Elsie Rodriguez appointed M-W assistant superintendent

CENTRAL VALLEY — After two years of having the dual role of director of secondary education and Monroe-Woodbury middle school principal, Elsie Rodriguez has been appointed the assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction for the district.

A field of about 10 candidates went through a series of interviews with parents and district officials.

“My role will be to take a look at curriculum and instruction and see ways we can improve student performance,” said Rodriguez, who has 28 years experience as an educator, including the past 11 years as middle school principal. “One of the things I want to make sure of is that we prepare our students for a changing global economy.”

The assistant superintendent position had been left open for two years after Carol O’Neill - who held that title - retired. As part of that retirement agreement with state officials, the position was to be unfilled for that time period.

Rodriguez and Dr. Charlene Kelemen, the Sapphire Elementary School principal who retired at the end of this past school year, handled those responsibilities, with Kelemen serving as director of elementary education. The two director positions were not filled.

In addition to raising students’ academic performance, Rodriguez will also work with District Superintendent Edward Mehrhof in the development of academic goals and focus on staff development to ensure all state requirements are met.

There’s one word Rodriguez wants parents to become accustomed to hearing in this forthcoming school year: Rigor.

“You’ll hear the word ‘rigor’ used often,” she said. “The rigors of education, the rigor of what students will have to master and become more proficient in.”

‘Common core standards’ During the last school year, teachers sought to position students for the forthcoming introduction of common core standards, which are akin to national standards.

On the elementary level, that included the introduction of new math and science curriculums which the district felt were better aligned “to the common core,” she said.

On the secondary level, teachers went to common core training and provided students with exposure to more rigorous questioning on exams that were more “common core like.” They also developed benchmarks for immediate common core standard assessment and progress, allowing them to modify and adjust the curriculum, if necessary, to maximize proficiency.

“That means common core is more rigorous, the level of questions are more difficult, it’s more focused on reading and writing and mathematics,” said Rodriguez. “One of the things that’s going to be challenging is the quality of work. Last year, teachers were preparing students for the change. You’ll see us use our own assessments in-house to get ready for the rigor. Teachers will be fully implementing this (common core) this year.”

‘Parents need to be informed’ That also means, based on national standards, students will be expected to know more about what common core standards define as “what’s important to know.”

“Yes, it’s less topics on each grade level with a greater emphasis on proficiency and we’re diving deeper into the information,” she said. “In the past, the (New York State) standards said students needed to know a bit about a lot of different topics. They had to have a basic understanding of many things; we no longer think that. Now, we will have less content to master but what we master, we want to make sure our students are proficient in that.”

Sounds confusing? Rodriguez said the district will be hold meetings this fall to educate parents about the changes, noting they have to be active participants in their children’s education.

“I want parents to know that I envision our school as three pronged: Teachers, parents and schools working together collectively to give our children a good education,” said Rodriguez. “Parents need to be informed, they need to be involved and we need to give them an understanding about what the changes will be. We’ll be very clear as to parents as to what those expectations are.”

For example, she said, consider a parent who is having his/her third child enter the fifth grade. Based on the experiences of the first two children in that grade level, that parent would know what to expect for the third child. Now, with common core standards ready to be implemented this fall, that experience will be a new one for the parent.

‘College ready’ “People are on board with it (common core standards),” she said. “It will pose a bit of a challenge for us as you move into anything different. Once we get through a year of this, we will see the benefits of it. Proficiency in reading, writing and mathematics is the key. There will be reading and writing in all lessons. This is the better way to get students to be college ready.”

Also rolling out this year is the new Annual Professional Performance Review (APPR) process, which focuses on teacher effectiveness. Administrators completed training during the last school year.

Rodriguez felt it was an exciting time for the district.

“I’m going to be working with the administrators, teachers, central office and parents so that we provide our students with the best education,” added Rodriguez. “My vision is to make sure we look at a continuum of services, K through 12, for our students. We make better decisions with all the stakeholders involved.”

Administration changes within M-W schools

CENTRAL VALLEY - The search has begun for the new Monroe-Woodbury Middle School principal now that Elsie Rodriguez has begun her new role as assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction. Officials hope to name the new principal in time for opening day.

“They’re going to find a great replacement,” Rodriguez said. “It’s a phenomenal building.”

Other staff changes include Rolando Aguilar, formerly the middle school’s dean of students, being named middle school assistant principal following the retirement of Nancy Bryan.

Karen Brock, formerly the assistant principal at Pine Tree Elementary, was named principal of Sapphire Elementary, following the retirement of long-time principal Dr. Charlene Kelemen. Her replacement at Pine Tree has not yet been announced.

By Nancy Kriz