South Huntington School Reopens After 42 Years, New Pre-K Center Debuts

SOUTH HUNTINGTON, NY — South Huntington students began the new school year with two major changes, as the district celebrated the opening of a dedicated Pre-K center and the return of a school building that had been closed for more than four decades.

Gov. Kathy Hochul joined district administrators, Board of Education members, staff and families Sept. 2 to officially cut the ribbon on the new Silas Wood Pre-K Center.

The standalone facility allows the district to provide Pre-K to eligible students without relying on the lottery system previously used when demand exceeded available seats.

During her visit, Hochul spent time in classrooms speaking with teachers, joining students in their play spaces and sitting down with children to color before gathering with district officials, faculty, staff and local dignitaries in the Silas Wood gym.

Hochul used the South Huntington visit to highlight an expansion of free Pre-K seats in more than 400 school districts across New York this school year. The state says 402 districts are adding seats, including 84 on Long Island.

The state's fiscal year 2027 budget includes a $563 million annual increase in Universal Prekindergarten Aid. New York has also set a goal of making Pre-K available to all 4-year-olds statewide by the start of the 2028-29 school year. The broader FY27 budget increased state funding for child care and prekindergarten services by $1.7 billion, bringing the total investment to $4.5 billion.

“As New York’s first mom Governor, putting us on the path to statewide universal Pre-K was personal for me,” Hochul said. “And I’m ensuring that we will deliver on that promise.”

For South Huntington parents, the expansion means more than another classroom option.

Kelly Paulson, who was dropping off her child for his second day of Pre-K before Hochul's remarks, said the program removes uncertainty for families while helping children become familiar with school.

“It makes logistics easier for my family, and it helps my child get used to the structure of what school will be like in kindergarten, but in a fun and easy way,” Paulson said. “It's like dipping their toe into the district, and starting to know their schoolmates who they'll have as they go through K through 12. I know that my son will come out of this more confident, stronger.”

Another Silas Wood parent, Giovanna Bucino, whose youngest son attends the new center, spoke during Hochul's presentation, saying the building is more than just walls and classrooms

“It represents commitment to our children. It says that our youngest learners matter, that their education matters, and that our families matter," Bucino said.

Hochul praised South Huntington for creating what she called a “nurturing, loving environment.”

“What you can do for our kids when they're that young will make a profound difference in their success later on,” Hochul said.

Hochul then joined Superintendent Vito D'Elia, Board of Education President Nicholas Ciappetta, Silas Wood Principal Renee Schumm and a class of Pre-K students to cut the ribbon and officially open the center.

D'Elia, a former principal of Maplewood Intermediate School, also emphasized the importance of reaching students early.

“Starting young children on the right foot gives them a strong academic and social foundation, and helping them develop a love for learning from the very first days of school can profoundly influence their entire school career,” D'Elia said.

Following the Silas Wood event, Hochul headed to the district's other newly transformed school, the Memorial Sixth Grade Center, where she had lunch with students in one of the building's two new cafeterias while highlighting New York's Universal Free Meals program.

Beginning with the 2025-26 school year, New York schools participating in the federal school lunch or breakfast programs have been required to provide meals at no charge to students, regardless of family income.

Memorial had celebrated its own ribbon-cutting just days earlier, on Aug. 31.

The building on Pidgeon Hill Road originally served as a junior high school before closing in 1984 amid declining enrollment. It has now returned to the district as the Memorial Sixth Grade Center.

The reopening followed an extensive renovation that transformed the former junior high into a modern school for the district's sixth-graders.

Among the upgrades are a multidisciplinary Innovation Lab, updated technology infrastructure, renovated gym and dining spaces and a planned green space where students will be able to grow food.

The district also incorporated pieces of local history throughout the school. Courtyards have been named for Harry Chapin, Ida Sammis and Henry Scudder, while the band room honors former Memorial music teacher Pat DeRosa. Plans also call for the creation of the George Washington Brush Veterans Plaza.

Memorial Principal Stephen Toto said the building itself is only the beginning.

“A new building is exciting, but what will make Memorial special isn't its new classrooms, hallways, furniture, or technology,” Toto said. “It's the people who will fill it. It's our teachers, our staff, and our students who will create the culture. It's our families who will become our partners, and most importantly, it's our students who will bring this building to life.”

The transformation of the two buildings traces back to June 17, 2025, when the South Huntington Board of Education approved a plan to convert the former Silas Wood Sixth Grade Center into a facility dedicated to the district's Universal Pre-Kindergarten program and move sixth-graders into the former Memorial Junior High School.

More than a year later, both buildings have begun their new chapters — one welcoming the district's youngest students and the other bringing a longtime South Huntington school back to life.

While Memorial represents a significant piece of South Huntington's history, D'Elia said its reopening is focused on what comes next.

“Today, Memorial comes home,” D'Elia told the crowd. “I want our students to know that everything we have done here was done with you in mind. Take advantage of every opportunity your teachers provide you, and leave Memorial someday knowing that you helped establish the traditions that future generations of Wildcats will follow.”