Monday, June 9, 2014

Koetke to Join Bronxville Leadership Team

Superintendent David Quattrone announced today that Dr. Mara Koetke is his choice for the newly-created position of Director of Curriculum and Instruction. He will present his recommendation to the Board of Education at its June 19th meeting.
 

Since 2008 Dr. Koetke has served as Principal of Public School #77, the Lower Lab School for Gifted Education. Prior to that she was Assistant Principal of Public School #334, The Anderson School, housing grades K-8. Her teaching experience has included stints in several suburban school districts as well as New York City.
 

Koetke earned her undergraduate degree at the University of Pittsburgh, and her masters’ and doctorate degrees from Teachers College, Columbia University. In 2013 she was named a Cahn Fellow at Teachers College, a professional development program for outstanding principals.
 

To help design this new position the District enlisted the services of Martin G. Brooks, Director of the Tri-State Consortium. After meeting with several faculty groups and reviewing a needs assessment survey, the District adopted the following specifications for this position:
  • A careful listener and effective communicator who values collaboration and innovation
  • A hands-on leader who builds effective relationships and engages all stakeholders in the development of a K-12 vision for the improvement of student performance
  • A strategic thinker who can help the district improve cohesion among the Common Core Learning Standards, state and federal requirements, data analysis and research relating to effective practices
  • An educator, first and foremost, who understands the complex relationships among assessment, instructional practice, and curriculum, and how wise and meaningful use of technology can enhance those relationships.
Quattrone said that Koetke emerged from the search process as an outstanding educator who meets all the criteria.The candidate pool included over 180 candidates. Central office administrators, working with Dr. Brooks, selected and interviewed ten, including curriculum directors from other districts, principals, and teachers with extensive experience with professional development. A faculty committee representing all schools and most departments interviewed five and selected two for further consideration. The screening committee praised Koetke's analytical skills, her knowledge of technology and instruction, and her ability to engage others in problem solving.
 

Reference checks confirmed that she was an superior candidate. Her mentor called her a “magnificent, brilliant educator,” who won the trust of a challenging parent community. She went to describe Koetke as a “good listener who thinks, reflects, and asks good question. She knows what good practice looks like.” The district supervisor who hired Koetke in New York City described her at the top of the forty-two principals she supervised, a person who “understands teachers and levels of learning.” The leader of her network reported that she “went to a school that was considered the jewel of the system, but she didn't settle. She moved it to the next level, which is hard to do in a school that is already very, very good.” A fellow principal described her as “very intelligent and a great colleague who collaborates well with others. She is generous with her ideas and has earned great respect from her staff. She will be an incredible addition to your staff.”

Koetke will begin her new role on July 1, 2014.