Interim Superintendent and New Principal Assignments
The Katonah-Lewisboro Board of Education is pleased to announce three anticipated leadership changes that will commence with the start of the new school year on July 1, 2014. A vote on these appointments will occur at the March 13 Board meeting.
Mr. John Goetz, the current interim John Jay High School principal, will become the interim Superintendent of Schools for the 2014-15 school year. Mr. Goetz, who has led the high school for the past two years, brings significant educational leadership experience to the district. Prior to serving as Interim Superintendent of Monroe Public Schools and as Superintendent of Brookfield Public Schools (both in Connecticut), Mr. Goetz was a long-term principal at both Orville H. Platt High School and Danbury High School as well as interim principal at Mamaroneck High School and Stamford High School.
“I have come to know and really enjoy the district over the past two years, especially the students, staff and families with whom I interact with on a daily basis,” said Mr. Goetz. “I appreciate the Board’s confidence and will do all I can to make the leadership and building transitions as smooth as possible. I work with a great staff [at John Jay High School and within Central Administration] that I respect and hold in high esteem for their commitment to the district.”
Mr. Goetz holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree and Master of Arts Degree from Fordham University, where he also completed course work for the Ph.D. Program. He earned a Certificate of Advanced Study in Educational Administration from Fairfield University and he completed the Harvard University Summer Institute’s Educational Leadership Program.
“Those of us who have worked with Mr. Goetz are thrilled that he will be our Superintendent for the 2014-15 school year,” said Board of Education President Charles Day. “His judgment and knowledge of the District will be immensely valuable to us and we are counting on his experience to provide guidance and a steady hand to our families and staff through the next school year.”
Ms. Jessica Godin, the current principal of Katonah Elementary School (KES), will succeed Mr. Goetz as Principal of John Jay High School. Ms. Godin began her career as an English teacher, class advisor and coach at Shoreham-Wading River High School on Long Island, where she was tenured before relocating to Colorado to pursue a career in school administration. She served as a teacher leader in Durango High School, where she coordinated teacher observations and professional development duties, as well as the PreK-8 principal of the Cheyenne Wells School District, also in Colorado.
“John Jay is a premier high school with extraordinary faculty and staff, and I am honored to have been selected to lead it,” said Ms. Godin. “I have spent a significant amount of my career working in high schools both in New York and Colorado and I welcome the opportunity to return to the high school setting.”
Ms. Godin has worked with high school staff over the past three years as a member of the Family University program. “I am eager to capitalize on these experiences and form the new relationships necessary to fulfill everyone’s expectations as the new high school principal,” she said.
Ms. Godin has a Bachelor of Arts Degree and Master of Arts Degree from Stony Brook University, as well as an Ed. S (Education Specialist) Degree from the University of Northern Colorado.
Mrs. Cristy Harris, who has been a member of the district’s administrative team for 10 years and is currently the principal of Lewisboro Elementary School, will become the principal of Katonah Elementary School.
Mrs. Harris has a great deal of experience at KES. Not only did she attend the school as a child, but she previously served as the building’s principal from 2004-2007. Upon her return from maternity leave, Mrs. Harris spent half a year at Increase Miller Elementary School before taking over as principal of Lewisboro Elementary due to the retirement of the principal at that time. The closing of Lewisboro Elementary and Ms. Godin’s appointment to the high school create a natural transition.
“I have many fond memories of my time at KES and I am looking forward to my return,” said Mrs. Harris. “I’m returning to a place I once called home and of course, looking forward to re-establishing my relationship with the Katonah community that I grew up in.”
Mrs. Harris graduated from John Jay High School in 1989. She studied and taught school in California and also studied in Scotland on the Fulbright Visiting Scholar program. After returning to the region she became a tenured teacher in neighboring Bedford before acquiring her Master’s in Educational Administration and joining the Katonah-Lewisboro School District.