The Principals' Center

Established in 1985, the Principals’ Center exists to help principals meet the challenges of their role as school leaders and provides a forum for them to meet in a congenial atmosphere and share the skills and practices that have proven successful in the school setting.

The Greater Capital Region Principals’ Center is a dynamic professional resource for area administrators, designed as an oasis of training for improvement and renewal of administrative skills and energies.

Established in 1985, the Principals’ Center exists to help principals meet the challenges of their role as school leaders and provides a forum for them to meet in a congenial atmosphere and share the skills and practices that have proven successful in the school setting. By bringing together new and veteran administrators, the Principals’ Center can help develop and improve on those critical skills needed for effective leadership, including problem solving, decision making, managing resources, and leading by example.

The Principals’ Center serves principals specifically, and administrative groups in general. It is a network for tapping professional knowledge so that the exceptional strengths of those principals in the field practicing daily can be utilized as resources to help and aid others working in the profession.

The programs of the Principals’ Center are run to benefit principals, and, in large part, are run by principals. The Principals’ Center works to strengthen the variety of skills a principal needs to effectively master in order to meet the challenges of the principalship and seeks to establish itself as a catalyst for establishing excellence in those individuals who carry the title “Principal.”

Principals' Center Bylaws

2024-2025 Principals' Center Board Roster

Michael Laster, Chair

Principal, Farnsworth Middle School
lasterm@guilderlandschools.net

Erica J. Ryan, Vice-Chair

Principal, Shatekon Elementary School

ryaneric@shenschools.org

Mark Brenneman

Principal, Montgomery C. Smith Elementary

brennemanm@hudsoncsd.org

Francis Cocozza
Principal, Lake George Jr.-Sr. High School
cocozzaf@lkgeorge.org

Rosalind Gaines-Harrell
Principal, Arbor Hill Elementary School
rgaines-harrell@albany.k12.ny.us