As part of his ongoing effort to increase communication, transparency, and connect directly with students and families, City School District of New Rochelle Superintendent Jonathan Raymond held a Town Hall meeting Tuesday night that featured an in-depth conversation with New Rochelle High School Principal Dr. Dagoberto Artiles.
The meeting began with Superintendent Raymond posing questions for Dr. Artiles for roughly 30 minutes. Topics included Dr. Artiles’ background, experience, successes, and challenges he’s faced as Principal, Social Emotional Learning, and his vision for New Rochelle High School.
Dr. Artiles began by sharing details about his childhood and his early adult life. He was born in the Dominican Republic and came to the United States with his family when he was 14. He started elementary school at the age of seven, because it took his mother several years to save money for books, shoes, and clothing for school.
“Coming from a school [in the Dominican Republic] there were no windows and the resources were not there,” Dr. Artiles recalled. “It ingrained in me the whole idea of how valuable resources are.”
After graduating from St. Francis College, Dr. Artiles went on to pursue a law degree at St. John’s University. Upon taking a teaching job to help pay his bills during law school, he soon realized his passion was in the education field.
“I became a teacher to finance my law studies at St. John’s, but I fell in love with teaching so much that I sort of gave it up. I said, ‘You know what, I’m going to stay in the classroom,’ and here I am. It’s been a wonderful run,” he said.
Dr. Artiles’ first job in education was teaching social studies at a small school in Brooklyn. He went on to work in several other school districts, including North Rockland, Hempstead, and Jericho. He moved to New Rochelle with his family several years before starting his job as New Rochelle High School Principal in August 2021. He currently has two daughters in the school district, a sixth grader and a junior at New Rochelle High School.
Dr. Artiles said his experience so far as Principal has been overwhelmingly positive.
“The kids at the high school are incredible. They are always smiling, they want to be there,” he said. “They see me, they stop to have conversations, so it has been a wonderful experience so far.”
As for challenges he has faced, Dr. Artiles said the flooding that damaged parts of the high school during Hurricane Ida, and re-engaging students after nearly two years of remote learning have presented unique difficulties.
“I think that with the pandemic, every school is suffering,” he said. “When we look at the re-engagement of the students, many of them haven’t been in school for two years.”
As for his vision, Dr. Artiles said his goal is to develop additional specialized student programs and maintain the ones that have proven to be successful at the high school, such as the Science Research Program and Performing and Visual Arts Education (PAVE).
“It’s a highly effective school already. But that doesn’t mean that we stop there. The key isn’t only to identify it as a highly effective school, but also to maintain that. We want to bring it up to what we call the ‘gold standard’ of education,” Dr. Artiles said.
The conversation ended with Dr. Artiles outlining two of his top priorities going forward: Expanding the Social Emotional Learning (SEL) programs, and integrating additional support for student mental health.
“The main goal at the high school is that SEL is going to be integrated into the classroom,” Dr. Artiles said. “Because any lesson can be aligned to make students feel more comfortable participating. That is the goal of SEL: Students feeling more comfortable being vocal in the classroom; students feeling more comfortable working in groups; students feeling more comfortable having discussions with a teacher; students feeling more comfortable speaking about mental health.”
Immediately following the conversation with Dr. Artiles, the meeting opened up to audience members to ask questions and express concerns. The topics Dr. Artiles and Superintendent Raymond touched on in response to audience members included:
- Construction update at Monroe College as new home for Huguenot Academy (completion expected beginning of May)
- Program options available to Huguenot Academy students
- COVID-19 and masking protocols
- Proposed budget for 2022-2023 school year
- Services provided by guidance counselors regarding college application process
Please click here to view a video recording of the March 15 Superintendent’s Town Hall. The next Superintendent’s Town Hall is scheduled for 7 p.m. on April 20 at the New Rochelle Public Library.