Notre Dame Eighth Graders Receive Awards

On Friday, graduating eighth graders and their families and friends gathered at to recognize the students' achievements throughout their academic careers.

Before the awards were given out, Principal Caryn Durkin reflected on the concept of keys, which has been brought up throughout the school year. She noted that Notre Dame has been key to building the students' faith and Durkin also discussed how key family and friends have been.

"Always remember this -- you hold the key to our hearts," Durkin said. "You will always be a part of, and welcome at, Notre Dame School."

The first awards given out were for participation in various groups and for perfect attendance. After this, individual awards were given out. Below is a list of the individual award winners:

1. Triple C Award: Sponsored  by the Office of the NYS Attorney General. This was given to Gabriela Colangelo and Susana Miranda.

2.  NYS Comptroller Achievement Award: Sponsored by the Office of the NYS Comptroller.  This went to Michael Irving

3. Kiwanis Award went to Stefania Marchitelli         

4. State Bank of Long Island Ron Thiem Memorial Award.  There is also a $100 U.S. Savings Bond associated with this award. It went to George Becker.  

5.Parents Acting as Volunteers for Education sponsors a School Service award, which also includes a $100 US Savings Bond. This award went to James Cotumaccio.

6.  Women in Science: Sponsored by St. John’s University. This award was presented to Rachel Buzeta, Gabriella Colangelo, Nicole Kaiser, Sabrina Posadas, Nicole Rossello and Alexandra Taylor.

7. John and Teresa Durkin Memorial Award for Artistic Achievement. This award went to Rachel Buzeta and Sabrina Posadas. 

8.  Bridget and Patrick McGuire Memorial Award. This award also includes a $500 U.S. Savings Bond. This went to Lily Bergin and Andrew Seger.

9. The Excellence in Music Award was given to George Becker and Rachel Buzeta.

10. St. Joseph’s Award went to Colleen Cass and Kirsten Cunha. 

11. The Dr. and Mrs. Frank Picciano Religion Award. This award also includes a $250 scholarship. The award was given to Amanda DiMaria.

12. St. Dominic Award went to Eric Rennie and Nicole Kaiser.

13. Physical Education Award was given to Connor Smith and Nicole Rossello.

14. Teachers’ Award. This award includes a $50 U.S. Savings Bond. It was given to Mateo Alarcon and Maria Virdone.

Presidential Awards certificates were given to the students for their academic achievements. The students with 60 quality points or more included: Gabriella Colangelo, Colleen Cass, James Cotumaccio, Nicole Kaiser, Rachel Buzeta, Sabrina Posadas, Andrew Seger, Eric Rennie, Alexandra Taylor, Michael Fiorella and Michael Irving. The students with 48-59 quality points were: Nicole Rossello, Amanda DiMaria, Peter Dunn, Connor Smith, Julie Kennedy, George Becker, Cassidy Koppelman, Carolyn DiMaria, Shannon Ramos, Lily-Ann Bergin, Sarah Rudolph, Bianca Caggiano, David Caopdanno, Stefania Marchitelli, Melanie Farrell and Kirsten Cunha.

After this, honor cords were given to the graduating eighth graders. Gold cord recipients were: George Becker, Rachel Buzeta, Colleen Cass, Gabriella Colangelo, James Cotumaccio, Amanda DiMaria, Peter Dunn, Michael Fiorella, Michael Irving, Nicole Kaiser, Sabrina Posadas, Eric Rennie, Nicole Rossello, Andrew Seger, Connor Smith and Alexandra Taylor. Blue and white cord recipients were: Lily-Ann Bergin, David Capodanno, Kirsten Cunha, James Curry, Carolyn DiMaria, Julie Kennedy, Cassidy Koppelman, Stefania Marchitelli, Shannon Ramos and Sarah Rudolph.