Pelham Superintendent Search Meeting

The Pelham School District will be holding a special meeting tonight in Alumni Hall regarding the search for a new assistant superintendent for curriculum, instruction and personnel. At the 7 p.m. meeting, the candidates for the position will be fielding questions from members of the PTA Council.

The District received 123 resumes for the position. Out of the 123, 18 candidates were screened by the District's interim superintendent and assistant superintendent for curriculum, instruction and personnel. Out of those 18, six candidates were interviewed by administrators, teachers and Central Office staff. After that round of interviews, the District's interim superintendent and assistant superintendent for curriculum, instruction and personnel chose the three finalists.

Here are the bios of the three candidates, Steven M. Garcia, Ed.D., Valerie Henning-Piedmonte, Ed.D., and Maria H. Thompson:

Dr. Garcia is currently principal of the Valhalla Middle School where he serves as both a school and district leader. In addition to his role as principal, he is chair of the K-12 Common Core & 21st Century Learning Committee, represents Valhalla Schools as a member of the Putnam/Northern Westchester BOCES Curriculum Council,  and led the district administrative team in developing  a professional evaluation system six years ago.  He received his Masters and Doctorate of Education from Teachers College, Columbia University and his certificate of Advanced Study in Educational Administration from the State University of New York at New Paltz.

Dr. Henning-Piedmonte is currently Assistant Superintendent of Instruction and Professional Development of the Clarkstown Central School District.  Her responsibilities include oversight of the implementation of the Common Core State Standards, the new teacher and principal evaluation requirements, and Response to Intervention as well as data inquiry teams and academic intervention.  She received her Masters and Doctorate in Education from Teachers College, Columbia University.

Ms. Thompson is currently Social Studies Curriculum Supervisor, Grades 6-12, and a social studies teacher in the Pelham Schools. Her responsibilities include all matters related to teachers, students, curriculum and instruction in social studies in the middle school and high school.  She also prepared for and coordinated the K-12 district-wide evaluation of the Pelham Schools social studies curriculum by the Tri States Consortium.  She received her Masters from Teachers College, Columbia University and also from College of New Rochelle in Administration and Supervision.

The District hopes to make its final selection by the end of the month.