The Bellport High School Class of 2021 demonstrated adaptability and resiliency to overcome a pandemic era and to celebrate an important milestone in their academic careers during the annual commencement ceremony, held in-person on June 25. Leading up to the ceremony, the local police and fire departments escorted students, parents and family as they drove through the middle of Bellport Village from Bellport Middle School to the high school grounds where they were greeted by the administration and members of the board of education.

“Pomp and Circumstance” was played over the PA system as students took their places on the field with family watching from the sidelines. After Student Council President Jack Frankie led the salute to the flag, he welcomed the graduates and reflected on his remembrances of high school. He also told his peers that the pandemic had taught him to appreciate every aspect of life.

During his remarks to the class, Principal Timothy Hogan encouraged students to cherish life processes and experiences and to find solutions to problems. “Strive to be the solution in every situation — not the problem,” he said. He also whole-heartedly and with much emotion thanked the students for his long-time career and told them he will miss the relationships he has made along the way.

Essayist Charlotte Kellogg, whose task was to reflect on high school, spoke about how relationships gave them the strength to transition from adolescence to adulthood. “We all took that leap together…from merely listening to voicing our own thoughts and opinions,” Charlotte said. “We discovered our own truths together.”

Salutatorian Victoria Monte explained the first lines of Morgan Harper Nichols’ poem “Let July be July. Let August be August” to explain that the moment in which they are living, graduation, is the only moment that should matter right now. “The present is the only concrete thing we have, so make the absolute most of it, even when that means still having a really hard day,” Victoria said. “Recognize the ability that you have to do what you hope to do and the value that every moment holds.”

Valedictorian Anthony Notartomaso talked about the future and noted that, based on the last year, no one really knows what the future holds. “That mystery (not knowing the future) doesn’t have to make us live in fear,” Anthony said. “For the future is not completely out of our control. Simple choices and actions in the past have led us here today. Likewise, our choices of today will mold our future.”

After the celebratory speeches, the retirement of social studies teacher Paul Feltman and long-time athletic office secretary Marybeth Stitt were acknowledged with the presentation of honorary diplomas. Student Council President Jack Frankie also presented Mr. Hogan with a gift to recognize his retirement as principal.

Superintendent of Schools Dr. Joseph Giani certified the diplomas and announced that the seniors had completed the requirements for graduation. Board President E. Anne Hayes then led the students in the traditional moving of the tassel, symbolizing that the seniors were now alumni of the South Country Central School District. The evening was punctuated by a fireworks display by Grucci Fireworks and students then joined their family and friends for photos and to say farewell to friends, administrators and faculty.

Bellport High School students enrolled in Allison Schelin’s Adapted Education Living Environment class have been growing and harvesting vegetables in the library’s hydroponic garden.

The hydroponic garden was made possible through a 2020 Agriculture in the Classroom Grant from the Suffolk County Soil and Water Conservation District. Through the grant, the district purchased a Tower Garden Flex, which contains the structure for the hydroponic garden.

After they assembled the tower garden, the students germinated seeds in rockwool and later transplanted them to the hydroponic structure. From that point forward, the students maintained the garden by testing the water’s PH levels, refilling the reservoir and adding nutrients.

The garden was so successful, that students were able to harvest the produce and prepare harvest snacks in the library, library media specialist Colleen Oates-Robesch said. They also made salads, as well as tomato, basil and mozzarella skewers. The harvest was abundant enough so that students were able to bring produce home to their families.

“Providing students who might not otherwise have the opportunity to grow food and/or consume fresh produce is the focus of the grant,” Ms. Oates-Robesch said.

On Thursday, June 3, the Suffolk County School Superintendents Association continued its long-standing tradition of recognizing the highest-achieving graduates in Suffolk County. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 27th Annual Celebration of the Class of 2021 Valedictorians was presented as a virtual event. School superintendents, valedictorians and their parents gathered in small groups, within their own school districts, to view the event and celebrate the outstanding accomplishments of this year’s valedictorians.

SCSSA President and Center Moriches School District Superintendent of Schools Dr. Ronald M. Masera hosted the event, thanked the association’s corporate partners for their support in helping to make the event possible and congratulated the valedictorians on their success.

“Some of the most highly regarded schools in the nation are located in Suffolk County,” Dr. Masera said. “To achieve the status of a Suffolk County valedictorian is an extraordinary achievement.”

This year’s keynote speaker was Jon Gordon, well-known author of several books including “The Energy Bus” and “The Power of Positive Leadership.” He spoke to the valedictorians about the benefits of positive leadership and the true meaning of encouraging others to succeed.

“You have the power to transform the world,” Mr. Gordon said. “You decide your future. Be a positive leader and impact the people around you. Remember, the best is yet to come.”

The SCSSA would like to congratulate all of this year’s valedictorians, including Bellport High School Class of 2021 Valedictorian Anthony Notartomaso.

This year, on behalf of the SCSSA, South Country Central School District Superintendent of Schools Dr. Joseph Giani presented Anthony with a commemorative program, congratulatory video, a certificate of achievement, a cherished childhood storybook, “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!” by Dr. Seuss and Jon Gordon’s book “The Energy Bus.” The program and video, which was created especially for the Class of 2021, featured information about each valedictorian’s school district, their formal senior yearbook photo, their college of choice and anticipated major. The choice of the storybook was certainly appropriate, as this year’s valedictorians plan to attend some of the most prestigious institutions of higher learning in the nation.

In addition to recognizing the valedictorians, the SCSSA and their corporate partners awarded scholarships in every high school in Suffolk County to a highly deserving graduating senior planning to pursue a career in education or social services. These worthy scholarship recipients were selected by their own school districts for this special recognition.

Bellport High School students brought the printed black and white words of poems from the page to the stage during a Poetry Alive! performance and two workshops. A grant provided by the South Country Education Foundation provided the special English language arts activity that was hosted virtually by the Poetry Alive! performance group out of Asheville, North Carolina.

During the performance, Poetry Alive! presented popular and not so well-known poetic verse as theater and transformed poems into scripts and the students as actors. With the high school library as a stage, students participated in an interactive experience that sparked their interest in the poetic word. Students enrolled in English Language Arts, English as a New Language and public speaking and debate classes learned to express themselves through such poems as Robert Frost’s “The Road Not Taken,” Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven” and Langston Hughes’ “Harlem.” Many of the students had the opportunity to try their hand at blackout poetry, a way of changing the meaning of a poem by blacking out the words of a poem except for a select few.

Bellport High School’s top seniors were recognized during the annual senior awards ceremony, held in the gymnasium on June 7. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the former senior awards format was divided alphabetically into three separate assemblies to allow for parents to attend. Additionally, the ceremony was livestreamed via a link posted to the high school webpage, Grade 12 Google Classroom and the Senior Awards and Recognition Google Classroom.

In all, 138 awards were presented to the Class of 2021’s highest achieving students who received community scholarships, local and regional recognitions, department honors, military honors, student government recognitions and athletic awards.

During his opening address, Class President David Carlson described his classmates as resilient individuals who learned to adapt to the many challenges they faced through the pandemic. “Life will constantly throw curveballs at you. Life will constantly keep you guessing,” David said. “We’ve been through COVID, so I can guarantee you can get through much more.”

Principal Timothy Hogan said he was proud of the individuals who are receiving “special and meaningful awards.” He called each student to the podium as their photo and list of recognitions flashed on a screen. Each of the students received a senior tote bag, containing the honors they received, and copies of the senior awards programs.