Superintendent Robert K. Toaz Remembered
The longest serving superintendent in Huntington School District history passed away suddenly more than 71 years ago. But, with the possibility of reacquiring a former school bearing his name, people are asking who exactly was Robert K. Toaz and how did the district happen to name a school after him.
Robert Kennedy Toaz was born on August 23, 1869 in Rochester, New York, where he was educated in the local public schools. A member of the Delta Psi fraternity, he graduated from the University of Rochester in 1893 and soon after began a career in education that brought much honor to him.
Prior to coming to Huntington, Mr. Toaz served as a teacher and head of the science department in Canandaigua for a year, as an assistant principal in Waterloo for four years and as a high school principal in Marion, New York.
In 1899 Mr. Toaz became principal of Oxford Academy and Union School and stayed there until February 1906 when he began a 27-year career in Huntington, landing a position as the high school principal and superintendent of the district. He also taught English and Math at Huntington High School and coached the football team. Needless to say, this was a much different era in the world of education.
Mr. Toaz earned a master’s degree at Columbia University and also studied at Albany Teachers’ College and Clark University. He was extremely active in community affairs, serving as president of the board of trustees of the Old First Presbyterian Church, charter member and president of the Huntington Rotary Club, director of the Huntington Chamber of Commerce, master of Jeptha Masonic Lodge, director of the Bank of Huntington & Trust Co., chairman of the Suffolk County Boy Scouts, member of the board of directors of the Huntington Hotel and a trustee of the Heckscher Trust, which administered Heckscher Park and the art museum.
During his long tenure in the district, Mr. Toaz oversaw the construction of the School Street School (also known as the Station School) in 1906, Halesite or O’Hara Street School in 1908, a new Huntington High School in 1908, Lowndes Avenue School in 1913, Lincoln School in 1923, Woodbury Avenue School in 1923-24 and a large addition to Lowndes Avenue School in 1927, when it was renamed Roosevelt School in honor of President Theodore Roosevelt.
Mr. Toaz relinquished his title as principal of Huntington High School in 1930 when Robert L. Simpson took over, remaining in the post through June 1950 when he was succeeded by Robert Cushman, who then led the school for the next 18 years. Thus, the high school had just three principals over a 62-year period.
On June 2, 1933, shortly before he retired as superintendent, Mr. Toaz was awarded an honorary doctorate by State Education Commissioner Frank P. Graves at the commencement exercises of the New York State College for Teachers. He went on to serve as vice-president of the New York State School Masters’ Assn.
After his retirement in November 1933, Mr. Toaz continued to reside in the family home located at 9 Myrtle Avenue, not far from the site where a school bearing his name would eventually be erected during the Great Depression. He continued to be active in the community and was a treasured resource for educators locally and across the state.
On Friday evening, April 15, 1938 Mr. Toaz, who suffered from heart trouble, told his family that he didn’t feel well. The family physician was called in and shortly thereafter the longtime educator went to bed. He never woke up, passing away in his sleep during the early morning hours of April 16. He was 68 years old.
Four months earlier, construction had begun on what was being tentatively called Huntington Junior High School. In the aftermath of Mr. Toaz’s death, Huntington School Board members voted unanimously to name the new structure after the former superintendent and principal. When it opened in September 1939, it was Suffolk’s first junior high school and almost instantly became a state and national leader in education for students in grades 7-9, winning many awards over the next four decades.
On Monday afternoon, April 18, 1938, a private funeral service was conducted in the Toaz family home by Old First Church Pastor Rev. E.J. Humeston, DD. Internment followed in the Cold Spring Harbor Memorial Cemetery.
Robert K. Toaz Junior High School went on to serve the local community until it closed on June 25, 1982. Now, district officials are considering reacquiring the structure and the 11 acres surrounding it. The Toaz name could soon come to life again.
All graphics, photographs, and text appearing on the Huntington Public Schools home page and subsequent official web pages are protected by copyright. Redistribution or commercial use is prohibited without express written permission. Comments or Questions? email the Public Information Office