The Amherst Central School District has named Melissa Martin, a Response to Intervention elementary teacher in the Iroquois Central School District, as the new assistant principal at Smallwood Drive Elementary School. She will begin work on July 1, 2020. Her appointment was approved by the Board of Education June 23.
Mrs. Martin has been a teacher with the Iroquois Central School District for 25 years. She has been a special education teacher at the primary and intermediate level, a third grade teacher in a multi-age classroom, a fourth grade teacher in an inclusion classroom and most recently, a Response to Intervention teacher supporting kindergarten to fourth grade reading and math students. She has served as a fourth-grade team leader and implemented a Café Literacy model of balanced literacy instruction. She created and implemented Words Their Way spelling instruction which she presented at an educational conference and trained district and WNY area teachers. She has served on the district’s literacy committee, as well as scholarship chair and retirement representative for the Iroquois Faculty Association.
Mrs. Martin fills the Smallwood Drive assistant principal position left vacant after Richard Crozier was named Smallwood Drive principal, succeeding Daniel Lewis who retires June 30, 2020.
She holds a bachelor’s degree in education from SUNY Geneseo and a master’s degree in education from Buffalo State College. She earned a certificate of advanced study in school building leadership from St. Bonaventure University. Her professional teaching certifications are school building leader, pre-kindergarten to grade six and special education.
Mrs. Martin, a resident of Lancaster, also completed two administrative internships in 2017 with the Lancaster Central School District as a Jump Start Summer School principal intern and a fall Middle School principal intern.
“We are very excited to welcome Mrs. Martin to the Amherst family. She brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to this position and a passion for impacting continuous growth and improvement for all students,” said Anthony Panella, Superintendent, Amherst Central School District.
