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New principal welcomed
(by Kathryn A. Burger - June 24, 2008)
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| Staff Photo By Kathryn A. Burger
Patricia Bucci, left, will take the helm Park Ridge High School on July 1. At a recent board of education meeting, she was officially welcomed to the district. Board President Joseph Bruno, center, presented her with a symbolic key to the school. Also pictured is Patricia Johnson, superintendent of schools. Bucci replaces Richard Martinez who is leaving the district after three years as principal.
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Patricia Bucci will become the principal of Park Ridge High School on July 1. But she got a jump on getting to know the students, staff and parents during a whirlwind of “meet-and-greets” that included a reception for parents held prior to the evening’s board of education meeting.
Bucci met with students right after school. Lisa Sileo, a member of the Student Council and its representative on the board of education, along with several other students, met with the new principal. Sileo said, “It was a good meeting. It went very well. It was a great opportunity for us to tell her about our school – the clubs, activities, community service projects – and the things that are important to us. I think she learned a lot from us about the school.”
Next on Bucci’s agenda was a meeting with the teachers and then dinner with Patricia Johnson, the district’s superintendent. The reception was well attended and gave Bucci a “parents’-eye-view” of the school community.
The board meeting began with an “official” welcome by the board and Bucci was given a number of Park Ridge High items. From the superintendent, a T-shirt; from Joseph Bruno, board president, a symbolic key to the school; and from Sileo on behalf of the students, a pin with the school mascot, the owl, and PRHS inscribed on it as well as a matching key chain. She was also given a student assignment pad that also contains the school’s handbook, and a PRHS Renaissance scrapbook. Sileo completed the first page with the article about the new principal that appeared in Pascack Valley Community Life shortly after Bucci accepted the position. The large banner that read, “Welcome Mrs. Bucci” adorned the school lobby was made by Sileo and her friend Jocelyn Bauer.
And that’s exactly how Bucci summed up her day. “I was so warmly welcomed by the staff, students and parents,” she said smiling broadly. She said she was “amazed” at the number of sports teams the high school supports considering its small student population compared to her current school, Somerville High, that has 1,200 students. “We have only two teams that you don’t,” she said.
Bucci said her goals as principal include supporting learning at every level for the entire school community and meeting the challenges of preparing students for the 21st century and helping each child reach their potential.
Kathryn A. Burger's e-mail address is burger@northjersey.com.
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