Last week the Marlboro School Board approved six people for tenure with the district. Michael Bakatsias, Assistant Superintendent for Technology and Personnel, offered comments on each of the teachers.

Bakatsias said Gina Hansut is a Teaching Assistant at the Elementary School.

“Some of the conversations around her recommendations included very passionate about children of all ages but we’re very fortunate to have her in our Elementary School. Additionally, she is someone you can really count on if the administration needs another set of hands or needs assistance in the building they can certainly go to this person. She’s a rock and definitely a mainstay of our teaching assistant core,” he said.

Bakatsias spoke of Hayden Carlin who teaches English in the Middle School.

“He has made a tremendous impact in that school...The recommendations for this gentleman include engaging lessons, really available after school and provides lots of opportunities for all students. We’re really proud of Hayden Carlin,” Bakatsias said.

Bakatsias described Jennifer Fox as “a very bright star” at the Elementary School in her position as a teacher in Special Education.

“She has an infectious smile and we’re extremely happy with her technical skills when it comes to Special Education. She works in coordination with so many teachers and really adds to the educational knowledge base at the Elementary School. Please give a round of applause for Jennifer Fox,” he said.

Bakatsias said Raquel Piazza teaches English as a Second Language in the Middle School.

“This individual has really made us all better people and more aware of the students she serves, which are non-native speakers of the English language. They come from all different countries,” he said. “Some of the recommendations and the discussions [about her] include an advocate for these children, someone who has so many strategies and has really taught us all, from staff to faculty to administration, how to better serve the needs of these students.”

Bakatsias said English teacher Nicole Carlin is ‘another star’ at the Marlboro High School.

“Some of the discussions around her [tenure] recommendation included lessons that are very thought provoking, challenges our students to think outside the box and really poses a lot of real world types of questions and discussions, and really keeps those students engaged,” he said.

Bakatsias said Nicole Wurster is certified in Childhood Elementary but works in the Middle School.

“She serves our sixth grade students and teaches them English and Social Studies. She is extremely high energy and some of the recommendation discussions included, not just engaging lessons, but really challenges kids. She thinks about the whole child and makes so many opportunities available on a school day for these kids.”

Bakatsias said these candidates go through a four year evaluation period of observation and discussion, “and I tell you our superintendent Mr. Brooks takes the recommendations from Principals very seriously. All these folks up here are the best of the best, they’ve been vetted and we’re proud to have them onboard.”

Supt. Michael Brooks added his take on these newly minted tenured teachers.

“I want to take that one step farther because there certainly is the mechanics of evaluations that are very important and I take evaluations very seriously. I’m a former Principal and former Assistant Superintendent for Instruction and instruction is in my core,” he said.

“I am so proud of this group because one of the standards beyond the mechanics of evaluation that I insist on with our administrative staff..is no one makes it to tonight if you wouldn’t put your child in their classroom. It’s a hard standard to quantify but I know by the shakes of the heads, it’s one you can easily qualify. So I’m proud to say that this is a quality group of people that I would absolutely put my child with, actually either one of my children. Congratulations, I’m proud to call you tenured teachers.”