Dr. David Hopson
Now that we’re back in school and the routine is starting to become more stable and normal, I thought it would be interesting to briefly ‘meet’ some of the new staff in the district. As we’re all involved in the district in one way or another—from having students in the schools, to working in the schools, or assisting in paying for the schools through our taxes (whether local property tax, sales tax, or income tax)—it’s important to know about the outstanding talent Gateway continues to attract.
I’ll also note that the difficulty in filling positions in a small, regional district that’s a fair distance from what some folks consider ‘civilization’ is somewhat offset by the ability to relax on the drive home (except when the state is working on the roads!), the close knit community of students and staff, and the overall positive citizenship of our students. Somehow, we do manage to get a good number of quality applications and I believe we have had the chance to hire great new staff through a collaborative process between administrators and current staff. While I’m always saddened to have staff retire or seek different opportunities, and concerned about the loss of institutional memory when long time staff members leave, I also believe that new staff bring a new perspective that can be good for an institution.
This week I’ll concentrate on teaching staff and am pleased that we have a good cross-section of experienced and new teachers in the new hires this year. In the Junior/Senior High Schools we are fortunate to welcome Steve Andrews in special education, specifically as a behavioral specialist, who brings 9 years of experience to the district. Michelle Burke (who actually joined us last spring) is a veteran 8th grade special education teacher who is trained in speech pathology, audiology and specialized reading approaches. As an 8th grade ELA teacher, we have Tessa Donoghue who has a wide range of educational and coaching experiences. In high school mathematics we find three new staff members: Mike Forand, with many years of teaching experience in settings including an urban school, a charter school, and a private academy; Raymond Paquette, who possesses varied experiences in both public and private education; and Susan Borsella a local resident who also has years of experience in public education and in the private sector. In high school life skills we now have Emily McDonald, a Gateway graduate who returns to Gateway with over a decade of teaching experience.
In the diversified Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) position in grades 5 -12, we welcome Deborah Rossman who has many years of various educational experience. Kent Brenneck, who brings a wealth of various experiences in construction and historic restoration to his second career in education, will teach grade 3 at Littleville. At the kindergarten level in Littleville we have Abigail Donah who has taught elementary education for eight years. In the Littleville 3rd grade we also welcome Elizabeth Hamaoui who has much experience in working with students in different capacities. Asher Rotenberg is our new 6th grade teacher, who has taught for three years in Japan. All of these new teachers hold Master’s Degrees in their content areas, in education, and/or in their specialized field of practice.
And last, but not least, we welcome Kristina Schultz as a new teacher in the 5th grade; a return home, so to speak, as Kristina also graduated from Gateway.
In a future column, I’ll introduce our new, non-teaching staff but did want to share the successes we’ve had in getting some top notch talent into the district to work with our students.
