Saturday, April 26, 2025
Lynbrook Police Chief Brian Paladino recalls receiving a letter last year from a social worker and students from Davison Avenue Intermediate School who suggested adding a crosswalk to the busy intersection of Vincent and Lakeview avenues in the village.
“I didn’t want to do that because I didn’t want to promote people walking there,” Paladino said at January’s Village meeting. “So I think that got the class thinking about a good community project.”
Fifth-grade students from Malverne’s Davison Avenue Intermediate School spearheaded the effort, and ultimately were successful: compromising by suggesting four-way stop signs stoplight instead.
Their project, part of the school’s Ambassadors program, aimed to address safety concerns around the intersection of Vincent Avenue and Lakeview Avenue, a popular route for school buses and pedestrians.
The students worked closely with local police officers and village officials to coordinate the installation of the stop signs.
According to students, the added safety measures ensure greater protection for students, school buses and pedestrians alike, especially during peak traffic hours.
“In that area, there was a lot of traffic,” Mackenzie Hammond, one of the students involved in the project, said, “and when children were trying to cross there in the morning, it was difficult, especially because the crossing guard was only there for a limited amount of time.”
At a January village meeting, the Lynbrook Village Board recognized the students’ initiative and praised their efforts in promoting civic mindfulness.
“It was a great idea from them, and something I had been thinking about, and I was really proud that they came up with it,” Paladino said.
Trustee Michael Habert, who lives near the intersection, said his nephew was in an accident at the intersection a few years ago.
“It really meant a lot to me, and it was great thinking,” Habert said at the meeting.
The students’ initiative grew out of a concern for safety, particularly for children trying to cross the busy intersection during school hours.
They conducted surveys around the school, gathering feedback from students about how many walked home or took the bus and the safety challenges they faced while crossing the intersection. The surveys suggested that most students have crossed the intersection at some point, even if they don’t walk home from school.
“Students will get pizza from Regina Pizzeria, which is pretty close to there,” fifth-grader Jordan Exilus said. “When I got to the intersection, there were no cars stopping.”
In their presentation to the police department, they highlighted national data that underscored the importance of traffic safety.
Though the students’ knowledge of complicated topics like budgeting and research was limited, they realized their perspectives still had value, fifth-grader Luna McKenna said.
“It was really like, what if they don’t think we’re as important as adults, because we're kids? What if they don't hear us fully? But they did,” she said of Village officials. “They listened, and they were very respectful towards us, and I think that made us feel confident and like we can change the world.”
Jordan also said his personal experience propelled his passion for the project, recalling his own close call at the intersection before the stop signs were installed.
“I was late for school before the stop signs got implemented,” he said. “My dad’s trying to get me to school, and he doesn’t stop, so he just turns the corner. If a car was there, we could have gotten hurt or something. So that stop sign definitely helped.”
Students must apply to the Ambassadors program, an extracurricular activity that requires keen time-management skills, Martine Laventure, the program director and a social worker at the school, explained — “on top of keeping up with their schoolwork, sports and other activities after school and chores at home.”
As the stop signs now stand at the intersection, they serve not only as a reminder of the students’ hard work but also as a symbol of the change that can happen when young people take action.
“Watching how dedicated they were and excited they were, and to actually see that what they put their minds to come to fruition is gratifying,” Laventure said. “Hearing from community members how much safer they feel, we didn’t realize how much this was needed until it was installed.”
