Meet The School Improvement Team

Stephanie has an educational background rooted in Special Education and inclusion. She spent 14 years as an educator at elementary center-based programming and public middle school. Stephanie was also an 8th-grade team leader and class advisor. She started her School Improvement work in 2014 with the Regional Special Education Technical Assistance Support Center (RSE-TASC) as a Special Education School Improvement Specialist (SESIS) with NYSED deliverables in the area of behavior, literacy and specially designed instruction. She began her role as the Director of School Improvement in July 2019. As the Director, Stephanie manages the department, oversees CoSer 526, supports districts with continuous improvement science, provides regional general education/special education sessions, and supports districts/team members with embedded rigorous curriculum design.

Email: sburns@gvboces.org
Website: www.gvboces.org
Location: 80 Munson Street, Le Roy, NY, USA
Phone: 585.344.7923
Twitter: @stephburns410

Kevin Kirkwood has been a Coordinator of Instruction with Genesee Valley BOCES since January 2018. He is certified in Adolescent, English Education (including Advanced Placement), and Higher Education Administration; specializing in: Tier 1 instruction, retention, student engagement, and literacy. Before working with Genesee Valley BOCES, Kevin worked for over 12 years as a highly-effective ELA instructor, ELA Department Chair, and Data Coordinator for Buffalo Public Schools. He also served as an Academic Advisor for the University at Buffalo for two years. Kevin currently facilitates the region's ELA cohorts, along with a variety of other professional learning and curricula-building opportunities. Kevin is proud to represent the Genesee Valley region at the New York Statewide, Professional Development Framework for ELA. Here, he strives to continue both his learning and content facilitation, in order to support the needs of his regional and state-wide colleagues.

Email: kkirkwood@gvboces.org
Website: www.gvboces.org
Location: 80 Munson Street, Le Roy, NY, USA
Phone: 585.344.7582
Twitter: @KevinRKirkwood1

Jessica Petrosino has been a member of the School Improvement Team as a Coordinator of Instructional Services since 2022. Prior to this role, Jessica had 14 years of experience in the Greece Central School District (CSD), where she was a Living Environment teacher for 13 years, an Acting Assistant Principal for one year, and Principal of the Credit Recovery Summer School for four years. At Greece CSD, Jessica also collaborated with science teachers to write curriculum, designed and implemented a plan to educate teachers on the Next Generation Science Standards, and completed data analysis of Regents exams for several years. In addition to science, Jessica is passionate about Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) implementation as well as Social Emotional Learning (SEL) integration. She has experience providing professional learning surrounding Culturally Responsive Education (CRE). At the building level Jessica was a member of the Guardians of Equity Committee, Culture and Climate Committee, and supported the Science Department as Department Chair.

Email: jpetrosino@gvboces.org
Website: www.gvboces.org
Location: 80 Munson Street, Le Roy, NY, USA
Phone: 585.344.7926

Twitter: @JPetrosino85

Nick D’Amuro joined the School Improvement Team in the fall of 2023. Nick is certified in Adolescent Social Studies (7-12) and also has a background in political science. Before joining, Nick spent 10 years in the Holley Central School District instructing a variety of courses in social studies for grades 7-12. While at Holley, he constructed and implemented a new curriculum based on inquiry at the eighth-grade level and created innovative electives to engage students outside of ordinary coursework. Nick was also instrumental in piloting and managing the New York State Seal of Civic Readiness at Holley through a senior capstone project that he helped develop. He's spoken at several state and national forums on the importance of civic engagement within our schools, and how civics can align with other practices like SEL to promote political depolarization. Outside of the classroom, Nick has experience coaching track & field at SUNY Geneseo and continues to coach varsity sports at Holley. Currently, Nick facilitates the social studies cohorts at Genesee Valley BOCES and other professional learning opportunities. His instructional passions include inquiry, teaching through primary sources, civic engagement, and colonial history.

Email: ndamuro@gvboces.org
Website: www.gvboces.org
Location: 80 Munson Street, Le Roy, NY, USA
Phone: 585.344.7922

Twitter: @socialstudies65

Janelle Baker has held a 17-year tenure in the field of education. She dedicated nine years to serving as an elementary educator in the Holley Central School District and subsequently made a significant impact during her eight years as a math teacher and math interventionist in the Warsaw Central School District. Janelle's leadership as the Lighthouse Coordinator at Warsaw led the school to achieve Lighthouse status. Notably, Janelle incorporated social-emotional lessons into her instructional cycle and advocated for the integration of Building Thinking and Learning Classrooms in the mathematics framework. Her commitment to professional growth is evident through her expertise in word problems, student engagement, collaborative relationship building, and restorative practices. Janelle eagerly anticipates the opportunity to collaborate with districts on enhancing mathematics instruction, structuring fluency practices, and achieving standards alignment.

Email: jbaker@gvboces.org
Website: www.gvboces.org
Location: 80 Munson Street, Le Roy, NY, USA
Phone: 585.344.7538

Twitter: @BakerJanel41401

Please direct all requests for service to the Director of School Improvement, Stephanie Burns at 585.344.7923.

Website: http://www.gvboces.org/services.cfm?subpage=208119
Location: 80 Munson Street, Le Roy, NY, USA
Phone: 585.344.7923