For most students in Nassau and Suffolk, today marks the end of summer. As reported in Newsday, public school students in 75 Long Island districts — more than half of the 124 overall — will resume classes the day after Labor Day 2025. Another 33 will open their doors tomorrow, and 12 start on Thursday.

Three districts, meanwhile, got an early jump on the school year, with Jericho, Bethpage and Herricks kicking off classes last week.

Today will also likely bring with it new challenges, as it will be the first day many students will be banned from using their cellphones during the school day. Educators expect there will be an adjustment period for all involved, particularly when it comes to handling exemptions for reasons such as managing a medical condition or for an individualized education plan.

On the east end, Montauk, Amagansett, East Hampton, Bridgehampton, Southampton, Tuckahoe, Westhampton Beach, Riverhead, and Southold begin school today…Sag Harbor and Hampton Bays, tomorrow.

Greenport Schools start classes this Thursday.

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A downtown Riverhead bar set a Sept. 20 closing date after the town successfully seized the building using eminent domain.

New York State Supreme Court Justice John Leo signed an order last Wednesday granting the Town of Riverhead’s petition to acquire the lease held by SNR Bar 25 Corp., which has run Craft'D at 127 E. Main St. since 2019.

Tara Smith reports in NEWSDAY that completing the eminent domain proceeding means plans for Riverhead’s new town square can proceed. In August, Riverhead inked a deal with developer Joe Petrocelli to build the square, which will feature a hotel and condos, public gathering space, a playground and an amphitheater on the Peconic River.

Sean Kenna, who co-owns the bar, pleaded with the town to reconsider at public hearings earlier this year. "Unfortunately, it was inevitable," he said in a text message Saturday. "We tried but the town is moving forward with their plan."

The business announced it will close Sept. 20.

“After 6 incredible years of cooking, serving, laughing, and sharing memories, our time here has come to an end due to the town's decision to move forward with their project,” the owners wrote in a Facebook post.

Petrocelli plans to raze the building at 127 E. Main St. and replace it with a five-story hotel, condos, retail and restaurant space, a $32 million project.

The Craft'D building is one of three Riverhead Town acquired in 2021 to make way for the new town square. Riverhead paid $2.65 million for the building at 127 E. Main St., $950,000 for 121 E. Main St. and $1.25 million for 117 E. Main St. It demolished the latter two to make space for the square.

Under state law, government agencies can take private property if the purpose meets two criteria: It must be for public use, and just compensation must be paid.

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The East Hampton Aviation Association invites everyone to come and enjoy a day of flying, food, and fun at Just Plane Fun Day 2025 this coming Saturday, September 6 from 10am to 3pm at the East Hampton Town Airport in Wainscott. Free parking and entry.

The East Hampton Aviation Association are partnering with Sound Aircraft Services and the East Hampton Airport to provide everyone in our community the exciting opportunity to experience vintage and modern aircraft up close and personal. Just Plane Fun Day will be a family-friendly, fun filled adventure that will bring the entire community together in a way that educates, inspires and motivates people of all ages.

That’s JUST PLANE FUN DAY this coming Saturday from 10am to 3pm at East Hampton Town Airport, 173 Daniels Hole Road, Wainscott, NY 11975.

For more info visit hamptonflyers.com

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Alarmed by the increase in the number of drownings in Suffolk County in one year, an alliance on water safety has drawn up the first "action plan" to educate the public to reduce these "preventable" deaths.

"New York State has the fourth-highest drowning statistic across the U.S., and Suffolk County was identified as having a 60% increase in drownings from 2023 to 2024," said Jamie Ryan, a certified pediatric nurse and injury prevention professional for the pediatric trauma center at Stony Brook Children's Hospital. Olivia Winslow reports in NEWSDAY that the action plan was completed by water safety nonprofits, Stony Brook Medicine, community groups and governmental entities.

Suffolk had 24 fatal drownings in 2024, compared with 15 the year before, according to the "Suffolk County, New York Drowning Prevention Action Plan," which was released last week. The state had 84 drownings in 2024, according to the plan. "Since 2024, Suffolk County accounts for 70% of all fatal drownings in swimming pools in New York State," the plan says.

The plan also cited Centers for Disease Control and Prevention statistics that said drowning was the leading cause of unintentional deaths among children ages 1-4, and that 9 out of 10 of them die in residential pools "with a caregiver present."

Ryan said Stony Brook was approached by the ZAC Foundation to create a drowning prevention alliance "because Suffolk was identified as having the greatest need."

Suffolk County Executive Edward P. Romaine said in a statement: "Suffolk County is proud to be working with this group of professionals to educate the public on the importance of water safety education. This work will definitely save lives and we’re looking forward to making that impact in the community."

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A school board in Suffolk is expected to decide today whether to keep a contentious Native American nickname, which many local residents have said they don’t want to see go. The Connetquot school district, which has been taken to court by New York State officials who want them to remove their current name, Thunderbirds, must decide if they will accept a compromise with the state that would shorten the name to “T-Birds.”

Alex Mitchell reports in THE NY POST that state officials had been trying to completely erase the Thunderbird name, but changed to accept the compromise moniker only after the Trump administration launched an effort to "protect" Native American school nicknames.

Tiana Morano, a member of the Shinnecock Indian Nation and Connetquot School District resident, said she backed a settlement.

"I’m happy with any deal that acknowledges the native voice," Morano told the school board last week. "Changing a name is not erasing history, it is correcting it. It’s about teaching our children that real honor means listening to the people that are affected, not clinging to outside groups or symbols that do not represent us."

Officials said the district has already spent nearly $50,000 in litigation fees to fight the mascot ban and they estimate that continuing the legal battle could cost another $125,000.

Under the proposed settlement, school officials said the district would have to spend about $86,000 to rebrand to the "T-birds." But to be in full compliance with the state’s mascot ban, which means a new name, logo and imagery, the district estimates a price tag of about $323,000.

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Kent Animal Shelter has welcomed its rescued dogs back to a newly completed state-of-the-art kennel and isolation center in Calverton

Alek Lewis reports on Riverheadlocal.com that the new facilities replace the no-kill shelter’s almost 60-year-old concrete kennel on River Road, which had deteriorated and lacked many amenities expected in a modern animal shelter.

Improvements include expanded space for adult dogs — increasing from 25 to 36 enclosures — as well as two new puppy rooms, meet and greet/bonding rooms, grooming and veterinary check-up rooms, play yards, and a dedicated isolation center where dogs spend their first days in quarantine upon arrival.

To celebrate the new facility, Kent will host a grand reopening festival on Sept. 27 featuring food trucks, live music, raffles, and — of course — opportunities to meet dogs and learn about the adoption process.

Pam Green, Kent’s longtime executive director said the project cost the nonprofit shelter roughly $4.6 million. Most of the funding came from private contributions plus roughly $350,000 from state and county grants, according to Green. For Pam Green, the new kennel is the culmination of more than 25 years of advocacy. In recognition of her service, the isolation center was dedicated in her name.

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When Robert Hernandez first started working at the Bookmark Cafe — the new cafe inside the Rogers Memorial Library in Southampton operated by the South Fork Bakery — he was there with assistance from one of the bakery’s job training coaches. But by the third week of August, Hernandez was the lone employee in the new cafe, which has been run by the bakery since August 10. He had reached the point where he had the skills and confidence to perform the tasks the job requires on his own. For him, and for the bakery staff, that means everything.

Cailin Riley reports on 27east.com that South Fork Bakery is a nonprofit, founded in 2016 by Shirley Ruch, with the goal of creating meaningful employment opportunities for adults with disabilities. Ruch, a former speech and language pathologist, worked for many years with children with autism, and witnessed how it became challenging and often impossible for them to find meaningful work once they became adults. She started the bakery to address that problem. For years, South Fork Bakery products have been found in several local stores, but when the chance to move into the new cafe space at the recently renovated RML became available, the organization jumped at the chance. While many of the bakery employees still work in the bakery itself, making the goods that are eventually packaged and sold, the organization has expanded its mission in recent years with the creation of its Launch job training program. Through that job training and placement program, the bakery is helping adults with disabilities find employment outside of the bakery itself, creating partnerships with several local businesses and other employers.

Jessica Taccone, the bakery’s director of operations said, “We couldn’t have asked for a better opportunity. Not just to showcase our products, but also to showcase our staff, and their capabilities, and what they’re able to do, because people really need to know that they can do anything, as long as they have the right people leading them.”

For more information on the South Fork Bakery, visit southforkbakery.org. For more information on the library, visit myrml.org.