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Superintendent Michael Ring

North Country Road in Shoreham will be getting repaved thanks to a New York State grant. Photo by Kyle Barr

Town workers will soon be taking hammers and dozers to a stretch of North Country Road in Shoreham, all thanks to a state grant.

Plans for the new sidewalks will connect to Brookhaven town owned Shoreham Beach. Photo by Kyle Barr

The Town of Brookhaven announced it had received a $1.8 million grant from the New York State Department of Transportation, Transportation Alternatives Program and made available through the Federal Highway Administration with the intent to start construction in 2020. The plan calls for a revitalization of the well-worn pavement from Woodville Road to the entrance of Shoreham Beach. In addition, the town will construct new U.S. American Disabilities Act-compliant sidewalks, curbs and ramps from Valentine Road down to the entrance of Shoreham Beach. 

Dan Losquadro (R), the town superintendent of highways, said they have had the road on their radar for the past three years, but new ADA compliance standards have mandated the town reconstruct all the sidewalks before they look at paving the road, as was the case when they repaved roads in Rocky Point last year. These new compliances include sensory pads on all ramps and a widening of the sidewalks.

“On North Country Road, there’s almost none of it that’s ADA compliant,” Losquadro said. “For our residents who are disabled, this is a very worthwhile project.”

In addition to the roadwork on North Country Road, the town has also received $50,000 in Multi Modal #4 funding from the state DOT to replace the sidewalk on Route 25A in Shoreham from Roswell Avenue to Woodville Avenue, which should start within the next two months.

The town boasted the new sidewalks will allow walkability from Shoreham Plaza on Route 25A, to Miller Avenue Elementary School all the way to the town-owned Shoreham Beach.

Councilwoman Jane Bonner (R-Rocky Point) said local chambers of commerce, civics and the Shoreham-Wading River schools superintendent, Gerard Poole, wrote letters to the state to help in the grant effort. 

“Those sidewalks are crumbling, they’re narrow and they’re not ADA compliant,” she said.

Currently the sidewalk ends at Valentine Road, and the shoulders of the road, beyond a few residential homes, border sharp slopes and woods on both sides. This makes it hazardous for bikers and joggers who climb the hilly road north of North Country Road. Losquadro said the new sidewalk will be located on the north side of North Country Road and construction should start in spring of next year.

Along with road resurfacing, new sidewalks, curbs and ramps, plans include the construction of new retaining walls along grade changes and drainage installations plus upgrades. 

“This project will dramatically improve the road safety and access for our students and families as they travel to school and walk to bus stops,” Superintendent Poole said in a release. “We look forward to its implementation as it is an added level of protection for our school community.”

The highway superintendent said the new project has the potential to dovetail into Suffolk County’s upcoming Rails to Trails project, which looks to make a hiking and biking trail from Wading River to Mount Sinai along the PSEGLI/LIPA-owned right-of-way. County Legislator Sarah Anker (D-Mount Sinai) has told TBR News Media in previous interviews that project is expected to start construction in the fall, however there is no word where construction will begin.

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Above, incoming superintendent Scott O’Brien. Photo from RPUFSD

Beginning in July, the Rocky Point school district will have a new superintendent for the first time in over 10 years, after longtime superintendent Micheal Ring announced his plans to retire at the end of the school year. 

Scott O’Brien, who currently serves as the district’s interim assistant superintendent, who has nearly two decades of educational experience in the Rocky Point school district, said he was honored to be selected as the new superintendent as it has been a position he has respected and held in high esteem.  

“Having been a teacher, assistant principal, principal and assistant superintendent in this district has made the transition into the superintendent position exciting and very personal,” he said. “I have worked with most of the staff in one capacity or another and know the majority of families in the community. I am very much looking forward to the opportunity to provide our students with an outstanding educational experience and the staff with the tools and support to achieve these goals.”

O’Brien’s journey in education began in college when he initially explored a career path in landscape architecture. He quickly discovered that his true calling was education after taking a college elective and taking part in a classroom observation.

“The sense of wonder and exploration that was in the room was palpable,” the upcoming superintendent said. “I knew at that moment that I wanted to be a part of the educational environment and help to enrich the lives of tomorrow’s leaders and support learning for all students.” 

The new superintendent has cherished that decision ever since. 

“My evolution through the years — from classroom teacher to administration — has been a natural progression, as I consider myself a lifelong learner,” he said. “Much of what I have experienced over this time has impacted the way I approach my job and ultimately was the driving force behind my decision to follow the path to the superintendent position.”

O’Brien said, “Rocky Point has always felt like a home away from home.” His grandparents lived in the town and he often visited them during his childhood. Throughout his time in the district he has gotten to know community members and expects to build on those relationships. 

The new superintendent said he feels fortunate to have worked alongside Ring and learn from him. 

“I firmly believe that our district is well-positioned to build upon its tradition of excellence well into the future as a result of Dr. Ring’s leadership,” he said.   

Rocky Point Union Free School District Superintendent Michael Ring speaks to the class of 2018 June 22. Photo by Bill Landon

With retirement close by, Ring reflects on career at Rocky Point  

“Serving the Rocky Point schools community for these past 11 years has been a privilege and a pleasure,” Ring said. 

The outgoing superintendent said the most fulfilling aspect of being in the position is working with teachers, administrators and support professionals to create and implement new and enhanced instructional and academic support programs to improve opportunities and outcomes for all students. 

“I will truly miss this process, as well as witnessing the results once these programs are instituted,” he said.

Some of the things Ring is most proud of is what he called closing the achievement gap for students with disabilities and those who were economically disadvantaged. Also, over the years he said the district has substantially expanded opportunities for academic rigor through the nearly doubling of Advanced Placement course offerings, implementation of a science research program spanning grades 7 to 12, and supporting each student in pursuing more challenging curricula. As a result, students are graduating with impressive transcripts and the district has experienced a 38 percent increase in the number of Advanced Placement scholars and a 23 percent increase in graduates receiving Regents diplomas with advanced designations.

Ring added there was no better choice to succeed him than O’Brien.  

“His depth and breadth of experience both as an educator and as a member of the Rocky Point schools community position him to continue to move the district forward to even greater levels of success for all of our students,” he added.  “There is no doubt that the future of the district will be bright under his leadership.”

Ring has no specific plans for retirement other than to have more time with family, but said he will miss being around the students, both in the classroom environment and in extracurricular activities. 

“They are why we all come to work every day,” he said. “Watching their growth academically, socially, emotionally and otherwise is what inspires all of us.”

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Rocky Point High School. File photo by Desirée Keegan

The Rocky Point school district is battening down the hatches and shoring up its defenses with money from its ongoing capital bond project.

The newly renovated music room in the high school. Photo from Rocky Point

The district has finished phase 2 of its list of projects set after passing a 2016 bond proposal. Much of the work has already been completed, including replacing the aging ceiling and lighting in much of the district’s four school buildings.

“What we did weren’t things that are exciting like adding on a new wing, new classrooms or a new gymnasium, they were basic things to keep serving the students,” Superintendent Michael Ring said.

In 2016 Rocky Point residents voted to let the district borrow $16 million for upgrades and repairs. The first half of the project, amounting to roughly $7 million, was completed in summer 2017. Parts of the second half of the plan, costing approximately $9 million, were completed before the start of the school year Sept. 4, according to the district.

In 2017, residents also approved with a 600 to 312 vote to release $3.4 million in capital reserve funds to work in tandem with the bond projects. That money was used to renovate the district’s music classrooms as well as finishing resealing of the middle school’s exterior brickwork to prevent water penetration. There are also plans for a future reconfiguration of the roadways on middle and high school property. Work is ongoing to refurbish the turf on the high school’s lower field, but Ring said weather has delayed the project. He said it should be completed within the next few weeks.

Renovated locker rooms at Rocky Point High School. Photo from Rocky Point

Last year’s bond work included new boilers and renovated bathrooms at the Joseph A. Edgar Elementary School, as well as adding air conditioning to the high school auditorium. Summer 2018 construction, overseen by Huntington Station-based Park East Construction Corp., provided renovations to the high school’s boys and girls locker rooms and bathrooms. An Americans With Disabilities Act-compliant lift for the high school gym stage was also installed. Along with the work at the high school, the Frank J. Carasiti Elementary School cafeteria had new air conditioning installed.

Ring said the most substantial improvement to district buildings during the past summer was the installation of new LED lighting fixtures throughout the high school and JAE elementary. The new lighting should be more energy efficient, he said, while giving the school the opportunity to replace aging ceiling tiles in places that had not been addressed for close to 50 years, since the high school was constructed.

Work to renovate the middle school’s lighting system will take place during the year after school hours. FJC elementary has had its lighting replaced in the building’s corridors, and the rest of the building’s lighting will be updated in summer 2019.

These lighting fixtures include new “daylight harvesting technology” that will dim the lights depending upon the amount of natural light that enters the room, which Ring said should save on electrical costs. The new lights also have occupancy sensors that will shut off all lights if there is nobody in the room.

“That’s so you don’t see that effect you see when you’re driving down the road and the whole building is lit up, even if it’s 8 o’clock at night,” Ring said.

Newly installed LED hallway lighting at Frank J. Carasiti Elementary School. Photo from Rocky Point

As part of the bond project, the district is also looking to beef up security at its buildings. The district added unarmed security guards to school buildings for the start of the new school year. Rocky Point is also looking to implement a new door access system to reject unwanted intruders as well as “door-ajar systems” that will notify the school if a door is being propped open from the inside.

The district also wants to improve its security camera capabilities by adding more camera coverage as well as installing new facial recognition and license plate reading technology. Ring said those projects are currently on hold awaiting New York State approval. If approved, the district will immediately put proposals out for bid so construction of those security additions can begin before the end of the 2018-19 school year, according to the superintendent.

Ring said he happy with the results of the bond work so far, even as it became stressful to finish ongoing projects before students returned for the start of classes.

“It’s always a relief when it’s done because it’s always a stressful time,” Ring said. “When you look at the end of June and things are getting pulled apart, then hoping and praying they get put back together for September. Hopefully next year’s project will come along, and the same thing will happen.”