New Clemente Principal Hired; 3 Veteran Teachers Retire

A new principal is en route to Roberto Clemente Academy, thanks to the Board of Education’s appointment of longtime Waterbury administrator Adela Jorge to fill the shoes of the soon-to-retire Mia Edmonds-Duff.

The school board took that 5 – 0 vote Monday evening at its regular full board meeting held in person at the Barack Obama School and online via Zoom. Board member Darnell Goldson abstained from the personnel report vote while Edward Joyner was not present online during the vote. 

Jorge will take over as principal of the K‑8 public school at 360 Columbus Ave. effective Nov. 20, at a starting salary of $166,508. Edmonds-Duff, who served as principal of Clemente for the past four years and has worked within the New Haven Public Schools (NHPS) district for a total of 38 years, is set to retire on Dec. 1.

Negrón described Jorge as a ​“skilled urban educator” with 28 years of experience. 

“As a bilingual teacher she used her experience as a bilingual [student] herself to create safe spaces for her students to learn,” Negrón said.

Most recently Jorge served as an assistant principal and supervisor of multilingual learners for Waterbury Public Schools. 

Jorge contributed to the development of the CT Seal of Biliteracy and the standards for the CT English Language Proficiency, also known as the CELP. 

She is also a mother of three and helped to open Waterbury’s international dual language school. 

“I believe she will be a tremendous asset to us here and everything we’re trying to build in the New Haven Public Schools,” Negrón said.

During Monday’s meeting Jorge thanked the Board for the appointment. 

She quoted Roberto Clemente, the school’s namesake, as saying: ​“Any time you have an opportunity to make a difference in this world and you don’t, then you are wasting your time on earth.”

She added that as principal she plans to ​“spend every single day ensuring that our students at Roberto Clemente Leadership Academy of Global Studies have access to equitable opportunities and successful outcomes as they prepare for college, career, and life.” 

During Monday’s public comment section, Clemente educators Vivian Jefferson and Emily Nguyen joined a dozen other Clemente staff to support the appointment.

Jefferson, who is a physical education teacher and chair to the school planning management team (SPMT) thanked Edmonds-Duff for her leadership at Clemente over the years.

“On behalf of the SPMT, we would like to welcome Ms. Jorge to Roberto Clemente. The city’s best kept secret. And we look forward to working with her as we continue to strive for excellence,” Jefferson said. 

Nguyen, who is an ESOL teacher at Clemente, also thanked Edmonds-Duff for the positivity and energy she has brought to the district over the years. ​“I’m here tonight to support the appointment of Ms. Jorge as the next principal of Clemente. Her years of service in urban education and her deep reservoir of knowledge in supporting and celebrating multilingual learners are well suited for Clemente, as our student population includes 36 percent multilingual learners,” she said. 

During the meeting the board also discussed but did not vote on the personnel report’s information only sheets. This included the retirements of three veteran teachers from NHPS.

Fair Haven School fifth grade teacher Rosalie Carr, who has served 20 years, will retire Dec. 1. 

FAME fourth grade teacher Luz Nelly Tobon, who has taught for 30 years, will retire Nov. 30. 

And Riverside special education teacher and former teachers union Vice President Pasquale ​“Pat” Delucia, who has taught for more than 30 years, will retire Dec. 22.

Several Board members welcomed Jorge and congratulated the retirees.

Goldson asked what the plan is to find replacements for the three long-term educators who will retire mid-year. ​“Is that three classrooms that will not have certified full time teachers for six months?” he asked. 

Negrón said as of Monday the district has 77 teacher vacancies. 

NHPS Director of Human Resources & Labor Relations Lisa Flegler further explained that that total number of vacancies includes the open positions for the upcoming retirements. 

“Two of the three positions are already filled,” Flegler said. 

Due to Delucia being a longtime vice president for the teachers union, he had been out of the classroom already and his position was filled because he was able to inform the district of his departure months in advance. 

Similarly the district was informed that Tobon was going to retire and so her position is being filled by a newly certified teacher who will transition from teaching through a DSAP using ESSER funds. 

Therefore the only position left to be filled is for a fifth grade teacher at Fair Haven School. 

Flegler said, ​“We’re confident we’ll have it filled within the next month or so.” 

Flegler added that the district continues its recruitment efforts through alternate routes of teacher certifications for promoting internal non-instructional staff to certified positions, adding 1 – 2 longterm substitutes to each building, and a SPED program for non-instructional staff to move into full-time special education positions. 

Goldson concluded with the suggestion of considering internal candidates to fill vacant positions.