Christmann appointed superintendent

by Kathy Duff
Grand Island Dispatch, December 15, 2006

With a long search process behind them, members of the Grand Island Board of Education voted unanimously at Kaegebein Elementary on Monday evening to appoint Robert Christmann as the new superintendent of schools. Currently working as superintendent in the Newark School District in Wayne County, Christmann will officially begin his service on Feb. 1, 2007, with a breaking-in period to commence immediately.

Dr. Larry Zacher, interim superintendent since Dr. Thomas Ramming’s retirement in July of this year, said that Christmann’s experience makes him “sort of a slam-dunk to transition in.”

Zacher cited Christmann’s service as a school and district administrator and his work as a faculty member at SUNY Oswego, where he teaches aspiring school administrators how to work as a superintendent and how to find the school district that may be right for them.

When Christmann stepped forward to thank the board for their approval, he referred to certain things he stresses with his students.

“I welcome the opportunity to put into practice here what I have been teaching,” Christmann said.

He continued by saying that Grand Island exhibits three characteristics he tells his students are important to look for in a school district. One is the quality of the district’s academics. Another is the community it serves, and a third is the board of education.

“In each of these three areas I was impressed,” Christmann told the audience. “Grand Island can be proud of its results (academically).”

Regarding the board of education, he said he had “heard many good things,” and that the trustees “actually like each other.” About the town itself, he remarked, “This is a beautiful community. The people are friendly, and they themselves say positive things about Grand Island.”

The new superintendent will be commuting for a while on weekends back to his home in Wayne County. He and his wife, Karen, who is a special education teacher with the Canandaigua City School District, plan to live on Grand Island.

Also on the evening’s agenda was a report on the “Push-in Academic Intervention Services for English Language Arts” by Kaegebein teachers Lynn Ackendorf and Janice Ahne. This was the second literacy program presentation to the board in as many meetings, with Sidway principal Denise Dunbar recently promoting “Reading Recovery.”

The “push-in” program has been in place three years. The teachers work collaboratively with at-risk students in the regular classroom rather than pulling them out to a special room for instruction that may or may not dovetail with what is going on with the rest of the class.

“Research shows that ‘pull-out’ does not work,” Ahne, said, but push-in promotes congruency, collaboration and communication among classroom teachers. Better learning results for students.”

Lynn Ackendorf elaborated by saying this system carries “no stigma for the kids.” Small and large group instruction happens within the student’s normal framework, and “borderline” students can be more easily identified and included in special instruction as the need arises.

According to these teachers, the advantages of the push-in model are many. “The disadvantages of it are none,” Ackendorf said.

The next board of education meeting will be a workshop session on Monday, Jan. 8, 2007, at 7 p.m., in GIHS Room 108.