Clarkstown Names New Superintendent

CLARKSTOWN, NY — The Clarkstown school trustees announced Wednesday morning that they would be appointing Dr. Marc P. Baiocco as Superintendent of Schools.

He will start July 1.

In a Facebook post, district officials said the Board of Education would hold a special meeting Wednesday evening at which they would approve the contract. The public is invited to meet him then.

The meeting is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. at Clarkstown High School South in West Nyack.

“Dr. Baiocco possesses the strategic vision, pedagogical expertise and collaborative approach that will continue to build Clarkstown's reputation as a national leader in education,” said Board of Education President Walter Litvak. “Among several strong candidates, Dr. Baiocco stood out as uniquely qualified to take our CCSD community to the next level."

Dr. Baiocco will take the helm this summer from Jeff Sobel, who has been the interim superintendent since Martin Cox was ousted. The trustees thanked Sobel for his leadership, service and contributions to Clarkstown students, families and employees.

During the search process, applications were received from 29 candidates in several states. After initial interviews with top candidates, the board narrowed the list and conducted extensive background checks. Trustees wanted to include as many people as possible in the final interview process, while remaining cognizant that confidentiality for current superintendents was critical and opening the search would result in the loss of quality candidates.

Dr. Baiocco has already planned dates to visit the district several times beforehand, district officials said.

An experienced educator with nearly 25 years of service to public schools in New York State, he leads the Elmsford Union Free School District in Westchester County, where he was first appointed as superintendent in 2018.

"Dr. Baiocco’s leadership acumen will enrich collaborative strategic planning and purposeful, continuous improvement for future decision-making," the trustees said.

In Elmsford he oversaw improvement in literacy, mathematics, curriculum alignment and graduation rates through team building, goal setting and action planning. He led efforts to foster a culture of respect and inclusion that values the experiences and perspectives of all students, families and staff members, working through a multi-stakeholder approach to build more welcoming and affirming schools.

Dr. Baiocco’s leadership efforts will focus on using a formative assessment process and small group instruction to improve student learning, they said. He looks forward to working collaboratively with CCSD stakeholders to continue to explore ways to enhance 21st-century skills and close achievement gaps.

Dr. Baiocco served on the New York State Principal Preparation Project team, which was charged with developing a leadership program for the state to prepare future principals for the challenging work ahead. Additionally, Dr. Baiocco is a graduate of the 2016 cohort of the New York State Educational Policy Fellowship Program, which examined the policies from federal and state education departments, the New York State Board of Regents and local boards of education to promote equitable education policy for all students.

He is currently an executive board member of the Lower Hudson Council of School Superintendents, Chief School Administrators and the United Way of Westchester and Putnam. Each of these organizations have been instrumental in advocating for the fair treatment of public schools.

Dr. Baiocco also serves as the President of Section One athletics and is working to ensure more collegial and respectful athletic competitions for all.

Before becoming superintendent, Dr. Baiocco served as a middle/high school principal, assistant principal and a social studies/law teacher.

He earned a Bachelor’s degree from Iona College, a certification in Professional Studies in History from Lehman College, a Master’s degree from Mercy College and an Educational Doctorate from Concordia University.

Editor's Note: Clarkstown's interim superintendent is Jeff Sobel. His name was misspelled in the original version of this report. Patch regrets the error.