Three finalists to become Palmerton Area School District’s next superintendent met the community Wednesday night during public presentations at the high school.

Each candidate spoke briefly about their background and experience, before diving into Palmerton’s state assessment scores and Future Ready PA Index indicators.

They also answered four prepared questions from board members, who hope to make a final decision within the next month and a half.

“This is one of the most important decisions this board will make for you,” interim superintendent Dr. Alan Lonoconus told the audience. “They have done their homework and you can feel confident they will have the best candidate for Palmerton.”

Dr. Maggie Vitale

Vitale is currently the coordinator of special education at the Colonial Intermediate Unit 20. She was previously a principal in the Stroudsburg School District, and an assistant principal and elementary teacher in the East Stroudsburg School District.

Vitale was also named as assistant to the superintendent in Pleasant Valley School District, but the district eliminated the position just days before she was to start.

During her presentation Wednesday night, Vitale described Palmerton as being in a great position with strong attendance, a good comprehensive plan and solid career and college readiness standards in place.

“There is certainly always work to be done, but you’re heading in a great direction,” she told the audience. “I look forward to hopefully leading positive change.”

When students graduate from Palmerton, Vitale said she hopes they are critical thinkers, who can creatively work together to think critically and solve problems.

As for what she will be remembered most for at a previous district, Vitale described the school culture she helped shape in the midst of redistricting in Stroudsburg. The change saw the closure of smaller community elementary schools, leaving her with a larger building of 910 students, or as she likes to call them, “friends.”

It’s a very daunting thing coming to a massive elementary school, so we really tried to create a strong positive school community,” she said. “I made it my mission to know every single parent who walked in my office. School culture just doesn’t exist. It’s something you gave to build intentionally.”

Every problem has a solution, Vitale said, though it’s not always cheap or easy.

“Working together and being collaborative, I truly believe we can solve all of them,” she said. “As educators, we set the future. Nothing is more important than that. I love that challenge.”

Dr. Jodi Frankelli

Frankelli is currently the supervisor of early learning, grants and development for the Bethlehem Area School District. She was previously a middle school English teacher in the East Stroudsburg and Nazareth school districts, a high school English teacher for Project Upward Bound at East Stroudsburg University, an adjunct professor at Wilkes University, a middle school assistant principal in the Pen Argyl School District and an elementary principal in the Bethlehem Area School District.

“I plan to be visible,” Frankelli told the audience Wednesday. “I want to be around the kids. They want to know you’re a real person and can relate to them.”

She spoke of her humble beginnings, saying learning was just something that happened naturally in her household. Spending a lot of time at the library growing up, she added, fostered her love of learning and a passion in the areas of reading and writing.

While analyzing Palmerton’s assessment data, Frankelli stressed the importance of closing any achievement gaps at the elementary school level.

“It gets harder and harder to close those gaps at the secondary level,” she said.

Frankelli touted her experience at every level of school, from elementary to central office administration as an advantage.

“Sometimes candidates gets pigeonholed by the way their career has gone,” she said. “Part of garnering trust is getting people to know you’ve been in their shoes. I think my experience has given me a broad perspective.”

Marc Gosselin Jr.

A Massachusetts native, Gosselin is currently the special education supervisor in the North Penn School District.

His first house, he added, was in Palmerton on Columbia Avenue, where he lived for half a decade.

Gosselin was previously a fourth-grade teacher and coordinator of student support services in the Stroudsburg School District, a K-8 principal in the School District of Philadelphia, and a principal and curriculum supervisor at North Penn.

His mantra, he told the audience, is a commitment to do what is best for kids.

“That is what drives me to do this work,” he said.

As for initiatives should he get the job in Palmerton, Gosselin spoke of growing and expanding the number of students in advanced placement courses, expanding the dual enrollment program, improving STEM offerings, and working on early numeracy skills to improve elementary math scores.

Critical reasoning and thinking skills, he said, are what he would most like to see Palmerton students take with them from their experience.

Gosselin said he’s most of proud of his efforts to create an inclusive educational environment at North Penn, which had not been happening in the past.

“We brought our special education and regular education learners together and it was really a win for everyone,” he said. “They were learning how to learn alongside students who were different from them and as a result, test scores went up all around. I felt in my heart it was the right thing to do and it has paid dividends and continues to do so.”

Gosselin called Palmerton a great community full of great people and spoke highly of the way students have complimented their teachers, which he said doesn’t happen in every school around the state.

“Palmerton has great teachers, and hopefully I can be someone who builds on the successes the district already has going for it,” he said.

Next steps

Each candidate will spend a full day on campus, which will include tours of each building in the morning and interview sessions in the afternoon. The candidates will meet with support staff representatives, the administrative staff, central office staff, the instructional staff, and some junior and senior high school students.

Final interviews will be conducted on Feb. 16, and the goal, he added, is to have a finalist named and hired by the March 17 board meeting.