Kathleen McAuley:

This year, LHS is proud to welcome a few new faces! One of these lovely faces is Mrs. Kathleen McAuley, the new science-research teacher. Originally from Centerport in Huntington, she attended college at the University of Rhode Island for her undergraduate. When asked about college, she said, “Rhode Island is a wonderful state, but I missed Long Island terribly.” After Rhode Island, she travelled back to her home area and attended Stony Brook University. She has taught and studied at a few labs prior to Lynbrook, such as Patchogue-Medford High School and even the Cold-Spring Harbor laboratory in Suzhou, China! This was perfect for McAuley because one of her favorite hobbies is traveling! Unfortunately, she has been unable to fulfill her passion recently because of Covid-19, but as soon as it is over, she plans to continue her interest.

A fun fact about McAuley is that she has travelled to every continent except Antarctica. Another fun fact is despite her growing up in Huntington, she holds connections to the town of Lynbrook because her grandparents met at a Lynbrook School dance! Her mother attended Marion Street Elementary School, and McAuley is, in fact, the first generation of her family to not attend Lynbrook Schools, although she has now found her way back! 

When asked her opinion on Lynbrook High School so far, she said, “Even though this is a strange year to start at LHS, I am so excited to be here. I’m already impressed with the kindness shown by students and teachers each day and feel very welcomed to our LHS family.” Welcome, Mrs. McAuley, to the Lynbrook Owls Family! 

Brian Jacobs:

Another new face here at LHS is Brian Jacobs. He is a new permanent substitute, and this is his first year teaching in a public school. Jacobs is from Island Park and graduated from West Hempstead High School in the year 2008. After high school, he attended Hofstra University for four years and received his bachelor’s degree in Exercise Science. 

Fun Fact: Jacobs actually has been both studying and teaching karate to children and adults for the past fifteen years. He considers his time teaching as very rewarding, and truly loves being able to help a student build his/her self-confidence; his true passion is to “instruct kids to increase their self-esteem in a wider range of physical activities.”

He decided to go back to school and attend Queen’s College where he received his Physical Education License. After this, Jacobs, completed his student teaching at our very own Lynbrook High School! “I immediately felt at home.” He worked with Mr. Dieguez and hopes to one day have a full-time job as a physical education teacher! We are excited to welcome Mr. Brian Jacobs to the Owls family!

Jeanette DeBenedictis Roch: 

Some of you may recognize Mrs. Roch if you attended South Middle School. This is her 19th year in Lynbrook, and where she teaches ninth grade English and 10th grade writing lab. Roch is from Smithtown, but after she got married, she moved to Greenlawn. She attended SUNY Stony Brook, where she completed both her undergraduate and graduate work. Some of Roch’s favorite activities include spending time with family, cooking and finding new recipes, and taking her dog to the park. “I am super excited to be at LHS. My favorite part about being here is getting to know all the students in the district!” Lynbrook High School is very happy to have Mrs. Roch!

Diane O’Brien:

We also welcome Nurse Diane O’Brien to Lynbrook High School. O’Brien is the new nurse to Lynbrook, but she worked in Oceanside High School for three years and as a delivery nurse for 26! After growing up in Lockport, New York, O’Brien attended University of Buffalo for her undergraduate and later attended Stony Brook for graduate school, where she was trained as a midwife. Her favorite hobby is traveling and exploring new places. She also has five kids and loves spending time with them, as well. “I like working at Lynbrook. I do enjoy it and find the staff and students to be so friendly.” We are very happy to have Nurse O’Brien here in LHS!

Joseph Beyrer: 

The final new addition to the LHS staff is Mr. Joseph Beyrer. He teaches Participation in Government here but also teaches seventh grade social studies at North Middle School. Beyrer has taught for what he estimates to be 22 years; he laughed, “When you get to my age, you stop counting!” Beyrer started teaching in New York City at 202 Robert H Goddard Middle School and later moved to 210 Elizabeth Blackwell school, then North, and now here! 

He was born in Queens but moved to Levittown at a young age. He then moved to Rockville Centre and currently lives in Oceanside. He later attended undergraduate school at Iona College and completed his graduate work at SUNY Stony Brook. His hobbies include playing the bagpipes and drums. He also loves baseball and is a huge Mets fan. Beyrer coaches Lynbrook girls cross country, and both the winter and spring track teams.

“LHS is an amazing place to work,” Beyrer said. “My Dad spent over 30 years in the Lynbrook Schools and said the high school was one of his most favorite places to work, and I can see why. From the secretaries to administration all the way to the teachers and custodians and monitors, it has been a pretty good transition. The students have been great as well.” We look forward to seeing Beyrer, and the rest of the new staff here at LHS!