Dr. Wortham Looks Back on 16 Years of Transforming School Districts

Each year, Dr. Deborah Wortham sets a theme to motivate and guide the staff and students in the Roosevelt School District. This year’s theme was “the best is yet to come” and the mantra became a poignant tribute to her impact on the community when she announced her retirement as superintendent of schools this spring.

After a combined six years of educational leadership at Roosevelt, Dr. Wortham will be retiring at the end of the school year.

The Roosevelt Union Free School District recently appointed Dr. Shawn K. Wightman as the District’s new Superintendent of Schools and he will officially succeed Dr. Wortham on July 1.

“Reflecting on my time here at Roosevelt, I am full of gratitude for the goals we reached and the ideas we put into action to give our students the support and resources they need to succeed,” said Dr. Wortham. “It’s been an honor to unite with such dedicated Board of Education members, administrators, teachers and support staff in cultivating an environment where students feel empowered, proficient and globally ready! I am confident, hopeful and proud of the foundation we established here at Roosevelt and expect great things from the future.”

Dr. Wortham has transformed multiple school districts as a superintendent since 2008, when she began her

leadership at Pennsylvania’s Steelton-Highspire School District. Two years later, she moved to New York to serve as superintendent of the School District of the City of New York. From July 2013 through November 2015, she served in her first tenure as superintendent of the Roosevelt School District. She moved to the East Ramapo School District and served as superintendent through October 2020.

During her time at Roosevelt, Dr. Wortham was responsible for overseeing the educational services of over 3,000 students across three elementary schools, one middle school and one high school, in addition to a Pre-Kindergarten program.

She started her second tenure in 2020 with pertinent challenges to address, including two schools that were on the state education department’s “needs-improvement” list. She immediately got to work by joining with the Board of Education and a team of about 100 staff, students, and community members to create a five-year strategic plan to improve students' performance.

Under her leadership, Roosevelt Middle School and Roosevelt High School were removed from the State's needs-improvement list, ranking all five Roosevelt schools in good standing. State assessment performance increased over the past two years, and graduation rates rose from 70 percent in 2018-2019 to 86 percent in 2021-2022. Furthermore, the 2023 graduating class earned $4.8 million in scholarships, a 23 percent increase from the total earned by the 2022 graduating class.

“Dr. Wortham’s commitment to the Roosevelt community is palpable and she leaves Roosevelt full of inspiration and excitement for the future,” said Roosevelt School District Board of Education President Rose Gietschier. “Through her leadership, we have created an atmosphere for success and a united community where every student is encouraged to reach their unlimited potential.”

Dr. Wortham has spent her career with a focus on serving communities and students that are often overlooked and underrepresented. She does this through an approach she calls “educating the whole child,” which means empowering her students and cultivating their individual skills and successes, whether that be evident in career-training, art programs or mentorship opportunities.

Her success has been recognized at a national level as Dr. Wortham was awarded the highest honor a superintendent can receive at the 2024 Women in School Leadership Awards, hosted by the American Association of School Administrators (AASA) School Superintendent's Association. Dr. Wortham was awarded based on her creativity in successfully meeting the needs of Roosevelt students, strength in both personal and organizational communication, consistent improvement of administrative knowledge and skills, professional development opportunities she affords to her staff, and her active participation in the Roosevelt community.

Concurrent with her retirement this year, Dr. Wortham penned her first book Setting the Atmosphere: Beliefs, Practices, and Protocols for Faith-Filled Educational Leaders. The education guide shares her experience and insight on educational leadership and cultivating student success. Dr. Wortham’s book is heralded a tool for teachers, principals and superintendents to embed faith in their leadership while creating an atmosphere for student achievement.

During the last week of school, the Board of Education and community came together to hold a retirement party for Dr. Wortham and celebrate her achievements and the impact she has had on the students and staff of the Roosevelt School District.

To learn more about the Roosevelt Union Free School District, please visit the District's website at https://www.rooseveltufsd.org. Happenings in the District can also be followed on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/RooseveltUFSD.