Students at John F. Kennedy High School on Monday got a jolting taste of the dangers of driving while impaired or distracted. more

Wendy Tepfer, executive director of the Bellmore-Merrick Community Parent Center since 2002, was recently honored by State Sen. Michael Venditto as a “Woman of Distinction.” more

The drug addicts’ brain scans that Dr. Stephen Dewey takes appear in psychedelic shades of red, yellow, green and blue, each indicating a level of brain activity — or inactivity. Red means excited. Blue is dormant. Dewey is the laboratory director for behavioral and molecular neuro-imaging at the North Shore-LIJ Feinstein Institute for Medical Research. In that capacity, he’s put hundreds of addicts’ brains to the test — the positron emission tomography test, that is — seeking to understand precisely what happens to the mind when a pot smoker lights up or a heroin junkie shoots up. And, he has found, it isn’t pretty. more

When ticking off the many and varied phys. ed. programs that Saul Lerner has brought to the Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District, you quickly realize what a profound and lasting impact he has had on the lives of thousands of students, his colleagues say. Among the programs are girls’ lacrosse, boys’ badminton, bicycling in gym classes, and first aid/cardiopulmonary resuscitation for all students, a program begun with the Merrick-based Robbie Levine Foundation, to name just a few. Lerner is the Central District’s director of physical education, health, athletics, driver’s education and adult education. After 19 years in the district and 35 years in education, Lerner, 58, will retire on June 30. “It’s been a great run,” he said during an interview last week, “and I loved every minute of it, and I love the community.” more

“All of us were shocked by how great it went,” said David Seinfeld, the Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District’s assistant superintendent for instruction. He was referring to Drug Take-Back Day, ... more

State Farm donated $25,000 on March 26 to the Community Parent Center, a Bellmore-Merrick nonprofit organization that supports parents and families with children in kindergarten to 12th grade, for its “Drive in the Safe Lane” program at Calhoun, Kennedy and Mepham high schools. more

In recognition of National Teen Driver Safety Week, Mepham High School officials recently teamed up with Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice to host AT&T’s “It Can Wait” assembly -- … more

Anna and Emily Lawrence, 17-year-old twins who attend Kennedy High School in Bellmore, are alike is nearly every way. They certainly look alike. They’re also both leaders in the student government, … more

Kennedy High School students played with blocks, threw darts and careered around their gymnasium in oversized pedal carts on April 24 and 25. So one could be forgiven for thinking they were horsing around. There was, however, a deadly serious message behind the fun and games. more

Wendy Tepfer is such an obvious choice for the Herald Life’s Person of the Year, we wondered why we had not selected her before. Then it occurred to us: Tepfer, 63, is among the most selfless, humble people we know. But make no mistake about it: As executive director of the Bellmore-Merrick Community Parent Center, and as a PTA leader and a dedicated sports mom before that, she has been an advocate for the community for three decades. more