Zander and Maurer Foundation Coach Students on Education Awareness

Risa Zander coached the Sachem girls varsity basketball team from 1975-93. A physical education teacher in the district, she was inducted into the New York State Basketball Hall of Fame in 2003. At that time, she was only the second female coach to be inducted.

“I remember going to see her inducted,” Sachem Superintendent James Nolan said. “There were all these famous, big-name coaches like [Frank] McGuire and [Lou] Carneseca. Seeing Risa join that group was quite a privilege.”

Zander’s coaching accomplishments included three consecutive Suffolk County championships in the 1980s. She finished with 324 career wins, which included one season as coach at Commack High School.

Jennifer Hirsch, the Maurer Foundation’s development officer, praised Zander for her efforts promoting breast cancer education.

“Risa’s been a long-time supporter,” Hirsch said. “She worked very hard to get all the students together for this event.”

The Hauppauge-based Maurer Foundation was founded by Dr. Virginia E. Maurer in 1995, who saw the need for more education to be readily available, and current. A signature program, Young Womena’s Breast Health Program is designed for high school juniors and seniors. According to their web site, “the program reinforces regular exercise and proper nutrition and encourages students to pay attention to food choices, fat intake, portion sizes and information contained on food product packaging.”

“Our educators go into the classroom and teach about early detection,” Hirsch said. “It’s not hard to talk to students about cancer because their moms, dads, other family members are affected. But after that 43-minute presentation, [students] call home or talk about it when they get home, and their moms will do a self examination and go for tests.”

Hirsch said that she’s hoping to use Sachem’s Heritage Day as a model for other Long Island high schools.