Two Central Islip Teachers Honored For Teacher Appreciation Week

CENTRAL ISLIP, NY —Two Central Islip teachers were recognized by Teachers Federal Credit Union as top educators in a Teachers Appreciation Week Contest. Ivette Rios teaches science at Ralph G. Reed Middle School and Melissa Romano teaches English at Central Islip High School. Both women were named as two of three overall winners out of 250 nominations.

The credit union called Rios "a fantastic bilingual science teacher [who] genuinely cares about the well-being of her students and the community."

"During the pandemic she grew vegetables to prepare nutritious meals for students and families, and she recently established a community garden with plans to add a greenhouse and an outdoor classroom."

Romano was commended for "helping seniors with their college essays... inspiring colleagues with new virtual approaches [and] working diligently to ensure her students are prepared and involved."

"Always thinking outside the box, she brought her virtual and in-person students together using her personal laptop that she fashioned to a travel cart to help foster classroom unity."

The teachers were awarded a $1,500 grant each for their classrooms.

“Educators are not only part of our heritage at Teachers Federal Credit Union, but they are a critical part of communities around the world, going above and beyond to encourage and elevate their students to be the best they can be. All of the teachers nominated had incredible stories and they should be proud of the valuable work they are doing,” Brad Calhoun, the president of Teachers Federal Credit Union said in a news release.