Region 7 assistant principal earns CAS award

Joseph Masi, assitant principal at Northwest Region 7 High School, is among those administrators honored by the Connecticut Association of Schools as 2018 Assistant Principals of the Year. The announcement was made Monday in a written statement.

Each year, applications are accepted for the elementary, middle, and high school assistant principal of the year awards. The winners are chosen by the CAS Awards and Recognition Committee, a selection committee consisting of active and retired principals and assistant principals.

Masi, housemaster at Northwestern Regional High School in Winsted, has been named the 2018 High School Assistant Principal of the Year. Masi was selected for his “all in” devotion to his school community, his students-first approach to building leadership and his commitment, always, to improvement and constructive enterprise.

“Joe Masi is a passionate, wonderful role model with a tireless work ethic. He has abundant professional skills, but it is also who he is as a person that makes him a great leader. He is an exemplar,” said Superintendent Judy Palmer.

Principal Ken Chichester considers Masi an invaluable member of the Northwestern administrative team. “Joe is a tireless advocate for kids,” he said in the statement. “He is an out of the box thinker who thinks very creatively to find solutions for student success. We are blessed to have him as an assistant principal at Northwestern.”

When informed that he was the winner, Masi said, “I am extremely honored and grateful to receive this recognition. This award speaks volumes about the amazing students, staff, parents and communities that make up Northwestern Regional High School.”

A highly visible, hands-on administrator with a desire to serve others, Masi is, at any given moment of the day — and oftentimes night — industriously engaged in efforts to make Northwestern a better place to work and learn. His GTD (“Get Things Done”) mantra is renowned throughout the school community, according to the statement.

Gina Bunch, the parent of a learning disabled student at Northwestern, appreciates that Masi sees discipline as an opportunity to support students, not just dole out punishment, she said. “When my son is sent to Joe’s office for discipline, instead of dreading it, he knows he can expect to meet with a man who has a heart for kids and who will listen to both sides. I can’t tell you how often we hear, ‘At least Mr. Masi understands me.’”

Masi has been selected by CAS to represent Connecticut in the National Assistant Principal of the Year Program sponsored by the National Association of Secondary School Principals. Masi, along with assistant principals from each of the other 50 states, as well as the District of Columbia and the Department of Defense Education Activity Associations, will compete for the national honor.

“Joe Masi is a passionate, wonderful role model with a tireless work ethic. He has abundant professional skills, but it is also who he is as a person that makes him a great leader. He is an exemplar.”

Region 7 Superintendent Judy Palmer

The Assistant Principal of the Year Program, sponsored annually by the Connecticut Association of Schools, was established in 1990 to bring recognition to the assistant principalship and to spotlight the critical role that assistant principals play in education. The program recognizes outstanding school assistant principals who have succeeded in providing high quality learning opportunities for students. These administrators have demonstrated excellent leadership, commitment to staff and students, service to their communities and contributions to the overall profession of educational leadership.

Each year nominations are solicited for an elementary, middle and high school Assistant Principal of the Year. Site visits are conducted at the schools of the two highest rated candidates at each level. Winners are then chosen based upon the outcome of the site visit as well as the quality of the written application. The three individuals selected for recognition are honored by CAS at an awards dinner in the fall.

Joseph Macrino, assistant principal of Lewin G. Joel School in Clinton, was named the 2018 CAS Elementary School Assistant Principal of the Year. Darlene Wallin, assistant principal of John Read Middle School in Redding, has been named CAS Middle School Assistant Principal of the Year.