. If anything, it will make the learning environment worse as students will grow more biter and resentful toward the adminstration and learning environment, although this is also due in part to the administration's abolishment of free periods. These ridiculous new rules, although loyally received by the administration, are made with a total disregard for student's feelings. A high school is supposed to help the students mature as people, but that is seemingly impossible at High School East with the new administration treating its student body as mere children. The biggest change of all is in the classroom. Teachers teach based on a fully written lesson in which they must read word for word. This helps all students learn the same lesson and maintains a balance of grades throughout the building. Dr. Woodbury, the current principal also stresses the freedom of teachers. When a teacher manages to keep the class average above 95, action is taken to compliment them.

High School West

High School West (HSW), commonly referred to as as "Hills West" or simply "West" within its district, is located at 375 Wolf Hill Road in Dix Hills, New York. The smaller of the two high schools, High School West includes a natatorium adjacent to the "North Cafeteria" and the track, which sports the school colors, red and gold. It is primarily used for "swim meets," community events, gym classes, and occasional school trips from the other schools within the district. The school grounds of High School West are adjacent to those of Signal Hill Elementary School, which is located at the intersection of Wolf Hill Road and Caledonia Road. Students of HSW have generally attended Candlewood Middle School from 6th to 8th grade. The official school mascot is the Colt[6]. Hills West has been successful in a variety of sports including Football, Soccer, Basketball, Volleyball and Track. In addition, the Colts have fielded strong baseball teams over the years winning multiple league titles, two county championships, and a state championship in 2003. The Hills swim team has gone undefeated and won league and county champs. The Hills West dance team, the Wranglerettes, are the 2007 champions in the Long Island Kickline Association competition, winning in the jazz category for the 14th year, and in the newly-created hip hop category. Following this year's graduating class, Principal James LoFrese Ed.D and Assistant Principal Christopher Alexander will be leaving West and welcoming Debra Intorcia as the new principal of High School West.

West Hollow Middle School

West Hollow is the larger of the two middle schools and is located at 250 Old East Neck Road in Melville, New York. [7] Students feed from West Hollow to High School East. The current principal is Mary A. Rettaliata. The Current assistant principals are Valerie Massimo, Robert Newton and Milton Kirk Strong. West Hollow's mascot is the Wolverine [8] and West Hollow's current colors are Black and Red.

Candlewood

Candlewood is the smaller middle school that recently underwent renovations. The school is located at 1200 Carll's Straight Path. Dix Hills, New York. The current principal is Andrew Greene. The assistant principals are Alison Strand and Sy Roth. The mascot is the cougar, and the school colors are red and gold. The school's auditorium is newly renovated. A track will be added soon around the football field.

District Programs

Half Hollow Hills is known for its district-wide theater programs that extend to all schools in the district. This opportunity begins in 5th grade with the "Hills On Stage" program. Recent "Hills On Stage" productions include Peter Pan, Honk and My Fair Lady[9]

The middle schools recently began a joint theater program also. These shows are directed by Lucielle Kenney and Dr. Gary de Sesa. Recent productions include Fiddler On The Roof, Into the Woods, and High School Musical.[10]

Both High School East and High School West are known for their research departments, which have produced a number of Intel Science Talent Search, Intel ISEF, and Siemens Westinghouse Competition finalists over the past decade.

Central Office

Previously Manasquan Elementary School, Central Office now serves as the central administration building for the Half Hollow Hills School District. It is located on Half Hollow Hills Road, on the same property as High School East. In addition to housing the offices of the Superintendent and other administrators, Central Office serves as the location for a small mock-astronautics program for children and certain community events, as well as child care services. The Academically High Aptitude Program (A.H.A.P) is also held at Manasquan for 3rd-5th graders.[11]

Notable alumni

References

  1. ^ http://hhh.k12.ny.us/page.cfm?p=4
  2. ^ http://hhh.k12.ny.us/page.cfm?p=69
  3. ^ http://hhh.k12.ny.us/page.cfm?p=176
  4. ^ http://www.wiedersum.com/educational/hhh.html
  5. ^ http://www.halfhollowhills.k12.ny.us/page.cfm?p=2093
  6. ^ http://hhh.k12.ny.us/uploaded/Top_Banner/Schools/HalfHollowHills_HSW.gif
  7. ^ http://hhh.k12.ny.us/page.cfm?p=159
  8. ^ http://hhh.k12.ny.us/uploaded/Top_Banner/Schools/HalfHollowHills_WestHollow.gif
  9. ^ http://hhh.k12.ny.us/page.cfm?p=1280
  10. ^ http://hhh.k12.ny.us/page.cfm?p=2133
  11. ^ http://hhh.k12.ny.us/page.cfm?p=2312
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