Points of Pride

Hicksville Public Schools shines with a commitment to academic excellence and personalized learning. Strong community partnerships, dedicated staff, and a rich array of extracurricular activities ensure students thrive and excel, preparing them for success in an ever-evolving world.

Student Academics

• 94.16 % of 2025 Graduates received a Regents Diploma.
• 88.31% of 2025 graduates were college bound.
• AP Capstone Diploma:  15; AP Scholars:  91; AP Scholars with Distinction:  89; AP Scholars with Honor:  35; National Merit Finalists:  4 
• 76 students earned the Career and Technical Education (CTE) Endorsement.
• 222 students earned the Seal of Civic Readiness in 2025-2026.
• 40 candidates to earn the Seal of Biliteracy in 2025-2026.
• The High School Science Olympiad Team won 3rd place at the Regional Tournament at Division High School and won in three categories at the State Science Olympiad Tournament.
• The Meteorites Squared Robotics Middle School Team placed second at the FIRST Robotics Long Island Championship Tournament held at Hicksville High School and will be participating in the American Robotics Invitational in June.  
• HS Team finished 4th out of 2500 teams in the New York State Personal Finance Challenge.
• Best Communities for Music Education, 10 years in a row, 4 NYSSMA All-State Musicians
• Scholar Artist Merit Award Winner, 7 LI Best Art Awards Winners
• HS Marching Band placed in the top 5 at NYS Championships.
• Shanti Fund Peace Artwork Award Winner.

Student Athletes

• Our athletic program proudly includes National, New York State, Long Island, and County Champions, along with multiple Conference Athletes of the Year.
• To date, over 80 student-athletes have earned postseason honors, including All-State, All-Long Island, All-Conference, and All-Division recognition.
• For the third consecutive year, we have been recognized as a New York State School of Excellence, with 75% or more of our varsity teams earning the Scholar-Athlete Team Award.
• Currently, 18 of our 21 teams have achieved the NYS Scholar-Athlete Team Award by maintaining a team GPA of 90 or higher.
• Several of our teams have been honored with Sportsmanship Awards during their respective seasons.
• Over the past ten years, we have consistently increased student registration and participation in our athletics and intramural programs.
• Between 400–500 students across the high school, middle school, and elementary levels participate in our intramural programs.

Staff

• Hicksville High School English teacher, Amy Mastrocinque, was the recipient of the prestigious SCOPE School District Educators Award.
• Amy Mastrocinque and Elizabeth Careccia facilitated a workshop at the Long Island Language Arts Council (LILAC) Spring Conference entitled From Access to Agency:  Affirming Student Voice Through Academic and Linguistic Supports in Secondary ELA. 
• Secondary Math teachers Dr. Lauren Crespo, Mr. Biagio DeRisi, and Ms. Krystal Chase, along with ENL and World Languages Supervisor Ms. Janet Suarez-Lovett, shared their session, “Unpacking Learning Targets through Anchor Charts: Making Academic and Linguistic Demands Visible for Multilingual Learners.” at the Long Island Teachers Institute @LIRBERN Conference. 
• Hicksville Middle School English teachers Dr. Jamie Ruppert and Dr. Ali Khan presented a welcomed “Magic Schools in the Classroom” workshop at the Long Island Technology & Education Summit.  
• Hicksville Public Schools was selected as one of only 26 districts—out of nearly 686 across New York State—to receive the 2025 VISION Endorsement from the New York State Art Teachers Association (NYSATA).
• English teacher,  Meg McElroy won NYSUT Humanitarian of the Year for her work with the Children's Cancer Research Fund. 

Curriculum & Instruction

• IXL Full implementation in grades K-12 for ELA and Math.
• Elementary Science Committee selects a New Elementary Science Curriculum for the 2026-2027 school year, Mystery Science.
• Curriculum Writing Projects included: Home Language Arts(MS & HS), Elementary RISE, Math Fundamentals(HS), Math 8, Financial and Digital Literacy, Elementary Social Studies Grades 3,4,5, Spanish, French, and ASL Grade 7.
• Implemented Heggerty Bridge the Gap reading program in reading support classes.
• Hicksville showcased its work on the Academic and Linguistic Demands(ALD) to a distinguished delegation from the New York State Education Department and the Board of Regents.  We were the first district in the state to implement the Academic and Linguistic Demands in NYS.  Members of the ALD core teacher leadership team included: Elizabeth Carrecia, Krystal Chase, Lauren Colavito, Lauren Crespo, Biagio DeRisi, Julianne Dunn, Maryanne Guzman, Ashley Hershkopf, Michelle Jeannette, Amy Mastrocinque, Andrea McAuley, Joanne Paraskevopoulos, Karin Reiner, Jennifer Roth, Kyrstin Stehle.
• Implemented a Teacher-Led Professional Development session series with over 25 sessions delivered by our teachers for our teachers.
• Parent communication platform, ParentSquare selected for 2026-2027 implementation.
• EMT Program partnership with the Hicksville Fire Department.
• Expanded full day ICT through grade 2. 

Points of Pride Campaign

State Champion Wrestler
Congratulations to Haley Gonzales for a phenomenal wrestling season! Newsday recognized her as an All-Long Island Wrestler, and she earned All-State, All-County, and All-Conference honors. Most notably, Haley made Hicksville HS, Section VIII, and Long Island history by becoming our first-ever NYS Girls Wrestling Champion at 120 lbs, capturing the gold medal this past March. Adding to her incredible achievements, she also won the National Championship at 118 lbs and the Nassau County Championship at 120 lbs.

Varsity Kickline Excellence
The Hicksville High School Starlets have had an exceptional competition season, bringing home a remarkable total of 12 trophies! Their final performance was their strongest, culminating in impressive results at the March 1, 2025, LIDTA Competition #3: 1st place Game Day, 1st place Jazz, 2nd place Pom, 3rd place Team Performance, and a Specialty Award for Superior Showmanship for Game Day.

NYS Scholar Athlete Teams
We commend the following teams for their outstanding academic achievements, earning the NYS Scholar Athlete Team award by maintaining a GPA of 90 or better during the winter season: Girls Varsity Basketball, Boys Varsity Track, Girls Varsity Winter Track, Varsity Boys Bowling, Varsity Girls Bowling, Varsity Gymnastics, Varsity Boys Swimming & Diving, Varsity Winter Cheer, and Kickline. 

Gymnastics Success
Senior Alyssa Todaro achieved a significant milestone, competing at the State Championships in Buffalo with the Nassau State team – the first gymnast from our district to reach this level in 10 years. Alyssa was also recognized as a Newsday Top 10 Gymnast for the 2024-2025 season and earned All-County and All-State honors. She is also in the running for All-American!

Academic Excellence Recognized Nationally

Hicksville High School proudly celebrates the achievements of students who have earned national recognition for their academic excellence through the National Merit Scholarship Program and the College Board’s National Recognition Programs.

National Merit Semifinalist
Senior Kim Widjaja was named a National Merit Semifinalist in the 70th Annual National Merit Scholarship Program. Selected from over 1.3 million entrants, Kim is among just 16,000 students nationwide, representing the top 1% of U.S. high school seniors. This distinction qualifies her for potential scholarship awards this spring.

National Merit Commended Students
Seniors Evan Chun, Om Doshi, Alyssa Garger, and Aashritha Kilambi were recognized as Commended Students in the 2025 National Merit Scholarship Program. Their outstanding PSAT scores placed them among the top 50,000 students nationally.

College Board National Recognition Program
Sixteen Hicksville High School students were recognized through the College Board National Recognition Programs, which honor students for outstanding academic performance on PSAT/NMSQT, PSAT 10, or AP exams, combined with a strong GPA.

The following students received recognition through one or more of the following College Board programs:

National African American Recognition Program – celebrates the academic achievements of African American students.

National Hispanic Recognition Program – honors high-achieving Hispanic students and connects them with colleges and universities.

First-Generation Recognition – acknowledges students who are among the first in their families to attend college.

Congratulations to:

• Ahmad Ali (First-Generation)
• Brianna Atis (Hispanic)
• Daniel Chen (First-Generation)
• Julian Gandolfo (Hispanic)
• Derick Garay (First-Generation and Hispanic)
• Alyssa Garger (First-Generation)
• Sisi Goh (First-Generation)
• Brianna Goodrich (First-Generation)
• Michael Hamidi (First-Generation)
• Mandeep Kaur (First-Generation)
• Heather Mane (Hispanic)
• Lauren Mason (African American)
• Isabella Roldan (Hispanic)
• Jaskaran Singh (First-Generation)
• Hailey Treminio Sempe (First-Generation and Hispanic)
• Kimberly Widjaja (First-Generation)

These recognitions reflect the academic strength, dedication, and diversity of the Hicksville student body.

National Writing Competition Winners
Pratheeksha Genesh, a student at Hicksville High School, was named a national winner in the 2024–2025 Just Poetry competition.
Gabriella Barro, a Hicksville Middle School student, was selected as a national winner in the 2024–2025 Young Writers prose competition.

Artistic Excellence with a Message of Peace
Suhani Sharma was named a winner in the Shanti Fund’s Artwork and Writing Contest, and her work will be featured in the organization’s 2025–2026 calendar. Her powerful piece promotes peace and forgiveness as foundations for compassion, understanding, and stronger relationships.

Professional Recognition in Education
On March 28, 2025, Hicksville High School English teacher Amy Mastrocinque presented an insightful English Language Arts professional development workshop, "Language and Power: Helping Students Analyze Influence in Literature and the Real World," at the Long Island Language Arts Council's Spring Conference. Her expertise and contribution to the professional community are greatly appreciated.

Supporting ELLs
Lucy Vieco and Danielle Baker led a session showcasing how to support ELL students in front of 70+ district administrators across Long Island at the L.I. Regional Bilingual Education Resource Network event hosted by Western Suffolk BOCES.

Essay Writing Achievement
Vihaan Singh earned Honorable Mention in the South Asian American Women’s Association (SAAWA) High School Essay Contest for his thoughtful response to the prompt: “Is Artificial Intelligence a Threat to Human Job Security in the Present or Future?”

Exciting STEM Achievements
Building on their regional success, we are thrilled to announce that the Hicksville High School Robotics Team has qualified for the prestigious FIRST Championship in Houston! Their hard work, innovation, and teamwork have earned them this incredible opportunity on the international stage. 

Model UN Distinction
Hicksville High School Model UN students participated in the Kellenberg Model UN Conference this January. Aleeza Khan was recognized with the Outstanding Delegate award for her representation of Switzerland.

Mock Trial Victory
The Hicksville High School Mock Trial “Plaintiff Group” secured first place in the competition held on February 5 at the Supreme Courthouse in Mineola.

High School Science Olympiad Success
Hicksville High School’s Science Olympiad teams achieved an impressive third-place finish at the Regional Competition and went on to place Ninth in the State Competition—demonstrating excellence in science, engineering, and teamwork.

Middle School Science Olympiad Achievement
Hicksville Middle School’s Science Olympiad teams earned Fourth Place at the Regional Competition and placed 15th out of 40 teams at the State level—an outstanding performance among top schools across New York.

• Air Trajectory, 6th place: Veer Jaggi, Antonios Tsirigos
• Codebusters, 10th place: Jay Pharma, GiGi Goh, Aman Aenugu
• Crime Busters, 6th place: Luke Van Bell, Antonios Tsirigos
• Entomology, 8th place: GiGi Goh, Eason Liu
• Potions and Poisons, 5th place: Saanvi Ahuja, Luke Van Bell

State Olympics of the Visual Arts
The HS art department is celebrating some impressive wins at the State Olympics of the Visual Arts in Saratoga Springs! Congratulations to the following: High School student Julian Gandolfo for his commercial and ads for our soda company; Ms. Andolina for 2nd place in Graphic Design; Mr. Mateyunas for 2nd place in Painting and 3rd place in Photography; Ms. Hagedorn for Drawing; and Ms. Biedenbach for Sculpture. 

HMS Robotics Team Earns Top Honors
In March, our Robotics team competed with great success, with team Meteorites Squared earning the Robot Design Award #1 Finalist recognition!  This achievement reflects their creativity, collaboration, and engineering skills.  A big thank you to Ms. Temps for her incredible dedication and leadership.

HMS Students Shine in "Let it Flow" Mental Health Initiative Poster Contest
We are excited to share that several of our students participated in the "Let it Flow" Mental Health Initiative Poster Contest, and three of them have been selected as winners! Congratulations to Jasmine Kaur (1st place), who will receive a $250 prize, and Brianna Barquor (3rd place), who will receive a $100 prize. Both will also receive an Award Certificate. Additionally, Jeanette Pinto has earned an Honorable Mention award for her outstanding work. As part of their recognition, these talented artists’ posters will be featured in the Let it Flow Art Exhibit at the Islip Arts Council from April 1st to April 16th, helping to spread their messages to a wider audience.  

Latinos In Action Success
On Saturday, March 1st, Janet Suarez-Lovett presented at the New York State Association for Bilingual Education (NYSABE) Conference in Saratoga, New York, along with Dr. Jose Enriquez, Founder of Latinos in Action, on the success of the program at Hicksville Middle School and Hicksville High School.

New York State PTA Contest Winner
Insiya Ali, a third-grade student at Dutch Lane Elementary, was named one of 12 statewide winners in the New York State PTA Contest. Insiya entered the contest with a video on the theme “Why Reading is Important for Your Health and Wellness,” showcasing her creativity and communication skills.

NYSSMA All-State Honors
Four Hicksville High School students were selected to participate in the prestigious NYSSMA All-State Festival held in Rochester, New York, this past December.

• Owen Chan performed in the All-State Piano Showcase
• Matthew Kilfeather-Bonello was named an alternate for the All-State Choir
• Lauren Mason was selected for the All-State Wind Ensemble
• John Ryan Chaplin was selected for the All-State Symphonic Orchestra

These students earned their places through exemplary solo performances at the Spring 2024 NYSSMA Solo Festivals.

2024 District Holiday Card Winner
Julian Gandolfo was selected as the winner of the 2024 District Holiday Card Contest. His artwork was featured on the official Hicksville Public Schools holiday card, sharing his talent with the entire school community.

Valedictorian: Kailash Thayavally
Kailash Thayavally excelled both academically and through his leadership roles. He was a member of multiple honor societies, including the National Honor Society, Spanish Honor Society, Social Studies Honor Society, and Science National Honor Society, where he served as Vice President. He also served as President of the Science Olympiad Club and was a dedicated member of the Robotics Team. Outside of school, Kailash shadowed physicians, researched multiple sclerosis, and co-founded NextGenInspires, a nonprofit focused on teaching STEM to students.

Salutatorian: Mandeep Kaur
Mandeep Kaur also made significant contributions in and beyond the classroom. She held officer positions in several organizations, including Tech Chair of the Thespian Honor Society, Corresponding Secretary of the National Honor Society, and Secretary of the National English Honor Society. She was also a member of the Spanish, Math, and Social Studies Honor Societies. In addition to participating in clubs like the International Outreach Club, FBLA, and Astronomy Club, Mandeep served as Class Treasurer for four years. Outside of school, she volunteered weekly at her Community Religious Center and tutored students in grades 3–9.

American Sign Language Community Engagement
ASL students Riley Blitz, Sanaa Haroon, and Kylie McLaughlin extended their classroom learning into the community by hosting American Sign Language classes for children at the Hicksville Public Library each month. Most recently, they led a back-to-school-themed session, where participants learned new signs, played interactive games, and took part in themed crafts, promoting inclusivity and communication through sign language.

Hicksville High School Announces Class of 2025 Top Ten
Hicksville High School proudly announced the Class of 2025 Top Ten students, celebrating their exceptional academic achievement and dedication throughout their high school careers.

Daniel Chen, John Ryan Chaplin, Mandeep Kaur, Brianna Atis, Kimberly Widjaja, Sissi Goh, Isabella Roldan, Kailash Thayavally, Aayush Butala, and Eliza Aamir.

99% of 2023 graduates received a Regents diploma

87% of 2023 graduates were college bound

AP Capstone Diploma: 15

• AP Scholars: 74
• AP Scholars with Distinction: 66
• AP Scholars with Honor: 40
• AP Seminar and Research Certificate: 7
• National Merit Finalists: 2

Trained Staff for 24-25 Implementation of RULER (SEL Approach)

Hicksville’s first ever entry into the BASH Awards at Hofstra University

Hicksville HS Marching Band – NYS Champions for three consecutive years

Newsday Top 100 Players:

- Sean Torlincasi – Boys Soccer
- Madison Tarra – Softball
- James Kelly – Boys Lacrosse
- Dylan Donegan – Boys Track (Top 50 on Long Island!!)

25 Varsity programs earned the NYS Scholar Athlete Team award maintaining a GPA of 90 or higher

All 4th grade students participated in Journeys into American Indian Territory program

Latinos in Action delegate to represent LI region at PRHYLI

Parent/Student University – April 15, 2024

Largest participation in Athletic Programs in a decade at MS/HS

Seal of Biliteracy and Seal of Civic Readiness

HS Mock Trial Team advanced to Sweet 16 Round

Hicksville’s Tennis Team is in Conference 2A-only one other time in school history

MS Junior National Honor Society Induction

Staff Highlights

• Mrs. Suarez-Lovett presented, “Revolutionizing Education Through Data Integration.”
• Nearly 200 elementary teachers completed literacy training

Hicksville High School Science Olympiad qualified for State Championship. The A team traveled to Le Moyne College in Syracuse. The A team placed 3rd in the Eastern Nassau regional and the B team placed 8th, with the C team achieving a very respectable 11th place finish.

The Hicksville Robotics team alliance won the 2023 Long Island Regional, the win qualified the team for the FIRST Robotics World Championship in Houston, Texas

The students enrolled in the Video Technology III and Post Production classes are in the process of sitting for the CTE exam in June 2024. The YouScience  Precision exam for  Video Production will be utilized as the program's summative assessment. The exam is NYSED approved as an industry-based standard exam.

This year Savannah Anderson, a senior at Hicksville High School, was selected from students from across The Moth Education Program to represent their team at the GrandSLAM, which is a bigger show with representatives from the teams from the past season.  She participated and performed on Tuesday, January 16th as a member of a team of 10 storytellers from other Moth Story Lab programs for an amazing evening of stories.

Junior, Faiza Farooqui won second place in the Center for Diversity Studies writing contest sponsored by Hofstra University earning a prize of $2000.

8 HS Artists selected as LI Best for the 2024 Heckscher Museum Showcase

99 Student musicians named as All-County for the 2024 Nassau County Music Festival

6 Student musicians named as All-State for the 2023 NYSSMA Winter Conference

HS Artist, Brian Jaco, received a Merit Award from the LI Scholar Artist Alliance

HS Artist, Suhani Sharma, featured in the 2024 Shanti Fund art competition

Lee Avenue Elementary School

Grade 5 - Maureen McMorrow's Class

Class won the Learning A-Z Star Donation Challenge in the fall by donating more stars than any other class in NY State. They have donated 238,000 stars within the past 5 weeks for the spring challenge, as they are hoping to defend their title.

Since then, my class has also participated in Prodigy's biweekly challenges, during which we compete against other 5th grade classes in NY State to answer the most online math questions correctly. We have placed in the top 3 in our division several times:

• January 8-22, 2024 - 1st Place
• February 5-19, 2024 - 2nd Place
• February 19 - March 4, 2024 - 3rd Place
• March 4-18, 2024 - 2nd Place
• April 15-29, 2024 - 1st Place

Three grade 1 students have made it to the 2024 NY Statewide Elementary Mathematics Tournament championship Finals to be held at the University of Albany on June1st.

Joella James Sagya  Arun was recognized at February Board of Ed Meeting for being a Nassau Region Finalist for Reflections. Fifth grade student in Maria DeRosa's class.