| Sachem Central School District | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Location | |
| Suffolk County,New York United States | |
| District information | |
| Type | Public |
| Motto | We Are Sachem! |
| Grades | K-12 |
| Established | 1955 |
| Superintendent | Patricia Trombetta[1] |
| Schools | 16 |
| Students and staff | |
| District mascot | Flaming Arrows |
| Colors | |
| Other information | |
| District Offices | 51 School Street Lake Ronkonkoma, NY 11779 |
| Website | www |
TheSachem Central School District is the second largestschool district by population onLong Island and among the biggest suburban school districts inNew York, United States. Founded in 1955, the district now encompasses residents of thecensus-designated places ofHolbrook,Holtsville andFarmingville, as well as some parts of theIncorporated Village ofLake Grove and the CDPs ofLake Ronkonkoma,Ronkonkoma,Coram,Medford,Selden,Centereach,Bohemia,Sayville, andBayport inSuffolk County.[2][3]
As of 2015, theSachem School District has nearly 15,000 students enrolled annually.[4]
Sachem School District's colors are red, black and gold. Though each school uses the same fight song which starts out with "Here's to Red, Black, and Gold...", since the split in 2004,Sachem High School North has used black and gold whileSachem High School East uses red and gold as its principal colors. Both schools proudly kept the Sachem team name "Sachem Flaming Arrows".
In 1838, the North West school district was founded as the tenth school district of theTown of Islip. The district name was later changed to Holbrook in 1860, and served (as the names suggest) Holbrook in the northwest corner of the Town of Islip. The district was originally on the border of Islip and the towns ofSmithtown andBrookhaven, the three towns Sachem serves parts of today. This district served much of what is today known asRonkonkoma at first, known then as Lakeland. This changed what the Lakeland school district was formed as district #11 of the Town of Islip in 1855. Today this area is served byConnetquot. It also served parts of the modernCentral Islip School District, until its forming in 1858. It would eventually merge with theHoltsville district of the time, becoming Union Free in 1924. In 1948, the Gatelot Avenue School opened. In 1955, the modern Sachem district was formed through the centralization with the districts inLake Ronkonkoma andFarmingville.[5][6]
Over just 15 years from 1955 to 1970, the district would expand rapidly. Grundy Avenue Elementary, Lynwood Avenue Elementary, and Sachem Junior-Senior High School all opened in 1956. From 1963 to 1970, Nokomis, Hiawatha, Chippewa, Wenonah, Cayuga, Merrimac, Tamarac, and Tecumseh elementary schools, along with Seneca Middle School, all opened. In 1970, Sachem became a dual high school district with the opening of Sachem High School North.[5][6]
As voted upon by district constituents in 1999, the district built two new schools and reconfigured its current schools at the start of the 2004-2005 school year.[7] The elementary schools, which formerly housed gradesKindergarten through 6th, are now K-5. Seneca and Sagamore junior high schools (formerly grades 7 and 8) became middle schools (grades 6 through 8). The former Sachem High School South, the 9th and 10th-grade facility, was converted into Samoset Middle School. Sequoya was built as a fourth middle school for the purpose of reconfiguration. Sachem High School North, formerly home to all 11th and 12th-grade students in the district became a 9-12 facility for students in the western and northern portions of the district. Sachem East was built as a 9-12 facility for students in the southern and eastern portions of the district. Sachem East is also the second largest suburban high school in New York state.[8]
On September 16, 2015, the Sachem School District Board of Education voted to cut custodial staff, athletics, clubs, and other extracurricular activities in order to reallocate $2.5 million for Special Education services and worker compensation costs. The board declined to cut $345,000 in Kindergarten aides. Changes will affect over 14,000 students across the district.
Three months later, on December 17, Sachem School District announced, due to declining enrollment and a $1.3 million budget gap, that it would close down Sequoya Middle School as well as Tecumseh and Gatelot Elementary Schools.[9]
The district has its own radio station,WSHR. It operates on 91.9FM and is, named after the mascot of the district, known as "The Arrow." It is licensed out of Lake Ronkonkoma. It is a non-profit and does not feature any advertisements. It has a 6,000 watt tower, making it the largest educational radio station in theNortheast United States. It is able to be heard in the Sachem area, as well as most of Suffolk County and also some ofNassau County. The station is run by students at both Sachem East and Sachem North in broadcast journalism classes. Today, the district primarily uses the station forTop 40 andpop music, but also features North or East basketball and football games. For many years beforehand, it was a jazz station.[10]
In addition to the schools mentioned above, a number of schools were once proposed, but never built.[12]
As of the 2020-2021 school year, Sachem's school board consists of the following members:[13]
| Board member's name | Position |
|---|---|
| Robert Scavo | President |
| Sabrina Pitkewicz | Vice President |
| Alex Piccirillo | Trustee |
| Matthew Baumann | Trustee |
| Michael Isernia | Trustee |
| Stephanie Volpe | Trustee |
| Laura Slattery | Trustee |
| Vincent Reynolds | Trustee |
| Meredith Volpe | Trustee |
 | This article's list of alumnimay not follow Wikipedia'sverifiability policy. Pleaseimprove this article by removing names that do not have independentreliable sources showing they merit inclusion in this articleand are alumni, or by incorporating the relevant publications into the body of the article through appropriatecitations.(September 2025) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
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