Walt Whitman HS Students Hit Radio To Talk Special Classes

SOUTH HUNTINGTON, NY — Students from Walt Whitman High School appeared on Long Island News Radio to discuss their learning experiences in the fields of computer science and anatomy, according to the South Huntington School District.

The students were invited to join "Spotlight on Long Island Schools," which airs every Saturday at 10:30 a.m. on 103.9 FM and LINewsradio.com. Bob Vecchio hosts the 30-minute talk show, where he highlights what’s going on in Long Island districts, specific schools, and the achievements of their students and teachers.

The cybersecurity episode can be listened to here, while the anatomy session is here.

The first group of students discussed the innovating computer science courses they're taking at Walt Whitman High School, including AP computer science and cybersecurity.

Computer Science teacher Fred Feraco explained the district reached out to universities and looked for input from Whitman graduates before designing the cybersecurity course.

"We kind of designed the course around cybersecurity competitions, which seemed to be the most fun and interesting in a field that’s changing the fastest," Feraco said.

Internships also offer opportunities. One student discussed his internship at Brookhaven National Laboratory working with a senior technology architect to research cybersecurity protection algorithms.

Several students found their love of computer science in middle school because the South Huntington district now requires them to learn coding in sixth grade. Walt Whitman also has a Girls Who Code club which is part of a national organization on a mission to close the gender gap in tech. Members learn new computer programming languages.

One student told Vecchio they also practice fake hacking as a way to learn how to prevent hacking and how to respond to it.

The district plans to offer four new computer courses next year: mobile apps, video game design, introduction to artificial intelligence, and web design.

The second half of the interview brought in anatomy students who have the opportunity to digitally dissect human corpses. The district has high-tech "Anatomage tables" in their middle school and high school. Anatomage tables are fully interactive, 6-foot long, horizontal touch screens that display life-size real human 3D anatomy systems — like a giant iPad on a table. Users can visualize anatomy exactly as they would on a fresh cadaver.

They’re used in some of the world’s leading medical schools and institutions, according to the district, which added they can be found in classrooms at Walt Whitman High School and Stimson Middle School.

For students going to medical school, it’s a big jump on learning anatomy. Whitman students can earn up to eight college credits for the anatomy classes.

"For students just to know all the terminology already, know the different body parts, different bones, the muscular system, endocrine system, everything," Erin Roche, an anatomy teacher, told Vecchio. "It’s important for them to get really comfortable with the terminology and the look of the cadavers and looking at someone with no skin - just bones and tissues."

And students are fascinated, the district said.

One student told Vecchio, "The graphics are amazing because when you cut into it, you can see inside of it. So you cut into the heart and you can see the blue and the red, and the arteries and the veins."