Neshaminy School Board Appoints Two New Principals

Two Neshaminy School District elementary schools have new principals.

At their Tuesday evening meeting, the Neshaminy School Board voted to appoint Stephanie Washam as principal at Joseph Ferderbar Elementary School and Donald Palmer at Tawanka Elementary School. Both schools are located in Lower Southampton.

Washam replaces Judy Brown, who retired in late summer. Andre Modica is currently serving as acting principal and will return to his previous job as assistant principal at Maple Point Middle School in Middletown.

Palmer has been serving as acting principal at Tawanka since previous principal Robin Klaiber left for a new job in Montgomery County in August. In the 2016-2017 school year, Palmer served as acting principal at Tawanka.

The school district put together a committee of administrators, teachers, parents, and school board members in summer to review potential candidates to lead the two elementary schools.

“We were impressed by the quality and credentials of the all candidate,” Superintendent Joseph Jones said. “After careful consideration and input from a variety of stakeholders, we are confident that these two individuals have the leadership capabilities, skills and personalities that will inspire excellence from their staff and students while maintaining strong, caring learning environments at their schools.”

Neshaminy provided the following biographies for the two new principals:

• Stephanie Washam brings a wealth of experience to Neshaminy both in the classroom and as an administrator. She is currently the Humanities Supervisor K-5 and Federal Programs K-12 for Pennridge School District. Before that she served as the State Elementary Literacy Specialist for the New Jersey Department of Education; Director of Curriculum and Instruction – Elementary and Instructional Coach and Lead Kindergarten Teacher for Scholar Academies (a Philadelphia Renaissance School); Director of Education and Educational Program Specialist at Acelero Learning in Camden, NJ. She started her career in education at Acelero Learning with the Teach for America Program as a pre-kindergarten teacher and Learning Team Leader. Ms. Washam is a 2006 graduate of the University of Pittsburgh, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in History. She earned her Teaching Certificate in Early Childhood Education at Montclair State University in 2008, and a Masters in Teaching, Learning and Curriculum and Principal Certification (Pre-K-12) with a concentration in Early Childhood and Reading at Drexel University in 2012.

• Donald Palmer has been with Neshaminy School District since 2006, serving in a number of teaching, support and administrative roles. These include Health & Physical Education Teacher at Poquessing Middle School; Alternative Education Teacher at The Learning Center (the district’s alternative school); Graduation Project Coordinator at Neshaminy High School; Assistant Principal at Poquessing Middle School and Acting Principal at Tawanka. Mr. Palmer has also served as Principal of Neshaminy Summer School and a Fitness Specialist at Saint Mary Medical Center in Langhorne. He is a 2001 graduate of Bucks County Community College where he earned an Associate of Arts Degree in Health and Physical Education. He graduated from Temple University in 2004 with a Bachelor of Science in Health and Physical Education K-12, earned a Masters of Arts in Education from Gratz College in 2011 and an Administrative I Certification K-12 from Cabrini College in 2012.