Newly tenured Albert Leonard Middle School teachers Justin Jose and Jessy O'Casey with Principal John Barnes.

38 Educators Celebrate Tenure During Ceremony

Written By: Talk of the Sound News

NEW ROCHELLE, NY — Thirty-eight faculty members were celebrated for achieving tenure at the New Rochelle Board of Education meeting on Tuesday.

The achievement buoyed the educators just in time to greet their students for the new school year in the following days.

“I am excited and proud to have reached this occasion,” said Daniel Webster Magnet School special education teacher Cynthia Asiedu-Boateng, one of those who received tenure. “This is a nurturing community where we put the whole child first. That’s one of the main reasons that I came here. They’re so loving.”

The faculty members generally achieved tenure after two or three years, depending on whether they had been granted tenure at another district before joining New Rochelle’s faculty.

“Candidates for tenure are observed regularly and rigorously to ensure that they contribute to the high-quality education we provide in New Rochelle,” said Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources Joseph Williams. “A tenure designation in New Rochelle signifies that a faculty member is a master teacher or is well on his or her way to becoming one.”

The tenure ceremony raised repeated applause as each of the school principals took a turn standing at the podium in the Linda E. Kelly Theater and praising the candidates from their schools. New Rochelle High School Principal Reginald Richardson added a bit of extra flair by having composed a haiku for each of the staff members he recommended from his school. His poem for business teacher Robert Thompson III, for example, was:

Accounting is cool

If you have Mister Thompson

Everything is cool.

“Every one of the teachers and other faculty members granted tenure was well deserving of the praise they received,” said schools Superintendent Dr. Brian Osborne. “These thirty-eight educators have proven that they are tremendous assets to our school district, our community, and most importantly, to our students.”

The faculty members achieving tenure (including those granted tenure earlier) were

The Henry Barnard Early Childhood Center

Jessica Bahar, special education teacher; Marianella Bonelli, speech language pathologist; and Anna Bruno, FLES teacher

Columbus Elementary School

Tammy Penton, teacher, and Salvatore Spataro, teacher

George M. Davis Elementary School

Dana Barry, special education; Maria Cambeiro, Spanish; Laura Sarago, education technology specialist; and Nicole Strome, teacher

Jefferson Elementary School

Melissa Mackhanlall-Cruz, teacher

Trinity Elementary School

Denise Larkin, teacher; Kerry McKenna, teacher; Layluma Longi, teacher; and Pamela Buddy-D’Ambrosio, library media specialist

William B. Ward Elementary School

Tanja Rolon, teacher; Alana Fajardo, teacher; and Melissa Anderson, ENL teacher

Daniel Webster Magnet School

Cynthia Asiedu-Boateng, special education teacher; Sarah Chickery, teacher; Cynthia Horton, teacher; Marissa Martinez, ENL teacher; and Maria Sprio, teacher

Albert Leonard Middle School

Jessy O’Casey, English teacher, and Justin Jose, math teacher 

Isaac E. Young Middle School

Elizabeth Goodwin, French teacher; Isabel Maldonado, art teacher; Pamela Smith, teaching assistant; and Erica Weisberg, physical education teacher 

New Rochelle High School

Adam Capellan, physical education teacher; Shelese Dupree, math teacher; Hope Kalman, teaching assistant; Jeffrey Lavar, math teacher; Cynthia Milite, special education teacher; Ronald Schoenherr, science teacher; Christine Szarka, special education teacher; Robert Thompson III, business teacher; and Kara Vicinelli, English teacher

Alternative Campus School

eronica Magana, Spanish teacher