Copiague School District held its 28th annual Hall of Achievement induction ceremony on Oct. 4 at Walter G. O’Connell Copiague High School. This year’s honorees include five alumni who have left their mark on the Copiague community — Leonard Canton Jr. (Class of 1961); Dawn Longo Koziarz (Class of 1993); Denis O’Connor Jr. (Class of 1987); Michelle Roy (Class of 2007); and Dwayne Stewart (Class of 2008). With their inductions, the Hall of Achievement boasts 132 members.

“In honoring successful past graduates, the Hall of Achievement’s primary purpose is to introduce these alumni as positive and motivating role models to our entire school community and to keep these role models connected in a variety of ways to our schools and our students,” said Copiague School District Superintendent of Schools Dr. Kathleen Bannon. “By the nature of their accomplishments and service, inductees to the Hall of Achievement inspire our students to reach for higher goals.”

Copiague School District’s Board of Education President Anthony S. Pepe added, “We are deeply proud to call you all part of the Copiague family. Tonight is not only about honoring success; it’s about celebrating the inspiration you bring to our students. The reminder that each of us has the power to achieve, to lead and to make a difference.”

Mr. Canton lived with passion, purpose and profound impact. He excelled in basketball and track, earning a scholarship to Morgan State University, where discipline and teamwork defined his path.
After college, he founded Canton Accounting and Tax Service, guiding families from paychecks to legacies. Known as the Oracle of Broadway, he lived with purpose and “never worked a day in his life.”
Beyond numbers, Mr. Canton was a community architect, helping to revive Amityville’s “The Block” and turning blight into hope. He passed away in October 2022, but his legacy thrives — in Copiague, Amityville and in every life he touched. He is survived by his children, Calvin, Cecila, Chamein and Natalie, and his grandchildren, Sean, Scott, Caleb and Evan.

Ms. Koziarz attended Copiague schools and currently works as a librarian at Copiague Middle School. She earned degrees from SUNY Old Westbury, Queens College and Stony Brook University in sociology, library science and school administration, respectively. 

She has taught all grade levels, often to the children and grandchildren of classmates, friends and neighbors. Serving as district liaison, she received the School Library Media Specialist of the Year award from the Western Suffolk BOCES School Library System and continues to advocate for and lead librarians as library council president. She volunteers with DonorsChoose, hosting the Gift of Learning community to support disaster relief and school libraries projects.
Mr. O’Connor began at Copiague High School as a sophomore. As a three-sport varsity athlete and student council president, Copiague laid the foundation for his leadership and coaching journey. Mr. O’Connor earned history degrees from Fairfield University and Long Island University. During college breaks, he worked as a district custodian before launching his education career at Copiague as a coach and class advisor.

For 30-plus years, he has taught history at Warwick Valley High School and coached more than 50 seasons, winning six section titles and earning multiple teaching and coaching honors. 

Ms. Roy’s fondest memories in Copiague High School include her time in the color guard, contributing to the school newspaper and working stage crew for theatrical productions, which fostered her passion for the arts and launched her career in television and film. 

She earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theatrical Production Arts focused on costume design from Ithaca College and a full scholarship to NYU Tisch School of the Arts. She has worked on numerous TV shows and won an Emmy in 2021 for “Pose.” 

Ms. Roy considers designing costumes in Japan for A24’s series “Sunny” a career highlight and recently earned her first head costume design credit on the series “Long Bright River.”
Mr. Stewart was a multisport athlete at Walter G. O’Connell Copiague High School and a two-year starting quarterback. He earned All-County honors, led Long Island with 19 touchdown passes, was runner-up for the Boomer Esiason Award and threw for a touchdown in the Senior All-Star Game.

He helped win a Long Island basketball title as a junior but shined in lacrosse as a three-year starting attackman and senior captain. His senior season featured 38 goals and 42 assists, All-County honors and the Ray Enners Award for leadership and skill.

Mr. Stewart went on to play lacrosse at the University at Albany, earning All-Rookie honors and a conference title. He earned a psychology degree, coached a top five offense at Lincoln Memorial University while completing a graduate degree and later coached at SUNY New Paltz for four seasons.

Mr. Stewart now leads Bronx Lacrosse, supporting 300-plus South Bronx athletes, and coached Cardinal Hayes High School to a CHSAA title. He was named USA Lacrosse CHSAA Coach of the Year in 2023 and 2025.