It was the teachers Joe Rumsey had at Bath-Haverling Central School that inspired him to be a teacher.
“They were amazing, caring teachers,” Rumsey said. “Not only in the classroom, but actively working in the community …”
Rumsey has come home.
A 1985 Haverling graduate, Rumsey is completing his third week as superintendent of his alma mater.
“I’m listening and learning as fast as I can,” he said. “I’m talking to the teachers, bus drivers, maintenance and cafeteria workers. Everyone.”
Rumsey said his first task is to restore stability to a district that has seen swift changes in leadership, including four superintendents in three years.
Veteran Superintendent Marion Tunney stepped down in June 2011, to be followed by Patrick Kelley, who left a year later, followed by interim Superintendent Ted Binley.
The result has been a “climate” problem, Rumsey said. “There needs to be stability. We need to get all the buildings looking in the same direction… we have great leadership here,, it’s a matter of working smarter for their community.”
Community is the keystone of Rumsey’s administrative style.
A former teacher, coach, principal, and finally superintendent at Prattsburgh Central School, Rumsey sees small schools as the hub of their communities.
“I would have happily ended my career at Prattsburgh,” he said. “Awesome things are happening there, it’s a special place. (Bath) is the only place I’d leave for.”
And while BCS, at 1,700 students, is three times the size of Prattsburgh, Rumsey sees his new district in the same light.
“Bath has small town values. It’s a tight knit community,” he said. “And where we’re located, centrally, I think it can become the hub of the region.”
Having worked in a small district, Rumsey has enormous respect for rural schools – and says schools in the area must work together -- and creatively – to survive.
“We’ve got to be willing to partner with each other,” he said. “We’ve got to lose that ‘What’s in it for me’ mentality.”
The new proposed state budget appears to put money back into education, but has not restored funding to previous years, he said. Some of the additional funds are simply already existing grants, now folded in under the umbrella of state aid, Rumsey said.
“And some of them are competitive, and we don’t even know if we qualify, yet,” he said.
Rumsey intends to make Bath Central a model school in the state – benefiting the students, and playing a key role in the town’s economic development.
“A good school adds to the value of the community,” he said. “When families are looking for work in the area, I want them to pick us as they place they want to send their kids.”
The potential of the district is wide open, and Rumsey believes it’s just beginning.
“The faculty here, bus drivers, cafeteria works, office staff – everyone here is really, just awesome,” he said. “This is an opportunity to show case the magnificent in troubled times and turn it into the best of time.”
**
Joseph Rumsey
1986 – Graduate Haverling High School
1990/92 – Bachelor of Arts in Education; Sociology and Political Science -- SUNY Buffalo
1998 – Masters in Education; Reading (Literacy) -- Elmira College
2000 – Educational Administration Masters Degree Program – SUNY Oswego
1995-2000 – Elementary Teacher; Prattsburgh Central School
2000-2002 – Director of Special Education/Student Activities; PCS
2002-2003 – Athletic Director; PCS
2002-2008 – Assistant Superintendent/Pre-K-12 Principal; PCS
2008-2012 – Superintendent; PCS
Community:
WVIN Tyrtle Beach Fund Drive 2012
Prattsburgh Historical Society
Prattsburgh Youth Soccer League
Family Life Ministries Board of Directors
Prattsburgh Bible Church
Town of Avoca Councilman
Bath Kiwanis Youth Soccer
It was the teachers Joe Rumsey had at Bath-Haverling Central School that inspired him to be a teacher.
“They were amazing, caring teachers,” Rumsey said. “Not only in the classroom, but actively working in the community …”
Rumsey has come home.
A 1985 Haverling graduate, Rumsey is completing his third week as superintendent of his alma mater.
“I’m listening and learning as fast as I can,” he said. “I’m talking to the teachers, bus drivers, maintenance and cafeteria workers. Everyone.”
Rumsey said his first task is to restore stability to a district that has seen swift changes in leadership, including four superintendents in three years.
Veteran Superintendent Marion Tunney stepped down in June 2011, to be followed by Patrick Kelley, who left a year later, followed by interim Superintendent Ted Binley.
The result has been a “climate” problem, Rumsey said. “There needs to be stability. We need to get all the buildings looking in the same direction… we have great leadership here,, it’s a matter of working smarter for their community.”
Community is the keystone of Rumsey’s administrative style.
A former teacher, coach, principal, and finally superintendent at Prattsburgh Central School, Rumsey sees small schools as the hub of their communities.
“I would have happily ended my career at Prattsburgh,” he said. “Awesome things are happening there, it’s a special place. (Bath) is the only place I’d leave for.”
And while BCS, at 1,700 students, is three times the size of Prattsburgh, Rumsey sees his new district in the same light.
“Bath has small town values. It’s a tight knit community,” he said. “And where we’re located, centrally, I think it can become the hub of the region.”
Having worked in a small district, Rumsey has enormous respect for rural schools – and says schools in the area must work together -- and creatively – to survive.
“We’ve got to be willing to partner with each other,” he said. “We’ve got to lose that ‘What’s in it for me’ mentality.”
The new proposed state budget appears to put money back into education, but has not restored funding to previous years, he said. Some of the additional funds are simply already existing grants, now folded in under the umbrella of state aid, Rumsey said.
“And some of them are competitive, and we don’t even know if we qualify, yet,” he said.
Rumsey intends to make Bath Central a model school in the state – benefiting the students, and playing a key role in the town’s economic development.
“A good school adds to the value of the community,” he said. “When families are looking for work in the area, I want them to pick us as they place they want to send their kids.”
The potential of the district is wide open, and Rumsey believes it’s just beginning.
“The faculty here, bus drivers, cafeteria works, office staff – everyone here is really, just awesome,” he said. “This is an opportunity to show case the magnificent in troubled times and turn it into the best of time.”
**
Joseph Rumsey
1986 – Graduate Haverling High School
1990/92 – Bachelor of Arts in Education; Sociology and Political Science -- SUNY Buffalo
1998 – Masters in Education; Reading (Literacy) -- Elmira College
2000 – Educational Administration Masters Degree Program – SUNY Oswego
1995-2000 – Elementary Teacher; Prattsburgh Central School
2000-2002 – Director of Special Education/Student Activities; PCS
2002-2003 – Athletic Director; PCS
2002-2008 – Assistant Superintendent/Pre-K-12 Principal; PCS
2008-2012 – Superintendent; PCS
Community:
WVIN Tyrtle Beach Fund Drive 2012
Prattsburgh Historical Society
Prattsburgh Youth Soccer League
Family Life Ministries Board of Directors
Prattsburgh Bible Church
Town of Avoca Councilman
Bath Kiwanis Youth Soccer
