Emma S. Clark Memorial Library in Setauket. Photo by Elyse Sutton
By Sabrina Artusa
Emma S. Clark Memorial Library in Setauket is temporarily closed after staff noticed a strange odor on May 1. The smell was from a mold growth in a “contained area” of the library, necessitating repairs to the HVAC system.
The mold, Cladosporium, is described by the National Institutes of Health as one of the “most common fungal inhabitants worldwide.” It appears as black or brown spots in a wide variety of conditions and surfaces such as carpets, HVAC grills, wallpaper or wood surfaces and is particularly drawn to damp, not-well-ventilated places like bathrooms or basements.
According to library Director Ted Gutmann, the cause has not yet been determined and the remediation process is still underway.
The mold air-sampling concentration varied from light to heavy. Spore concentration levels of 1,500 and below are considered acceptable. Physical symptoms begin to materialize in people with normal immune functions when spore levels reach 10,000 or higher, although those with sensitive health may experience sneezing, an itchy throat or eyes, coughing, a runny nose or dry skin at a level of 3,000 spores.
Gutmann said reopening “could be a few weeks away.”
“We are working to make sure the process is completed as quickly and safely as possible,” he said. “As soon as we have more information, reopening updates will be posted on the library’s website and social media channels.”
The library will continue online zoom classes on the usual schedule but will extend holds and due dates of books, museum passes and items. The prolonged possession of library property will not accrue late fees and holds will be extended for one week past the date of reopening. The library will reopen once air quality tests confirm the mold’s eradication. The library card can be used at any Suffolk County library.
Gutmann and library staff still plan to have the Seed Library outdoors. “Emma Clark is still here for the community during building closure,” Gutmann said, adding that several upcoming events will be held.
The Catholic Health’s mobile outreach bus will park at the library on May 15 for free health screenings and E-Waste & Metal Recycling Day will be held in the parking lot on May 17. The Ellen Bodolub Chamber Music Concert on May 18 has been moved to the Setauket Neighborhood House.
The newly naturalized citizens with their certificates. Photo by William Stieglitz
From left, LIM co-executive director Joshua Ruff, Judge Bianco, Judge Choudhury, Judge Wicks (speaking), Judge Bulsara, Judge Scarcella. Photo by William Stieglitz
The presentation of the colors, by members of the Stony Brook and Nesconset fire departments. Photo by William Stieglitz
The new citizens with their friends and families. Photo by William Stieglitz
The new citizens after being naturalized. Photo by William Stieglitz
Gelinas students Jordan and Ada singing the national anthem, with the presentation of the colors behind them. Photo by William Stieglitz
Dr. Rahul Tripathi (Behind him, L to R_ Judge Bianco, Judge Choudhury, Judge Bulsara, Judge Scarcella). Photo by William Stieglitz
2nd Circuit Judge Joseph Bianco speaking to the crowd. Photo by William Stieglitz
Attendees taking the Naturalization Oath. Photo by William Stieglitz
Gelinas Student String Quintet. Photo by William Stieglitz
By William Stieglitz
Fifty citizenship candidates originating from 29 countries gathered with their families at Stony Brook’s Long Island Museum to be naturalized as U.S. citizens the morning of May 7. The countries of origin spanned five continents, including nations such as Ecuador, Israel, Nigeria and Taiwan.
The idea to hold the ceremony at the museum began with its new Building the Ballot Box exhibit, which chronicles the history of democracy on Long Island. “That project really was something that got us thinking about the possibility,” explained LIM co-executive director Joshua Ruff, noting that the Eastern District Court had held similar ceremonies at Sagamore Hill and Fire Island National Seashore. The museum then worked with the district court, alongside the Honorable Robert A. Katzmann Justice for All: Courts and the Community Initiative and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to bring the event to fruition.
The ceremony, held on the lawn outside the carriage exhibit, began with the “presentation of the colors” for the American flag by members of the Stony Brook and Nesconset fire departments, followed by Paul J. Gelinas Junior High students singing the national anthem. A student string quintet, also from Gelinas, provided further music throughout the ceremony led by Magistrate Judge James Wicks.
Judge Wicks led the group in the call and response of the naturalization oath. The event featured four other judges, including Judge Sanket Bulsara, who led the group in the Pledge of Allegiance; Judges Nusrat Choudhury and Louis Scarcella, who distributed the naturalization certificates; and Second Circuit Judge Joseph Bianco, who attended as the keynote speaker.
Bianco told the new citizens that this ceremony was not about them losing their connections to their countries of origin, but about adding something new. “You should always hold close to your hearts your native land, its people [and] its customs… that is an extremely important part of who you are deep in your soul.” He emphasized that they should regard the United States as being as much their country as anyone else’s. “Don’t let anyone ever tell you otherwise. As of this day, your citizenship stands equal to that of every single other American.”
He encouraged attendees to become active citizens by voting in elections and aiding those less fortunate. “The truest measure of what we would call a great nation,” he said, “is how that nation treats those who are most in need — the most vulnerable, the most voiceless among all of us.” The League of Women Voters was in attendance as volunteers and said they registered about 20 people to vote.
Bianco, lastly, related his own family’s history of immigration, telling the stories of how his grandfather immigrated from Italy in the 1920s to pursue a better life, and how one of the newest members of his family, his 11-year-old son George, was adopted from China. “He’s a naturalized citizen just like you.”
Bianco elaborated on the opportunity the country gave him, and said, ”This nation provides a path for its citizens willing to take the freedom and opportunity bestowed upon them, work hard, and then watch their world light up,” he said as the clouds that had hovered all morning parted above the crowd. “Just like that sun.”
The event’s final speaker was one of the 50 newly naturalized citizens himself, Dr. Rahul Tripathi. A physician from Stony Brook Hospital, he spoke about how he immigrated from India when he was just 11 months old. “I grew up entirely in The United States,” he said. “This country raised me. I went to school here, learned how to navigate two cultures, and carried with me a quiet awareness that while I might have been born elsewhere, my future was being built here every day.”
Tripathi spoke too on the demanding nature of his job, and what his personal experiences allowed him to bring to the role. “In my training, I’ve had the privilege of caring for patients who remind me of my own family, immigrants whose first language isn’t English, who are trying to understand a complex health care system while also trying to make rent or get their children to school. I’ve been able to sit beside them not just as a doctor, but as someone who sees them, who understands the quiet bravery it takes to start over in a new country, and call it home. ”
Each new citizen was gifted a one-year membership to the museum and had the opportunity to explore the buildings. “We just want as many people as possible to come and take advantage of what we have to offer the community,” said co-executive director Sarah Abruzzi, emphasizing the museum’s variety of rotating exhibits and programming. “We do this for the community. We want everyone to feel that this is their museum.”
For many of the attendees, the path to citizenship was long. “In the past when I’ve talked to people after this ceremony, you hear numbers like 10 years, 12 years, 15 years,” said Bianco. “So that’s why there’s this joy.” Nurjahan Akter, originally from the UK, said it took her almost 10 years to become a citizen alongside her husband. Isaac Parra, another of the newly naturalized, came here from Colombia when he was 19, and is now 28.
“I left a lot behind,” said Parra. “All my family, my friends. I really had an established life back there. So it was definitely scary not knowing what was going to happen. And I’m glad it worked out this way.” He added that “it is definitely possible” for those who want to achieve the same goal. “I would encourage anyone who is seeking citizenship to apply as soon as they can.”
For more information on the Long Island Museum, you can visit its website at https://longislandmuseum.org.
For information on how to apply for naturalizstion visit www.uscis.gov.
Nursing students use mannequins and hospital equipment to train for various health care challenges for future patients. Photo by Jeanne Neville/Stony Brook Medicine
Using immersive virtual reality that simulate real-world healthcare settings in a simulated hospital room, emergency room, intensive care unit or patient homes, nursing students use technology to train in a low-stress setting. Photo from Stony Brook Medicine
Nursing students use mannequins and hospital equipment to train for various health care challenges for future patients. Photo by Jeanne Neville/Stony Brook Medicine
By Daniel Dunaief
Dr. Patricia Bruckenthal Photo from Stony Brook School of Nursing
People put their lives in the hands of unseen airline pilots who have enhanced and sharpened their skills using simulators. These simulators can prepare them for a wide range of conditions and unexpected challenges that enhance their confidence on the fly.
The same approach holds true for nurses, who seek to help patients whose symptoms may change even as the nurse is working with several people at the same time.
In an initiative designed to provide in depth training to nurses throughout the state, while filling a shortage of these vital professionals, New York State recently announced a $62 million contribution to three nursing simulation centers: SUNY Buffalo, SUNY Canton and Stony Brook University. With $10 million of state funds that the university will match with $10.5 million of its own money, SBU will increase the number of nurses it trains.
“We are very fortunate here at Stony Brook that we get many, many qualified applicants for our nursing program [for whom] we have not, to date, been able to offer seats,” said Dr. Patricia Bruckenthal, Dean of the School of Nursing at Stony Brook. This will enable the school, as well as the other programs, to train more students.
Effective training
While Stony Brook offers nursing simulation training, the additional funds will greatly expand the size and scope of that effort.
The NEXUS-Innovation Center, which stands for Nursing EXcellence Using Simulation, will take about two years to build and will have a phased in enrollment approach. In the third year, the school will add 56 baccalaureate nursing students. In the fifth year, Stony Brook will have space for 80 more students.
The current simulation center is about 1,850 square feet, which includes a nursing skills lab, exam room and debrief/ flex room.
The new center will add 15,000 square feet.
The simulation center will have 16 hospital style beds, with all the equipment nurses would normally see in a hospital room, including suction, air, oxygen, otoscope, ophthalmoscope, monitoring, and a call bell system. The center will also have eight examination rooms.
The proposal also includes the design of an apartment with a laundry, kitchen, bathroom and shower, helping train nurses who will help people in residential settings.
Among other features, the center will have a control room where instructors and operators manipulate the AV equipment and patient simulations, observe and document performance, collect data and prepare for debriefing.
Bruckenthal is planning to hire a faculty member in the next few months to become simulation coordinator who will work with the Director of the Learning Resource Center.
Within the next two years, Stony Brook anticipates hiring one more nursing faculty Clinical Simulation Educator and one Simulation Operations Specialist, who will ensure that all technical aspects of the center are functioning correctly. This new hire will also troubleshoot equipment, while performing emergency repairs on equipment and arranging for vendor repairs.
All of this equipment and expertise provides opportunities to create scenarios that build expertise. The conditions can change, as a patient goes from an expected outcome to one in which the conditions rapidly deteriorate.
In addition to expanding capacity and giving nurses an opportunity to understand and react to patients who have a wide range of conditions they might not see during routine clinical training, the center will also enable these students to build their competence and confidence in a low-stakes environment.
“It provides for a safe learning environment,” said Bruckenthal. “Students can make mistakes without risking patient safety. It’s much less stressful.”
Future nurses can also continue to work in the simulation lab on a particular skill until they feel confident in their abilities.
Several studies have validated the effectiveness of educating and preparing nurses in a simulated setting.
A landmark study in 2014 conducted by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing compared the clinical competence of nurses in training across three groups: one that had no simulation training, a group with 25 percent of their clinical training replaced by simulation, and a third group with 50 percent clinical training through simulation.
The nursing certification pass rate scores were the same for all three groups. Simulation trained nurses performed as well or better in areas like critical thinking and clinical judgment.
Additionally, follow up studies showed that employers found that nurses trained using high fidelity simulation were just as effective as those who were trained in the clinic in areas including patient safety, communication and evidence-based practices..
The center can also pivot to provide nurses with training for expanding local health threats, such as a simulated version of a measles outbreak, Lyme disease or a spike in other conditions that might cause a surge in hospital visits.
“We can build and design cases that meet those needs,” said Bruckenthal.
The center can build in disaster training, giving nurses a chance to interact with colleagues in other health professions during any of a host of other scenarios. When interacting with other healthcare professionals, nurses can practices the SBAR technique, in which they describe the Situation, provide Background, give an Assessment, and offer a Recommendation.
The expanded simulation center will incorporate design elements such as soundproofing, lighting and ventilation and will align with the university’s goals towards sustainability and green-oriented design.
Long term commitment
Bruckenthal has been contributing to Stony Brook for 44 years, ever since she graduated from the nursing school in 1981.
Her first job as a nurse was at the newly opened hospital. She and Carolyn Santora, Stony Brook Medicine Chief Nursing Officer, have worked together since 1981 and went through the Stony Brook master’s program together. They have established the Stony Brook Nursing Alliance.
Bruckenthal is energized by the opportunities ahead.
“Nursing is one of those careers where you can always keep yourself new and find new and exciting opportunities,” she said.
In the early days of her nursing career, she recalled that nurses weren’t exposed to all the types of conditions they might face in various settings.
“Having the opportunity to have nurses practice in this low risk environment and build that confidence and skills is a better way to prepare nurses to be ready for the work force,” she said
With nurses involved in so many aspects of patient care, Bruckenthal dreams of creating a nursing innovation incubator.
Nurses can offer insights into developing innovative ways to improve health care, whether working with biomedical engineers or biomedical informatics and can help design human-centered technology. Such a center could allow nurses to learn more about technology and business while enabling them to become leaders and entrepreneurs.
“Nurses have a problem-solving mindset,” Bruckenthal explained. “Sustainable and scalable solutions are really going to take a joint effort between educators, clinicians and industry partners.”
Last chance to view Building the Ballot Box at the Long Island Museum. The exhibit closes on May 18. Photo courtesy of LIM
By Heidi Sutton
On International Museum Day, Sunday, May 18, the Long Island Museum in Stony Brook is partnering with The Heckscher Museum of Art in Huntington and the Whaling Museum in Cold Spring Harbor to celebrate the important roles museums and other cultural institutions play in our communities.
At the Long Island Museum, 1200 Route 25A, Stony Brook, visitors can enjoy free admission to the museum from noon to 5 p.m., special “I Love Long Island Museums” buttons (while supplies last), and receive 10% off your purchase at the Gift Shop. This will also be the last day to view Building the Ballot Box: Long Island’s Democratic History and the Colors of Long Island student art exhibition in the History Museum. www.longislandmuseum.org
At the Heckscher Museum, 2 Prime Ave., Huntington, visitors will enjoy free admission to view exhibitions Robert Graham Carter: The Art of Reflection and Long Island’s Best 2025 from noon to 5 p.m. Take home a free button and tote bag too while supplies last. www.heckscher.org
And over at the Whaling Museum, 301 Main St., Cold Spring Harbor, visitors will receive a complimentary pin for every paid admssion, library passes included from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Available in five different designs, the special pins are the Museum’s way of thanking the community for their support. Visitors can view the Monsters & Mermaids exhibit, make up-cycled ocean crafts, take part in a Release the Kraken scavenger hunt and tour the museum’s exhibits. www.cshwhalingmuseum.org
Esther Takeuchi. Photo by Roger Stoutenburgh/Brookhaven National Laboratory
By Daniel Dunaief
Daniel Dunaief
Esther Takeuchi has won numerous awards and received plenty of honors for her work.
In 2009, President Barack Obama presented her with a National Medal of Technology and Innovation, the highest honor possible for technological achievement in the country.
She has also been elected as a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences,received the 2013 E.V. Murphree Award in Industrial and Engineering Chemistry from the American Chemical Society and was selected as a Fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering and the American Association for the Advancement of Science, among others.
Takeuchi, who has over 150 patents to her name and is Distinguished Professor in Materials Science and Chemical Engineering at Stony Brook University and Chair of the Interdisciplinary Science Department at Brookhaven National Laboratory, spoke with Times Beacon Record News Media about a range of topics.
“In the long run, I think energy storage can significantly improve energy availability and affordability,” said Takeuchi. “We end up throwing a lot of [energy] away.”
Indeed, in a widely cited statistic based on a 2021 study, 65 percent of energy produced is thrown away. Energy from any source, whether it’s fossil fuels, sunlight, wind or nuclear, is inefficient, with losses from heat, limitations on technology, friction with machinery and incomplete combustion, among a host of factors.
“Let’s use it more effectively, where we can follow the load,” urged Takeuchi.
At the same time, Takeuchi recognizes the importance of ensuring the safety of energy storage, including for the proposed storage facilities in Setauket.
“The Fire Department and police need to be brought into the discussion,” she said. “A lot of these folks are extremely knowledgeable.”
Community education, involvement and awareness is necessary for any such project, ensuring that the appropriate people are informed and know how to respond to any crisis.
Energy needs
Future energy needs are considerably higher than they are today, thanks to the demands of artificial intelligence.
Large data centers that house the kinds of information necessary for AI are “incredibly power hungry,” Takeuchi said. If AI continues to expand at the current pace, it alone will use more energy than the world makes today.
“We need to have broader sources of energy” so it is available, she added. “Where is going to come from?”
Indeed, Takeuchi and her collaborators are working on energy storage that doesn’t use the kind of lithium-ion batteries that power much of consumer electronics. Lithium ion batteries are compact and are highly reactive, packing energy into a small volume. If something goes wrong, these batteries are flammable.
“We are working on a project at Stony Brook and Brookhaven National Laboratory where we’ve demonstrated electrolytes that don’t burn at all,” she said. “You can put a butane lighter on them and they won’t burn.”
To be sure, these batteries, which would be larger than the current systems, are a “long way” from commercialization, but it’s possible.
Still, Takeuchi is excited about rechargeable water-based batteries. She’s focused on making sure the materials are elements that are used broadly, instead of exotic materials mined in only one place on Earth. She’s also looking to create a cycle life that’s as high as possible.
Aqueous materials have a lower cycle life. She and her team are trying to understand why and overcome those challenges, which would enable these batteries to be recharged more times before degrading.
Funding environment
The current funding environment for science and technology has reached an uncertain time, Takeuchi said.
“One of the ways the United States has been so effective at competing economically on a global level is through science and technology,” she said. During many decades, the country has been an innovation leader as measured by the number of patents issued.
Driven by the Manhattan Project that built the atomic bomb, by frenzied competition with the Soviet Union after the launch of Sputnik in October of 1957 amid the Cold War, and by the drive to send people to the moon in the 1960’s, the country has attracted top talent from around the world while making important discoveries and creating new technology. Realizing that science and technology is a driver of future commercial and economic growth, other countries have been actively recruiting scientists concerned about the future funding landscape to their countries. This creates the potential for a brain drain.
If the United States gives up its leadership position when other nations are charging ahead, it could take a long time to recover the current standing, not to mention to mirror the successes and personal and professional opportunities from previous generations, said Takeuchi.
“Science is critical to lead us to the future we all want to live in,” she added.
The worlds of art and politics might seem quite separate, but here is a life that bridges them both. Two lives, in fact.
In one of those chance happenings that amounts to little more than a footnote but turns the tide of history, William Luers became the new ambassador to Czechoslovakia in 1983. It was a time of tumult in the Soviet-bloc country, as the unlikelypoet-playwright, Vaclav Havel, was leading a peaceful uprising to oust the Communist state. Havel was in and out of prison and appeared to be a long-shot among other dissidents to triumph against the Soviets. Nonetheless Luers recognized the potential of the cultural leader and contributed to his very survival and political successes that resulted in the independence of Czechoslovakia in 1989 and the subsequent creation of the Czech Republic.
In betting on Havel, Luers was in fact recognizing the pairing of politics and art that informed his own life.
Luers was born in Springfield, Illinois, and attended high school there, where he played basketball with a distinct advantage. He was exceptionally tall. After majoring in chemistry and math and graduating from Hamilton College in upstate New York, he went on to switch to the humanities and study philosophy at Northwestern University, then joined the Navy. It was 1952 and the United States was at war with Korea. After graduating from officers’ candidate school and being discharged in 1957, he entered the Foreign Service and in 1958 earned a master’s degree in Russian Studies from Columbia University. He spoke fluent Russian, Spanish and Italian, and worked at embassies in Moscow, Rome and other capitals in Europe and Latin America. Before he went to Czechoslovakia, he was ambassador to Venezuela.
His most important post was his last. He protected Havel by inviting dozens of American cultural celebrities to visit Prague, and after meeting the playwright, “then at news conferences outside the reach of the government-controlled Czech news media, recast him in a protective armor of global publicity,” according to The New York Times. By burnishing Havel’s name “as a writer but not as a statesman, which might have increased Havel’s perils,” continued The Times’ reporter Luer saved him.
Some of the celebrity visitors included John Updike, Edward Albee, E.L. Doctorow, Kurt Vonnegut, William Styron, Philippe de Montebello, director of New York’s Metropolitan Museum, theater director Joseph Papp, abstract painter Richard Diebenkorn and Katharine Graham, publisher of The Washington Post.
Since Luers came from a culturally prominent family, many of these people were his friends and they understood their purpose in visiting. “The underlying message…was that harming Mr. Havel might risk incalculable international consequences for the Czech government,” according to The Times. In fact, Luers used the arts to promote, protect and ultimately elect Vaclav Havel as leader of the Czech Republic.
After 29 years in the Foreign Service, during which time he became an aide to Secretary of State Henry Kissinger (and in 1974 personally delivered President Nixon’s resignation letter over the Watergate scandal to him), Luers went on to be president of the Metropolitan Museum of Art for 13 years. Like Havel, the arc of his life spanned politics and art.
William Luers died this past Saturday, May 10, in his home in Washington Depot, Connecticut, at the age of 95. His greatest satisfaction was the success of Vaclav Havel, according to The Times. “The Communist system was deeply flawed. It underestimated cultural leaders’ influence on the people.”
GSA Troop 833 during a recent clean-up of the PJS/Setauket Greenway Trail. Photo from Herb Mones
KEEP BROOKHAVEN BEAUTIFUL and Keep America Beautiful, Inc., in cooperation with Supervisor Panico and the Town of Brookhaven, invite you to join the Great American CleanupTM. Every spring, individuals and groups join the Great American Cleanup, the nation’s largest organized cleanup, beautification, and community improvement program.
The facts on litter are sobering. According to the most recent litter study there are more than 50 billion pieces of litter on the ground. That’s 152 pieces of litter for every American. But there is good news. In the past ten years, littering along US roadways is down 54%! Last year alone, over 64,000 clean-up events were held in the US, resulting in over 146,600 ACRES of parks, public lands, waterways, trails and playgrounds cleaned up by volunteers like YOU!
So, don’t wait for someone else to do it…pick a location…and volunteer for this year’s Great Brookhaven Cleanup! Join thousands of Brookhaven residents to help make Brookhaven … a cleaner, greener, more beautiful Town!
Identify a specific site that you would like to improve.
Visit the site to plan your event and get permission from the property owner if necessary.
Possible activities:
Litter cleanups on streets, parks, playgrounds
River, lake and seashore cleanups
Nature trails, woodland trails and field cleanups
School cleanups
Commercial Site / Shopping Center cleanups
Beautification / community improvement projects
Recruit family members, friends or neighbors to help.
Several organized events will be taking part in this year’s clean up including:
Farmingville
Farmingvile Residents Association will hold its 19th annual Spring Clean-Up at Triangle Park, corner of Woodycrest Drive and Horseblock Road, Farmingville from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Supplies will be provided. 631-260-7411
Lake Ronkonkoma
Lake Ronkonkoma Improvement Group hosts a clean-up of Lake Ronkonkoma on May 17 at 10 a.m. Meet at Michael Murphy Park. Call 631-451-6222 for more info.
Port Jefferson Station
— The Port Jefferson Station-Terryville Chamber of Commerce is teaming up with the Port Jefferson Rotary Club and Old Town Blooms for a clean up of at the PJST Chamber Train Car, corner of Route 112 and Nesconset Highway in Port Jefferson on Saturday, May 17 from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m.; Jayne Blvd, behind D & D from 10 a.m. to noon; and any area along Old Town Road, Crowley, School St, Block Blvd or Yale Street Parks from noon to 5 p.m. (on your own). 631-821-1313
— Three Village Community Trust’s Friends of the Greenway will hold a Setauket to Port Jeff. Station Greenway clean-up on Saturday, May 17 at 9 a.m. It will start at the Port Jefferson Station trailhead at NYSDOT parking lot by Routes 112 & 25A. www.threevillagecommunitytrust.org
*If any organization would like to add their event to this list, please email [email protected]
'The Foamies' by Jonathan Spector will be on view at Gallery North through June 22. Image courtesy of Gallery North
Up next at Gallery North, 90 North Country Road, Setauket is their annual The Winner’s Circle exhibition celebrating the award-winning artists of the 2024 Outdoor Art Show and Music Festival.
The Winner’s Circle exhibition features recipients of the Best in Show award and best in categories including mixed media, fiber art, jewelry, painting, photography, and pottery at the 2024 Outdoor Art Show and Music Festival hosted every September by GalleryNorth. Featuring some of the finest art and craft from regional artists and artisans over its long 60-year history, the festival is a vital part of the regional art community and a significant tradition for the public. The 2024 festival judges, Nina Sangimino, Curator of the Long Island Museum in Stony Brook; Frances Campani, painter and associate professor of architecture at the NY Institute of Technology, and contemporary artist, Scott Farrell evaluated over 80 exhibitors to present the 14 available awards.
This exhibition is generously sponsored by the Field Family, Pet ER 24/7, Jefferson’s Ferry, and Suffolk County’s Department of Economic Development and Planning.
On view from May 15 to June 22, the exhibition features works by artists Paul Speh, Cassandra Voulo, Laura and Dennis Kemple, Juan Cruz Reverberi, William Demaria, Galina Carroll, Jessamyn Go, Chloe Wang, Cassandra Hussey, Susan Rodgers, Mary Jane van Zeijts, Jonathan Spector, Ash Garcia-Diaz, Sophia Syritsyna, and Eileen Cassidy.
The community is invited to an opening reception on Thursday, May 15 from6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Meet the artists and view their work, and enjoy live music by Kane Daily. Refreshments will be served. For more information, call 631-751-2676 or visit www.gallerynorth.org.
Joe Salamone, Founder & Exec Dir, Long Island Coalition Against Bullying, at Governor Hochul's press conference on May 13.
The Long Island Coalition Against Bullying (LICAB) joined New York Governor Kathy Hochul in Farmingdale on May 13 to celebrate the newly announced K-12 bell-to-bell cell phone ban, a major component of the state budget expected to pass in Albany. This first-of-its-kind measure makes New York the largest state in the nation to adopt a school-day cell phone ban, and LICAB hails it as a transformative win for student safety and well-being.
The new policy prohibits student cell phone use throughout the school day – from the first bell to the last – across all New York State public schools. It is designed to reduce distractions, protect students from cyberbullying, and restore in-person connection and focus in classrooms.
At the press conference, LICAB Founder & Executive Director Joe Salamone spoke alongside Governor Hochul to highlight the policy’s impact and the years of advocacy leading to this moment.
“Smartphones are valuable tools, but without limits, they do real harm. We see it every day. Bullying no longer hides in stairways. It happens in group chats, in videos recorded without consent, often memorializing what should have been fleeting moments,” said Salamone. “Today, we begin restoring something essential – real childhood, real social growth, and real community.”
Founded in 2013, LICAB is the region’s only nonprofit solely dedicated to preventing and addressing bullying. The organization has long advocated for statewide protections for students, including its support of last year’s Safe For Kids Act, also championed by Governor Hochul.
Salamone noted the positive impact of similar cell phone restrictions already in place in select schools across Long Island.
“In over 200 classroom visits I made this school year alone, administrators who’ve implemented similar bans estimate an 85% reduction in bullying and peer conflict. The results speak for themselves – this is no longer theory, it’s proven,” he added.
The policy gives local school districts the flexibility to implement the ban in a way that fits their unique communities, while ensuring a uniform standard of safety and focus for all students statewide.
“Come September, students all across New York will walk into schools no longer tethered to the pressures of their phones,” said Salamone. “They will be freer – freer to learn, to connect, and to thrive. This is not just policy, it’s progress. It’s protection. And today, thanks to Governor Hochul, it’s a reality.”
For more information about the Long Island Coalition Against Bullying and its mission, visit www.licab.org.
About LICAB:
The Long Island Coalition Against Bullying is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to emphasizing the importance of bully-free communities on Long Island through education, increased awareness, and therapeutic support for children and families. LICAB’s services include school programming, family advocacy, peer support groups, and community education.
The Smithtown Library's Main Branch reopened the first floor on May 5. Photo by Sabrina Artusa
For eight months, the Smithtown library’s Main Branch on North Country Road was closed. Readers were able to visit other branches, but the library is more than just a place to exchange books.
The library is certainly a hub of ideas and information, full of fiction, nonfiction and history. It is also an essential resource for those who need to use a computer but don’t have one, or would like access to free wifi. One of the few places where economic class doesn’t play a role, the library provides a haven with no spending expectations. You can learn how to play mahjong or fold a piece of paper into an intricate origami figure. Gardening clubs and sewing clubs meet regularly. Offering a podcast and community room, the library provided the setting for numerous friendly conversations.
Walking through the doors again on May 5, patrons are greeted by friendly staff. In the entrance corridor, a television plays recordings from the destructive rains of August 19 and a sped-up recording of the subsequent work. In one recording, water pushes furniture and shelves around like toys. Books float away and out of the recording. In another, the murky brown water slowly fills the hall until suddenly, the pressure pushes out the wall. In a picture, books lay in piles across the floor–any reader would cringe at the sight. The library is back though, and will return fully in coming months, with the bottom and second floors open and services and programs once again available. However, the status of libraries is precarious as the administration looks to cut funding.
When the Smithtown building closed, many card-holders travelled to other branches. When the federal government began eliminating grants to libraries, we imagined what we would do without an accessible library.
The Institute of Museum and Library Services is not guaranteed. While libraries will still exist without the small federal agency, which only employed around 70 people and from the perspective of the federal government is unnecessary, they may not receive grants for programming or internships. Recently, a judge blocked a move to place its employees on temporary leave, giving the institute a reprieve. However, the agency is still at risk of getting washed out; it is possible resources and programs will get carried away by the swift stream of government efficiency.
In the meantime though, the wonderful librarians and administrators at the Smithtown library are ensuring that residents have access to the wealth of knowledge inside.
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