Remsenburg-Speonk Elementary School Students Help Break World Record

The students at Remsenburg-Speonk Elementary School joined thousands of other kids across the country on September 11, breaking the Guinness World Record for the most people singing a national anthem at one time.

The school joined the American Public Education Foundation’s movement to have the most people sing “The Star-Spangled Banner” at 1 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.

The sing-along included 277,065 people across the country in 46 states, said David Pickler, president of APEF.

Of the participants, 154 were students at Remsenburg-Speonk Elementary School, said Superintendent Ronald Masera.

The record has not been officially recognized by Guinness World Records yet, as Mr. Pickler only submitted their feat on Monday. He said the submission was not sent sooner because APEF was still tallying how many people signed up to sing.

“At this point, we are going to submit to Guinness,” Mr. Pickler said. “We don’t anticipate any problems.”

He noted that the APEF paid a $750 processing fee for Guinness World Records to consider them for the new record.

The record for the most people signing a national anthem at once is currently held by the Ministry of Cultural Affairs, Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh at the National Parade Ground in Dhaka, Bangladesh, in March 2014. There were 254,537 people singing when that record was set, according to the Guinness World Records website—about 23,000 fewer people than the event across the U.S. earlier this month.

A representative from Guinness World Records did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

“It was fantastic,” Adrian Cirone, assistant principal at Remsenburg-Speonk Elementary School, said of the sing-along, “and classes talked about the heroes that day, so they can continue to spread kindness through September 12 and the rest of the year.”

The sing-along took place at the flagpole outside Remsenburg-Speonk Elementary School and it was led by Michelle Quigg, a music teacher at the school. Every student at the school from kindergarten through sixth grade sang the national anthem to help break the record.

Every year since the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 in Washington D.C. and New York, Remsenburg-Speonk Elementary School has held a ceremony to honor those who lost their lives in the attacks. After Mr. Masera received an email from APEF about the ceremony, he quickly signed the school up on the foundation’s website and integrated the singing of the national anthem into the annual ceremony because he thought it would be a great way for the students to remember 9/11.