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Village Beacon Record

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By Daniel Dunaief

Daniel Dunaief

My Aunt Maxine had Down syndrome, which means she was mentally disabled.

In so many ways, Maxine and her life defied expectations and labels.

When Maxine was born, doctors told my grandparents that she wouldn’t likely live long, so they should consider putting her in an institution.

My grandparents couldn’t imagine being away from their daughter. They took Maxine home to the Upper East Side of Manhattan, where they raised and educated her.

As she grew up, Maxine was on the shorter side, at under five feet tall, and carried the youthful, round face of Down syndrome throughout her life.

She also had facial hair that my grandmother, mother and caregivers regularly trimmed.

My aunt lacked any self-consciousness about who she was, what she was, and how she related to the world. She figured everyone was as ready to love her and interact with her as she was with them.

More often than not, she smiled, offering an energetic and enthusiastic nod whenever anyone made eye contact. Plenty of people avoided looking at her in part because she was different and, in part, because she lived in New York and the rules of sidewalk engagement limited eye contact.

When people didn’t notice or engage with her, she kept walking, singing, talking to herself, chatting with her parents or the rest of us, or whistling, which she could do by inhaling and exhaling.

She lived at a higher decibel level. Her whisper was even louder than her normal speaking voice.

“What?” she’d whisper so loudly that it could be heard in the back row of a movie theater. “You want me to be quiet? Is that what you’re telling me?”

“Yes, shhhh.”

“Don’t shush me!” she’d say, her husky whisper, like her husky voice, becoming louder and indignant.

“Sorry, Macky,” I’d say. “People are trying to watch the movie. Can you watch it, too?”

“Oh, yes, yes, yes,” she’d say, nodding vigorously. “I’ll be quiet. I will. I’ll be quiet. If that’s what you want, I can be quiet. Sure, suuuuure!”

She was spectacularly funny and knew introductions were an opportunity for comedy.

“Who is this young lady?” she’d ask anyone who walked in the door in our house. The person could be anywhere from six to 96 and she’d ask the same thing.

“How old are you?” she’d ask.

No matter the answer, she’d suggest the person was a “lovely” young lady.

“What’s your name?” she’d ask.

When the person said her name, she’d say “what” several times and then ask the person to spell it. When she slowed our guest down repeatedly and asked her to say it again, the guest would shout.

“Hey, what are you yelling for? I can hear you. Not so loud. You’re hurting my ears.”

She’d squint and a smile would fill her face as she’d scan the room, knowing the old routine had hit the mark.

More than anything else, though, Maxine was compassionate, emotionally connected, loving and supportive.

She would sing the Star Spangled Banner when she listened to Robert Merrill on the radio before a Yankees game.

“It’s so beautiful,” she’d say, as she blew her nose and wiped her eyes.

I suspect many other Americans have an aunt, sibling, distant relative, friend or neighbor for whom labels mean even less than the totality of their lives, the winsome nature of their personality, and the triumphs that define their days.

Hearing anyone use the term “disabled” as a take down misses the point, particularly for those who seek to be the country’s leader.

Maxine required but also taught a level of patience. In exchange, our family and friends appreciated her joy of life and basked in her unconditioned positive regard. She wouldn’t have resented or hated others, wouldn’t have insulted individuals or a group and would have forgiven anyone who made a mistake.

Perhaps some day, those who use words like “mental disability” as a way to dismiss others or to cast others aside will think of the Maxines of the world. We can learn so much from others whose lives are different from ours and who aren’t trying to use words to project an image, to cut others down, or to suggest that someone is limited.

I can picture Maxine sitting in a chair next to me, tilting her head and looking at me from the side.

“You’re such a silly goose,” she’d laugh.

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TBR News Media publisher Leah Dunaief meeting the 39th U.S. president, Jimmy Carter, at the White House in 1978. Photo from Leah Dunaief

By Leah S. Dunaief

Leah Dunaief,
Publisher

Jimmy Carter was the first United States President to invite me to the White House. The year was 1978, we had just started our first newspaper, The Village Times in the Three Village area, two years earlier, and the level of excitement was somewhere in the  stratosphere when our receptionist screamed, “It’s the White House calling!”  

Yes, indeed, it was someone from the White House, asking our address for the invitation to be sent to the Out of Town Press Conference later that month. With entrepreneurial bravado, I had written a letter addressed merely to “The White House, Washington, D.C.” asking if we might visit, not knowing about their monthly conferences at which Carter would gain insight from reporters into issues around the nation, even as he got his top priorities out into the communities. If I had known, I might have doubted his interest in a new weekly newspaper, but I would have been mistaken. 

They wanted me.

From the moment of that phone call until I sat in the office with 29 other reporters, talking with the President, that excitement never abated. The session was lengthy, interrupted at one point by the arrival of a boxed lunch. The conversation continued over a hard boiled egg and half a tuna fish sandwich. As I salted my egg and proceeded to down it, I still could not quite believe I was there.

Of course it made a great front page story in our paper when I returned, a photo shaking hands with President Carter a lifetime treasure. At the end of the session, he asked us to line up and tell him our names and where we lived, as a photographer snapped the moment. The line moved quickly, but when it was my turn, I was determined to say something that might be more interesting to him. 

“Mr. President, your sister, Ruth, visited my hometown of Stony Brook last week,” I rushed out the words. He stopped the line, his blue eyes large, and smiled broadly at me. I had read that he adored his sister.

“Isn’t Ruth great?” he offered. It wasn’t a question. “Why was she there?”

Ruth Carter Stapleton was a Christian Evangelist and I explained that she had been visiting one of the local Christian schools. He chatted another minute, then again shook my hand, and I moved on. I was in my late 30’s, and it was surely one of the high points of my life.

I was only 14 when I met Julie Andrews. She was one of the leads in the British play, “The Boy Friend,” and I went to a matinee with my eighth grade class on a field trip to see my first Broadway show. Word must have gotten to her that students were in the audience, and she invited all of us back stage to chat as she took off her makeup. She was only 19 at the time and told us she was thrilled with being in America for the first time. We were thrilled in turn to meet her. She didn’t seem much older than we, and the conversation was high spirited girl talk.

Little did any of us know that she would go on to become one of her era’s brightest stars, with a career starting as a child actress and spanning eight decades. She was the recipient of countless awards, and became Dame Julia by Queen Elizabeth in 2000. Her breakthrough American role was as Eliza Doolittle opposite Rex Harrison in the superb “My Fair Lady,” then went on to Queen Guinevere in “Camelot.” As Mary Poppins, in her first film role, she won the Academy Award’s Best Actress, then on to “The Sound of Music,” and many more.

It was fun to know that these two remarkable people shared the same birthday, October 1, and it made my walk down memory lane, this past Tuesday, a fond one.

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TBR’s coverage this week of a heroic cop who plugged a colleague’s bullet wound, with his own hands, to prevent him from bleeding to death, (see story in paper,) is a truly inspirational example of the human spirit.

In a world of such chaos and confusion, what does it say about this man that his primal instinct was to save an injured person? Not to analyze or question him, poke or prod him.

But to save him.

What it says is that we are fundamentally good. We may get that fact a little mixed up at times, but if we can step back from our stubbornness and fixations on the characteristics that separate us, it will become apparent that we all should be focusing on the one characteristic that is already within us, that is baked into our DNA: kindness

And, no. Not kindness in the corny or insincere sense that many people use to deceitfully act as if they are holier-than-thou. “Kindness” in a genuinely caring way about the welfare of those in your life and community.

We can all learn a lot from an action as noble as the one performed by this man.

Over the past few years, there has been contentious debate, analyzing the roles police officers serve in our everyday lives. Some people believe that they overstep, while others feel that they are under appreciated.

Adding to the omnipresence of this law enforcement dilemma, just this week, County Executive Ed Romaine (R) announced in his proposed budget that the Suffolk County Police Department intends to put an extra 330 officials, including cops, detectives and corrections officers, on the force.

However, no matter how one feels regarding the political intricacies of our society, we can all agree that every cop — every human being — should aspire to this level of goodness.

Many people preach the importance of benevolence — an act of kindness, but, far too often, people are not willing to give that word meaning. Police officers take an oath to protect and defend.

So, maybe, if we follow in the example of those who are willing to sacrifice their lives — or in a less severe instance, their comfort — for the care of people, we can live in a society that is a little more temperate, a little more understanding and a lot more loving.

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Shoreham-Wading River’s Chloe Bergen clears the ball for the Wildcats. Photo by Bill Landon
Shoreham-Wading River junior Mia Mangano shoots for the Wildcats. Photo by Bill Landon
Shoreham-Wading River girls soccer vs. Elwood-John Glenn on 9/21/24. Photo by Bill Landon
Sophomore Shealyn Varbero battles for possession in a road game against John Glenn. Photo by Bill Landon
Shoreham-Wading River girls soccer vs. Elwood-John Glenn on 9/21/24. Photo by Bill Landon
Shoreham-Wading River girls soccer vs. Elwood-John Glenn on 9/21/24. Photo by Bill Landon
Senior Morgan Lesiewicz makes a save for the Wildcats. Photo by Bill Landon
Shoreham-Wading River girls soccer vs. Elwood-John Glenn on 9/21/24. Photo by Bill Landon
Shoreham-Wading River girls soccer vs. Elwood-John Glenn on 9/21/24. Photo by Bill Landon
Shoreham-Wading River girls soccer vs. Elwood-John Glenn on 9/21/24. Photo by Bill Landon

By Bill Landon

The reigning Long Island champion and New York State semifinalist, the Lady Wildcats of Shoreham-Wading River, made it four in a row Saturday morning, Sept. 21, with a road game against Elwood-John Glenn with a 2-0 shutout in a League VII matchup.

Olivia Pesso, a junior who took up soccer just last season scored the icebreaker at the 22-minute mark of the second half to put the Wildcats ahead. Mia Mangano’s foot spoke two minutes later when the junior drove the ball into the back of the net on a penalty kick for the insurance goal.

Shoreham-Wading River goalie Morgan Lesiewicz made 10 stops in net.

The Wildcats traveled to Southampton Tuesday, Sept. 24, and continued their winning streak by easily beating the Mariners, 5-0.

— Photos by Bill Landon

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Mount Sinai High School. File photo

By Jennifer Donatelli

Mount Sinai Board of Education held its first meeting of the new school year Wednesday, Sept. 18. Superintendent Christine Criscione began the public session by announcing the arts scholars, updating and aligning the district’s activities for the Dignity for All Students Act and its obligations for the schools, as well as introducing the first student member on the board. The BOE approved the first draft of the Student Harassment and Bullying Prevention and Intervention Policy Handbook, which will be distributed this year. 

This year, the Long Island Scholar-Artist Award presented by the Long Island Arts Alliance was given to Mackenzie Kling for her theater performance. Matthew Manzo, Carrie Wang and Erika Lo received all-state honors and are among an elite group of musicians who received a score of 100 on NYSSMA. In addition, Orlando DiDesidero, along with Kling and Manzo were also named to the All-County Vocal Jazz Ensemble All-State Honors and will participate in November alongside 15 other students who were also nominated. Newsday will feature each scholar in its “monthly profiles” section. The students will also be eligible for early scholarship consideration by Long Island Arts Alliance higher education partners. 

Christina Romeo, high school assistant principal, updated everyone about the benefits of DASA in the district and explained how it creates a learning environment free of discrimination and harassment for all students. She went on to explain that it also mandates the reporting of all incidents of harassment, bullying, cyberbullying and discrimination based on a person’s race, color, weight, nationality, ethnicity, religion, disability, sexual orientation, gender or sex. 

The district is currently developing guidelines for school training programs to discourage discrimination and harassment, raise awareness and sensitivity to potential issues related to those topics, and enable employees to prevent and respond to incidents of discrimination and harassment. 

Romeo also mentioned that individual schools within each district are responsible for designating and training one staff member as the dignity act coordinator who is trained to address incidents of harassment, bullying and discrimination. The district must also provide training for all employees to increase awareness and sensitivity to the existence and effects of harassment, bullying and discrimination and develop a school strategy to prevent it. Romeo said, “We need a consistent practice across all three buildings and we need to come together as a district to make the policy work.”  

The newest board member, Mount Sinai High School junior Audrey Han, represents all students within the district. She spoke about Spirit Week as well as the Homecoming Dance and football game against Miller Place. The school is rolling out a program called Mustang Manners, which is a character education system that encourages students, teachers and staff to live by certain values of respect, accountability and behavior in a fun way. 

The next board meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 16.

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Officer Lucas Blom

By Mariam Guirgis

Back in August of 2023, Officer Lucas Blom was dismissed from routine police briefing in Orlando, Florida, when he heard the sound of gunfire.

 “We all looked at each other like, ‘I think that was gunfire,’” Blom said. Then, a second round of shots occurred and, “that’s when we knew for sure.”

Blom, 30, and formerly of Mount Sinai, was only a few months out of the Police Academy but he instinctively knew what to do. “My adrenaline kicked in,” he said. “It was everything that the academy trained us for, so maybe it was a good thing that I was just a couple months out of the academy.”

Officer Lucas Blom

What started as a traffic stop investigating a car believed to be connected to a homicide escalated quickly, resulting in two officers being shot. The suspect who had an extensive criminal history, Daton Viel, was found by a SWAT team the next morning at a Holiday Inn, where he was killed in a shootout.

When the gunfire started, Blom and the other officers from the briefing rushed toward the source of the shots. As Blom took a corner and looked to the side, he saw another officer coming towards him but he knew that something was wrong. After asking if the officer was OK, the injured officer said, “No, I’m hit.”

Moments after that, the injured officer collapsed to the ground. Blom pulled him to safety between two patrol cars, removed the officer’s bulletproof vest, and realized how bad the situation was. “He was in very critical condition,” Blom said. “He lost a lot of blood.” 

Blom and another officer drove the injured officer to the hospital and with the wounded officer in the back seat of a patrol car, Blom held onto the wounds to help seal the bleeding and kept talking to him, trying to keep him awake. 

“I was just doing my job,” Blom said. “A lot of the guys could have done what I did. It just happened that I was the one there.” The officer made it to surgery, where doctors were able to save his life.

For Blom’s parents, Arthur and Laurie Blom, the night was one of terror. Laurie Blom recalled how her son’s career path shifted from his initial desire to become a doctor to firefighter to policing. Blom was a volunteer at Mount Sinai Fire Department and then went on to become an emergency medical technician for New York Fire Department and was hoping to become a firefighter for the department before becoming an officer. 

“He was waiting to be a fireman with FDNY, but he was kind of aging out, and then COVID hit,” Laurie Blom said. “A friend in Orlando suggested he come down and apply to be a police officer, and that was it. He applied, they hired him and he went into the Police Academy.”

As Blom’s shift started that night, his parents had no idea what was unfolding until they received a text from him at around 2 or 3 in the morning. 

“My biggest fear is having my parents see that something happened to me on the news,” Blom said. “So I just needed to make sure that they knew I was OK.”

Laurie Blom remembered receiving the news as well before seeing it on the news the next day. “I was terrified,” she said. “It’s like the worst fear that I have is that I’m going to get a call that it was my son who was shot.”

Officer Blom received recognition and was honored in Florida on Sept. 11, for his bravery. Despite his son’s heroic actions, Arthur Blom said Officer Blom remains humble.

“At the last award, he said he wishes the rest of the group that was there was also honored,” Arthur Blom said. 

Indeed, when Officer Blom was asked about the recognition he said, “I love the recognition but hearing [the officer] tell me that it was because of me that he is alive just made it really hit.” 

The officer whose life Blom saved later met his parents and shared a heartfelt message. 

“He walked right up to me and said, ‘Thank you so much,’” Laurie Blom recalled. “I said, ‘I didn’t do anything.’ And he said, ‘If Luke hadn’t been born and decided to move to Florida, without him, I would not be alive today. If it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t be here, I wouldn’t get to see my baby grow up.’ ”

Laurie Blom also recalled hearing the injured officer tell her son, “It was your face that kept me calm and kept me alive … it was because of you that I knew I was going be OK.”

Mariam Guirgis is a reporter with The SBU Media Group, part of Stony Brook University’s School of Communication and Journalism’s Working Newsroom program for students and local media.

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Suffolk County Executive Ed Romaine. File photo

By Toni-Elena Gallo

On Monday, Sept. 23, County Executive Ed Romaine (R) held a virtual press conference, which explained the key points of his 2025 Suffolk County Recommended Operating Budget.

One of the first things Romaine mentioned is that he has ensured that this budget complies with tax caps “and all other requirements for both the county and the state.”

He added that the proposal allows for $4 billion dollars, which is an increase from last year’s budget of $3.9 billion.

Speaking more specifically on what he wishes to increase spending on, Romaine expressed a strong desire to further secure our communities’ safety.

The budget “will add 200 [police officers, also] deputy sheriffs, corrections officers and detectives,” Romaine said.

“We feel that the police department needs to be adequately staffed, to address any safety issues in all, including the discouragement of illegal activities, such as gangs, drugs, etc., and to prevent any increase in crime,” he added.

Romaine has increased law enforcement staffing, particularly in the District Attorney’s Office to aid in the Gilgo Beach investigation.

Another issue the County Executive intends to tackle is the diminished sales tax revenue, from this year to last, which has contributed to Suffolk slightly raising the property tax for 2025. Homeowners in Brookhaven, Smithtown and Huntington will see an increase of about $49 per year.

“Sales tax came in at about $50 million less this year than what was projected, pension costs went up by about $43 million and health care costs went up by $66 million, which accounts for the increase in the county budget,” Romaine explained.

“So while there is a small increase, it, nevertheless, is a solid budget, which will allow the county to deliver services and provide what is needed.”

As to why we have seen such a significant decrease in sales tax, Romaine chalks it up to residents’ reduced spending, as prices for items, such as gasoline, increased.

“People are tightening their wallets. This is a difficult time, an inflationary time. For example, gasoline sales, for the first six months of 2024, went down by 9.6 percent, to give you an estimate, and we do include sales tax on gasoline,” Romaine said. 

“That is an indication that the economy is debating its future. But we’ll see what happens. A lot will depend on the national election.”

Romaine’s budget proposal refers to his intention to improve Suffolk’s infrastructure, improve emergency service efficiency, by making changes including the reduction of 311 wait time to under five minutes and to continue support for veterans, as well as to increase staffing in underfunded departments like Child Protective Services and the Department of Social Services.

It also points to the allocation of funds for a Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) and virtual CISO, following the 2022 cyber-attack. It will modernize the county’s IT infrastructure, to enhance security.

Additionally, Romaine wrapped up the press conference with a future initiative he hopes to see come to fruition.

“Once this budget is adopted, and once we see the revenues coming in in 2025, I am hoping to propose a reduction in the sales tax on home heating fuel. That’s propane, natural gas and, obviously, home heating oil. I find this tax regressive.”

The county Legislature must adopt the budget by Nov. 6.

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File photo by Raymond Janis

An open letter to the residents of Port Jefferson Station and Terryville

Many local residents are aware that there is a planned redevelopment at the Jefferson Plaza Shopping Center. However, not all our neighbors necessarily know the specific details which will shape the face of our community along the major thoroughfare of Route 112. This large-scale proposal may allow for up to 280 apartments and 49,000-plus square feet of commercial space on that 10-acre parcel. This intensive use has presented us all with an opportunity to see growth and revitalization of our area, but also the challenge to address potential negative impacts to the existing neighborhood.

Members of the Port Jefferson Station/Terryville Civic Association have worked diligently for the past two years to impress upon the Town of Brookhaven that we welcome this opportunity but that changes could help improve the project. In particular, we expressed a need for a comprehensive traffic study of the area which takes into account surrounding developments. 

Others pointed out concerns about the unprecedented height of four-story buildings, voiced a desire for architectural design which could provide a sense of place, or questioned the need for full environmental review for a project which will nearly triple the density of any other multifamily developments in the town to date.

This entire proposal has its roots in a 2020 revision to the Town Code in the form of a Commercial Redevelopment District crafted and approved during the COVID-19 pandemic. This code, as written, seems vague and without any true metric on which to base a determination of the related density bonuses offered within the district. It is this CRD code which Staller Associates — owner of the Jefferson Shopping Center — is now pursuing for a precedent-setting change of zone on that property. It is my understanding that Brookhaven is prepared to vote on this motion and likely to approve it at its next Town Board meeting on Sept. 26 at Town Hall.

Last November, over 65 residents appeared at a public hearing to provide their input on what they wished to see for our community. Some of those comments have been incorporated by the developer into a few changes by the developer, at the urging and help of our Councilmember Jonathan Kornreich (D-Stony Brook). However, much still appears unresolved in the areas of public benefits, clarity on the commitment to a comprehensive traffic study, developing consensus on architectural design and a decision on the ultimate level of density upon buildout. Some believe we should trust this all gets dealt with during the site plan review process. I am hopeful and have advocated that these issues should be addressed before the zoning change is approved in order to achieve the best, transparent outcome possible for all parties.

I solicit my neighbors, regardless of your viewpoint, to go to Town Hall this Thursday evening so that your voice is heard. More “eyes and ears” on this pivotal project will helpfully inform our local decision-makers what the public feels about how best to proceed to take pride in the place we call home. In any event, stay engaged and get involved.

Ira Costell, President

   Port Jefferson Station/ Terryville Civic Association

Port Jefferson electrification stuck in the slow lane

There is no funding allocated in the MTA’s proposed $68 billion 2025-2029 Five Year Capital Plan, just released, for advancement of the proposed $3.1 billion LIRR Port Jefferson Branch electrification project. Critical initial funding was not provided to pay for planning, preliminary design, engineering and the National Environmental Policy Act review to start advancement of this project. The next opportunity for funding will be under the 2030-2034 Five Year Capital Plan. Following the federal NEPA process is necessary to preserve future Federal Transit Administration funding eligibility.

There is only a vague reference in the plan to “improvements” on the Port Jefferson Branch. Contrast this with a specific reference to “looking at the feasibility to extend electrification of the Ronkonkoma Branch east from Ronkonkoma to Yaphank.” 

Riders east of Babylon to Patchogue and Speonk can also only count on a vague reference to “improvements” which doesn’t include electrification. No specific dollar figures, detailed scope of work or implementation schedule are attached to either Port Jefferson or Speonk Branch improvements.

MTA Chairman Janno Lieber would have to request permission from the FTA to enter this project into the agency’s Capital Investment Grants (New Starts/Core Capacity) national discretionary competitive grant program. 

Funding for final design and engineering, property easements, land acquisition and utility relocation could be allocated under the 2035-2039 Five Year Capital Plan. This would be followed by $1.6 billion — probably far more due to inflation — in local MTA funding included in the MTA 2040-2044 Five Year Capital Plan. These dollars are necessary to leverage FTA funding. 

Based upon my past experiences on other FTA-MTA-LIRR projects, even if all goes well as I’ve outlined, Port Jefferson Branch electrification may not be completed until 2050. With inflation over time, the final project cost could easily grow to $4 billion and more.

 The LIRR 1960s motto “Line of the Dashing Dan” should be changed to “Line of the Slow Moving Sloth” when it comes to completing LIRR Port Jefferson Branch electrification. The concept of electrification was first proposed back in the 1950s!

Larry Penner

   Great Neck

WRITE TO US … AND KEEP IT LOCAL 

We welcome your letters, especially those responding to our local coverage, replying to other letter writers’ comments and speaking mainly to local themes. Letters should be no longer than 400 words and may be edited for length, libel, style, good taste and uncivil language. They will also be published on our website. We do not publish anonymous letters. Please include an address and phone number for confirmation. Email letters to: [email protected] or mail them to TBR News Media, P.O. Box 707, Setauket, NY 11733

 

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SBU campus. File photo

By Daniel Dunaief

In the last 18 months, Stony Brook University has generated positive headlines for a host of wins, from receiving a record donation from the Simons Foundation to climbing academic rankings to winning the bidding for a climate solutions center on Governors Island.

This year, those gains not only helped attract a larger applicant pool, but also led to a record high enrollment for first-year students in the university’s 67 year history. The total number of undergraduates is also at a record high of 18,263, exceeding the previous high of 18,010 in the fall of 2010.

The downstate flagship university received about 55,000 applications for first year students, with an acceptance rate of about 49%.

“Stony Brook has now become a premier destination for so many students” in the state, country and world, said Richard Beatty, Senior Associate Provost for Enrollment Management. The increasing applicants and the largest ever class size of 4,024 students reflects the “fruit of all the work the campus has been doing.”

Stony Brook ranked 58th in the 2025 US News and World Report rankings this week, up from 93 in 2022. Stony Brook was also ranked the top public university in New York.

Just over half of the first-year students, or 50.5%, are women, while 49.5% are men. These statistics don’t include people who chose not to disclose their gender.

The university didn’t change its admissions standards to accept this larger class.

“We had the same academic quality as in previous years,” said Beatty, as each student has had high quality experience inside and outside the classroom.

Additionally, for the class entering its second year this fall, Stony Brook had a 90% retention rate, which is also an all-time high. The university typically loses 11 or 12% of students from the first to the second year.

“We want the student [who matriculate at Stony Brook] to graduate with us and we want them to graduate in a timely manner,” said Beatty.

New hires

Recognizing the increased interest in attending Stony Brook from in and out of state, the university started hiring additional staff to provide students with the same level of education and university services.

The ratio of faculty to students “didn’t change that much” because of the university’s staffing efforts, Beatty said. “We are keeping the educational quality the same even though we have a larger [freshman] class.”

The enrollment of students who identify as Black and LatinX also increased, even as universities such as Harvard College and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have experienced a decline in such enrollments.

The first-year class at Stony Brook includes 433 people who identify as black, which is an increase of 19% over the total from the previous year and represents about 10.7% of the incoming class.

LatinX, meanwhile, rose 28% to 633 this year from 496 in the previous year.

SBU Interim President Richard McCormick. File photo

“Stony Brook today exemplifies dramatically all the most important developments in modern American higher education – a growing and highly diverse student body, an expanding research enterprise, and research achievements that are contributing mightily to the economy and society,” Interim President Richard L. McCormick said in a statement.

While the number of foreign students increased over last year, the total number has still not recovered to its 2019 level, prior to the pandemic.

Stony Brook leads the SUNY system in the highest number of Educational Opportunity Program applications. The state-funded program provides financial support to New York students who have financial and academic barriers, helping them attend and graduate from a SUNY college.

Storm challenges

At the same time that the university welcomed its largest ever first year class, the campus and the area endured a sudden and violent storm that not only damaged the historic Stony Brook Grist Mill, but also made some dormitories uninhabitable.

“It was an unbelievable concerted effort throughout campus” to find places for students amid the clean up, said Beatty. “The housing team came up with solutions” that included housing some students in hotels.

Two of the residence halls, Ammann and Gray, are still undergoing repairs, although the university has found places for its students.

The university has 52 sophomores who are living at an off-campus hotel, where they are expected to remain through the semester. They should be able to return to campus in the spring.

Expanded food services

The Starbucks in SBU’s Melville Library. Courtesy facebook.com/SBUDining

Amid higher enrollment, Stony Brook expanded the hours for dining facilities this year, compared with last year.

Starbucks opened at the Melville Library with expanded hours. The foods trucks have a consistent schedule Monday through Friday and Stony Brook added a Nathan’s Famous truck to the food truck fleet.

The university launched new franchises and dining concepts this fall, such as Popeyes, Carvel and Iron Waffles.

Academically, Stony Brook has had a wide range of potential interests from its incoming students. Beyond the typical strengths in physics and math, the university also experienced a growth in the numbers of students applying for journalism, political science and economics.

“We ended up not being over enrolled in any of our programs,” Beatty said.

McCormick suggested the increased interest in the school reflects recent higher visibility.

“This historic enrollment of first-year students is a testament to Stony Brook University’s steadfast commitment to providing an exceptional educational experience and its rise in reputation as one of the nation’s most prominent public flagship research universities,” McCormick said in a statement.

The State University of New York schools have seen an increase overall in the number of applicants.

Stony Brook’s admissions process, which remains test optional for standardized tests like the SAT and the ACT, has become considerably more holistic.

The admissions committee looks beyond the grade point average or whatever test scores candidates submit, while weighing the student achievement in the context of the options available at their high schools.

The larger class size amid a greater interest in the school also has positive implications for the local economy and for the community.

More students shop at stores and restaurants and also contribute to extracurricular activities such as theatrical performances and to community service projects.

These students, who come from all over the world, add to the diversity of the area, start new clubs and present the findings of their own research while attending college, Beatty added.

As for future applications and class sizes, school officials anticipate greater numbers of interested students in the coming years.

“We expect applications to continue to rise,” said Beatty.

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Pixabay photo

By Daniel Dunaief

Daniel Dunaief

I’m getting messages every day and, often, several times a day. I must be really important.

As with snail mail, those messages could be delivering something extraordinary.

“We are writing to inform you that you’ve won a Pulitzer Prize, despite the fact that you haven’t entered anything and we haven’t yet created an extraordinarily average category.”

Or, perhaps, “we wanted to let you know that your cells are healthier than they’ve ever been and that you should keep up the good work. We’d like to study you to learn how your body is performing better than we’d expect for someone half your age.”

Then, of course, there are the realistic possibilities.

“Hey, want to go to dinner with us this weekend?”

That’s a nice message to receive from a friend or family member.

My son believes brevity is the soul of wit when it comes to messages so he’ll just write “Judge!!!!” or “Soto!!!!” or some combination of Yankee players who have performed well that day.

The most frequent messages I’m receiving are the ones from would-be political leaders, their pals, and other prominent supporters who not only want my vote, but also want me to contribute money.

I’d like to think these messages, with my name at the top, were written personally by these important people, who took the time out of their day to reach out to me.

“You know who I haven’t written to recently? Daniel Dunaief. I’ll just give him a holler to gauge his thoughts on one of the more important races.”

But, no, I know they’re not personal missives, just as I know Siri isn’t graciously saying “You’re welcome” even though she’s programmed to show appreciation in her chipper voice when I thank her.

Still, these messages have morphed from a nuisance into something else. In the frenzy and excitement of consequential races, these communiques are filled with fear and hope, often in that order. In a few short sentences, they tell me what’s at stake, what role I can play, and how these leaders will spend my money wisely.

Wouldn’t that be nice? If we donated to a campaign, wouldn’t it be great to see how our money, specifically, helped someone, as in, “this yard sign made possible by your moderately generous donation.”

If you’ve ever watched the show “Seinfeld,” George Costanza, played by Jason Alexander, suggests that he grows on people, the way ad jingles do. He is like an advertisement for Mennen deodorant. At first, you can’t stand the “byyyy Mennen” sound, but you find yourself singing it in the shower or humming it in the car.

Maybe, in some way, this unprecedented barrage of seemingly personal text messages has become like those jingles.

To be honest, I don’t read them carefully. I do, however, appreciate the earnestness with which someone sends them and I recognize that something consequential is about to happen.

Maybe it’s a bit like the December holidays. The anticipation of November 5th is exciting, even if the event itself might be lacking.

The reality of the election feels more like a gift certificate to a restaurant that serves a combination of my least favorite foods, all deep fried in a type of grease that triggers an allergic response. The election itself, as I see it, will likely have echoes from 2020, with lawyers and politicians exerting themselves, insisting that their candidate won for days or weeks after Nov. 5th.

An early riser, I grin when the message arrives an hour or so after I’ve gotten up and the person with the morning message apologizes for writing so early.

Really? Because you’re not actually sending the message and the machine that blasts them could pick any time in the day to release this particular text.

With all the money flowing into these campaigns, I wonder if the country invested all the cash both sides collected and put it in a certificate of deposit or a Treasury Bill and created scholarships, what kind of opportunities could we offer future students who one day might want to run for office.

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