The Super Bowl halftime show is one of the most exciting events people look forward to every year. It has become iconic throughout the world. The 2025 halftime show featured an electrifying performance by Kendrick Lamar and SZA. There were mixed reactions from people, especially from students at Comsewogue High School. Also, the performance showed continuous bickering between Drake and Kendrick and students picked which sides they were on. 

Kendrick brought out a lot of dancers which students thought added to the overall performance. Senior student, Angelica Vargas said, “ I think the dances helped develop the whole idea and the whole aesthetic.” Kendrick Lamar’s choreography matched well with his music, and the dancers wearing white, red, and blue to represent America was aesthetically pleasing. Another senior student, Emma Samgahbadi said, “I thought it was really fun and I thought the dances were really cool.” Students enjoyed the performance of Kendrick Lamar and his dancers featuring SZA.

SZA being featured at the halftime show brought lots of enthusiasm. Fans were excited to hear one of their top collaboration songs, “All The Stars.” Kendrick and SZA have made a lot of songs together\ over the years and their performance at the halftime show was spectacular. Although, students thought that Kendrick should’ve given SZA more screen time. Student Fernanda Camino said, “ It was really nice to see SZA in the halftime show but it would’ve been more nice if she had more screen time.” SZA only sang two songs and it would’ve been better to see her sing and dance more. 

Lastly, students picked sides over the rap beef between Kendrick Lamar and Drake. Most of them picked Kendrick Lamar because of the thoughtful lyrics he shows in his songs. Student Rina Mina said, “I like Kendrick’s music a lot more because it’s more thoughtful.” Kendrick brings a lot more passion to his songs than Drake. 

Students at Comsewogue really enjoyed the halftime show because Kendrick brought a lot to the stage with SZA. SZA’s songs are very popular and it was logical to bring her to the stage. Also, bringing the bickering between him and Drake to the halftime show added to the fan’s enthusiasm for the show.

Jefferson Shopping Plaza, a long-standing fixture in the community, is undergoing a significant transformation. The plaza was opened around 1959, making it among Long Island’s oldest strip malls. The plaza was very popular however as the years have passed it has been declining but there is a new future for this area. The Town of Brookhaven and Stallers Associates have plans for redeveloping the area. They hope to revitalize Port Jefferson Station with a new apartment complex. 

These new construction plans represent a period of significant change for the community. Jovanny Diaz was the general manager of Ideal, a grocery store located in Jefferson Shopping Plaza. Diaz says he noticed the decline of the plaza as the owners waited for each lease to expire and decided not to renew. He fondly recalls the plaza’s role as a social hub, “I liked it because you talked to people, saw a lot of people, helped a lot of people.” Now, he laments the loss of this community space stating, “It did a little bit of damage”. 

The impact of the changes is felt by long-time residents like Delmis Hernandez, who has been shopping at this plaza since her arrival to the United States, 14 years ago. She highlights the convenience of shops like Ideal, stating, “It’s easy for me to find my condiments for my traditional foods, everything I need basically, that I used to get in my country”.  Ideal is among many of the shops that have already closed down. 

Community members like Hernandez now face challenges traveling further for traditional foods. “I have to drive a longer distance to get the things that I need for my food, the food that I like,” she explains. Hernandez also acknowledges the potential for new opportunities with construction saying, “It’s gonna open up more opportunities for people to come and live here”. 

Community member, Angelica Genao Vargas echoes this sentiment, “I think there could be some positives and negatives. Obviously, people need housing.” She expresses concerns for community members without transportation saying, “It would be a lot harder to commute to a different area because I know a lot of people in that specific area that rely on these places to survive, for example, the grocery store.”

Councilmember Jonathan Kornreich, who originally approved the decision for the redevelopment of this area, shared that the plans for the apartment complex included plans for a grocery store and other shops that all community members can use. Like many of the community members, the Councilmember views the redevelopment as a positive step, stating, “I think it's an exciting plan because that's an area that's really been in need of revitalization for a long time.” He envisions the construction leading to improvements for the community, saying, “I think this is a way forward, to really improve the area and create a lot of nice places to visit.” 

While the transition brings challenges and the loss of a familiar space, it also brings about hope for a revitalized area that will better serve the needs of its residents. Kornreich explains “We’re getting very close to creating something the whole community can feel very proud of.”

The two life skills classes at Comsewogue High School, are being taught a number of skills while working at many different jobs. While one class works jobs at Chick-fil-A, Applebee's, and the Comsewogue Public Library, the other class has opened up their very own coffee shop!

The two life skills classes are run by Mrs. Dornicik and Mrs. Cespites. The field trips are a way to help their students with their futures beyond the classrooms. They started to take field trips to different jobs for the students to work and see what it's like. They also opened their very own coffee shop known as Brew Crew. Mrs. Dornicik spoke on this when she said “We're really trying to make them career-ready for job opportunities both here and out in the community that they live in”.

Mrs. Cespites added to this by talking about what the students get out of the program, “They get work-based learning experience which can help in a variety of ways”. The variety of ways includes helping the students possibly find a career after high school. 

I also asked her how she felt about the program to which she said, “This program is just so great and we're really looking to expand the program and even add another day with more job opportunities for our students”.

To find out more about the program I interviewed Mr. Dornicik,  the District Administrator for Pupil Personnel Services. Mr. Dornicik’s role is to focus on academic success for the students. He alluded to this when asked about the reason for the program change. When I asked him, he said “We just wanted to make sure we were giving all of our students, including students who would be in classes like that the opportunity to have the skills they need to transition into the post-secondary life they’re going to exhibit”. The work that the program could only be seen up close, which is why I decided to accompany Mrs. Cespites's class on their trips into the community.

When I went out in the community with Mrs. Cespites life skills class, I was able to interview Ruth Overzat at Chick-fil-A. I asked her what she thinks about the life skills class and working there, she said “I thought it would be just a great thing for them and for me, a learning experience”

Ruth also talked about what she believes is the most important part of the experience, talking about what the students get out of it, "I think most importantly it gives them a sense of accomplishment and belonging”.

Ruth finally talked about how the experience outside of the classroom helps the students, “It helps them be connected to the community” she stated. Mr. Dornicik also talked to me about the community, "By and large the community is very supportive of the program”. 

Finally, Mrs. Dornicik put it best by talking about her students by saying “It's a great group and I hope that people enjoy our coffee and also talking to them”. Mrs. Dornicik isn’t lying when she says it’s a good group which I'm glad I was able to personally see in action.