Thursday, October 1, 2026
North Shore School District has received a $150,000 grant secured by Assemblyman Charles Lavine for the purchase of a new press box at the North Shore High School athletic fields. Lavine met with Superintendent Chris Zublionis and North Shore students at the field on May 8 to present the grant.
The community voted in February to approve bond projects including upgrades to athletics facilities like bleachers, the track, and stadium lights. Replacing the press box is a separate element that Zublionis said would “complete” the stadium.
Each year, the district applies for grants from New York State for specific purposes. Zublionis explained that while the old press box was safe, it was in need of extensive repair or replacement.
“The old one was cinder block,” Zublionis said, “and it was working, but we wanted a more modern, prefabricated press box.”
The press box is used during sporting events at the high school’s turf field, like football and lacrosse games. Students and staff can do audio-visual work and livestream. It is currently used by student managers of the school’s lacrosse team and any announcers calling games.
“It’s a much more comfortable and bigger space up there than it used to be,” said Interim Athletics Director Kevin Dahill, “so that’s useful.”
Zublionis said that there is interest among students in creating a television broadcasting program at North Shore. He added that the new press box presents an opportunity for a new learning space.
“Athletics could be a space where broadcasting, filming, film editing start to plant some seeds there, maybe with a club first,” Zublionis said. “Hopefully eventually a class.”
Zublionis and Dahill thanked Lavine for his work in securing the grant. Lavine has secured other funding for the district in the past, such as a $250,000 grant for upgrades to the middle school athletic field in 2022.
“I am proud to have been able to secure the funding for the amazing new press box at North Shore High School,” Lavine wrote in a statement to the Herald. “The dedicated administrative team at North Shore School District, including outgoing Superintendent Chris Zublionis, deserves recognition for advocating for facilities improvements throughout the school system, enabling students to reach new levels of excellence in and out of the classroom.”
