Westhampton Beach Middle School students Ellie Mett and James Ostenen have been named local winners in the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 535’s annual Patriot’s Pen essay contest. The students wrote the winning essays on the topic of “My Pledge to Our Veterans.”

Date Added: 2/1/2023

Five Westhampton Beach High School students have been named local winners in the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 535’s annual Voice of Democracy essay contest.

Their stellar essays were selected from a field of 90 essays and written on the contest theme of “Why a Veteran Is Important.”

Achieving honors in the Voice of Democracy essay contest and winning $100 and a chance to earn accolades at the state level were Katie Baker, Maiya Boughal, Theo Grellet-Aumont, Emma O’Came and Maria Sfyroeras.

Date Added: 1/31/2023

For his unwavering patriotism and dedication to the goals of the VFW, Westhampton Beach High School social studies teacher Korey Williams has been named the 2023 VFW New York State Teacher of the Year. This is the second time he has earned the honor. He was previously named in 2018.

Williams earned the honor after receiving a nomination from local VFW Post 5350. He is known for supporting the post’s annual Patriot’s Pen and Voice of Democracy student essay contests and inviting post members to tell their stories to students every November.

Williams, who has been teaching in the Westhampton Beach School District for the past 28 years, said he is honored by the recognition.

In addition to teaching, Williams coaches the Westhampton Beach junior varsity boys and girls tennis teams. He is also a Navy veteran, a 24-year member of VFW Post 5350, a retired 25-year member of the Westhampton Beach Fire Department, and sits as president of the trustees at the Westhampton Beach Presbyterian Church.

With the state recognition, Williams is now in the running to become the national VFW Teacher of the Year.

Date Added: 1/30/2023

The Westhampton Beach Middle School Lego Robotics club finished strong at the regional FIRST Lego League competition at Mineola High School on Jan. 23.

Club members built and programmed a robot to accomplish various challenges at the competition. The students also gained real-life field engineering skills after their robot experienced some technical difficulties during the challenge. They worked collectively to engineer a solution despite the pressure of the competition.

The Westhampton Beach School District extends its congratulations to the following Lego Robotics club members on a job well done.

Bruno Chaverri Freund
Ryder Kirchner
Gage Matlock
Matthew Palamidessi
Colm Parsons
Alexander Pataridze
Alexander Pincott
Henry Rodríguez

Date Added: 1/24/2023

Westhampton Beach Elementary School fourth graders learned about the life and history of Native Americans during a Journeys into American Indian Territory program on Jan. 18. During the event, students explored Native American artifacts such as Native American clothing, dolls and pottery and listened to traditional stories.

Date Added: 1/19/2023