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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.”

2024-2025 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

ryaneric@shenschools.org

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Mark Brenneman

Principal, Montgomery C. Smith Elementary  

brennemanm@hudsoncsd.org

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

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

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Amy Hawrylchak                                           

Principal, Tech Valley High School

ahawrylchak@techvalleyhigh.org

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Ian Knox
Principal, Hamagrael Elementary School
iknox@bethlehemschools.org

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Annette Landry
Principal, Berne-Knox-Westerlo Elementary
annette.landry@bkwschools.org

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Gregory Pace

Principal, Tesago Elementary School

pacegreg@shenet.org

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Carrie Phelan
Principal, Knickerbacker Middle School
cphelan@lansingburgh.org

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Shelette R. Pleat

Principal, Hamilton Elementary School

PleateS@apps.schenectady.k12.ny.us

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Brian Reeve                                

Principal, Greenville Central School District

reeveb@greenvillecsd.org

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Katie Stalker
Principal, Mater Christi School
principal@mcsalbany.org

Laura Tarlo
Principal, Cohoes High School
lttarlo@cohoes.org

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Aaron Thiell
Principal, North Colonie Central School District
aaron.thiell@nccsk12.org

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Melanie Welch
Principal, Frankfort-Schuyler Elementary School
mwelch@frankfort-schuyler.org

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Central Office Administrators

TBD

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Higher Education Representative

 

Dr. Katie Schiller                                                                                                    

Department of Educational Policy and Leadership, Catskill 301

University at Albany

kschiller@albany.edu

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Dr. Kristen Wilcox

Department of Educational Policy and Leadership, Catskill 229

University at Albany

kwilcox1@albany.edu

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CASDA Representatives

Timothy Backus

Executive Director 

tbackus@casdany.org

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Nancy Andress

CASDA Faculty, Liaison to Principal Center Board 
nandress@albany.edu

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Bryan Wood

CASDA Consultant

bwood@casdany.org

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