Some time in the middle of the 1800’s there was a one-room schoolhouse in Roosevelt. It was located on Washington Avenue near the present site of the Washington-Rose building. Later, a three-room building existed. This edifice was used for such functions as meetings, political activities, social gatherings, Sunday school and church services.

With the increase of population, a demand arose for the expansion of educational facilities. School Number 1, an eight room building, was first constructed. A few years later in 1915 a similar building called School Number 2 (Rose Avenue School) was built. After a fire in 1922, when School Number 1 was destroyed, a modern sixteen-room school with an auditorium was built on Washington Avenue. This was originally named the Theodore Roosevelt School after President “Teddy” Roosevelt.

The Centennial Avenue and Underhill Avenue Schools were erected in 1930. Centennial Avenue was originally named Quentin Roosevelt and Under Hill Avenue was originally named Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., after the sons of President “Teddy” Roosevelt.

Centennial Avenue and Underhill Avenue were neighborhood K through 6 schools. Rose Avenue was a K through 3 and Washington Avenue had grades 4 through 6 on the first floor. The second floor contained grades 7 and 8 from the entire school district. Students beyond 8th grade went to either Freeport or Hempstead High School.

Because of the World War II “baby boom”, both Freeport and Hempstead School Districts were pressuring other school districts around them to expand. In September of 1956, the Roosevelt Junior-Senior High School was opened. It consisted of the main office area, 100-200 wings, Junior General Purpose Room and Kitchen, large gym complex and the industrial arts area. The present senior high kitchen was the music room. What is now known as the “Central Office” was an elementary school and was called Northeast Primary. It housed K through 3 students who later went to Washington-Rose. This section was erected as part of the new junior high school.

Shortly, thereafter, Freeport only allowed students to register if older sisters, brothers and parents had attended. Hempstead also continued to grow. In September 1962, the Roosevelt Junior-Senior High School opened its doors and in 1964, Roosevelt graduated its first senior class.

The additions to the building included the 300-400 wings, Senior General Purpose Room, kitchen, small gym, two industrial arts rooms, auditorium, music suite and planetarium. There was a junior high school library in the 200 wing and a senior high school library in the 300 wing. The Northeast Primary section became the District Offices, Guidance Offices and Business Department classrooms. Some time later, because of needed space, the District Offices were relocated on the northwest corner of Pennywood Avenue and Nassau Road where they remained until the 1978-79 school year.

A new elementary school was also erected and was called the Northeast Primary and served the same purpose as the original one. It since has been renamed the Harry Daniels Primary Center in honor of a retired teacher-principal.

Later, two portables were built at the Roosevelt Junior-Senior High School for added classroom space and were known as the 500-600 buildings.

The Roosevelt Pre-Kindergarten Complex opened for the 1965-66 school year. The Consumer Home Economics Program, which does not exist today, became part of the pre-kindergarten complex during the 1970-71 school year.

In the 1978-79 school year, the 700-800 wings and a new library were added to the Roosevelt Junior-Senior High School. The Guidance Department was moved to its present location and the Business Department to the 800 wing. The area vacated became the Central Office.

Today, the Roosevelt School District today consists of the following buildings: three K-5 schools, one Middle School, and one Senior High School. Because of long-standing problems in funding, facilities, and academic achievement, the Roosevelt Schools have drawn nationwide attention.

In October of 2007, the Roosevelt Board of Education, along with the State Education Department hired a new Superintendent of Schools. The new Superintendent of Schools, working with an appointed Board, with the exception of one elected member, began to develop and implement initiatives that would set the foundation for the revitalization of the Roosevelt UFSD. Although faced with the challenge of leading the District in the absence of key Central Office and building level administrators – interim positions such as: no Assistant Business Official, no Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction, no Subject Matter Specialists, Department Coordinators or Chairs, no Director of Facilities, and an interim High School Principal – the newly appointed Superintendent of Schools endeavored to bring reform to an otherwise failing school system. Despite these obstacles, in just one year, the Roosevelt Union Free School District has made noteworthy progress. Not only has the District opened 3 newly rebuilt elementary schools, but for the very first time a new Middle School, totally independent from the High School.

Academically, our schools continue to make progress and improve their performance on both State and standardized assessments. Our three elementary schools, which have a history of satisfactory to superior academic achievement, continue to demonstrate excellence. In addition, they continue to implement programs and services for students that nurture their growth and foster their social and emotional development. Our Middle School was removed from the state’s School Under Registration Review (SURR) List in March, 2009, and our High School is now fostering a strong team building effort in order to accomplish the same.

The Roosevelt Union Free School District is well on the way toward moving from “good” to “GREAT”, as we adhere to our motto of, “The Relentless Pursuit of Excellence In All That We Do”