New Administrators Join Westfield Schools
Two experienced administrators joined the Westfield Public School District over the summer. Longtime music educator and arts advocate Shawna Longo will lead the district’s Visual and Performing Arts Department as Supervisor. Kristina Morano, a former assistant principal in Scotch Plains-Fanwood, will become assistant principal at Franklin Elementary School.
“Westfield is known for its vibrant and supportive arts community. The Visual and Performing Arts Department is filled with some of the best arts educators in the state,” says Longo. “The opportunity to bring my skills, knowledge, and experiences to Westfield to help lead this amazing department through a shared vision for the role of the arts in education and for preparing our students for success is very exciting.”
For the past 13 years, Longo has been an arts integration specialist and general music teacher in the Hopatcong Borough Schools. Previously, she served as Supervisor of Music in Grades K-12 in the West Milford Township Public Schools. Longo also held various choral and instrumental music director positions in schools in New Jersey and Maryland.
“I am most looking forward to increasing my impact on arts education and helping the educators to provide all students with the tools, knowledge, and opportunities necessary to develop their creative self and artistic talents,” says Longo who currently serves as chairperson of K-12 Educational Technology and Innovation through Music for the Board of Directors of the New Jersey Music Educators Association (NJMEA).
Longo, who has been recognized with various national and state awards of excellence, is the co-author of “Integrating STEM with Music,” published by Oxford University Press in August 2021. In addition to a number of certifications in educational and arts leadership, Longo received a Master of Public Administration in Arts Administration in 2006 from Seton Hall University. She holds a Bachelor of Music in Music Education from the Catholic University of America, awarded in 2001.
Morano began her career in education in 2001 as a special education teacher in the Boston Public Schools. After moving to New Jersey, she served as a special education teacher and a learning disabilities teacher consultant (LDTC) in the Warren Township Public School District for 12 years. In 2014, Morano was appointed assistant principal at Park Middle School in the Scotch Plains-Fanwood Public Schools. For the past year, she has served as Supervisor of Special Services in the Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District.
Morano says she looks forward to working with the Franklin school community and greatly appreciates the focus on students’ academic and social and emotional needs in the Westfield Public Schools.
“Having worked for many years in schools, especially in my role as a middle school assistant principal, I have a perspective of where Franklin’s elementary students are headed as they enter young adulthood and begin to think of themselves as contributing members to our community,” says Morano.
Morano adds that providing opportunities and scaffolding for first through fifth grade students “will enable them to have confidence that they will be prepared for their own futures.” Scaffolding is the educational process of dividing lessons into manageable units with the teacher providing certain levels of support and guidance as students grasp new concepts and master new skills.
Morano holds a Masters of Education in Educational Leadership from Columbia University, Teachers College, a Masters of Education in Special Education from Rutgers University, and a Bachelor of Arts from Boston College, where she double majored in Elementary and Moderate Special Needs Education and Math and Computer Science.
“Mrs. Longo and Ms. Morano both bring a wealth of knowledge and expertise to their new positions,” says González. “We are fortunate to have them join our administrative team and look forward to welcoming them to the district”
Longo will succeed former VPA supervisor Thomas Weber, who retired in June. As Franklin assistant principal, Morano will follow Mary McCabe, who was appointed as the new principal of McKinley Elementary School.
Courtesy photos
