AUTUMN SUNSET
Ellen Mason captured this beautiful sunset from the village green in Stony Brook looking towards the harbor on Oct. 29. She writes, “What a glorious evening!”
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Stony Brook University presents Living World lecture with Naturalist John Turner Oct. 21
The Ecology and Evolution Department at Stony Brook University, 100 Nicolls Road, Stony Brook continues its Living World lecture series with “Should the Mill Pond Be Rebuilt? Reconnecting Severed Threads” with guest speaker John F. Turner, Division of Land Management for the Town of Brookhaven, in the Javits Lecture Center, Room 111 on the West Campus on Monday, Oct. 21 at 6 p.m.
Some landscape features such as the thousands of dams installed in rivers have severed or compromised ecological connections for animal species, especially migratory fishes. Turner will describe the solutions to such problems, including the recent strong rainstorms in this region that broke several dams, giving an opportunity for restorations that restore fish migration routes.
A noted Long Island Naturalist, John Turner is a founder of the Long island Pine Barrens Association, has worked on land restoration in Long Island for decades and is an officer in the Seatuck Environmental Association and the Four Harbors Audubon Society.
The event is free. For more information, call 631-632-8600.
The sun shines on historic All Souls Church at annual race in Stony Brook Village
By Daniel Kerr
The sun shined brightly on the 200+ folks (not including the marching dogs) that gathered in front of Stanford White-designed All Souls Church in Stony Brook for the 16th Annual SOLES for All Souls 5K Race/2K Walk on Sunday, Oct. 6.
The large crowd included runners dressed as the Mario Brothers, Mr. & Mrs. Potato Head, “One and ½” bulldogs, butterflies, silver ballerinas, and three generations of skeletons. Retired Suffolk County Police Sargeant Mark McNulty played the bagpipes to inspire the runners as they began their trek up Hollow Road, and the North Shore Rockers played throughout Registration at the Reboli Center. Former Suffolk County Poet Laureate Richard Bronson led the annual march of the Live Poets Society, as Barbara Branca read the poems of Barbara Southard.
Suffolk County Legislator Steve Englebright and Brookhaven Town Councilmember Jonathan Kornreich joined All Souls’ own Brave Trio to sing the National Anthem, and our elected representatives thanked the runners and walkers for participating in this very special annual event to celebrate the role of All Souls in the community and to raise funds to make the church and accessible to all. The large amount of food collected as part of the All Souls “Lend a Hand, bring a Can” food outreach, was transported to St Gerard Majella’s food pantry in Terryville.
For the second consecutive year, Felipe Garcia from Brooklyn was the overall race winner with a time of 17:14 and Margaret Kennedy from Port Jefferson Station was the overall female winner with a time of 21:07. Race co-founder Mary Ellen Doris awarded gold, silver, and bronze medals at the Olympic-style ceremony to various age groups from 13 and under to 80 years and older. Six-year-old Hope Orcel from Stony Brook won the bronze for the female 13 and under group and eighty-five-year-old Rolf Sternglanz from Davie, Florida won the silver for the over 80 group of runners.
All of the volunteers and sponsors thank the community of runners, walkers, residents and students for their outpouring of love and support.
Creativity abounds at Stony Brook Village Center’s scarecrow competition
Time to vote! Above are just a few of the 43 unique and creative scarecrows of all shapes, sizes and characters that line the walkways througout the Stony Brook Village Center for the Ward Melville Heritage Organization’s 34th Annual Scarecrow Competition.
You have until Friday, October 25 to vote for your favorite in three categories: Professional, Adults/Family, and Children. Winning scarecrows will win cash prizes based on the number of votes they receive from the public. Ballots can be found in all the shops and restaurants. Once completed, ballots can be returned to any shop to be counted in for voting. Winners will be announced at the Ward Melville Heritage Organization’s 34th Annual Halloween Festival on Oct. 31.
This year’s event is generously sponsored by Suffolk Center for Speech and Myofunctional Therapy, Green Towers Group, Apple Bank, Dr. Rocco Morelli, and Dr. Robert Quilty.
For more information, call 631-751-2244.
Amid higher applications, SBU first-year enrollment climbs 13% to record high
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.
“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
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.
Stony Brook village rebounds after storm as community gathers for healing and restoration
By Toni-Elena Gallo
The village of Stony Brook is on the mend following the devastating Aug. 18-19 storm.
Gloria Rocchio, president of The Ward Melville Heritage Organization spoke to TBR News Media about the latest updates on Harbor Road., the Mill Pond, Mill Creek Road and the community as a whole.
On Saturday, Aug. 24, All Souls Episcopal Church on Main Street held an After the Flood Thanksgiving ceremony, celebrating the resilience of the village. Both Christian and Jewish prayers were recited, as well as the Lakota Native American prayer, “O! Great Spirit.” People were gathered, songs were sung and according to Rocchio, “healing happened.”
Stony Brook University, which saw some dormitory basements flooded with up to 9 feet of water, has been assessed, and the damage cost is estimated at $22 million.
In addition, the Avalon Nature Preserve’s displaced wildlife is being attended to by Strong Island Animal Rescue League in Port Jefferson Station, and Sweetbriar Nature Center, located in Smithtown.
“A night heron was found under a creek, afraid. Sweetbriar took it, gave it medicine and released it behind Rob Taylor’s house, which is on the creek. And, I’ll tell you, that bird took off like crazy,” Rocchio said.
“As for the creek, the wildlife is coming back. There’s some water, there again. Mallard ducks, two swans — it’s coming back. But, unless the dam is rebuilt and the road is built, every time there is heavy rain, it will end up behind the creek, behind the houses or in the houses,” she added.
Rocchio said that the flow of water has changed since the house on Harbor Road was destroyed. “The flow has to go back, because there is so much sand in the creek, it needs to be taken out and put back where it was, because it is eroding all the trees on Mill Creek Road. Every time the tide [from Stony Brook Harbor] goes in and out, it erodes the land more.”
The Mill Pond has seen an increase in water flow as well. However, “the sand coming in” with it, is not good for the health of the pond. The sediment running along with the water is, however, instrumental in “flushing it.”
“But, it still flows from springs, from all over. But, not a lot,” she elaborated.
Rocchio is hoping elected officials will “move quickly” to restore the area’s delicate ecosystem.
Health Roundup: Docs address floods, flu shots, COVID and CMV
By Daniel Dunaief
Water inside a house isn’t just bad for the structure, it can also be damaging to your health.
Local health care professionals suggested that Stony Brook residents whose basements flooded from this weekend’s heavy rainfall should be careful about the growth of mold or mildew, which can be especially problematic for anyone with chronic breathing issues.
“People can inhale spores over a period of time and can develop respiratory symptoms,” said Dr. Sunil Dhuper, Chief Medical Officer at Port Jefferson’s St. Charles Hospital.
People with asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, bronchitis and emphysema “need to be particularly concerned about some of these issues,” he continued.
Dr. Sharon Nachman, Chief of Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases at Stony Brook Children’s Hospital, suggested that residents of Stony Brook, who experienced a localized 10 inches of rain this weekend, should “aggressively clean” their basements, from any standing water, as mold and mildew can start growing within a few days.
“You won’t see it because it’s small,” but people should dry the walls and under the floorboards and carpet, she said. “You want to get the water out.”
Local doctors, also, recommended dumping standing water off any surface that might become a breeding ground for mosquitoes, who can carry the West Nile virus.
At this point, the County Department of Health believed the West Nile threat wasn’t likely particularly high.
“The heavy rains and wind might have washed away adult larvae and adult mosquitoes,” Dr. Scott R. Campbell, Laboratory Chief in the Arthropod-Borne Disease Laboratory at the Suffolk County Department of Health Services, explained in an email.
“Wet springs and hot, dry summers — in which mosquitoes and birds may congregate at limited sources of water — may be conducive to higher West Nile virus transmission.”
The heavy rain, which was triple the usual average for the entire month of August, according to Weather Spark, likely reduced area mosquitoes.
Local medical care professionals suggested that residents should still remove standing water as a way to protect themselves against any remaining mosquitoes.
Congenital viral infection
Apart from the impact of local flooding, doctors discussed a host of other medical issues.
New York State has been testing newborns, since last fall, for congenital cytomegalovirus, or CMV, which infected mothers can give to their unborn children.
The testing so far has shown that CMV is less prevalent than previous estimates.
The state started the one-year study of the virus to track children who might develop symptoms, such as hearing loss or learning challenges, later on.
“The earlier you identify babies with hearing deficits, the sooner you can act, and there will be fewer ramifications on their intellectual development, as a result of it,” said Dr. Andrew Handel, pediatric infectious diseases expert at Stony Brook Children’s Hospital, and a co-leader, along with Dr. Nachman, of one of the 11 units across the state.
Earlier medical sources estimated that the infection rate for newborns was about one in 200 babies. But, with about 300 newborns testing positive, the rate is closer to one in 325.
The percentage of symptomatic babies is tracking with previous expectations, at around 10 percent. Symptoms of congenital CMV at birth include hearing loss, jaundice, low birth weight, seizures and retinitis.
“Our numbers are matching up with the 90 percent” of those who have the virus, but are asymptomatic, Handel added.
“That’s why we feel screening is so important.”
For the asymptomatic newborns, about 10 percent will develop permanent hearing loss, which is why doctors are tracking them so closely.
The virus, which is a relative of the Epstein Barr virus, which causes mononucleosis, is spread through direct contact with body fluids, such as tears, saliva or urine. Over half of all adults have had a CMV infection, with some studies estimating the rate as high as 80 percent.
Adults can shed the virus for a few weeks after contracting it, while children can shed it for a few months.
While all newborns will receive CMV screening after birth, parents have five days to opt out of any link to a report of the presence of the virus in their children.
At this point, fewer than one percent of parents are opting out of the testing. Some of the parents aren’t interested in the test, others don’t believe it’s useful, while some believe their babies look fine, and don’t want the additional test.
Most parents appreciate the opportunity to gather information about their children’s health. Patients are “grateful the state has this program,” said Dr. Sunil Sood, Systems CMV specialist at Northwell Health.
At Stony Brook and other hospitals, doctors are monitoring those babies who test positive.
The County Department of Health supports the testing, as well.
“Routine screening of newborns for [congenital CMV] will help identify affected infants early on so they can receive appropriate follow-up and treatment,” Cynthia Friedman, Director of Public Health Suffolk County Department of Health Services, explained in an email.
“Infants who screen positive … should be followed closely by their pediatricians and referred to specialists as needed to ensure early detection of problems with hearing, vision or development so that appropriate care and support can be implemented.”
Once the funding for the testing runs out, which will be around October, hospitals around the state will no longer perform the test.
Parents can ask for a urine test, which doctors estimate could cost between $50 and $100, but which insurance, likely, won’t pay for — especially if the child is asymptomatic.
Legislators, including Assemblymember Linda Rosenthal (D-NYC) plan to introduce a bill in January that would fund tests, in future years.
“We would advocate that that become a permanent part of infant testing,” said Sood. “There are diseases that are far less common than CMV that have made it into the newborn testing programs.”
Immunization
Amid pushes by some pharmacies to encourage people to get flu shots, health care experts suggest waiting until closer to late September, or early October, for the inoculation.
“Vaccine efficacy is about three to four months,” said Nachman. “If you get it in August, when the flu season hits in January, you may not have much protection.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends similar timing, around September or October.
At the same time, Nachman expects a new batch of Covid vaccines will be available around September.
She recommends getting both shots at the same time, which increases both vaccines’ effectiveness.
Pharmaceutical giant, Pfizer, and BioNTech, recently reported that a single combined shot for Covid and flu was not effective against influenza B, which means that people interested in receiving vaccines this fall should plan to get two shots.
Covid numbers
As for Covid, the current strain has made the rounds this summer.
“Everybody and their neighbor had Covid,” said Nachman, who added that the virus has spread across all ages. Covid was “clearly more infectious than what we had in the spring” and people were sicker for longer.
While the number of infected people has decreased, the start of the fall semester could trigger an increase.
Scenes from this weekend’s devastating storm
By Toni-Elena Gallo
Brookhaven Town Supervisor Dan Panico declares state of emergency due to severe rain event
Brookhaven Town Supervisor Daniel J. Panico declared a state of emergency at 8 a.m. on Aug. 19, due to severe rain in the Town of Brookhaven. Damage was especially severe on the North Shore, which experienced significant flooding.
The North Shore communities of the Town of Brookhaven were particularly hard-hit by the storm, which brought heavy rain, strong winds and flooding. Residents are urged to report storm-related issues by calling 631-451-TOWN (8696). For emergencies, dial 911. To report power outages or downed wires, contact PSEG at 800-490-0075 or visit www.psegliny.com.
To ensure accurate documentation of Brookhaven’s damages for potential federal, state and county funding, residents should complete Suffolk County’s online submission form, available on the Town’s website at www.brookhavenny.gov.
For ongoing updates on the storm, emergency contact information and additional resources, please visit the Town’s website.
Storm ravages the North Shore
By Toni-Elena Gallo with contributions by Lynn Hallarman and John Broven
Photo gallery to come.
According to the New York State Weather Risk Communication Center, Stony Brook recorded 9.4 inches of rain, in the 24 hours between Sunday, Aug. 18, and Monday, Aug. 19, amounting to a rainfall that is not just a once in a lifetime event —but a one-in-a-thousand year-event.
At a Monday press conference, County Executive Ed Romaine (R) spoke about the shock many Long Islanders experienced.
“This storm was not predicted for northern Suffolk,” he said. “This storm was over Connecticut and probably traveled south. When you get almost 10 inches of rain, that’s a once [in a lifetime event]. Unfortunately, these once-in-a-lifetime events seem to be coming more than that. I don’t think we’re going to have to wait another hundred years for another storm like this.”
“It tells you the impact that climate change is having on our weather,” the county executive added.
Stony Brook
In Stony Brook village, Harbor Road was split in half, and the pond at Avalon Nature Preserve ran off into nearby Stony Brook Harbor, taking dead fish and turtles with it.
“We have put drones up to document the before and after. We believe the damage will [amount to] $25 million, minimum. A minimum, between cleanup that’s required [not just here, but] other parts of the county, like Rocky Point,” Romaine said.
“We will document everything that we do, and all the expenditures that will be made, because we will be seeking some hope of state [and] federal reimbursement, because this is a huge hit on local government, on the town and on the villages along the North Shore,” he added.
At the press conference, Gloria Rocchio, president of The Ward Melville Heritage Organization, expressed her sadness and frustration, but was able to provide a small glint of hope.
“We did have a structural engineer come already, to check the [historic] Grist Mill … and it is, [fortunately] structurally sound. It was built in 1699. In 1750 the dam broke for the first time, and then once again in the 1800s, and the last time it broke was 1910,” she said.
Over at Stony Brook University, Judy Pittigher, an office administrator at the Renaissance School of Medicine, suffered an office full of water damage and a collapsed ceiling, forcing her to work from home for, at least, the remainder of the week.
“The squares of one doctor’s tile roof collapsed; the floor is disgusting, covered in mush. By the time I got there, half the rugs had already been pulled up … anything on them was destroyed, like boxes. One box had this past graduation’s programs, and someone picked it up and put it on my desk, and it was sopping wet,” she said.
Smithtown
In Smithtown, the Nissequogue River dam broke from the nearly 10 inches of rain. Two residents were saved by members of the Smithtown Fire Department, as they were trapped on the second floor of their home.
This is despite the town’s recent stormwater and drain infrastructure upgrades. However, Supervisor Ed Wehrheim (R) said that Smithtown was lucky, in comparison to the nearby villages, as a result of these proactive measures.
Rocky Point
Rocky Point was extensively impacted, as well.
“I tried to take a tour of most of the damage this morning … and several catchment basins overflowed,” Romaine said. “I went down Hagerman Landing Road, and the tops of all the cars in sight had mud. The mudslide that came down Hagerman Landing Road was, easily, 7 to 9 feet. It left its mark on the trees, and the houses, right up to the windows. We had to rescue someone down there from their rooftop.”
Port Jefferson
At about 3 a.m., Monday, a rush of stormwater cascaded down Main Street, past CVS, affecting local property and flooding the Port Jefferson fire station.
According to Fire Commissioner Thomas Meehan, the flooding rose to about 36 inches in the station, bringing sewage and other debris into the building.
“We were just recovering from the flooding we had three years ago,” he said.
Port Jefferson village officials assisted the fire station in the initial cleanup in the early hours of Monday morning.
Several businesses along the Main Street corridor were impacted, including Theatre Three [see editorial].
Huntington
According to a Town of Huntington press release, “The Highway Department took to the roads at the early onset of the storm. After surveying the town, they reported approximately 10 sink holes and minimal trees down. Flooding, however, was the predominant issue, with the town reporting heavy flooding in a few areas.”
All areas will be rebuilt
The Town of Brookhaven’s superintendent of highways, Dan Losquadro (R), explained how the topography of the North Shore created a disastrous alignment of storm conditions.
“Water picks up velocity, as it travels down into these natural drainage points,” he said. “Many of these areas were built a very long time ago. They just have catch basins, and do not have sumps recharge basins, as we call them. [Even so] recharge basins, optimally, can only store 8 inches of water, and a catch basin, no more than 2 to 3.”
“This exceeded even the capacity of a modern sump. So, we saw our systems completely overwhelmed by this volume of water in such a short period of time,” he elaborated.
As for what’s next, Losquadro said, “We will get into the engineering and estimating phase, throughout the day, and, probably, for days to come. We have, unfortunately, been through this process with FEMA, and the state before, even back to the recovery from [Hurricane] Sandy. We will do our best to secure funding, from the higher levels of government, to ease the burden on our local taxpayers because as the county executive and the supervisor [Dan Panico (R)] rightly pointed out, many of these projects are beyond our ability to fund on a local level.”
“This process will take a great deal of time,” Romaine said. “[This damage behind me] will require permitting, not only from D.C., but from the EPA, and from the Army Corps of Engineers as well.”
Both Losquadro and Romaine expressed that the parts of the county hit by this storm will be built back “stronger and better.”
“We will clean this up, whatever it takes. These are our communities, these are our friends, our neighbors. We’re one county, one people and we will work together,” Romaine said.
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