Art Department News:
Ward Melville Students Recognized by 2008 Jostens/Adobe Design Contest
Ward Melville High School students Justin Suazo, Kathryn Kram, and 
Cassandra Lam recently received Honorable Mentions in the 2008 Jostens/Adobe Yearbook Design Contest. Judges recognized 23 middle and high school students across the nation for their creativity in yearbook design.
"When I heard that we won this award I felt so overwhelmed that both Jostens and Adobe recognized our art on a national level," stated Justin Suazo. "Especially because we stay so long after school and work so hard. It really helps to keep me inspired and want to keep creating designs."
Art Honors at Ward Melville
As a result of their hard work and determination, two Ward Melville High
School student-artists have been recognized for their creative talents.
Senior Paul Bertolino was selected as one of two Long Island Scholar Artists for the month of January by the Scholar Artist program sponsored by the Long Island Arts Alliance. For this honor Paul will be featured in Newsday and honored at a reception at the Tilles Center this fall. The Three Village Central School District congratulates Paul and his Media Arts teacher, Cortney Weisman.
Additionally, Ward Melville High School tenth grader and former R.C. Murphy student Stephanie Treiber has been recognized by the United States Achievement Academy as a student of excellence in Art. Stephanie was featured in a late August edition of Newsday, which featured Stephanie’s accomplishments. Murphy art teacher Dr. Laurie Mandel nominated her for this honor in her ninth grade year.
Award-Winning Student Artist
Aspiring Film Student Awarded Best in Show
A two-minute trailer for a full-length period piece with a western theme, 
filmed by Ward Melville High School senior Cody Snider in Setauket over the course of the past two years, has been acknowledged by the Long Island Media Arts Show as superior and bestowed the award of “Best in Show”. The event, which drew interest from hundreds of students across Long Island, was hosted at Five Towns College this spring and offers students with a winning film in the competition placement on the priority list for any internship requests that are passed through the Long Island Film Office.
Cody, who speaks with passion about the movie he titled Lakota, credits much of the success of the film to the support of his family, friends, and the tools he learned while taking the school’s Basic Video Production class in sophomore year and the Advanced Video class he is currently enrolled in. After finalizing the script for the movie and casting the characters, Cody elected to shoot the film using a High Definition (HD) camera rather than traditional film equipment – making him one of the first Three Village School District students to use this type of new technology.
“This film has been my most passionate project to date,” stated Cody, who plans to finish post-production on the film this summer and possibly submit it to the Sundance Film Festival next year. “I wanted to challenge myself and do something ambitious…working on a core period piece is certainly a large undertaking, but it has been a dream of mine and it is so fulfilling to watch as it is coming true.”
In addition to receiving top priority for any available internships, Cody was also invited to show his winning trailer at the First Exposure Film Festival at the Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center, a program hosted by The Long Island Film Commission.
Film teacher Chris Esser stated, “Cody is an extremely diligent student and has excelled greatly in the classes he has taken here at Ward Melville…I expect we will see great things from him in the future.”
This fall, Cody will be attending the School of Visual Arts (SVA) in New York City.
Ward Melville Student Awarded Honorable Mention in Jostens’ Photo Contest
Ward Melville High School sophomore and school yearbook photo editor 
Andrew Visconti was recently praised for his outstanding photography skills and presented with an honorable mention award in the nationally acclaimed 2008 Jostens’ Photo Contest. The annual competition, co-sponsored by Jostens and Wolfe’s Camera, recognizes the outstanding accomplishments of student photographers throughout the country.
Andrew’s sports photo was among 101 winners selected from more than 5,000 entries in this annual photography contest that attracts participants from across the country. Submissions are judged on composition, artistic merit, and technical qualities, as well as the ability to convey a compelling story.
Andrew’s winning photograph, along with all other winning photographs, will be featured on the Jostens.com website. They will also be featured in the 2009 issue of the Jostens Gotcha Covered Look Book, a popular resource for yearbook advisers and staffs seeking creative ideas, trends, and inspiration.