The unveiling of a dedication plaque in honor of longtime Huntington UFSD teacher, administrator and museum curator Jack Abrams will be held at the school named after him on Saturday at 10 a.m.
The celebration of life and plaque dedication ceremony will include remarks by Huntington Superintendent James W. Polansky and teacher Keith Meyers along with family members and friends. Mr. Abrams passed away on June 24, 2020.
A choir comprised of Jack Abrams STEM Magnet School students under the direction of teacher Josephine Greco will perform. The group will include fifth graders Harper Cohn, Brady Duke, Luca Garcia, Celia LoPorto, Jack McLaughlin, Ella Schaefer, Jonathan Soviero, Christina Ponce-Avila and Vader Renkewitz and sixth graders Grace Bartasi, Bella Duke, Valentina Guerrero, Jack Handler, Daniel Paiz, Cedar Stanforth and Jayden Zambrano.
The ceremony is scheduled for the courtyard amphitheater, weather permitting. If conditions require it, the event will move indoors to the newly refurbished auditorium.
Mr. Abrams’ family members are coming into town from several states for the ceremony. Many of his former students and faculty colleagues are also expected to attend. The new dedication plaque will be available for viewing.
Born during the Great Depression, Mr. Abrams attended Andrew Jackson High School in St. Albans, Queens. After serving in the U.S. Army Special Service and Signal Corps in Korea and graduating from New Paltz Teacher’s College with a B.S. in Education, he began his career at the Newbridge Road School in North Bellmore before joining the Huntington school family in 1955. Along the way he added advanced degrees from Hofstra and Columbia universities.
The first of many assignments saw Mr. Abrams work as a sixth grade teacher at Woodbury Avenue Grammar School. As the years unfolded, his Huntington career included stints as elementary science coordinator and principal of Nathan Hale, Woodbury Avenue, Washington, Village Green, Toaz/Finley’s sixth grade school and Woodhull.
In 1975 Mr. Abrams initiated the sixth grade outdoor education program that for decades saw hundreds of students trekking to Camp Greenkill for four days and three nights of hands-on educational activities. He even spent a year teaching fifth grade in Great Britain with the Fulbright Teacher Exchange Program. Another year was spent as a third grade teacher in Northport while on a sabbatical from Huntington.
Mr. Abrams served the last six years of his career as principal of Jefferson Elementary School before officially retiring in 1987. It wasn’t long before he was busy establishing the district’s museum, which today is filled with more than 1,500 items.
After 25 years as curator of Huntington’s School Heritage Museum, Mr. Abrams retired in June 2012. Beloved by current and former students alike, his more than half-a-century record of service to the community was recognized when the Huntington School Board voted to rename Huntington Intermediate School in his honor, effective July 1, 2008.
The formal dedication came during a ceremony held in September of that year. A crowd of about 300 gathered in front of the building to pay tribute to a man who gave his heart to the Huntington School District.
After a 57 year association with the district, Mr. Abrams decided it was time to slow down a little bit and stop pushing himself so hard. He retired from his part-time curator post in June 2012. He had a winter home in Florida along with his permanent residence in East Northport and he wanted to enjoy both without the demands of the School Heritage Museum post. He later moved to Nevada to be near one of his daughters.
