The Newburgh Enlarged City School District announced that a new administration will be taking over at the Newburgh Free Academy Main Campus. The district is paying nine principals to fill various posts at the high school.
The organization structure of the school’s administration and guidance counseling teams have been revamped. The adjustments were made in collaboration with the high school administration team, senior staff, and school counselors.
Teams are organized by cohort. The year listed as a student’s cohort is the year that the student began 9th grade. Students will be assigned a specific assistant principal and school counselor. Some students may be assigned a new school counselor this year.
One reason for the change is that when school counselors and administrators were previously assigned to a single cohort, a smaller number of professionals were working with students during critical times in their high school career. There were two school counselors working with seniors as they prepared to graduate and two school counselors working with 9th graders as they adjusted to a new school. Under the new model, there will be four professionals to support our students throughout the year, but especially during times when they need a higher level of focus and care.
Susan Valentino has been announced as the new Co-Principal of the NFA Main Campus. She has 27 years of experience in the NECSD. She began as an elementary school teacher at The Primary School and Broadway School. She then became a program specialist. Once the Broadway School closed, she was promoted to Assistant Principal at South Junior High School and served for 6 1/2 years. In 2009, she joined NFA as an Assistant Principal, also serving as Acting Vice Principal for two years. Most recently, she was the Assistant Principal at Heritage Middle School for the 2021-2022 school year.
Roderick Phoenix is a newcomer to the NECSD. He has 18 years of experience teaching, having served various capacities including teacher assistant, teacher coach, and assistant principal. For the past eleven years, he has served as an assistant principal in New York City and Yonkers Public Schools. He joins NFA as the Vice Principal for Cohorts 2019 and 2021.
Carolyne Monéreau-St.Louis is beginning her fifth year as an assistant principal with the NECSD. Prior to coming to Newburgh, she worked for the NYC Department of Education for 19 years, serving as a secondary Assistant Principal in Brooklyn for her last ten years in that agency. She will serve as the Assistant Principal for Cohorts 2019 and 2021 (A-F).
Mike Ragusa is beginning his 24th year in teaching, with 16 years in the NECSD. He was the building principal at South Middle School, assistant principal at South Middle School Temple Hill Academy, and the NFA Main Campus. He will serve as the Assistant Principal for Cohorts 2019 and 2021 (G-O).
Andrew Cameron began his career in the NECSD in 1998 teaching at Horizons-on-Hudson. In January 2022, he became a 9th grade Assistant Principal. Throughout his 24 years, he has held many positions such as elementary and middle school principal, as well as a Director of Program Operations K-12. He will serve as the Assistant Principal for Cohorts 2019 and 2021 (P-Z).
Matthew Spellman, who graduated from NFA in 2008, began his teaching career in the Bronx in 2012. He came home to NFA 2018 where he has served as an Assistant Principal for the past four years. He will serve as the Vice Principal of Cohorts 2020 and 2022.
Rachel Schuyler is entering her 23rd year teaching, 19 of which has been with the NECSD. She was a classroom teacher at the Broadway School and Gidney Avenue Memorial School. She has also served as an Assistant Principal at South Middle School and the NFA North Campus. She was also an Assistant Principal at Poughkeepsie Middle School. She will serve as the Assistant Principal of Cohorts 2020 and 2022 (A-F).
Patrick Kavanagh is beginning his 16th year at the NFA Main Campus. He has been newly promoted to Assistant Principal this year. He began his career teaching in Rhode Island. He has served as the Lead Teacher for the Exceptional Learners department at the NFA Main Campus for ten years. He will serve as the Assistant Principal of Cohorts 2020 and 2022 (G-O).
Roberto Cruz has been teaching for over 28 years, including 12 years of experience as an assistant principal and three years as a principal within the NECSD. He was previously a Special Education teacher, Bilingual/ESL Coach, grant supervisor, related services supervisor, and science director. He will be serving as the Assistant Principal of Cohorts 2020 and 2022 (P-Z).
