NEWS
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2009
New principal takes reins at Conestoga
THE SPOKE
District considers electronic courses
By Rio Perzan Senior Staff Reporter On Jan. 20 in Washington, D.C., Barack Obama raised his right hand and solemnly swore to faithfully execute the office of the President of the United States. Just a few days later at Conestoga, Amy Meisinger took similar steps, although probably without the Bible. Meisinger made the official transition from the position of assistant principal to principal of the school on Feb. 2, assuming the role that had been held by Tim Donovan for the past seven years. “This is such a fantastic opportunity,” she said. “I have some big shoes to fill with [Donovan] leaving, but I’ll take this challenge step by step.” Meisinger, who will be replaced by former principal Susan Yates at the assistant principal level, was informed of the possible job opening over the summer, after Donovan made the decision to move to the district level. While her new position has “always been a goal,” she said that she did not foresee it becoming a reality so soon. While Meisinger admits she did have some nerves when she first
District reorganizes administration A complicated district plan where a dozen administrators changed positions, roles or left the district was the result of a district effort to cross-train its employees and a response to the current economic crisis that has left the district $1.5 million below forecasts, Superintendent Dan Waters said. “One of the goals that I have is to provide opportunities for individuals to gain a fuller view of the K-12 curriculum and experience here,” Waters said. Waters announced the changes in a Jan. 22 internal memo obtained by The Spoke. The graphic at the right details the changes, which go into effect July 1. - Henry Rome
Henry Rome/The SPOKE
Principal Amy Meisinger walks through the library at Conestoga. Meisinger officially moved into her new position on Feb. 2, taking the place of Tim Donovan, who is now at the district level. learned that the transition would take place this year, she feels her experience in the educational field has more than prepared her for the opportunity. Before coming to Conestoga, Meisinger spent ten years at Radnor High School teaching math, then three years at Perkiomen Valley High School as an assistant principal. She then moved to Conestoga in July 2005, where she spent more
than two years as an assistant principal. Meisinger said she has few concerns at the moment, citing the “excellent support I’ve received from my fellow administrators” as one of the most helpful factors in the past few months. She said she has no plans to make any major changes at Conestoga this school year, referring to the next few months as a “transitional period.”
“We already have a great administration, a great program and a great student body,” Meisinger said. “My primary goal this year is to maintain the high level of performance we’ve come to achieve together.” Shuffling a stack of ninth grade discipline forms out of the way, she smiles and adds, “I’m very lucky.”
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Planning on taking that level one language class next year? You may be able to take it online. That’s the plan, at least, in part of a new district effort to examine online coursework. After the course selection process, district officials will look at which classes are under subscribed—with 15 or fewer students, according to Superintendent Dan Waters—and explore ways to offer them online. Those courses may include traditionally under-subscribed language courses, such as Latin 1 and 2 and German 1, though pilot plans are still in the works, according to Delvin Dinkins, the Director of Electronic Learning for the district. In the future, students may be able to take classes online that are not available at Conestoga. But it all depends on how the pilot goes, to see “how students are interfacing with the technology,” Dinkins said. Why the pilot? “We’re plugged in all day. You go to class, and then they unplug you. You go out of class—what do you do? You plug back in,” Waters said.
Rio Perzan can be reached at rperzan@stoganews.com.
- Henry Rome
T/E School District Administrative Changes DISTRICT LEVEL
SCHOOL LEVEL
SUPERINTENDENT DAN WATERS
CONESTOGA HIGH SCHOOL
DIRECTOR OF CURRICULUM, INSTRUCTION, STAFF DEVELOPMENT AND PLANNING MARIE SLOBOJAN
ASSISTANT PRINCIPALS NANCY ADAMS, SUSAN YATES (ACTING)
ADMINISTRATOR ON SPECIAL ASSIGNMENT FOR E-STRATEGIC PLANNING RICHARD GUSICK
TREDYFFRIN/EASTTOWN MIDDLE SCHOOL
CURRICULUM SUPERVISOR: MATH AND SCIENCE JOHN MULL CURRICULUM SUPERVISOR: SOCIAL STUDIES, GIFTED EDUCATION AND STAFF DEVELOPMENT TODD PARKER CURRICULUM SUPERVISOR: WORLD LANGUAGES, VPA, ESL OSCAR TORRES CURRICULUM SUPERVISOR: LANGUAGE ARTS, STAFF DEVELOPMENT SUPERVISOR WENDY TOWLE DIRECTOR OF ELECTRONIC LEARNING DELVIN DINKINS DIRECTOR OF EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM TIM DONOVAN
ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL MICHELE CAPUANO
VALLEY FORGE MIDDLE SCHOOL ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL TIM HOFFMAN NOTES: The following positions were eliminated: Curriculum Supervisor for Foreign Language, Visual and Performing Arts and English as a Second Language; and Administrator on Special Assignment for E-Strategic Planning. The Curriculum Supervisor responsibilities were redistributed among other administrators ... Marie Slobojan is retiring and Susan Yates is re-entering retirement ... Nancy Adams will supervise the music program ... Delvin Dinkins will take charge of the Technology Program K-12.