Holtsville school’s history dates back to 1929, but education in the town was forged in 1857
Students have been formally taught in Holtsville since 1857, four years before the start of the Civil War. Prior to that they attended school in Farmingville, which had a school house in the early 1800s.
Long before the centralization and creation of Sachem Schools, representatives from Holtsville and Farmingville met to launch the Holtsville-Farmingville School District No. 13 in July 1928.
The Waverly Avenue School, which was constructed for the cost of $35,000, opened its doors in 1929. Originally, children attended grades one through eight, and there were roughly just a handful of children in each grade level.
The building consisted of two classrooms, an office, a nurse’s room, and the library. There were boy’s and girl’s bathrooms and an auditorium. The bottom floor housed the boiler room and a play area where cooks made soup and sold it for two or three cents per cup.
The basement also housed Sachem Board of Education meetings for a number of years.
Growth in the area began just after the centralization of schools in 1955 with the construction of the first housing developments. Several additions were added to Waverly through the years.
Sachem’s 2004 reconstruction project added needed classrooms, including ones for kindergarten, art and music. The library was expanded and essential services such as the main office and nurse’s room were centralized.
For years Waverly was the home of Randy Reader, an alligator that was the symbol of the school’s reading awards program. In the modern era, the building’s mascot is a wolf.
Led today by Principal John Ruggero, Waverly is a hub of incredible volumes of volunteerism and community service. The building’s “Kids Helping Kids” program is well-known around the school district.
When you walk around the school you’ll notice class photographs dating back some 50 or 60 years, painting a historic picture of appreciation for where the building and community has come from.
-Words by Chris R. Vaccaro
These pieces are a series of articles about Sachem history. Follow along as each are posted: