I am initiating this blog in a continued attempt to strengthen the lines of communication. I hope that it will serve as a forum for asking questions, offering opinions and suggestions and clarifying confusion. Regarding confusion, I often feel like parents, staff and community members do not know who I am or what I do. This makes sense considering the fact that most of the interactions occur with staff and other members of my administrative team. So, let me start with who I am.

I am the youngest of six boys. I grew up in Edison Township and now live in North Brunswick. I am married to MaryAnn. We were best friends since the age of 13. I have been married for sixteen years (God bless her). I am the father of Ryan (age 11) and Tara (age 9). Our family also includes Amber, the family dog. I complain about her a lot, but there is something about her wagging her tail when I get home that I would miss.

I earned my bachelors, masters and doctorate from Rutgers University. It is kind of a family tradition since four of my brothers and my father also graduated from there. I still attend all of the home football games and have been a season ticket holder for about sixteen years.

Interestingly, I never wanted to be a teacher. My dad was a teacher and social studies department chair in Highland Park for 25 years. I wanted to be my own man. My dream job was to be an FBI agent or a Navy Seal.

I have been a classroom aide, special education teacher, curriculum supervisor, director of student services, principal and assistant superintendent. In addition, I am an author, consultant for several educational publishers, a speaker at educational conferences and an adjunct professor for Rutgers.

In my “free time”, I coach my daughter’s softball team, my son’s flag football team and also his travel basketball team. I love to play Fantasy Football and I am the reigning champ of my neighborhood league. Long before the movie, I had developed a “bucket list”. I have done pretty well knocking off items on this list. Some of the items I have managed to accomplish include:
• Skydiving
• Scuba diving
• Driving cross country stopping at select National Parks
• Completing an Iron Man triathlon
• Running the NYC Marathon
• Publishing a book

Current items on my list include catching a shark (going this June), climbing a mountain and attending Oktoberfest in Germany. I believe in experiencing life to the fullest.

As far as what I am trying to accomplish as the Superintendent of Schools, I have developed a personal mission that drives what I do. I envision a school system in which:
• All teachers effectively manage, instruct and assess all students.
• Administrators share a vision, model the way, challenge the process, enable others to act and encourage their hearts.
• Parents are informed, supported and positively involved.
• Students are achieving to their full potential in academics, athletics and the arts.

I loved being a classroom teacher. I left the classroom because I believed I could make a bigger difference by changing the system. I have always been the type of person that looked at something and said how could it be better? This personal quality has been both a blessing and a curse. Change is hard on those experiencing it. It can be even harder on those attempting to lead it. Because of fear, issues of control, misunderstandings or a desire to maintain the status quo, the attacks on change leaders become personal. I sometimes ask myself why not just go along and get along? Wouldn’t that be easier? Then I realize that I could not look myself in the mirror if I was not doing what I thought was best.

I believe it was Abraham Lincoln who said, “Good leaders take people where they want to go, great leaders take them where they ought to be.” This quote hangs on my wall as a reminder. While patience is not my strongest virtue, I do believe we are closer to the vision than we were three years ago. It has not been easy, and I do not anticipate it getting any easier. Yet, my heart and soul tell me to have courage and be persistent. For those who disagree with me now, I hope that over time evidence will change their minds.

If you have a suggestion, comment, or question please reply to this entry. I will do my best to reply in a timely manner.