The Rocky Point School District welcomes three new administrators to the district.
Mr. Scott Bullis is the new principal at Joseph A. Edgar Intermediate School. He takes over for Ms. Linda Murphy, who served in the position for eight years and retired in June. Mr. Jason Westerlund is the new principal and Ms. Linda Greening is the new assistant principal at Frank J. Carasiti Elementary School. Mr. Westerlund replaces Dr. Virginia Gibbons, who served as principal for nine years. Ms. Greening will serve in the position vacated by Mrs. Vivien Leary, who served as interim assistant principal for five years. The trio will officially join the administrative team on July 1, 2020.
Mr. Bullis comes to Rocky Point from his most recent position as principal at School 5 in Oceanside, and prior to that he served as principal at Park Avenue Memorial Elementary School in Amityville. He earned an undergraduate degree in elementary education from St. Joseph’s College and a Master of Arts in literacy/reading from Long Island University. He also earned administrative certifications in school building leadership, school district leadership and school administrator supervision from The College of Saint Rose. His extensive skills include student-focused educational leadership, teambuilding, curriculum and budget development, teaching, mentoring and school security and safety.
Ms. Greening joins Rocky Point from her most recent leadership roles within the Center Moriches School District. She served as the assistant principal at Clayton Huey Elementary School before becoming the assistant principal at the middle school, while also serving as the K-12 director of guidance since 2017. She was a classroom teacher for 12 years. She began her teaching career at P.S. 23 in the Bronx, where she taught first grade. She then taught at Tamarac Elementary School in the Sachem Central School District, where she also filled various leadership roles as a teacher leader and principal’s aide. Ms. Greening holds a Bachelors of Arts and Master of Science degree from University of Mary Washington, and an advanced graduate certificate in educational leadership from Stony Brook University.
Mr. Westerlund returns to the community after 18 years away. He graduated from Miller Place High School before earning a Bachelor of Science degree in elementary education and teaching from Wagner College, a Master of Science degree in elementary education from Walden University and an educational leadership advanced certificate from Stony Brook University. He taught at PS 101 for 14 years, where he served on the School Leadership Team as the data specialist and the math lead teacher. He was selected and served as a Senior Math Common Core Fellow for New York City, where he received intensive training and provided professional development to deepen teacher capacity across New York City. Mr. Westerlund then served as the assistant principal at PS 144 for four years, where he led professional development activities centered on targeted small-group instruction to raise the student level of reading across the school. He also led a series of professional development activities to support teachers in building a deeper knowledge of mathematics and best practices and helped to create and grow social-emotional curriculum for staff, students and families. Welcome new administrators!