Pine-Richland School Board approves administrative staff changes
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Pine-Richland School District will welcome some new faces and say farewell to a familiar one in the next few months.
The district’s director of student services and special education, Noel Hustwit, who has been with the district since 2012, is retiring in March. Initially hired as the director of special education, his title and responsibilities expanded to include student services and other aspects of Federal programming.
“Over the course of my career, I have worked in four different school districts as a paraprofessional, a special education teacher and as a special education director,” Hustwit said. “By far, the P-R family has been the most rewarding to work with. They are the most talented and compassionate staff any family and student could wish for.”
Dr. Maura Paczan has been promoted to director of student services to replace Hustwit upon his retirement. The school board approved Paczan’s promotion at its combined meeting on Dec. 12.
Paczan has served Pine-Richland for more than 20 years. She earned her M.S.Ed. and Ph.D. in school psychology at Duquesne University. She is a certified school psychologist and a trainer in the field of school psychology and provides field-based supervision. Paczan has experience in clinical, research, educational and leadership positions. One of her focal points at Pine-Richland has been building collaborative relationships with interdisciplinary teams to best support K-12 students in the regular education classroom and through researched-based interventions. She has taken a leadership role in the expansion of the Psychological Services Department and the continuum of mental health supports for students and families.
“Dr. Paczan is one of the foremost experts in pupil services, special education, gifted education and mental health,” said district superintendent Brian Miller. “In addition to her decades of commitment to the students and families at Pine-Richland, she is recognized across the region and state for her knowledge and skills. Dr. Paczan is a critical member of the district’s senior leadership team. She is student-focused in her approach to services and is a strong advocate for public education.”
Paczan has participated in Pine-Richland’s strategic planning process and the In-Depth Program Review process for English language arts, gifted and/or highly achieving, special education and Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS), and school counseling services. Through the gifted and/or highly achieving in-depth program review, she assisted in the development of a system for universal screeners and refined the criteria for identifying students, progress monitoring and outcomes towards standards-based goals identified in GIEPs and enrichment through MTSS.
The district has begun the search for an assistant director for student services and special education.
New Eden Hall principal
Also at the Dec. 12 meeting, the board approved the hiring of Colleen Berezo as the new principal at Eden Hall Upper Elementary School.
Berezo is currently principal of Pittsburgh Arlington PreK-8. She earned a bachelor of science degree in education from Duquesne University, a master of science in education from Johns Hopkins University, and principal certification from Indiana University of Pennsylvania.
“I am honored to have the opportunity to serve the Eden Hall Upper Elementary community and am eager to contribute to the high level of excellence that already exists at Pine-Richland,” Berezo said.
In her current role, she has focused on improving the Positive Behavior and Intervention Support (PBIS) system. She implemented a new student and school culture development program called The Positivity Project, adjusted the school’s master schedule to embed intervention periods and professional learning communities throughout the school day to support student and staff growth, prioritized frequent professional development, collaborated with APlus Schools to target chronic absenteeism, and worked closely with committees, families and community partners to ensure strong relationships in efforts to provide the best opportunity for students.
“We are elated to welcome Mrs. Berezo to Pine-Richland and into the role of principal at Eden Hall Upper Elementary School,” said Dr. Kristen Justus, assistant superintendent for elementary education and curriculum. “Mrs. Berezo is an empathetic, strategic, instructional leader with a clear passion for student learning and demonstrated results in the area of student growth. Her instructional coaching experience and systematic, collaborative approach to sustaining improvement efforts align well with the philosophy at Pine-Richland.”
Prior to joining Pittsburgh Arlington, Berezo worked as a district math academic coach, where she facilitated professional development at the school and district levels, conducted coaching cycles with teachers to support effective instruction, and continuously monitored school-wide data to measure success in meeting school improvement goals. She also served as the school assessment coordinator, technology liaison and faculty committee chair. Berezo’s experience also includes teaching English language arts and math.
Berezo will start early in 2023. She replaces Steve Smith, who has served as a great asset to the district for more than nine years.