East Meadow High School seniors Stephanie Sparkowski and Jenna Laird were recognized as part of Newsday’s Long Island’s Top 100 High School Athletes of the 2010s. Softball coach Stew Fritz was also recognized as one of the top 10 coaches of the 2010s. 

Stephanie is a four-sport varsity athlete. She plays soccer, lacrosse, basketball and volleyball and is a kicker for the varsity football team. Stephanie also played for the United States in both the Under-14 and Under-16 women’s national soccer teams in 2014-15 and 2016-17, respectively. Stephanie has committed to the University of Michigan.

Jenna plays shortstop for the varsity softball team at East Meadow High School. In 2018, she was in the top five of the New York State Public High School Athletic Association Inc. record books in hits and batting average. Jenna will attend the University of Missouri in the fall.  

Coach Fritz led the Jets to the state Class AA semifinals five times since 2013, winning the state championship in 2014 and 2017. He steered the team to six Nassau crowns, won five Long Island titles in 2013-2014 and three in a row from 2017-2019. Over the course of the decade, Coach Fritz had 168 wins. 

The district congratulates Stephanie, Jenna and Coach Fritz on being included in this recognition and is proud to have them as a part of the East Meadow community! 

The East Meadow High School Theatre Guild gave audiences a look into what goes on behind the curtain during a presentation of “Backstage” on Dec. 12-14. 

Set backstage at Theatre Baroque, the cast and crew of “Don Juan in Cleveland” must deal with the untimely death of their star. The director calls on the understudy to fill the shoes of the lead role, and from there, the show goes on! The talented cast, directed by Amanda Priole, made audiences laugh with their witty banter and impressive delivery. 

The Theatre Guild would like to thank central administration for showing their support.  Similarly, they would also like to thank their family and friends for attending the show as well as all those involved in the production of “Backstage.” 

An impressive 164 students in grades 5-12 at the East Meadow School District have been chosen to participate in the Nassau Music Educators Association’s All-County ensembles. Several concerts are planned throughout January to showcase the student-musicians. 

All-County selection represents one of the highest achievements in music for students. Performers are chosen based on their scores at the New York State School Music Association Solo Evaluation Festival and teacher recommendations. 

In addition to their All-County accomplishment, seven middle school and 12 high school students were also selected to perform in the Long Island String Festival Association’s Nassau Intermediate and Secondary festivals. 

“We are extremely proud of the students who have been accepted to represent the East Meadow School District in these prestigious music festivals,” said Kelly Gelfer, the district’s director of art and music. “They are representative of the exceptional music education taking place in East Meadow.” 

On behalf of the entire East Meadow community, we would like to recognize the following students on earning the titles of Valedictorian and Salutatorian of their graduating classes:

East Meadow High School 
Valedictorian: Ikshu Pandey
Salutatorian: Brendan Wilkowski
 
W.T. Clarke High School
Valedictorian: Abishek Ravindran
Salutatorian: Arjun Panickssery

Congratulations to each of these students on their dedication and hard work which led them to accomplishing this notable achievement. 

East Meadow High School senior Ikshu Pandey has been presented with the Gold President’s Volunteer Service Award for 2018 in recognition of her commitment to volunteerism. Sponsored by the Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership for Service Program, the award acknowledges more than 250 hours of volunteer service that Ikshu completed in one year. 

Ikshu participated in volunteer work at Nassau University Medical Center, primarily in the emergency room and burn unit. “I was able to experience the reality of what it is like being in the medical field,” she said of her experience. 

The Gold President’s Volunteer Service Award is the highest level of recognition in the program and is presented by the Corporation for National and Community Service. The East Meadow School District commends Ikshu on her commitment and congratulates her on receiving this prestigious award.