The exemplary efforts to grow professionally in the Hoboken Public School community have never been more evident. Staff members attended a number of valuable workshops and engaged in many graduate school programs. Calabro Elementary School’s Principal, Dr. Joseph Vespignani reached a milestone in his journey toward mastery in the field of educational leadership. In May, he completed all of the requirements for an Ed.D. and his degree from Rowan University was conferred.
For the past three years, Dr. Vespignani studied tirelessly. He meaningfully applied much of what he learned in his seminars to the classrooms at Calabro School. Portions of his dissertation, “Exploring My Leadership Practice in Connection to the Support System for Second- to Fourth- Year Non-Tenured Teachers,” were published in Educational Viewpoints, a peer reviewed journal compiled by the New Jersey Principals and Supervisors Association. As a result, he was selected to present his work at the FEA/NJPSA/NJASCD Fall Conference in October.
On obtaining his doctorate, Dr. Vespignani remarked, “Attaining a doctorate has been a long time goal of mine. Both my father and grandfather hold doctorate degrees in different fields so attaining this goal was also very meaningful for me and my family. I learned an incredible amount about leadership, instructional practice and curriculum as a result of my coursework at Rowan. Now, I am excited to embed all that I have learned into practice at Calabro.”
Dr. Vespignani’s efforts in his endeavor also led to his selection as an adjunct professor by Fairleigh Dickinson University’s Educational Leadership department. As a result, he now instructs a Seminar III course for pre-service principals who are completing their administrative internships. In the spring semester, he will begin teaching supervision and assessment courses.
Superintendent of Schools Christine Johnson remarked, “The Hoboken Public School District is extremely proud of Dr. Vespignani, and very lucky to have an administrator of his caliber in the district. The students and staff of Calabro Elementary School and the district-at-large will no doubt reap the benefits of his outstanding efforts.”