At yesterday’s
Duneland School Board meeting, the Board announced it has hired Robert
McDermott as Duneland Schools new Assistant Superintendent for Compliance
and a slew of new teachers were introduced.
McDermott was most
recently the Director of Student Services and School Safety for the Crown
Point Community School Corporation and is a nine-year veteran of the U.S.
Air Force.
McDermott earned
undergraduate and masters degrees at the University of Texas at Arlington
and earned his Educational Specialist degree and superintendent license from
Indiana State University. He has more than 20 years of experience in school
administration, having also been an assistant principal, principal, and
director of personnel and labor relations. He was one of the first educators
in Indiana to be certified as a school safety specialist in 1999 and has
been chairman for the Lake County Safe Schools Commission and an appointed
member of the State of Indiana School Safety Advisory Council.
McDermott said he
is “looking forward to working with the Board and the staff here to make
Duneland the best school system it can be.”
New Teachers
Liberty Elementary
Principal David Alvarado announced Charity Scollon is joining Liberty as a
second grade teacher. Alvarado said Scollon has years of experience in first
and second grade classrooms.
Westchester
Intermediate Principal Shawn Longacre announced Ezra Burke will be replacing
Kathy Telligman as a fifth grade teacher at WIS. Longacre said Burke has big
shoes to fill, but he’s a leader who has been at the forefront of
initiatives such as the special education PTO, transition fair, and
mix-it-up day at WIS.
Burke thanked the
board and said he’s been in Duneland for seven years, and he’s never felt
more a part of a school community than he has here.
Three new teachers
at CMS are: Hannah Walter, Kristen McMurtrey, and Joy Ichiyama-Nihipali.
Walter will take over business and computer teaching, McMurtrey will teach
English, and Ichiyama-Nihipali will teach Science. Walter has a masters
degree from Indiana Wesleyan University. McMurtrey has a bachelor’s from
Purdue University, taught at Merrillville, and is a founding member of the
NWI Coalition for Public Education. Ichiyama-Nihipali has a masters from
Valparaiso University and comes from Griffith, where she was instrumental in
starting Project Lead the Way.
Five new teachers
at CHS are: Mike Koziczynski, Kevin Ortiz, Matt Pavlovich, Danyelle Vivian,
and Kelly Bonich.
Koziczynski is a
former head custodian at DSC who is coming back as an industrial tech/ETE
teacher as part of the construction pathway at CHS. Kevin Ortiz is a new
industrial tech/ETE teacher taking over the building trades program.
Pavlovich has taught in Merillville and Munster and comes to CHS to teach
physical education. Vivian joins as a math teacher, and will be an
“excellent addition to the math department,” according to CHS Principal
Brent Martinson. Bonich is a former Duneland employee returning to teach
English.
Another new
administrator was named last night: Heidi Hennigar is the new Dean of
Students at WIS. Hennigar is a 1999 CHS grad who was chosen from a field of
“extremely competitive” internal and external candidates for the newly
formed position. Longacre said he’s excited for what the new position can
bring to DSC.
Hennigar has taught
for 16 years at Yost Elementary, where she served as assistant principal for
10 years. Hennigar said she’s loved Duneland so much, she’s glad she doesn’t
have to leave for a new opportunity. “I’m incredibly excited I’ll get to
effect more change in the long run,” she added.
Other Personnel
Moves
The Board also
approved the following personnel moves:
Appointments:
--Lori Tarnowski
was appointed media secretary at Yost.
--Matt Pavlovich
was appointed varsity boys and girls swimming coach at CHS.
--Terrie Campbell
and Yvonne Clancy were appointed Title 1 aides at Bailly.
--Kimberly Bogue
was appointed transportation dispatcher for DSC.
--David Kurz and
Janet Wismiller were appointed drivers for DSC.
--Chris Meyne was
appointed head custodian for DSC.
--Anna Rinchak was
appointed custodian for DSC.
Resignations:
--Sarah Fratto
resigned as sixth grade teacher at WIS.
--Heidi Hennigar
resigned as kindergarten teacher at Yost.
--Jodi Craig
resigned as driver for DSC.
--Susan O’Connell
resigned as JV softball coach at CHS.
--Patrick Ward and
Hollis Williams resigned as assistant swim coaches at CHS.