What to Know
- After almost 50 years of sending Island Park students to West Hempstead High, this option is coming to an end.
- Enrollment numbers to Long Beach High School continue to surpass that of West Hempstead with each following school year.
- This will be effective as soon as the upcoming school year this fall.
Students of Lincoln Orens Middle School in Island Park of Nassau County used to have the choice of attending either West Hempstead High School or Long Beach High School to continue their education after graduation -- now their options are limited to one school.
After almost 50 years of sending recent middle school graduates to West Hempstead High, officials of the Island Park School District announced that, due to decreasing Island Park student enrollment rates, they will eliminate the option to attend high school in West Hempstead.
It’s been nearly a decade since Island Park parents were given the option to send their children to Long Beach High School, and enrollment numbers to its neighboring district continue to surpass that of it’s competitor each following school year.
Island Park resident and West Hempstead High School graduate Chris Violano commented on the news saying, “It is sad that Island Park students won’t have the chance to venture out and spread their wings anymore… For me, attending West Hempstead was an opportunity to experience freedom in the form of just being somewhat far away from home... I felt that West Hempstead had a really solid education system”.
“Island Park does not have a high school. So we were always at the mercy of the other schools. But at least we had a choice. Now we don’t have a choice anymore, and I have no idea how others will react to that”, Violano continued.
The change will be effective as soon as the upcoming school year this fall.
Local
Parents were informed of the elimination of the West Hempstead High School option early July.
