Two Northport High School seniors were honored at the April 8th Board of Education meeting for their accomplishments in the health and physical education departments. Hannah Morawski was named Physical Education Rotary Student of the Month while fellow senior Hunter Guarnaschelli was named Health Rotary Student of the Month.  

Hannah Morawski was described as being an “extension of her teachers” in her physical education classes by Director of Health, Physical Education and Athletics Mark Dantuono. Additionally, as coach of the girls’ basketball team, Hannah was instrumental in keeping the team motivated and positive during a difficult year.  

Fellow senior Hunter Guarnaschelli was recognized for his ongoing hard work in the health and sports medicine classes. In addition to supporting health teacher Tracey Braun in extending the district’s CPR training program to fifth grade, Hunter’s International Baccalaureate essay on the impact of sports and athletics on student athlete’s mental health was a key factor in his recognition as student of the month.  

Both Hannah and Hunter plan to study medicine next year at their respective universities; Hannah hopes to become an orthopedic surgeon while Hunter plans to pursue a career in anesthesiology.  

Both Northport High School boys and girls cross country track teams have captured the Suffolk County League III title, following undefeated seasons.  

For the girls team, Team/League MVP Allison Reid won all five of her races, with her closest race being a 19 second win over teammate Emily Wickard. Coach Gregg Cantwell described her as “a leader in every single way.” 

For the boys team, coach Jason Strom said this year was “really a team effort.” “Overall the way the team adapted to everything this year and came together” was what stood out and led to the win, according to Strom.  

Coach Cantwell wants this win to inspire future teams as well. “Hopefully this is the first year of a few [wins] in a row,” said Mr. Cantwell.  

On March 29, Northport High School senior, James Connor, was selected as one of the finalists in the regional Long Island Science and Engineering Fair (LISEF)! 

For his award-winning computer science project titled “Attributing State-backed Information Operations on Twitter through Machine Learning”, James designed an algorithm to associate disinformation posted on Twitter with those individuals responsible for the tweet. “While the utilization of disinformation by individuals is harmful, the tactic is worse when adopted by foreign nations who seek to influence politics, finances, or ideological beliefs around the world”, James stated in his paper. Despite the prevalence of state-backed disinformation campaigns, known as information operations, there remains little means for efficiently attributing an operation to the responsible nation-state. The result of James’ project was a model capable of attributing individual tweets from an information operation with an accuracy of approximately 92%.   

Additionally, Mr. Connor has received The Office of Naval Research Naval Science Award at the Long Island Science and Engineering Fair, which includes a monetary prize.

James and the other finalists from around the world will compete in the virtual 2021 Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF). Judging will take place from May 3-6, 2021 via video conferencing. Official Regeneron ISEF events will take place May 16-21, featuring distinguished panels, the Finalist Exhibit Hall, a Career Hall, the ISEF College Fair and a STEM Experiential Hall. 

Northport High School student and IB Visual Artist Olivia DeFeo received an honorable mention at the Huntington Arts Council High Arts Showcase XVII for her piece titled “Grandpa John.” This visual art exhibition is part of the JOURNEY Arts in Education Program, and Olivia is one of only five students awarded an honorable mention. 

Olivia’s piece, which will be displayed in the Huntington gallery until April 10th, depicts her grandfather who passed away during the pandemic. When describing her piece to the Huntington Arts Council, Olivia described it as “a quintessential representation of an Italian-American man living in Brooklyn, standing on his front stoop smoking a cigar with 

the American flag blowing in the breeze next to him.”  

Other artists from Northport in this exhibit are Emma Martensen, Justine Abarca, Ethan Koenig, Olivia Jaworski, Gabriella Liberatiscioli and Lindsey Papasian. Northport High School Art Teacher Constance Slogatt Wolf stated “Each of these artists presented work of a thoughtful nature, masterfully executed.” Art teachers John DeRosa, Robin O’Neill Gonzales, Anthony Klinger Cooley and Constance Sloggatt Wolf supported the students through the process.  

Following their Suffolk Conference I championship win, Northport High School boys varsity basketball team received proclamations from Town of Huntington Councilman Mark Cuthbertson. Thank you to Mr. Cuthbertson for his support and kind words to the team, who defeated the reigning state champions in March.