New leadership at Rochester City School District

Rochester, New York —This year’s start for the Rochester City School District is being overseen by yet another superintendent, Carmine Peluso.

Having been a school principal before moving up into administration, Peluso is no stranger to the RCSD. He’s currently interim superintendent, taking the job after Lesli Myers-Small made an early departure.

According to Peluso, the first day went well, most notably with most transportation issues having been resolved since last year’s bussing debacle. He says he has had to boost safety measures in schools following a recent uptick in violence in the hallways.

Besides, there have been hundreds of open staff positions, Peluso said they currently do have a teacher for every class, with a catch:

“We’re filling our teacher spots with teachers that have certifications that might not be in a position that they’re currently in,” Peluso said. “We’re filling them with 4-year graduate degrees. What we really need to do is support those teachers to make sure they have the instructional background. We’re out spots, but we’re no different than the national teacher shortage that we’re seeing across the country right.”

Peluso says he just wants to concentrate on getting this new school year off the ground.