lead Freehold Township
Asst. superintendent looks
forward to taking top post
Catherine Snyder will
lead Freehold Township
Catherine Snyder
schools beginning in Sept.
By linda denicola
Staff Writer
FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP — When the township’s elementary and middle schools open in September there will be a new leader at the helm.
Although Catherine Snyder will be the new superintendent of schools, she is not new to the district. She has been the assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction for the past five years and brings to her new position a long-standing relationship with people and policies in the K-8 district.
By her own account, she also brings a passion for education, for the township and for the school district to the job. Accepting the position as superintendent of schools in Freehold Township appeals to her because it is in Freehold Township.
"It hasn’t necessarily been a career goal of mine to be a superintendent, but I am looking forward to the challenge be-cause this district has an exemplary Board of Education and staff," Snyder said. "We have all the ingredients to help our district improve and enhance our achievements."
Prior to taking the job as the assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction in Freehold Township, Snyder was the assistant superintendent in the K-12 Highland Park school district in Middlesex County for eight years.
Snyder said that as assistant superintendent her primary focus has been responsibility for major academic content areas such as language arts, science, math, social studies, staff development and new curriculum initiatives such as the full-day kindergarten program that is scheduled to begin in September 2004. As if that isn’t enough, she has also been responsible for overseeing other content areas, such as technology.
"As superintendent, I’ll have overall responsibility for running all aspects of the district. That means working closely with teachers, staff and administration. There are various people who directly supervise their areas, but I have to oversee everything," she said.
Snyder said she will also have to take the leadership role in setting direction for the district.
"I’ll be working more directly with the board and the township. We have a very positive relationship with the township. Both district and township (officials) feel we mutually benefit from working together. I’m really looking forward to that aspect of the job," the new superintendent said.
She noted that in some towns the school board and municipal officials do not always work well together.
"Differences between township officials and school board members create distractions," she said. "I feel very proud and privileged because I’ve worked here and I know the district on an in-depth level. This particular district is really important to me."
Snyder is a graduate of Brown University and has a doctorate from Seton Hall University. She has been a teacher and administrator for 25 years in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
Snyder will replace Peter Bastardo, who announced in May that he will be leaving the district at the end of August.
School board President Grace McMillan said it did not take long to settle on a successor to Bastardo.
"The board feels that they have one of the most talented administrators in the state and needed to look no further. We are extremely pleased that (Snyder) has accepted the position. She has been responsible for many of the new curricula, programs and staff training that have been successfully implemented during her stay in the district."
Bastardo, whose last day will be Aug. 31, has been the superintendent of schools for seven years and is leaving to pursue a university position.
Snyder said Bastardo has been a valuable mentor.
"He sets a very high standard of excellence and has extraordinary leadership skills. He knows that when you set high standards you also have to provide high support. As a superintendent, you need to surround yourself with competent, upstanding people. It’s not a job you can do by yourself," she said.
Snyder lives in Manalapan and has three grown children and three granddaughters.
Although a financial band is tightening around school budgets because of a tight economy and reduced state aid, she feels secure that the school district will continue to be able to provide a high quality education within the financial parameters that a school system needs to work.
"We have to look carefully at all of our programs. We’ve been fortunate in Freehold Township that we’ve been able to maintain excellent programs in all areas even with decreasing state aid. It’s not easy, but with a thoughtful process, we manage," she said, adding, "There are probably better ways to fund school districts. I am hopeful that thoughtful educators and government officials can come up with other ways to fund school districts.
"I feel both proud and privileged to become the new superintendent of schools in Freehold Township, a district whose vision is to have a high student achievement in an environment of extraordinary caring. I look forward to all the challenges and rewards this new position will bring. I am tremendously excited by this opportunity because embedded in the concept of striving for excellence is the philosophy that no matter how good we are or what we have achieved, we can always improve," Snyder said.