The Sewanhaka Central High School District is a central high school district located in western Nassau County

Nassau County, New York

Nassau County is a suburban county on Long Island, east of New York City in the U.S. state of New York, within the New York Metropolitan Area. As of the 2010 census, the population was 1,339,532...

 on Long Island

Long Island

Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...

, in New York State. The district is currently composed of five high schools: Sewanhaka High School

Sewanhaka High School

Sewanhaka High School is a six-year public high school located in Floral Park, New York, United States, as part of the Sewanhaka Central High School District. The school's sports teams are known as "The Indians" and the team colors are purple, gold, and white. The school's name translates to...

, Elmont Memorial High School

Elmont Memorial High School

Elmont Memorial Junior-Senior High School is a co-educational, secondary public high school founded in 1956 for students in grades 7-12 in the hamlet of Elmont, Long Island, New York, in Nassau County....

, New Hyde Park Memorial High School

New Hyde Park Memorial High School

New Hyde Park Memorial Junior/Senior High School is a six-year public high school in New Hyde Park, New York, as part of the Sewanhaka Central High School District. Like the four other high schools in the Sewanhaka Central district, the school is home to grades 7 to 12, a combined middle and high...

, Floral Park Memorial High School

Floral Park Memorial High School

Floral Park Memorial High School is a coeducational, public high school in Floral Park, New York, United States. It is one of five schools in the Sewanhaka Central High School District...

, and H. Frank Carey Junior/Senior High School

H. Frank Carey Junior/Senior High School

H. Frank Carey High School is a public high school located in Franklin Square, New York serving students in the seventh through twelfth grades from the towns of Garden City South, West Hempstead, Elmont and Franklin Square. The school's principal is Mrs. Valerie Angelillo. The assistant principals...

.

All five of the District's schools were lauded during the 1990s as Nationally Recognized Blue Ribbon Schools

Blue Ribbon Schools Program

The Blue Ribbon Schools Program is a United States government program created in 1981 to honor schools which have achieved high levels of performance or significant improvements with emphasis on schools serving disadvantaged students. The program centers around a self-assessment conducted by the...

 of Excellence; see each school's listing below for the year(s) in which it was recognized as such.

The schools are fed from separate elementary school districts in the various communities, each having its own board of education

Board of education

A board of education or a school board or school committee is the title of the board of directors or board of trustees of a school, local school district or higher administrative level....

.

History

The Sewanhaka Central High School district was created around 1929 with the building of Sewanhaka High School, the first high school in the current district. In the 1950s and 1960s, the additional high schools were built to accommodate the growing population.

Notable alumni include longtime NFL Quarterback Vinny Testaverde

Vinny Testaverde

Vincent Frank Testaverde is a former NFL quarterback. Testaverde last played for the Carolina Panthers and had previously played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Cleveland Browns, Baltimore Ravens, New York Jets, Dallas Cowboys and New England Patriots. Testaverde holds the NFL record for having...

, Olympic discus champion Al Oerter

Al Oerter

Alfred Adolf Oerter, Jr. was an American athlete, and a four-time Olympic Champion in the discus throw....

, and actor Telly Savalas

Telly Savalas

Aristotelis "Telly" Savalas was an American film and television actor and singer, whose career spanned four decades. Best known for playing the title role in the 1970s crime drama Kojak, Savalas was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in Birdman of Alcatraz...

 (Kojak

Kojak

Kojak is an American television series starring Telly Savalas as the title character, bald New York City Police Department Detective Lieutenant Theo Kojak. It aired from October 24, 1973, to March 18, 1978, on CBS. It took the time slot of the popular Cannon series, which was moved one hour earlier...

).

Sewanhaka High School

Sewanhaka High School

Sewanhaka High School

Sewanhaka High School is a six-year public high school located in Floral Park, New York, United States, as part of the Sewanhaka Central High School District. The school's sports teams are known as "The Indians" and the team colors are purple, gold, and white. The school's name translates to...

 was the first high school in the district and also the first in the district to receive the Blue Ribbon Recognition ( It was nationally prominent in the 1930s as America's #3 school.

Floral Park Memorial High School

Floral Park Memorial High School

Floral Park Memorial High School

Floral Park Memorial High School is a coeducational, public high school in Floral Park, New York, United States. It is one of five schools in the Sewanhaka Central High School District...

 is located in Floral Park

Floral Park, New York

Floral Park is an incorporated village in Nassau County, New York, United States, on Long Island. The population as of the US Census of 2010 is 15,863. The village is at the western border of Nassau County, and is located in both the Town of Hempstead and the Town of North Hempstead...

. It was recognized as a Blue Ribbon School for the 1994-95 and 1995-96 school years.

Elmont Memorial High School

Elmont Memorial High School

Elmont Memorial High School

Elmont Memorial Junior-Senior High School is a co-educational, secondary public high school founded in 1956 for students in grades 7-12 in the hamlet of Elmont, Long Island, New York, in Nassau County....

 is located in Elmont

Elmont, New York

Elmont is an unincorporated census-designated place located in the northwest corner of the Town of Hempstead in Nassau County, New York, along its border with the borough of Queens in New York City...

. It was recognized as a Blue Ribbon School for the 1990-93 school year.
3

New Hyde Park Memorial High School

New Hyde Park Memorial High School

New Hyde Park Memorial High School

New Hyde Park Memorial Junior/Senior High School is a six-year public high school in New Hyde Park, New York, as part of the Sewanhaka Central High School District. Like the four other high schools in the Sewanhaka Central district, the school is home to grades 7 to 12, a combined middle and high...

 is located in New Hyde Park

New Hyde Park, New York

New Hyde Park is a village in Nassau County, New York, United States, on Long Island.The population of the Village of New Hyde Park was 9,712 at the 2010 census...

. It was recognized as a Blue Ribbon School for the 1992-93 school year.

H. Frank Carey High School

H. Frank Carey Junior/Senior High School

H. Frank Carey Junior/Senior High School

H. Frank Carey High School is a public high school located in Franklin Square, New York serving students in the seventh through twelfth grades from the towns of Garden City South, West Hempstead, Elmont and Franklin Square. The school's principal is Mrs. Valerie Angelillo. The assistant principals...

 is located in Franklin Square, New York

Franklin Square, New York

Franklin Square is a hamlet in Nassau County, New York, United States. The population was 29,320 at the 2010 census...

. It was recognized as a Blue Ribbon School for the 1999-2000 school year..