The following message was sent to the Lynnwood Elementary School Community:
Dear Lynnwood Families,
I hope you are all doing well and enjoying your summer, despite the rainy weather! I want to take this opportunity to share with you some new developments regarding the building leadership at Lynnwood Elementary School.
To begin, it is with mixed emotions that I share that after 11 years as Principal of Lynnwood Elementary School, Mrs. Rizzo will be retiring from that role this summer for medical reasons. During her time as Principal Mrs. Rizzo has been an exceptional instructional leader and a fierce advocate for our Lynnwood students. She has made a real difference in the lives of hundreds of children and her leadership and passion for learning will be missed. We all wish her and her family well as she continues to fight through her health challenges.
As you know, during this past school year, Mrs. Barbara Goldstein has been assisting in the leadership and support of our Lynnwood faculty, staff and students. She has been a tremendous help to the Lynnwood school community during a year filled with extraordinary challenges. What started as a short-term, part-time appointment to assist us became much more than that for her. At this time, she is ready to return to retirement. She will be wrapping up her daily commitment to the district at the end of this month. I know you will join me in thanking Mrs.Goldstein for her compassion, exceptional professionalism, and calm demeanor in the face of uncertainty and change.
So, this leads us to the matter of who will lead Lynnwood as we prepare to start the 2021-2022 school year? At the July 27th meeting of the Board of Education, I will be recommending the appointment of Ms. Jacqulyn Vandenburgh as the Interim Principal of Lynnwood Elementary School. Many of you may know Ms. Vandenburgh as an accomplished classroom teacher. You may not know that she has also assumed many formal and informal leadership roles in the building, including Tech Liaison and, since 2019, Math Specialist. Ms. Vandenburgh has recently successfully completed her New York State School Building Leader certification. We believe she is the right person at this time to lead and support the building through this transition. The district will be conducting a full search to permanently fill the principal position at an appropriate time in the future.
I know I have shared a great deal of significant news with you. Please join me in wishing all three of these remarkable educators well as they transition to new chapters of their lives.
Finally, I am sure you are wondering about what the new school year will look like. At this time, we are continuing to plan for the start of the new school year as we await guidance from the health department and SED to clarify both health and instructional expectations. More information will follow when it is available.
If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely,
Marie Wiles, PhD
Superintendent of Schools