The South Huntington School District has inducted three prominent alumni into the district’s Hall of Fame.  Thomas Franklin, Class of 1984, is a multimedia journalist and documentarian best known for his iconic photo taken on September 11, 2001 of three firefighters raising the American flag at Ground Zero.  He is also an Associate Professor of Multimedia Journalism at Montclair State University in New Jersey.  Chris Kort, Class of 1990 is a Board Certified Prosthetist/Orthotist, and founder of Prosthetics in Motion, a leading prosthetics and orthotics facility in New York City with a new location in Melville.  Nicholas Ciappetta, Class of 1997, is a successful attorney with the New York City Law Department, a former Town Attorney and former Deputy Town Supervisor for the Town of Huntington. He has been a member of the South Huntington Board of Education since 2004 and currently serves as the Board President.   

The South Huntington Hall of Fame was established in 2009 to honor alumni who have made a significant impact in their chosen field, their community, and/or on society as a whole since their graduation from Walt Whitman High School.  New members are inducted every other year. Prospective candidates can be nominated by anyone, and are eligible once they have been a Whitman graduate for ten years.  Winners are voted on by members of the South Huntington Alumni Group.

Since its inaugural year, 57 accomplished men and women have been inducted into the district Hall of Fame.  Their photos grace the Wall of Fame in the main hallway (500 wing) of Walt Whitman High School just outside the Main Office, serving as an inspiration to hundreds of Whitman students who walk past the Wall of Fame every day.

Hall of Fame inductions connect the past with the present, and underscore the influence and support our schools and teachers can have on so many lives. 

See photos from the 2025 South Huntington Hall of Fame Induction here.