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New CCSD superintendent, MED principal settling in
By Sesame Campbell
CHATHAM — After an exhaustive search that included stakeholders from several communities in the district, Cheryl Nuciforo and Kristen Reno were chosen to fill the positions of Chatham’s superintendent and Mary E. Dardess Elementary School principal, respectively. Collectively, the two women bring more than 40 years of educational expertise and wisdom to Chatham from various classrooms and administrative positions they have held, at a time when experience is critically important to a district facing substantial reductions in state aid and declining enrollment.
To demonstrate this, one has to only look at the numbers. The graduating class for Chatham this year was 117 students, compared to only 72 enrolling kindergarten students. How will Chatham continue to provide a quality educational program with such a dramatic decrease in population?
“If we look at the financial climate and the decrease in enrollment, then it is critical for the community to be informed of the challenges that we’re going through,” Nuciforo said. “I want to be the kind of superintendent who keeps people informed all along, not just when things are needed. I want for there to be an ongoing conversation with the community so that there are as few surprises as possible.”
Although quiet and understated, Nuciforo possesses a keen intelligence and confidence that is almost eerie. Colleagues describe her as having a nearly photogenic memory; the kind of leader who stays out of the spotlight. She is said to have the capacity to bring out the best in people without drawing attention to herself.
“The superintendent’s role is to identify needs, skills and potential and coordinate everyone to do their part,” she said. “That’s ultimately what it’s about. We look at the budget, talk to teachers, parents, board members and every single group that has a piece to offer the solution. If I saw it as my job to ‘solve’ the problems myself, I would be overwhelmed. It’s about knowing when you need to make a cross-section of a group and meet individually, who to bring to the table and how. These are the skill sets that come with this job.”
In a budget year that saw the elimination of three positions because of a declining Chatham population, Nuciforo’s demonstration of her willingness to take the bull by the horns and communicate with transparency and effectiveness with a district already overburdened with taxes and economic uncertainty is a relief to many who were worried that retired Interim Superintendent Lee Bordick’s shoes would not be filled.
“We have to be mindful of the resources we have and that we match our resources to our needs,” Nuciforo said. “I would make the analogy to owning a sailboat but buying a car that has enough power to pull the sailboat. If you get rid of the sailboat do you still need the same kind of powerful car?”
The challenge with small districts like Chatham is that with fewer students, there are fewer resources to go around.
“You have to find creative ways to have an exciting program to offer students while preserving and updating programs and offerings,” she said. “For example, in a very large district you might have a school that offers three or four different languages because they have such a large population that there are a greater number of students to fill those classes. In a smaller school it’s not feasible to offer the same number of classes.
No doubt Nuciforo’s experience has shaped her abilities as an effective administrator. She brings teaching and administrative experience at every level from elementary through college and has worked in many different types of settings, ranging from rural to more urban districts. Most recently, Nuciforo served as assistant school superintendent for the Saugerties Central School District in Ulster County.
As an administrator at a large high school that had three foreign language offerings, Nuciforo would look for creative ways to provide similar opportunities to students at Chatham who are interested in learning more than Spanish, such as partnering with another school district, Questar III or Columbia-Greene Community College.
“My task is to try and preserve the opportunities that are here and continue to add new opportunities as they are appropriate in some kind of forum that the community can support,” she said.
Nuciforo came to Chatham because she wanted to be in a district small enough to keep a connection to students in the classroom. “The larger the district, the more the superintendent has to focus on things not involved directly with students,” she said. “I want never to lose sight of why I’m here: To give the students the best instructional opportunities and experience possible.”
She and her family have already bought a house in the district, which she plans to move into next month. Her first order of business is to continue the capital improvement project, a smooth transition to the one bell-system and Reno’s transition at MED. And there is also her transition. If time is left over, a shop along Route 295 has caught her attention that might feed her new hobby: quilting.
“I still have to stop in and introduce myself to the owner. I want to take classes in my spare time,” she joked.
Over at MED, Reno is preparing for her transition as the new principal, familiarizing herself with a new district and policies and making new connections with staff, parents and a community that she has always felt connected to.
Having grown up in East Greenbush, Reno feels like she’s coming home to Chatham.
“I spent a lot of time in the area,” she grinned. “I remember going to the Crandell [Theatre] when I was younger.”
That was when she wasn’t playing school at home, pretending to be a teacher. “I wanted to be a teacher as far back as the sixth grade,” she said.
Reno graduated from Columbia High School in 1986 and as fate would have it, Nuciforo’s first public teaching job was at Columbia while Reno was still a student there. Reno attended SUNY Cortland and got her undergraduate degree in Elementary Education with a concentration in English. Reno went on to St. Rose to get her Masters of Science in Literacy.
She taught fourth and fifth grade for a long time and needed a change. So, she walked into her principal’s office and said that she wanted to teach in a kindergarten or first-grade classroom.
“It was great but wasn’t the change I wanted,” she mused. “I though I wanted to do more without getting out of the field. So with the help of my colleagues and family, I decided to go back to school.”
It was the best decision by far, Reno said. “I can still see the kids and teach in the classroom whenever I want,” she said. “It’s just great!”
In fact, that is what she likes most about the school. “What’s most rewarding is that here, you can sit and collaborate with teachers,” she said. “Everyone has great ideas that they want to share. The bottom line is that we’re all here for the same reason. We want kids to succeed and learn.”
Reno said that one of the things that drew her to the district was that there is a focus and drive to make sure that students learn. “It is a good learning community,” she said.
She wants students and teachers to be an integral part of decision-making at the school. She especially wants students to take ownership of the school and has ideas to incorporate a morning announcement show as part of that process.
“Kids have to take ownership in the school,” she said. “It’s a place that they’re coming to spend most of their day. I want them to feel like it’s their school.”
Reno said that the teachers she has met with echo her thoughts. “Any teacher I’ve met has such enthusiasm about teaching here. I was with a third-grade teacher yesterday and got so excited with her I thought, ‘I wish school would start tomorrow!’”
To demonstrate this, one has to only look at the numbers. The graduating class for Chatham this year was 117 students, compared to only 72 enrolling kindergarten students. How will Chatham continue to provide a quality educational program with such a dramatic decrease in population?
“If we look at the financial climate and the decrease in enrollment, then it is critical for the community to be informed of the challenges that we’re going through,” Nuciforo said. “I want to be the kind of superintendent who keeps people informed all along, not just when things are needed. I want for there to be an ongoing conversation with the community so that there are as few surprises as possible.”
Although quiet and understated, Nuciforo possesses a keen intelligence and confidence that is almost eerie. Colleagues describe her as having a nearly photogenic memory; the kind of leader who stays out of the spotlight. She is said to have the capacity to bring out the best in people without drawing attention to herself.
“The superintendent’s role is to identify needs, skills and potential and coordinate everyone to do their part,” she said. “That’s ultimately what it’s about. We look at the budget, talk to teachers, parents, board members and every single group that has a piece to offer the solution. If I saw it as my job to ‘solve’ the problems myself, I would be overwhelmed. It’s about knowing when you need to make a cross-section of a group and meet individually, who to bring to the table and how. These are the skill sets that come with this job.”
In a budget year that saw the elimination of three positions because of a declining Chatham population, Nuciforo’s demonstration of her willingness to take the bull by the horns and communicate with transparency and effectiveness with a district already overburdened with taxes and economic uncertainty is a relief to many who were worried that retired Interim Superintendent Lee Bordick’s shoes would not be filled.
“We have to be mindful of the resources we have and that we match our resources to our needs,” Nuciforo said. “I would make the analogy to owning a sailboat but buying a car that has enough power to pull the sailboat. If you get rid of the sailboat do you still need the same kind of powerful car?”
The challenge with small districts like Chatham is that with fewer students, there are fewer resources to go around.
“You have to find creative ways to have an exciting program to offer students while preserving and updating programs and offerings,” she said. “For example, in a very large district you might have a school that offers three or four different languages because they have such a large population that there are a greater number of students to fill those classes. In a smaller school it’s not feasible to offer the same number of classes.
No doubt Nuciforo’s experience has shaped her abilities as an effective administrator. She brings teaching and administrative experience at every level from elementary through college and has worked in many different types of settings, ranging from rural to more urban districts. Most recently, Nuciforo served as assistant school superintendent for the Saugerties Central School District in Ulster County.
As an administrator at a large high school that had three foreign language offerings, Nuciforo would look for creative ways to provide similar opportunities to students at Chatham who are interested in learning more than Spanish, such as partnering with another school district, Questar III or Columbia-Greene Community College.
“My task is to try and preserve the opportunities that are here and continue to add new opportunities as they are appropriate in some kind of forum that the community can support,” she said.
Nuciforo came to Chatham because she wanted to be in a district small enough to keep a connection to students in the classroom. “The larger the district, the more the superintendent has to focus on things not involved directly with students,” she said. “I want never to lose sight of why I’m here: To give the students the best instructional opportunities and experience possible.”
She and her family have already bought a house in the district, which she plans to move into next month. Her first order of business is to continue the capital improvement project, a smooth transition to the one bell-system and Reno’s transition at MED. And there is also her transition. If time is left over, a shop along Route 295 has caught her attention that might feed her new hobby: quilting.
“I still have to stop in and introduce myself to the owner. I want to take classes in my spare time,” she joked.
Over at MED, Reno is preparing for her transition as the new principal, familiarizing herself with a new district and policies and making new connections with staff, parents and a community that she has always felt connected to.
Having grown up in East Greenbush, Reno feels like she’s coming home to Chatham.
“I spent a lot of time in the area,” she grinned. “I remember going to the Crandell [Theatre] when I was younger.”
That was when she wasn’t playing school at home, pretending to be a teacher. “I wanted to be a teacher as far back as the sixth grade,” she said.
Reno graduated from Columbia High School in 1986 and as fate would have it, Nuciforo’s first public teaching job was at Columbia while Reno was still a student there. Reno attended SUNY Cortland and got her undergraduate degree in Elementary Education with a concentration in English. Reno went on to St. Rose to get her Masters of Science in Literacy.
She taught fourth and fifth grade for a long time and needed a change. So, she walked into her principal’s office and said that she wanted to teach in a kindergarten or first-grade classroom.
“It was great but wasn’t the change I wanted,” she mused. “I though I wanted to do more without getting out of the field. So with the help of my colleagues and family, I decided to go back to school.”
It was the best decision by far, Reno said. “I can still see the kids and teach in the classroom whenever I want,” she said. “It’s just great!”
In fact, that is what she likes most about the school. “What’s most rewarding is that here, you can sit and collaborate with teachers,” she said. “Everyone has great ideas that they want to share. The bottom line is that we’re all here for the same reason. We want kids to succeed and learn.”
Reno said that one of the things that drew her to the district was that there is a focus and drive to make sure that students learn. “It is a good learning community,” she said.
She wants students and teachers to be an integral part of decision-making at the school. She especially wants students to take ownership of the school and has ideas to incorporate a morning announcement show as part of that process.
“Kids have to take ownership in the school,” she said. “It’s a place that they’re coming to spend most of their day. I want them to feel like it’s their school.”
Reno said that the teachers she has met with echo her thoughts. “Any teacher I’ve met has such enthusiasm about teaching here. I was with a third-grade teacher yesterday and got so excited with her I thought, ‘I wish school would start tomorrow!’”
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