Bulletin News

08/25/2011 

Douglas Wieczorek, a former K-12 school administrator and teacher at Bishop Grimes Jr. Sr. High School in East Syracuse, N.Y. joined SUNY Cortland on Aug. 1 as the director of the newly configured Field Experience and School Partnerships Office.

The existing Field Placement Office and the separate Center for Educational Exchange (CEE) recently merged to create the new office, which serves both the campus and the College’s external school partners. The reorganized operation is housed in the same location as the former Field Placement Office in the Education Building, Room 1105.

Wieczorek is responsible for building, expanding and strengthening school partnerships as they relate to field placements of teacher candidates in schools ranging from pre-kindergarten through senior high.  He oversees professional development events involving faculty, supervisors and host teachers in collaboration with school partners.

Additionally, he manages the Regional Professional Development School and provides ongoing leadership for redesign and implementation of field experiences. Wieczorek reports to Marley Barduhn, assistant provost for academic affairs.

Prior to working at Bishop Grimes, Wieczorek was Syracuse University’s high school tutoring program coordinator of Say Yes to Education Syracuse. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in History from SUNY Geneseo, a Master of Science in Education from D’Youville College and an Educational Administrator Certificate from the University of Rochester. He is pursuing a doctorate in teaching and curriculum at the Syracuse University School of Education.

Overseeing a staff of seven, Wieczorek has assumed the combined duties of two retired professional staff members.

Kathleen Beney, who directed the Field Placement Office for four years, retired in December but continued to serve part-time until Wieczorek was hired. She recently accepted a newly created, half time position as the coordinator of the Cortland Professional Development School. The school is an ongoing collaboration between the College and the Cortland Enlarged City School district that creates and supports professional development and learning opportunities for teacher candidates, students in kindergarten through grade 12 and faculty at both the school district and SUNY Cortland.

Virginia Marty retired in December after serving the College for more than 11 years as CEE director.

Under the reorganization, Linda Foster, a 23-year SUNY Cortland employee and a field placement coordinator for the last six years, continues as field placement coordinator for professional studies. She supports the early field experience and student teaching placements for teacher candidates in the physical education, health education and communications disorders and sciences teacher education programs.

Field placement coordinators have been hired to serve the other two schools.

Mary Reagan

Mary Reagan of Cortland, N.Y., began on June 1 as the field placement coordinator for the School of Arts and Sciences. She will be directly responsible for supporting all early field experience and student teaching placements for teacher candidates in Adolescence Education Programs. She replaces Melissa Stockholm, who served on an interim basis since 2009.

Reagan most recently served for three years as program coordinator for Adult Literacy and Training Programs at the Onondaga-Cortland-Madison BOCES. She also taught social studies, at both the middle school and high school levels, for 10 years in the McGraw (N.Y.) Central School District. Reagan has a Bachelor of Arts in Secondary Social Studies, a Master of Science in Education and a Certificate of Advanced Study with certification as a school district administrator from SUNY Cortland.

Catherine Sidebottom

Catherine Sidebottom of Cortland, N.Y., was appointed field placement coordinator for the School of Education on May 23. She oversees the support of the early field placements for teacher candidates in the areas of childhood/early childhood education, inclusive special education and literacy.

She earned a bachelor’s degree from William Smith College in Geneva, N.Y., and completed a Master of Education in Elementary Education at SUNY Buffalo.

A longtime SUNY Cortland lecturer, she also has served as the local City of Cortland School District coordinator for student teachers in the College’s Childhood/Early Childhood Education Department. Sidebottom taught elementary school for 10 years in the Cobleskill-Richmondville (N.Y.) School District and, more recently, at Barry Elementary School in Cortland.

Karen Seibert, who served the CEE as assistant director, fills a similar role as school partnerships coordinator for the Field Experience and School Partnerships Office under the reorganization. Seibert continues to support teacher education programs and conferences, the Community Roundtable series hosted by the President’s Office and the annual New York State Association for Comprehensive Education Conference. In addition, she oversees the Child Abuse Recognition and Reporting (CARR) and Safe Schools Against Violence in Education (SAVE) workshops and assists with school district collaborations.