School Leaders Get Top Jobs
By Dena Pauling, The Centre Daily Times, State College, Pa.
Jun. 11–STATE COLLEGE — Two educational leaders within State College Area schools are moving up this summer to take top administrative roles.
Jon Downs, a counselor at the Career and Technical Center, has been hired as director of the district’s educational alternatives, including the Delta Program.
And Scott DeShong, an assistant principal at Mount Nittany Middle School, has been hired as principal of Houserville and Lemont elementary schools.
Both said they are looking forward to their new leadership roles and to getting to know the staff, faculty and students they will work closely with next year.
“There are a lot of parallels with the Delta Program and the CTC program in that we are kind of our own separate units within the district,” Downs said. “… The options kids have here are just great, top to bottom.”
Downs, who has a doctorate in counselor education from the University of Florida, began his career as an elementary counselor in Florida. He later moved to Pennsylvania and was eventually hired by the State College Area School District, where he’s been a counselor for about three years. He will replace Vasiliki Volkwein, who is retiring this year.
Downs said he is most looking forward to the opportunity to work with students in kindergarten through grade 12. In addition to the Delta Program, he will oversee HEARTS and STRIDES, mental health programs for elementary and middle school children, and Reclaiming Individual Talent, or RIT, a program for at-risk students in grades seven to 12.
A common misconception about alternative education, Downs said, is that it is “different from the norm.” Alternative programs are, in fact, additional options for kids, and Downs said he would be “shocked” to learn of another district in Pennsylvania that provides more opportunities than State College.
DeShong, who spent most of his life in State College, has been an assistant principal at Mount Nittany for about three years. He began his career in 1994 as an elementary school counselor in the Bald Eagle Area School District and also worked at the high school there until 2000. He’s been at State College Area ever since.
“It’s great to be working for the district,” DeShong said. “I think there is a lot of support from the community and from the families, and it’s neat to help them meet their expectations.”
DeShong replaces Barbara Farmer, who is also retiring this year. He said he is looking forward to working at the elementary level, where there is a high level of community involvement and changes that are impacting education “on a daily basis.”
“I think the use of data to make decisions about instruction and to learn more about our students and their strengths and weaknesses is really one area that is thriving at the elementary level,” he said.
The school board on Monday night approved hiring Downs at a salary of $83,521 and DeShong at a salary of $88,309. Both are expected to move into their new roles this summer before the 2008-09 school year begins.
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Copyright (c) 2008, The Centre Daily Times, State College, Pa.
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