Barry Tech

A pinning ceremony was held at Barry Tech on June 3 to recognize 59 students in the Barry Tech, Hicksville UFSD In-District, Roosevelt UFSD In-District and Valley Stream CHSD In-District Certified Nurse Assisting classes who successfully completed their programs.

A pinning ceremony is a symbolic tradition in the nursing world that welcomes newly graduated or soon-to-be-graduated nurses into the nursing profession. It marks the completion of educational requirements leading to licensure and officially initiates students into nursing fellowships. While not a graduation ceremony in the traditional sense, it’s often seen as more personally meaningful than a university graduation for nursing students. Our CTE (Career and Technical Education) nurse educators feel it is especially important to honor our Certified Nurse Assisting students with this tradition as they begin their journey into healthcare.

Barry Tech’s Fashion Show celebrated the creativity, innovation and original designs of our Fashion Design Technology and Animation and Digital Media Design Skills students.

This year’s theme was Classic Icons, and the show celebrated the unforgettable influence of pop culture legends, fashion trailblazers and iconic eras that continue to inspire trends today. From vintage glamour to bold streetwear, students transformed classic influences into fresh, original designs that showcased innovation and individuality.

The students paid tribute to the looks, personalities and moments that have shaped fashion history—both as designers and as models of their original creations.

A special thank you to Fashion Design Technology Teacher Deanna Costello Wemssen, Animation & Digital Media Design Teacher Jacqueline Rivas, Teacher Aide Joanne McKeon and Teacher Sharon Savary whose hard work and dedication enabled our students’ talents to shine.

Many thanks as well to our Barry Tech Culinary and Cosmetology students, and to all other students and staff involved in this production. Your collaborative efforts and exceptional support helped to elevate this entire event.

Today, the Veterinary Science and Fashion classes joined together for an exciting collaborative field trip to FIGS! The team at FIGS graciously welcomed our students and provided an in-depth look at their brand, from the thoughtfully designed scrubs to their broader mission of elevating both Veterinary and Human Medicine. Students also got a behind-the-scenes look at the design process, discovering just how much intention goes into each garment to ensure it’s as functional as it is fashionable.

Congratulations to Jonah Kann, Barry Tech and In-District Work-Based Learning Coordinator, on winning NYS CREA's Rookie Work-Based Learning Coordinator of the Year Award at last week's annual NYS CREA Conference. CREA, Career Readiness Educators Association, is the professional association for Work-Based Learning Coordinators across New York State. Barry Tech Work-Based Learning Coordinators, Lauren Engels and Amy Belfiore, nominated Jonah for the award based on his outstanding performance during his first year in the position. According to Lauren and Amy, Jonah is a team player, an incredibly hard worker, amazing with the students, and a valuable asset to the WBL department! As an added surprise, administrators Dr. Poll and Shawn Lisa Torres attended the conference to present Jonah with the award. Congratulations to Jonah on a successful first year, we can't wait to see what he does in years to come!

On Tuesday, May 12th, Mr. Damadeo took his AM Aviation Operations class to Jet Blue’s Headquarters and Corporate Offices in Long Island City, NY. The trip was organized by Penny Neferis, Director of Business Continuity and Emergency Response. Upon arrival, the students took a tour of the SOC, Strategic Operations Center, visiting various departments, such at IT, Meteorology, Maintenance, Crew Scheduling, Pilot on Duty, and others. This was followed by a Q&A panel discussion with several members of JetBlue’s operational teams. The panel discussion was led by Penny, and the panel participants included Brian Gambino (Flight), Chris Vital (ATC), Ryan Byrne (Dispatch), Juan Corona Rodriguez (Tech Ops), Ismenia Cabeza (Controller), and Dan Boin (Duty Director). The students had the opportunity to ask questions and learned about JetBlue’s many operational divisions. JetBlue even provided a nice lunch for our students at the end of the day! We are thankful to Penny and the staff at JetBlue for giving our students a valuable inside look into the day-to-day operations of a major airline!

Audio Production students attended the Broadcast Alliance for Senior High’s annual awards on May 21st. They went out of the comfort zone, chose from over 20 different breakout workshops and collaborated with students from over 40 different broadcast programs across Long Island & NYC.

Mr. Natale’s Veterinary Science students visited Barry Tech’s Horse Science program, where they applied hands-on skills alongside visiting students from Cornell University’s College of Veterinary Medicine.

The PM students in Deanna Wemssen Costello’s Fashion Design Technology and Merchandising class at Barry Tech have been completing an industry-based project at The Fashionable Stylista, located in Syosset, NY. The Fashionable Stylista, founded and owned by FIT alumni Marcela Pinzon, is a unique academy that offers fashion design education for future fashion designers of all ages to help them excel in college and in the fashion industry. Barry Tech’s seniors have been going to The Fashionable Stylista monthly, since the beginning of the school year, and are being mentored by Marcela herself! Marcela taught the students Illustrator, the computer program used in the industry. The students learned how to create a mood board and work on fashion flats and designing their illustrations to create finished sketches. Yesterday, Tuesday, May 5th, was the students' last day there, and they each walked away with a mood board for their fashion portfolios! We are truly grateful to Marcela for mentoring our students and for giving them this incredible hands-on opportunity!

We are proud to recognize two outstanding seniors from Mr. Wallace’s Barbering class at Uniondale High School’s in-district program—Kerwen Deller and Dashawn Bent—who have officially passed and received their New York State Barbering License.
Kerwen has taken the next step in his journey by enlisting in the United States Army, where he plans to continue his passion for barbering while serving our country.
Dashawn, who has been cutting hair for over five years, has already built a strong and loyal clientele. He now plans to take his skills to the next level by opening his own barbershop.
Congratulations to both students on this incredible achievement. Your hard work, dedication, and commitment to the craft have paid off, and the future is bright!