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Jack Licitra & Camryn Quinlan. Photo from Staller Center

Staller Center for the Arts at Stony Brook University and musician Jack Licitra team up once again to offer an uplifting and healing concert, virtually, on Monday, Feb. 15 at 3 p.m.

Titled “Let the Music Heal Your Soul” the concert offers the usual funny songs and crazy antics while touching on some serious issues of loneliness for kids during the pandemic. Jack Licitra believes music is critical to healing and happiness. “Music can heal your soul,” says Licitra, “talking about all of the feelings, and singing about them, using yourself as the instrument, using hand movements and symbols, it can help to  heal your soul … it all helps kids get those feelings out in the open, and it shows them that they’re not alone.”

The Staller Center and Jack Licitra have paired up in the past to offer concerts through the Staller Center’s Outreach and Education Program at local nonprofits, libraries, and at the Staller Center itself. “There are a lot of other kids that feel disconnected from their friends … that’s why we wanted to offer this concert as a resource, to try to help them feel more connected to other kids that are feeling more alone than usual,” says Paul Newland, Outreach Director for the Staller Center for the Arts.

“Let the Music Heal Your Soul” by Jack Licitra and Friends uses music in a healing way by taking familiar melodies, rhythms, and chord progressions, to create a shared community consciousness. The concert features performances by Jack Licitra, Katie Monhan, Camryn Quinlan, and Brian Licitra.

Jack Licitra is a Sayville-based piano/hammond organ driven singer/songwriter; music educator; founder of the music-teaching studio South Bay Arts in Bayport. He has performed with some of the best musicians in the world such as Levon Helm, Jimmy Vivino and Bakithi Kumalo as well as opening shows for legends such as Richie Havens, Buckwheat Zydeco, Pinetop Perkins and even playing for then-Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton

The concert is free and registration is required by visiting www.stallercenter.com/outreach.

 

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A 42-year-old pastor from Long Island gets a special thank you from a New York Jets legend after battling COVID-19 at Stony Brook University Hospital (SBUH).

At the height of the pandemic, Doug Jansson organized prayer parades with his church, Living Word Church, at a few locations on Long Island, including Stony Brook University Hospital, where his mother-in-law was being treated for COVID-19 back in March. Doug, his wife Kelly and members of their church would drive around the hospital, signs and all, and stop to pray for staff and the patients they were treating. Their kindness didn’t stop there as they even organized grocery donations and drop-offs across Long Island.

Things came full circle on December 12, 2020 when Doug was admitted to SBUH after testing positive for COVID-19. Doug wound up in the ICU and on Christmas Eve he was intubated and placed on life support. The people he had been praying for were now caring for him.

Led by Dr. Paul Strachan and Dr. Allison McLarty, staff from nearly every division and department at SBUH helped care for Doug. Teams in pulmonary, CT surgery, ID, Medicine, Psychiatry/palliative care, GI, Hematology, Cardiology, Vascular and more helped on his road to recovery.

Doug was taken off ECMO on December 29 and extubated on January 5, 2021 before being discharged on February 3, 2021. He and his wife say the staff of every unit became like family and it seemed that the entire hospital was involved and routing for his recovery.

“The staff at Stony Brook were fighting for Doug and rooting him on. They were so encouraging to us. I am speechless over the care we’ve received,” said Kelly Jansson.

Rob Nocito, a resident in Emergency Medicine at SBUH, was one of the physicians who assisted in taking Doug off the ventilator. Nocito noticed Jansson was a hardcore New York Jets fan from the team’s memorabilia hanging in his room. Nocito happens to be good friends with Erik Coleman, a former defender on the Jets. He gave Coleman a call and he quickly agreed to talk to Jansson.

“My job is to make people feel better, and that doesn’t always mean medicine,” said Nocito.

Jansson was speechless as he met the NFL star via FaceTime. Coleman wished Jansson well and thanked him for everything he has done. See the moment here.

His wife Kelly couldn’t believe somebody would be so kind and do this for him. “We are so grateful to the staff at Stony Brook. They go above and beyond every single day,” she said.

As Doug was discharged, staff lined the hallways to wish him well.

Doug now looks forward to returning home to his wife and three children as well as getting back to the work he loves with his church.

Photos courtesy of SBUH

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Mouhamadou Gueye (#2) produced a career-high scoring output last Sunday against UMBC.

The Stony Brook men’s basketball team is now in the midst of crunch time as it aims to maximize its seeding in the America East Tournament.

Unfortunately for the Seawolves, they dropped the first of four straight games against the conference’s top placeholders, falling to UMBC, 71-65, on Feb. 7 at Island Federal Arena.

Stony Brook (8-9, 6-5 AE) slipped two games in the loss column behind UMBC (12-4, 8-3) and Vermont (7-3, 7-3) for the conference’s leading positions. The top two finishers earn byes into the America East semifinals, while the third and fourth seeds will host opening-round pods in the 10-team tourney.

UMBC shot 46.7 percent from three-point range before intermission (7-for-15) and built a 16-point advantage early in the second half.

“I think the experience factor was enormous,” Stony Brook coach Geno Ford said. “They came out at the start of the game, understood the intensity level when you’re playing for first place, and we played like an inexperienced bunch of new guys, who would like to win, but aren’t necessarily playing hard enough early.”

Mouhamadou Gueye paced Stony Brook with 17 points and eight blocks — both career highs, and the latter figure one shy of matching Jameel Warney’s program record, set in 2015 against Princeton. The scoring total supplanted a 16-point performance against Binghamton on Jan. 22, 2020 for his career high. Gueye now has 120 career blocks, matching Greg Angrum (1980-84) for fifth on the program’s all-time list.

Juan Felix Rodriguez (17 points) and Tykei Greene (11) also scored in double-figures.

A pair of free throws from Gueye and a driving layup from Rodriguez pulled the Seawolves within 49-45 and prompted a timeout from UMBC with 12 minutes remaining in the game. 

When play resumed, Jordan McKenzie produced a steal and Greene converted a driving layup at the other end to continue Stony Brook’s 16-2 run.

LJ Owens stopped UMBC’s hemorrhaging with a three-point play and the Retrievers managed to hold off Stony Brook the rest of the way.

“I’ll give our guys a lot of credit,” Ford said. “In the first half, I thought we played on our heels. And at halftime we really challenged them hard about their effort and energy level. And in the second half I thought we were fantastic. We played well enough to win for 20 minutes, but they played well enough to win for 40.”

The Seawolves played without leading perimeter threat Frankie Policelli.

Policelli, who is averaging 11.3 points per game and a team-leading .348 shooting percentage from three-point range, had aggravated a nagging hip issue late in in last Sunday’s 63-49 win against Hartford.

Still, Ford noted the Seawolves shot 13-for-34 inside the paint on Sunday.

“That is, to me, what sputtered the offense,” Ford said. “They pack the paint so hard that they force you to shoot threes. We have two or three guys out there that they’re just blatantly not guarding. They’re just standing in the lane, off of them.” 

Stony Brook and UMBC met again on Feb. 8 but the Seawolves fell again 60-48. The team heads to Vermont next weekend for a critical two-game showdown against the second-place Catamounts.

Photo courtesy of Stony Brook Athletics

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A scene from 'Louis Van Beethoven'

The Staller Center for the Arts’ much anticipated Spring 2021 Film Series goes virtual on February 11. This year’s series features thirteen independent films you won’t see anywhere else and presents award-winning and record-breaking films from around the world. 

Inspiring and often challenging, the films explore family and social conflict, health and healthcare issues, social justice issues, drug addiction and abuse, and so much more. 

The Staller Center’s entire spring season will be virtual and will be available for viewing from the comfort of your living room using the IndieFlix Festivals app. The full schedule is listed below.

Patrons and households can view all films with one $50 season film pass which includes access to three bonus films. Single tickets for $6 each are also available for purchase. The series is 12 weeks long and will feature ten new premieres and three bonus films from previous Stony Brook Film Festival events. All movies will be available on-demand to watch and re-watch from Thursdays at 7 p.m. through Sundays at midnight. 

To purchase, please visit stallercenter.com/movies.

FILM SCHEDULE

‘Days of Bagnold Summer’

February 11 to February 14

United Kingdom (86 minutes)

‘Asia’

February 18 to February 21

Israel. In Hebrew with subtitles. (85 minutes) 

‘The Subject’

February 25 to February 28

United States. (119 minutes)

*Bonus screening, only available to passholders.

‘Higher Love’

February 25 to February 28

United States. (80 minutes)

*Bonus screening, only available to passholders.

‘Louis Van Beethoven’

March 4 to March 7

Germany. In German with  subtitles. (120 minutes)

‘Yalda, A Night for Forgiveness’

March 11 to March 14

Iran. In Persian with subtitles. (89 minutes)

‘Rose Plays Julie’

March 18 to March 21

Ireland. (100 minutes)

‘Citizens of the World’

March 25 to March 28

Italy. In Italian with subtitles. (92 minutes)

‘Night Shift’

Thursday, April 1 to Sunday, April 4

France. In French with English subtitles. (98 minutes)

‘Blizzard of Souls’

April 8 to April 11

Latvia. In Latvian with subtitles. (104 minutes)

‘To the Edge of the Sky’

April 15 to April 18

United States. (118 minutes)

*Bonus screening, only available to passholders. Will be followed by a Q&A with directors.

‘Thou Shall Not Hate’

April 22 to April 25

Italy. In Italian with subtitles. (96 minutes)

‘Needle Park Baby’

April 29 to May 2

Switzerland. In Swiss German with subtitles. (98 minutes)

Films have not been rated. Viewer discretion is advised. Closed captions or subtitles available for all films.

 

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Stony Brook University Hospital

Stony Brook University Hospital has once again been named one of America’s 100 Best Hospitals™ for 2021 by Healthgrades – the only hospital on Long Island to receive this distinction for the past three consecutive years. The distinction places Stony Brook University Hospital in the top two percent of nearly 4,500 hospitals assessed nationwide for its consistent, year-over-year superior clinical performance as measured by Healthgrades, the leading resource that connects consumers, physicians and health systems. Only five hospitals in New York State were named among America’s 100 Best Hospitals this year. 

Dr. Kenneth Kaushansky

“This is the equivalent of receiving another A+ on our annual report card for quality care,” said Kenneth Kaushansky, MD, Senior Vice President for Health Sciences, Stony Brook Medicine. “It places us among the top 2 percent of hospitals nationwide. More importantly, it measures results that make a significant difference in the lives of our patients every day.”

Healthgrades analyzes hospitals nationwide to examine in-hospital complication rates and mortality rates. From 2017 through 2019, patients treated in hospitals achieving the award had, on average, a 26.1 percent lower risk of dying than if they were treated in hospitals that did not receive the award, as measured across 19 rated conditions and procedures for which mortality is the outcome.* And during that same period, if all hospitals performed similarly to those achieving the Healthgrades America’s 100 Best Hospitals Award, 172,298 lives could potentially have been saved. 

“These outcomes are the direct result of the high-quality care provided by our staff every day,” said Carol A Gomes, MS, FACHE, CPHQ, Chief Executive Officer for Stony Brook University Hospital. “Their daily commitment to our patients drives these outstanding results, which literally save lives.”

Stony Brook University Hospital has been recognized as One of America’s 100 Best Hospitals for Cardiac Care™ for seven years in a row, One of America’s 100 Best Hospitals for Coronary Intervention and Stroke Care™ for six years in a row.

In fact, Stony Brook is the only hospital in the northeast** region of the U.S., and one of only five hospitals in the nation, to achieve 2021 America’s 100 Best Hospitals Award and America’s 100 Best in Cardiac Care, Coronary Intervention and Stroke Care.

“These types of consistent awards are not achieved by accident,” said Meadow P. Jaime, MA, Director of Quality Solutions for Healthgrades. “This recognition is validation of the ongoing effort and focus that Stony Brook’s dedicated teams have devoted to providing high-quality care and clinical excellence.”

During the 2021 study period (Medicare Fiscal Years 2017-2019), Healthgrades America’s 100 Best Hospitals Award recipients are recognized for overall clinical excellence and providing top quality care across multiple specialty lines and areas. These hospitals showed superior performance in clinical outcomes for patients in the Medicare population across at least 21 of 32 most common inpatient conditions and procedures — as measured by objective performance data (risk-adjusted mortality and in-hospital complications).

“Now more than ever, it is important to celebrate the physicians, nurses and extended care teams that are working around the clock to keep our nation safe. For the select hospitals that have been recognized with a Healthgrades America’s 100 Best Hospitals Award, we extend our heartfelt appreciation and commend them for their ongoing commitment to delivering the highest quality healthcare,” said Brad Bowman, MD, Chief Medical Officer, Healthgrades.

To learn more about how Healthgrades determines award recipients, and for more information on Healthgrades Quality Solutions, please visit www.healthgrades.com/quality.

About Stony Brook University Hospital:

Stony Brook University Hospital (SBUH) is Long Island’s premier academic medical center. With 624 beds, SBUH serves as the region’s only tertiary care center and Regional Trauma Center, and is home to the Stony Brook University Heart Institute, Stony Brook University Cancer Center, Stony Brook Children’s Hospital and Stony Brook University Neurosciences Institute. SBUH also encompasses Suffolk County’s only Level 4 Regional Perinatal Center, state-designated AIDS Center, state-designated Comprehensive Psychiatric Emergency Program, state-designated Burn Center, the Christopher Pendergast ALS Center of Excellence, and Kidney Transplant Center. It is home of the nation’s first Pediatric Multiple Sclerosis Center. To learn more, visit www.stonybrookmedicine.edu/sbuh.

*Statistics are based on Healthgrades analysis of MedPAR data for years 2017 through 2019 and represent 3-year estimates for Medicare patients only.

**Northeast region is defined by the Census Bureau as Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont, New Jersey, New York & Pennsylvania.

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Bikes outside the dorms at Stony Brook University. Photo from Kimberly Brown
"Ready for the iced tea and a chat" at Mimi Hodge's Sound Beach home. Photo from Mimi Hodge
A scene outside Bea Ruberto's home in Sound Beach. Photo from Bea Ruberto
Snow covered SBU. Photo by Kimberly Brown
Students trek to the dorms during the storm. Photo by Kimberly Brown
A winter wonderland at Stony Brook University. Photo by Kimberly Brown
A scene outside Bea Ruberto's home in Sound Beach. Photo from Bea Ruberto
A scene outside Bea Ruberto's home in Sound Beach. Photo from Bea Ruberto
A scene outside Bea Ruberto's home in Sound Beach. Photo from Bea Ruberto
Ducks at Niegocki Farms in Mount Sinai enjoy the snow Feb. 1. Photo by Tricia Niegocki
Tricia Niegocki's son walks through the snow at Niegocki Farms in Mount Sinai. Photo from Tricia Niegocki
A pig at Niegocki Farms in Mount Sinai hanging out in the snow. Photo by Tricia Niegocki
Outside the Wagner building, a Stony Brook University student braves the cold, on his way to get a meal from West dining. Photo by Chris Cumella
Stony Brook University's Roosevelt Quad hidden behind ferocious winds and pristine, untouched, freshly-fallen snow. Photo by Chris Cumella
Gwendolyn and Gordon Jensen enjoy the snow in Smithtown. Photo by Donna Jensen
Caroline Busby enjoys the snow in St. James Feb. 1. Photo by Patricia Busby
Michael Bilotti, 5, of Nissequogue, built a snowman named Blueberry. Photo by Doug Bilotti

On Monday, Feb. 1, the first snowstorm of the year hit Long Island, causing people to stay home and shovel nearly two-feet of snow.  We asked residents to share their snow day photos with us.

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Tyler Stephenson-Moore sends through a dunk the first half of Sunday’s win against Hartford.

Frankie Policelli and the Stony Brook men’s basketball team awakened from a shooting funk at an opportune time.

Policelli drained a pair of three-pointers less than two minutes apart early in the second half to open a double-digit advantage and the Seawolves went on to a 63-49 win against Hartford on Jan. 31 at Island Federal Arena.

The teams split the weekend series.

Stony Brook (8-8, 6-4 AE) overcame early shooting woes and foul issues to take a four-point halftime lead. And when Policelli drained a three-pointer with 15:24 remaining in the second half, the Seawolves opened a 41-29 advantage. 

Another three-pointer from Policelli two minutes later upped the Seawolves’ lead to 14 points.

After Hartford clawed within 46-40 midway through the second half, Juan Felix Rodriguez answered with a three-pointer and Omar Habwe converted a jumper to reopen a double-digit advantage.

“I thought we defended at a high level, and we got separation in the second half because we made threes,” coach Geno Ford said. “We finally made some shots. It makes the offense look a whole lot better.”

The Seawolves had shot 17.1 percent (12-for-70) from three-point range over their previous three games, including 8-for-31 in a 59-57 loss to Hartford on Jan. 30.

Policelli, who reaggravated a recurring hip issue during the second half, finished with a team-high 16 points. He shot 4-for-5 from behind the arc on Sunday.

Leighton Elliott-Sewell added a career-high 13 points. He had accounted for only four points in Stony Brook’s six games since Dec. 28 entering Sunday.

“I was just getting the ball in spots where I could score,” Elliott-Sewell said.

Tavin Pierre Philippe logged a season-high 20 minutes.

“I thought our bench was great in the first half when we needed it,” Ford said. “I thought our starters looked a little lethargic. We were able to get some real lift off that bench.”

The Seawolves had dropped four straight meetings with Hartford, including last year’s America East semifinal.

“It really was a big motivation for the team,” said Mouhamadou Gueye, who finished with nine points and five rebounds. Stony Brook hosts UMBC for a pair of games next weekend.

“Here comes the best team in the league in my opinion,” Ford said, citing UMBC’s speed, athleticism and size.

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India Pagan shot 66.7 percent from the field and led the Seawolves in scoring both weekend games.

WEST HARTFORD, CT. — The Stony Brook women’s basketball team produced a sweeping success on Saturday, Jan. 30 and Sunday, Jan. 31. The Seawolves swept back-to-back games against host Hartford with a 62-49 win on Sunday.

India Pagan continued a big scoring weekend. She backed up an 18-point performance on Saturday with 19 points on Sunday. She combined to shoot 16-for-24 on the weekend. 

The Seawolves improved to 10-4 overall and 8-2 in America East and ran their winning streak to a season-high five straight games.

Stony Brook stands in second place, a game behind Maine.

Nairimar Vargas-Reyes grabbed an offensive rebound and scored to open a six-point lead in the second quarter. Asiah Dingle then produced a steal, which ultimately resulted in a layup from Pagan and 21-13 advantage. The Seawolves opened their first double-digit lead on a pair of free throws from Hailey Zeise with 3:42 remaining until halftime. Dingle contributed 12 points, four rebounds, six assists, five steals and a block.

“Back-to-back games on the road are definitely challenging,” coach Caroline McCombs said. “I was proud of our ability to lock in defensively when we were struggling to make jump shots. India really stepped up for us this weekend, and it was good to see her in that flow.”

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Coach Joe Spallina

The Stony Brook women’s lacrosse team began their quest for a national championship in earnest on Thursday.

The Seawolves held their first official practice of the spring semester inside the Stony Brook Indoor Training Complex.

Lofty expectations already have been heaped on the program.

Stony Brook enters the 2021 season ranked fifth in the Nike/US Lacrosse Division I Preseason Top 20 poll. And standout midfielder Ally Kennedy — the subject of soon-to-be aired features on Fox and ABC — landed on the cover of the January issue of US Lacrosse Magazine as the publication’s national Preseason Player of the Year.

“This is probably the realest year that it’s been to accomplish the dream of winning a national championship and getting to the Final Four — being the first Stony Brook women’s lacrosse team to do that,” Kennedy said. “I think it’s right at our fingertips this season.”
 
Kennedy highlights the deepest midfield of coach Joe Spallina‘s 10-season tenure at Stony Brook. That midfield group also includes USC graduate transfer and former Pac-12 first-team all-conference selection Kaeli Huff, 2019 first-team All-America East pick Siobhan Rafferty (who missed last season rehabbing an ACL tear after tallying 50 goals the previous year), Kira Accettella, Sarah Pulis, Charlotte Verhulst and freshman phenom Ellie Masera, who happens to be Huff’s cousin.

“What’s really cool about it is that everyone is constantly working and giving 110 percent,” Huff said. “It’s not like there’s a drop-off. Every single person is pushing each other and wants to get better.”

During Spallina’s now 10 seasons at the helm, Stony Brook has produced a 143-27 overall record, seven straight America East titles, and currently rides a 44-game winning streak against conference opponents.

Kennedy enters the season ranked second in program history in draw controls (242), fourth in goals (193), fifth in points (248), fifth in ground balls (133) and 10th in assists (55).

Fellow grad student Taryn Ohlmiller, an attacker, was ranked the No. 47 college lacrosse player, man or woman, by Inside Lacrosse in December. She ranks second in program history in career assists (138), third in points (305) and fifth in goals (167).

“Everybody really believes in this. We can make it to the national championship,” Huff said. “It’s really cool to have this common goal. Everybody has bought into that.”

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Keynote speaker will be Dr. Julieanna Richardson
Join them on Wednesday, February 3 at 1 p.m. for a virtual opening day ceremony. To register, visit stonybrook.edu/bhm

As Stony Brook University students resume classes on February 1, the University community will celebrate Black History Month (BHM), honoring the African-American experience and accomplishments. The month-long tribute will be conducted in a hybrid fashion: in-person and virtually via Zoom. It will begin with an opening ceremony featuring keynote speaker Dr. Julieanna Richardson, founder of The HistoryMakers collection on Wednesday, February 3, 2021 at 1pm. Stony Brook University has recently begun utilizing The HistoryMakers Digital Archives, the nation’s largest African American video oral history collection of scholarly materials which will be the main focus of this year’s celebration.

Dr. Judith Brown Clarke

“In addition to celebrating this long-standing tradition at Stony Brook University, we recognize this pivotal time in America’s history,” said Dr. Judith Brown Clarke, Vice President for Equity & Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer. “We seek to create a learning experience that will look to end racism, create social change, and build a more humane and just society for African Americans and the entire nation.

The HistoryMakers collection features scholarly materials that provide insight into African-American history, culture and creativity. The HistoryMakers’ founder and BHM keynote speaker Julieanna Richardson will share her vision and desire to preserve the rich history of African Americans. Richardson’s diverse background is in law, television production and the cable television industries and she combined her various work experiences and her passion for American Studies to conceptualize, found and build The HistoryMakers.

This sustainable theme for this year’s BHM is “Sankofa! Black Creativity.” The concept of Sankofa has its origin in Ghana, West Africa. When translated, it means that “it is not taboo to go back and fetch what you forgot.” Sankofa is used throughout the pan-African world to promote the idea that African people must go back to their roots in order to move forward. The theme was created to re-ignite awareness, appreciation, passion, and commitment to BHM for all people, but especially those whose ancestors are from the African Diaspora. This year’s theme, “Sankofa! Black Creativity” pays tribute to those who have enriched American life with their invaluable contributions to science, education, economics, political movements and the arts and who have worked and continue to strive to rectify inequality and injustice in our society.

Events: 

Throughout BHM, Stony Brook University will feature a number of educational, cultural and historical community events including:

Black History Month activities at Stony Brook University are coordinated by the Office of Multicultural Affairs, Department of Africana Studies and the Black History Month Committee.

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