23 Long Island schools flagged for subpar academic performance

Twenty-three schools in 16 Long Island districts have been flagged for subpar academic performance in the state's latest accountability ratings, a Newsday analysis has found. More than half of the schools — 15 — were classified as needing targeted support and improvement, also known as TSI. Six were designated as needing additional targeted support and improvement, or ATSI.Two schools, one in Hempstead and another in Riverhead, were marked as needing comprehensive support and improvement, known as CSI. That designation means the schools are ranked among the bottom 5% of schools statewide. There was good news as well, though. Central Islip had no schools on the state's needs-improvement list for the first time in more than a decade.Brentwood, Wyandanch, William Floyd, Patchogue-Medford and Westhampton Beach also were taken off the list this year. Maureen Mullarkey reports in NEWSDAY that the number of schools in Nassau and Suffolk on the 2025-26 list dropped from 29 the year prior but was higher than the 11 identified in 2023-24.Educators have argued that the improvement labels unfairly stigmatize schools. Officials in some of the districts identified in this year’s list criticized the designations, saying they were based on the performance of a small subgroup of students and are not indicative of the student body as a whole. Others cited outside factors, like increased immigration enforcement in their communities, as having a negative impact on their schools.State officials said the accountability ratings offer “an opportunity” to improve academic outcomes. The data used for identification can help educators zero in on learning gaps, they argued.Rachel Connors, a NYS Education Department spokeswoman, told NEWSDAY that the accountability system is not intended to "diminish the work of educators, but to highlight where additional support and resources are needed.”“We understand and respect that educators work incredibly hard every day to support their students, and that no single designation can fully capture the full story of a school community including its culture, relationships, or the progress happening in classrooms,” she emphasized.***Crossing Long Island Sound will cost you more after both the Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Ferry and the Cross Sound Ferry announced fare increases due to current fuel prices. Dandan Zou and Michael R. Ebert report in NEWSDAY that this week, the Cross Sound Ferry in Orient listed its fuel surcharge as 9.5%. That's actually down from 10.7% recently, the company reported on its website."Due to the volatility of fuel costs, Cross Sound Ferry uses a floating fuel surcharge," the ferry said on its website. "The fuel surcharge is a percentage applied to all published fares, and is based on our most recent fuel costs." Cross Sound Ferry is a passenger and road vehicle ferry service operating between New London, Connecticut and Orient. As of last Wednesday, the Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Ferry enacted a 4.5% fuel surcharge to all ferry fees, increasing one way tickets from $74 to $77 off-peak and from $76 to $79 peak for a vehicle with a passenger."This surcharge will be reviewed weekly and may be adjusted upward or downward based on fuel costs and market conditions," the ferry website said. "Any revised fuel surcharge will be posted in advance and, unless otherwise stated, will take effect on Wednesdays."***ReWild Long Island will launch the fourth summer of its South Fork internship program in 2026, offering high school students hands-on experience in sustainability, food security and environmental stewardship.The Summer Program to Fight Hunger and Climate Change is open to rising freshmen through seniors and provides modest stipends along with environmental education focused on Long Island’s unique ecology.Applications for both interns and volunteers opened April 1 and are available to the end of this month.ReWild Long Island also welcomes adult mentors and volunteers to support its South Fork chapter.For more information or to apply, visit the program page at rewildlongisland.org/summerprogram.***Framing April 20th NOT as a celebration of cannabis culture but as a public-health warning, Suffolk County officials, law enforcement leaders and addiction treatment providers gathered yesterday at Wellbridge Addiction Treatment and Research in Calverton to sound the alarm about cannabis use disorder, cannabis-induced psychosis, youth access to THC products and drugged driving. Denise Civiletti reports on Riverheadlocal.com that Monday’s event, hosted by Wellbridge, featured Suffolk County Executive Ed Romaine, District Attorney Ray Tierney, Sheriff Errol Toulon Jr., Suffolk police Chief of Department William Doherty, Riverhead Town Supervisor Jerry Halpin and clinicians from Wellbridge and Outreach Development Corp.Again and again, speakers returned to one central point: marijuana may be legal in New York but driving while impaired by cannabis is not.D.A. Tierney said his office has prosecuted cases involving fatal crashes, children sickened by THC-laced edibles and illegal sales to minors. He cited the 2023 death of Franklin Blake in Southampton, saying the driver who struck and killed him was high on cannabis and Xanax.But while the public officials focused largely on impaired driving and enforcement, the most detailed warnings about cannabis itself came from the treatment providers and clinicians.Dr. Edmond Hakimi, Wellbridge’s medical director, said the cannabis now commonly available is far more potent than marijuana used decades ago and argued that the rise in high-THC products has changed the risk profile dramatically.“It’s not the same drug anymore,” Hakimi said, describing cannabis concentrates with THC levels far above those seen in plant marijuana in past decades.Hakimi said Wellbridge is seeing patients admitted for treatment for cannabis use alone and said clinicians are increasingly concerned about psychiatric consequences, particularly among frequent users of high-potency products and among younger people whose brains are still developing.He described patients arriving paranoid, hallucinating and, in some cases, losing touch with reality. He also warned that regular cannabis use can be especially risky for people with a personal or family history of mental illness.Romaine and Tierney both pressed for changes in state law and better roadside tools for detecting cannabis impairment. Romaine said lawmakers need to address the gap between legalization and enforcement, arguing there is still no marijuana equivalent of a Breathalyzer. Tierney said technology exists but is not yet in use.That difficulty is reflected in federal guidance as well. The CDC says cannabis can impair driving but also notes that linking THC levels in a person’s body to actual driving impairment is far more complicated than it is with alcohol. *** Yesterday, the Trump administration took its first steps toward issuing tariff refunds with the launch of a web platform through U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Brianne Ledda reports in NEWSDAY that the system follows a Supreme Court ruling that found the president had exceeded his authority last April when he cited the U.S. trade deficit as a national emergency to invoke the International Emergency Economic Powers Act {IEEPA} a 1977 emergency powers law. The decision did not order the government to repay the tariffs, but a judge at the U.S. Court of International Trade determined last month that businesses subjected to IEEPA taxes should see refunds.Customs and Border Protection has noted that the refund process is being rolled out in phases."Importers and brokers can visit CBP’s website for resources and step-by-step guidance," an agency spokesperson told Newsday.Stacey Sikes, acting president and CEO of the Long Island Association, a regional business nonprofit, called the refund portal's launch "welcome news" that could help businesses experiencing tariff-induced financial challenges to recoup money, "especially at a time when they are navigating other uncertainties.""Hopefully the processing of refunds will be expeditious," she said.At a media event on Monday, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul also highlighted the refunds, as well as the added burdens that tariffs pose as many in the state struggle with continued inflation."Remember, everyday New Yorkers also paid the price," she said. "$13.5 billion is the additional cost that has been imposed on New Yorkers alone because of the Trump tariffs, and that's about $1,700 per the average family."New York Attorney General Letitia James, along with 21 other state attorneys general and the governors of Kentucky and Pennsylvania, sued in March to stop tariffs implemented under the Trade Act of 1974, which the administration used to impose a 10% import tax on imports for 150 days starting Feb. 24. The suit also seeks refunds for tariffs collected under the law.***Until tomorrow, the Horticultural Alliance of the Hamptons is accepting applications for scholarship grants through its Karish Education Fund, supporting students pursuing studies in horticulture and related fields.Eligible applicants include graduating high school seniors, college students and individuals enrolled in professional certification programs in disciplines such as agriculture, botany, landscape architecture, garden design and environmental science. Applications are due by Earth Day, April 22….that’s tomorrow.The fund honors Paul Karish, a founding member of the