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.”
2023-2024 Principals' Center Board Roster
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Michael Laster, Chair
Principal, Farnsworth Middle School
lasterm@guilderlandschools.net
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Erica J. Ryan, Vice-Chair
Principal, Shatekon Elementary School
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Ron Agostinoni
Principal, Shenendehowa High School
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Mark Brenneman
Principal, Montgomery C. Smith Elementary
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Jasmine Brown
Principal, Giffen Memorial Elementary School
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Amanda Goyer
Director of Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment, Diocese of Albany Schools
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Joby Gifford
Principal, Jefferson Elementary
jgifford@schalmont.net
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Amy Hawrylchak
Principal, Tech Valley High School
ahawrylchak@techvalleyhigh.org
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Tracy Kent
Principal, Berlin Elementary School
tkent@berlincentral.org
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Annette Landry
Principal, Berne-Knox-Westerlo Elementary
annette.landry@bkwschools.org
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Carrie Phelan
Principal, Knickerbacker Middle School
cphelan@lansingburgh.org
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Melanie Welch
Principal, Frankfort-Schuyler Elementary
mwelch@frankfort-schuyler.org
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Gregory Pace, (Past Chair)
Principal, Tesago Elementary School
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Brian Reeve
Principal, Greenville Central School District
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Aaron Thiell
Principal, North Colonie Central School District
aaron.thiell@nccsk12.org
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Central Office Administrators
Timothy Backus
Assistant Superintendent for Instruction, South Colonie Central Schools
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Higher Education Representative
Dr. Katie Schiller
Department of Educational Policy and Leadership, Catskill 301
University at Albany
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Dr. Kristen Wilcox
Department of Educational Policy and Leadership, Catskill 229
University at Albany
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CASDA Representatives
Michael Piccirillo
Executive Director
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Nancy Andress
CASDA Faculty, Liaison to Principal Center Board
nandress@albany.edu
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Bryan Wood
CASDA Consultant
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