Louis Talarico will replace retiring Gerard Steffe
By: Scott Morgan
FLORENCE The Board of Education on Monday announced its new superintendent, who will take over for Gerard Steffe in September.
Louis Talarico, 51, a resident of Freehold Township and chief curriculum administrator for MySchool411 Inc., was hired to replace Mr. Steffe upon his retirement on Sept. 1. MySchool411 is a Manalapan-based educational company specializing in instructional software that allows parents to assist their children with their school work.
Mr. Steffe, who announced his retirement last October, has served 29 years in the K-12 Florence Township School District.
Board President William Berry said he and the rest of the school board look forward to their new beginning with Dr. Talarico. Mr. Berry said, "While we turn a new page with the retirement of Mr. Steffe, we are certain that Louis Talarico will quickly make his mark on the school district."
According to Dr. Talarico’s resume, he served as director of the K-12 curriculum/acting superintendent in the Lyndhurst School District from 1974-1994, principal of Wanaque Elementary School from 1994-1996, and was deputy superintendent of schools in the Freehold School District from 1996-2001.
Dr. Talarico’s salary will be $115,000 per year.
At MySchool411, where he has worked since 2001, Dr. Talarico is responsible for developing "custom navigational architecture for connecting educators, students and parents over the Web," according to his resume.
Dr. Talarico is 1972 magna cum laude graduate of Fairleigh Dickinson University with a degree in economics. He received his master’s degree in education from William Patterson University in 1978. He obtained his high school administrator’s certificate from Jersey City State College in 1982 and earned his doctorate in elementeary and secondary education from Seton Hall University in 1991.
After the meeting Monday night, Dr. Talarico said he is eager to get started, adding that he plans to face the district’s challenges head-on.