Archive: Around Town

Raymond C. Buckley Elementary School's new principal is ready for school to begin this week.  Lorri Whiteman officially began July 1.  That has given her a couple of months to poke around the building and begin to get to know the Lansing school community.  Yesterday the Lansing Bobcat visited the elementary school to mark the official first day of school and greet the students and their new principal.

"I’m looking forward to getting to meet the students, to experience their education through their eyes," she says.  "It’s been lovely meeting a bunch of families coming in for open house, and the excitement of a new school year.  The new school year has always been one of my favorite times.  It’s a new beginning.  It’s a new opportunity to meet new friends."

This is Whiteman's second job as an elementary school principal, after many years as an elementary and technology teacher.  When her husband retired the couple decided to move to his native Locke to take care of his parents and the family farm.  Last year Whiteman landed the principal job an elementary school in Cincinnatus, east of Cortland.  Whiteman says she was quite happy there, but the commute took too much time away from her family.  Her husband had always spoken fondly of Lansing, and it seemed like a good fit when the position was posted this year.  Whiteman became the top candidate for the job, and the Board of Education officially hired her at its June 13th meeting.



Whiteman has spent two months getting to know the building and meeting teachers, staff and families.  She has been working with the administrative team to get up to speed to prepare for this week.  She says the other administrators have been welcoming and generous with their time and knowledge of the Lansing school system.  Whiteman shares the kind of management style Pettograsso's team has used, considering all points of view from a variety of stakeholders before coming to decisions.

"I will thoroughly look at a situation before making a decision and try to be as open-minded, and ask questions," Whiteman says.  "That makes it easier for everybody when I can say I’ve listened to all the stakeholders on this topic, and this is what I think is going to be the best plan of action, and go forward from there."

She has also spent some time this summer checking out Lansing athletics.

"I’m a sports fanatic," she says.  "I absolutely love the fact that the soccer field is this close to the building so I can sneak out and watch the games and come back and continue working.  I love watching the kids play."

She was born in Chicago, but raised in Vienna, in northern Virginia.  She attended school in the Fairfax school system, then went to Virginia Tech, where she earned her elementary education degree.  After getting married she went to George Mason University for a Masters in Instructional Technology, and became a Technology Resource Teacher,  helping teachers use technology to better their instruction to increase student achievement.

That job grew into Data and Instructional Resource Teacher.  She went back to George Mason University to get a second Masters in Supervision and Administration.  After her husband retired they made the move, and she began at Cincinnatus in October.

Whiteman follows a long line of beloved elementary school principals.  Lansing Superintendent of Schools Chris Pettograsso served in the position starting in 2007.  When she was named Interim Superintendent in 2012, Christine Rebera, who had taught in the school and directed the Lansing/Groton Teacher Center, became Elementary Principal, and continued to serve when Pettograsso was given the Superintendent job in 2013.  After Middle School Principal Jeff Evener announced he would be leaving Lansing last October, Rebera was tapped for the middle school job.  Pettograsso filled in at the elementary school for a while until former Lansing High School Principal Eric Hartz was tapped for the interim position to allow time to post the job and conduct interviews.

"I have big shoes to fill," Whiteman says.  "I know there are high expectations.  I have high expectations for myself.  Everything that I've seen and experienced so far has been wonderful.  I’ve been meeting with parents bringing students in early.  I’ve been meeting with teachers, listening to concerns and listening to thoughts."



She also says she will continue to encourage parent volunteers to help in school, noting the close connection between kids' school and home lives.

"Neither can work independently, in my mind, when it comes to the success of the students," she says.  "We have to be working with the families and the families working with us in order to get the kids to the point where we really want to see them achieve.  If we’re seeing something at school we want to make sure the parents know that we’re seeing it, and vice versa.  We are all making sure that we are looking out for everybody."

Whiteman says that Lansing feels a lot like home, because a lot of her school experience in Virginia was at similar sized schools with student populations about like Lansing's.  Undaunted by New York winters, she laughs and says she and her husband love winter sports such as snowmobiling.  She hopes to remain in Lansing for a good long time.

"This is where I plan to be," she says.  "We’re not going anywhere.  We’ve moved up here and this is where I want to be."

After two months of getting oriented herself, Wednesday was Kindergarten orientation, and for teachers and staff it was their first official day.  Thursday the students came, and Friday September 16th at 5:30 the Lansing PTSO is hosting a family picnic to meet Whiteman.  She says she is excited that they will also be using the occasion to collect canned goods to donate to the local food bank, and that she hopes to become involved in more community initiatives.

Looking ahead to the school year, Whiteman plans to continue many traditions and initiatives from past years as she continues to learn about the school and community and gets to know the students, faculty and staff.  She is not the only new hire this year.  New teachers have also been hired to replace some who have moved to the middle or high school, or retired.

"One of the things we are looking at is to work with our staff and continue all the good things that Lansing’s been doing, and to keep pushing forward with all the great initiatives," Whiteman says.  "It’s an incredibly supportive community.  I’ve had wonderful folks coming in, talking about STEAM Month last year, and ‘What do you think about that Mrs. Whiteman?’  I’m all for it.  Being a technology teacher for 12 years - Hey!  More power to you!  I’m more than happy to get involved in those activities.  To continue with the good things that have been going on and to see where there might be places where we can grow."

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