Westfield Board of Ed Appoints James DeSarno to Serve as WHS Assistant Principal

At Tuesday's meeting of the Westfield Board of Education, the Board approved the appointment of James DeSarno as Westfield High School Assistant Principal for the 2013-2014 school year. 

DeSarno, a physical education teacher and Blue Devils football team head coach, has served as Interim Assistant Principal at WHS this school year. This appointment comes as current Assistant Principal Derrick Nelson, a US Army Reservist for the past 16 years, announced he is being deployed to Afghanistan. Nelson will leave New Jersey at the end of May and train for nearly three months before heading overseas in August.

In Westfield Schools Superintendent Dr. Margaret Dolan's Synopsis of the meeting, she wrote that Nelson "has been a wonderful role model in our district for the last three years, first as Assistant Principal at Roosevelt Intermediate School."

Nelson spoke before the Board earlier this year with colleague Matthew Kalafat to discuss the publication of the which featured RIS students. Nelson and Kalafat were instrumental in piloting an exchange program between Westfield and Nelson's native Plainfield that proved literature's common themes can transcend geographic boundaries. The educators' work was covered by The New York Times after Nelson sent the paper a letter detailing the program. 

At Tuesday's meeting, Nelson told the Board his time in Westfield "rejuvenated" his "educational batteries.”  

Dolan also noted that DeSarno "has been very effective in his roles at WHS and will continue to serve us well." 

Nelson will return to the Westfield School District in 2014.

The next meeting of the Westfield Board of Education will begin at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 21 at 302 Elm Street. All are welcome to attend.