Serving Williston Park, East Williston, Mineola, Albertson and Searingtown
$1.50
Friday, December 29, 2023
Vol. 72, No. 52
HEALTH, WELLNESS AND BEAUTY GUIDE
KEISERMAN IN BID FOR HOCHUL SIGNS EVEN-YEAR MARTIN’S SENATE SEAT ELECTION LEGISLATION
PAGES 19-22
PAGE 16
PAGE 6
North Shore schools earn top rankings E.W. tops in state in math, English state tests for 3-8, Herricks in top 15 BY B R A N D ON D U FF Y The East Williston School District earned top rankings across New York state out of 661 schools for the percentage of students in grades 3-9 who are proficient in math and English, according to data from the state Department of Education. The district is joined by the North Shore Central School District, Manhasset, Great Neck, Herricks, Roslyn and New Hyde Park-Garden City Park as districts on the North Shore to rank highly among the state in either assessment. The education department earlier this month reported district scores for students statewide who participated in spring tests last school year under new learning guidelines known as “Next Generation.” The new guidelines were adopted in 2017 and enacted this year, replacing the previous Common Core guidelines. Annual testing on the new standards started in April and ended in May with the math exams. This year’s data were released three months later than last year and a news release was not issued when it was published.
Statewide, 52% of students in grades 3 through 8 were proficient in math, the data shows, while 48% of students in the same grades were proficient in English. Because this is the first year of new learning standards, the education department said this year’s test results are not comparable to prior years due to changes. The department made similar statements in the previous years due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and remote learning. In English, East Williston was tied with Scarsdale for the highest percentage of proficiency in the state at 86%. North Shore and Manhasset were tied for third with 85%, Great Neck was ranked No. 13 with 81%, Hericks was tied at No. 15 with 80%, Roslyn was tied at No. 21 with 77% and New Hyde Park-Garden City Park was tied at No. 27 with 74%. In math, East Williston was No. 1 in the state with 93%, North Shore was tied at No. 5 with 91%, Herricks was tied at No. 9 with 89%, Roslyt and Manhasset were tied at No. 11 with 88% and New Hyde Park-Garden City Park was No. 24 with 84%. Continued on Page 37
PHOTO COURTESY OF MINEOLA SCHOOL DISTRICT
Meadow Drive kindergarten twins Natalie and Jack are all smiles as they pose with the snowmen they created with help from the high schoolers in the Fab Lab. See story on page 36.
Down to earth goals as Humble Cafe opens BY B R A N D ON D U FF Y When Williston Park’s Yvonne and Eric Lo were considering what kind of business to open up in the area, the two kept coming back to something they noticed was missing. A cafe where customers can walk in, feel at home and enjoy a good cup of coffee. “We thought there might be a market for this,” Yvonne said in an interview with Blank Slate Media. “A lot of newer families are moving in
and feel that there was a lack of a good cup of caffeine.” Humble Cafe on Hillside Avenue had its grand opening on Dec. 3 and was welcomed with a “crazy amount of support” from the community, Lo said. Opening the cafe was an idea that started from wanting to get out of their comfort levels, the first-time business owner said. After a soft opening in November with shorter hours, Lo said she has been able to see the learning curve it takes to operate a cafe,
whether it be knowing how many pastries to get for the week or how many gallons of milk are necessary for busier parts of the day. “We realized, after the first day really, this is what we expect,” Lo said. Lo, who is a member of the Center Street PTA in the Herricks School District, said her husband and kids put potential names for the cafe on a whiteboard in their house, with nothing sticking out. Continued on Page 38