Port Jefferson Students Learn The Importance Of Brain Health

Press release from the Port Jefferson School District:

Feb. 10, 2023

Port Jefferson Middle School and Earl L. Vandermeulen High School students welcomed special guest speaker Billy Alvino to their physical education classes on Feb. 7 and 8.

Alvino, a former minor league baseball player in the Detroit Tigers organization and Division I coach at the University of Pittsburgh, spoke to all 6-12 grade students about concussion awareness. He was forced to retire due to complications with concussions. He utilizes his experiences and now has a platform to help bring concussion awareness to people all over Long Island.

As an advocate for the Headway Foundation, Alvino works for Pathways to Health, an organization that focuses on holistic treatments and increased educational awareness of overall health and well-being. The students learned many warnings signs of concussions, how to treat them, and how to increase their overall brain health with certain exercises, proper sleep and a healthy diet. The connection was made through social studies teacher and coach Bryan Vaccaro and was facilitated through the physical education department: Andy Cosci, Dinarae Camarda, Logan Hoffman and Mike Maletta.

This press release was produced by the Port Jefferson School District. The views expressed here are the author's own.