Catherine Pennock
Catherine Pennock joined the East Greenbush Central School District earlier this month as the new director of Pupil Personnel Services. In that role, she will oversee special education in all of the district’s schools, as well as registration, health services, counseling and related services for students.
Dr. Pennock began her career in education as a school psychologist for Unity Sunshine Preschool and then HFM BOCES Adirondack Academy. She has also served as a Committee on Special Education (CSE) Chairperson at Troy, and, most recently, as an Academic Administrator for Special Education at Shenendehowa.
Dr. Pennock has a B.A. and B.S. from Syracuse University, M.S. from both The College of Saint Rose and UAlbany, C.A.S. from The College of Saint Rose, and a Ph.D. from UAlbany. She also has SBL and SDL certificates.
We sat down with Dr. Pennock earlier this week to discuss her educational background and her new role and responsibilities.
Q: How’s the job going so far?
A: It’s great! I’m just getting to know people. Getting to know the schools, our families and processes.
Q: Have you been to summer school yet?
A: Yes. I pop in every day to check and see how things are going. I’ve been over there to visit classes and see our students.
Q: How have you been getting to know our families?
A: I have been working with students who need an out of district placement – who may not have one or may need another one – so I’ve been connecting with those families and meeting with them.
Q: What made this position a good fit for you?
A: It was a bunch of things. It was perfect timing. I wasn’t actively looking for a new job and then this opening came up. I felt like this was where I was meant to be.
Q: How have your career experiences prepared you for this position?
A: I’ve been very lucky to have a good breadth of experience. I’ve worked from early intervention all the way up to 21+. I have worked in regular ed and I have worked in alternative education settings so having those different experiences has helped me get a bigger picture of education.
Q: What are some of your priorities for the coming school year?
A: My goal is to solidify our policies and practices as a department. Making sure that we’re clear and that everyone is moving in the same direction. We have some new CSE chairs, too, and our structure has changed a bit so establishing what the PPS structure looks like and who’s going to be doing what.
Q: What are you most looking forward to this school year?
A: I’m looking forward to meeting new people, I’m looking forward to the students coming back and just diving in and getting started.