Suffolk County Legislature Presiding Officer DuWayne Gregory presented Northwest Elementary School Interim Principal Dr. Shirley Martin and Assistant Principal Vincent Todisco with a county proclamation for the school’s celebration and education of young children about black history. Legis. Gregory, who is the Suffolk’s first black Presiding Officer, attended Northwest’s cultural recognition evening last month, where he asked youngsters about their aspirations for the future.

The evening was also highlighted by a performances of “Lift Every Voice and Sing” by Melissa Asbell’s second graders and “Amazing Grace” by the school’s Select Choir, led by Roxanne Tannenbaum. Classes that won the grade-level Black History Month poster contest were also acknowledged and students presented essays that profiled influential black heroes.