Local officials and community members on Long Island said they will continue to fight a state mandate requiring schools eliminate Native American mascots and team names, a day after their cause received support from President Donald Trump. Darwin Yanes and Gregg Sarra report in NEWSDAY that on Monday, Trump posted on Truth Social that he had asked U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon “to fight for the people of Massapequa” as the school district seeks to keep its sports nickname, the Chiefs. School officials had publicly called on the Trump administration to step in shortly after a federal judge last month ruled against them and three other districts — Connetquot, Wyandanch and Wantagh — that had challenged the mascot ban.
"I love that he's supportive of our schools keeping their nicknames," said Pat Pizzarelli, executive director of the governing body for Nassau athletics and a Massapequa High School graduate. "There is so much history and tradition in those schools and they're proud to be Warriors, Indians and Chiefs. They feel it's an honor to wear those uniforms and use those names."
Jennifer Keane, the director of athletics for the Wantagh school district, said, "Our student-athletes and school community take great pride in being a part of the Wantagh Warriors tradition. We are continuing to explore all options to keep the name as the student-athletes, school and community take great pride in being representative of a Wantagh Warrior. A mascot is more than a symbol or nickname, it's a tribute to the values that drive success in sports and life."
The NYS Board of Regents issued guidance in 2023 banning the use of Native American mascots, team names and logos in public schools. Districts that do not comply by the June 30 deadline risk losing state aid.
The ban affected 13 school districts on Long Island, including nine that have complied.
The high cost of rebranding is often cited ranging from $450,000 to more than $1 million for some schools.
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A Riverhead woman was arrested for allegedly dumping household items, including furniture, in the Pine Barrens, Suffolk County Sheriff Errol Toulon Jr. announced yesterday. Toulon said a trail camera captured images of a U-Haul truck dumping the items “in a secluded section of the Pine Barrens in Manorville.” The illegally dumped items included mattresses, box springs, dressers and a television. The incident took place on March 13, according to Suffolk County court records. Denise Civiletti reports on Riverheadlocal.com that the sheriff’s office arrested Jeanne Rodriguez, 41, on April 2. She was charged with Criminal Mischief in the Second Degree, a Class D felony, and with one count of violating a local law, a Class A misdemeanor.
Sheriff Toulon also announced the arrest of Joao Abreu of Port Jefferson. Abreu was charged with felony criminal mischief for allegedly dumping 24 tons of concrete in a remote wooded area off Long Island Avenue in Yaphank. Abreu is the owner of Chase Construction Enterprises, the sheriff said. Abreu, 60 was arrested on April 11 in connection with the Feb. 23 dumping incident and charged with Criminal Mischief in the Second Degree, a Class D Misdemeanor according to court records. Abreu’s arrest came after a six-week joint investigation by the Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigations Bureau and the District Attorney’s BEAST Unit, which included license plate checks, vehicle tracking, background checks, and witness interviews, the sheriff said. “The Sheriff’s Office has been patrolling the Pine Barrens for over 30 years and we take our role very seriously,” Toulon said. “These arrests are a direct result of enhanced surveillance, interagency teamwork, and the diligence of our environmental enforcement units. Both individuals could have disposed of their waste legally—but they chose not to. Illegal dumping is lazy and harmful to our island’s environment and taxpayers’ wallets,” he said.
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In Sag Harbor, Pierson sophomore Savannah Romano excels at the flute. She recently won a prestigious competition featuring the top high school flute players on Long Island. Ms. Romano is the principal flute player for the Metropolitan Youth Orchestra and will perform with that group at Carnegie Hall next month.
Cailin Riley reports on 27east.com that Romano was one of six high school flute players invited to compete for the top prize at the Long Island Flute Competition on April 6. Playing a piece in front of a panel of three judges and a live audience, Savannah Romano won the competition, taking home $350 in prize money and certified recognition as the best high school flute player on Long Island.
Earlier this year, Romano won first place in an international competition put together by Australia-based composer Karen North. Competitors recorded a video of a piece and submitted it for the online competition. The judges panel included James Galway, the legendary Irish flute player.
“They loved her sound,” said Dr. Jennifer Haley, a private flute instructor who lives in Remsenburg and who has been teaching Romano for the past few years. “Her musicality just seeps through her pores.”
Romano first picked up the flute when she was 9. She still plays for the Pierson High School band, under the direction of Austin Remson. He called Romano “an incredible talent.” “Her musicianship is very impressive,” he added. “She sounds like she’s ready to audition for the New York Philharmonic. Savannah also has an incredible knowledge of classical music and musicians.”
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Suffolk County Executive Edward P. Romaine unveiled a $787.5 million proposed capital budget for 2026 that focuses on new sewers, improvements to roads and bridges, public safety projects such as repairs to correctional facilities and enhancing county campsites.
The larger three-year capital plan for 2026-28 includes $3 billion in investments, an increase of $700 million compared to the previously adopted plan.
The capital budget, which allows the government to plan long-term public works projects, is separate from the operating budget that is due in the fall. The proposed 2026 spending plan represents a 47% increase in total cost compared to the adopted 2025 capital budget. Joe Werkmeister reports in NEWSDAY that the Suffolk County Legislature will need to vote on adopting the capital budget and separately approve appropriating funds for specific projects. The projects would be funded primarily through a mix of bonds and federal and state funding.
In an introduction to the budget, Romaine, a Republican in his second year, said "it represents a significant milestone in our ongoing commitment to addressing the challenges posed by extreme weather events, an aging infrastructure, uncertain economic conditions and other emergencies that are becoming increasingly frequent."
The 2026-28 capital program includes more than $246.7 million in upgrades to bridges, roads and transit projects funded through federal and state aid, according to the budget.
Romaine, in an interview Tuesday, said there is "great confidence" federal funding "will be forthcoming" amid the constant threats of cuts under President Donald Trump. Romaine said he was more concerned about state funding, citing the challenge of securing funds through the Environmental Bond Act of 2022.
In preparing the budget, Romaine said he reached out to all the legislators to solicit specific projects "of significance to their particular district" and said the legislators have "been true partners."
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On Earth Day 2025, Long Island residents scoured the shores of Nassau and Suffolk beaches, searching for microplastics and other waste that spoil the coastline and harm marine creatures.
But amid those caretaking efforts, concerns about environmental regulations being lifted and cuts to projects focused on clean energy were on the minds of volunteers.
Tiffany Cusaac-Smith and John Asbury report in NEWSDAY that since its first official observance on April 22, 1970, Earth Day has raised public awareness about environmental matters and helped lead to the establishment of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the enactment of influential laws such as the Endangered Species Act under Republican President Richard Nixon’s administration, according to the National Archives and other experts.
But Earth Day this year comes at a crucial moment as the Trump administration seeks to roll back environmental regulations, reverse course on efforts to mitigate climate change, and boost oil, gas and coal.
“Earth Day today is more difficult because we have an administration that’s actively hostile to climate change issues,” said Adrienne Esposito, executive director of Citizens Campaign for the Environment, later adding: “It’s a very challenging time and very tragic actually.”
Since taking office in January, President Donald Trump has sought out substantial changes to the Environmental Protection Agency. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin, of Shirley, Long Island, outlined in a news release dozens of deregulation efforts he wants the agency to adopt, including reconsidering power plant regulations and current directives “throttling the oil and gas industry.”
“We are driving a dagger straight into the heart of the climate change religion to drive down cost of living for American families, unleash American energy, bring auto jobs back to the U.S. and more,” said Zeldin in the March release.
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Dr. Anna Thonis, an ecologist and herpetologist at Stony Brook University, is beginning a new research project on the eastern box turtle at the end of May. Beth Young reports in EAST END BEACON that the Friends of the Long Pond Greenbelt are fundraising for the study, which includes the Long Pond Greenbelt, a unique ecosystem between Bridgehampton and Sag Harbor.
The project will also track turtles on Staten Island, in Queens and at the Brookhaven National Laboratory.
“Dr. Thonis is proposing a long-term ecological monitoring study, with the goal of tracking eastern box turtle population trends and demographic changes over time,” according to Friends of the Long Pond Greenbelt’s appeal for help seeking to raise nearly $8,500 for the study.
“This research will help further our understanding of the ecological dynamics of eastern box turtles and contribute to the broader field of evolutionary ecology and the environmental influences on populations in urbanized landscapes,” said Dr. Thonis in her proposal for the project.
Friends of the Long Pond Greenbelt are collecting donations for the study online here, or through check by mail to: FLPG, P.O. Box 1130, Bridgehampton, NY. 11932.
And remember, it’s almost prime turtle crossing season! Watch out for turtles traveling on local roads, particularly in May and June, as they return to their nesting sites.
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The NYS Legislature yesterday passed the seventh emergency spending bill as closed-door negotiations gained momentum and announcement of a budget deal was tentatively planned for later this week, according to Senate and Assembly sources briefed on the plan. Michael Gormley reports in NEWSDAY that Gov. Kathy Hochul and legislative leaders tentatively hope to announce a deal by the end of this week for the spending plan that was due April 1. That could allow budget bills to be passed early next week before the budget, expected to total more than $252 billion, becomes a full month late.
No details of agreements in the closed-door negotiations were released.
In passing Hochul’s emergency spending "extender" on Tuesday, the legislature approved another $2.4 billion in spending to keep the state operating through Thursday. Of that amount, $2.4 billion covers the scheduled payment to school districts. Since April 1, the legislature has approved $12.1 billion in spending based on the 2024-25 budget that expired March 31.
Another extender is already planned for tomorrow.
Republicans have called the late budget a failure of the Democratic governor and the leaders of the Democratic majorities in the state Senate and Assembly who are negotiating the budget. Under Albany’s decades-old practices, only majority conference leaders and the governor negotiate the budget and always in private negotiations.
The massive budget bills that contain spending increases as well as major policy initiatives are then released to the legislature for a public vote days after a budget deal is struck.
