New Rye High & Middle School Staff
The Rye City School District announced its new staff heading into the school year. Introduce yourself to the new districtwide staff, Rye High & Middle School staff (below) and Rye Elementary staff. Welcome to Rye and thanks in advance for all you will do for our kids!
Rye High School
Teachers
Alyson Gunn, Special Education (Life Skills) Teacher, Rye High School
Ms. Gunn comes to Rye High School to fill a new position – that of special education Life Skills teacher. Prior to coming to Rye, she worked at the Fairfield Public Schools as a special education case manager for students in the Community Partnership Transition Program. Before working in Fairfield, she spent four years as a special education classroom teacher for an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Learning Disability Cluster at the Seminole Trails Elementary School in West Palm Beach, FL. From 2001-2015, she worked in numerous roles for Manhattan’s District 75: as a special education classroom teacher, English as a Second Language (ESL) teacher, special education classroom teacher for children with emotional disturbance, and special education teacher inclusion program coordinator for students with ASD. Ms. Gunn has a B.A. in Psychology from SUNY Purchase, an M.A. in TESOL (Teaching Speakers of Other Languages) from Adelphi University, and an M.Ed in Education from New England College. She has a Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study in Autism & Severe Disabilities from Pace University.
John Predovan, Special Education Teacher, Rye High School
Mr. Predovan comes to Rye High School from Sleepy Hollow High School where he worked as a leave replacement special education teacher for the 2021-22 school year. Prior to working in Sleepy Hollow, he worked as a seventh-grade special education teacher at Highlands Middle School in White Plains for two years and as a high school special education teacher at the A. Philip Randolph Campus High School in Manhattan for five years. He began his career as a middle social studies and then ELA teacher at Saint Ignatius School in the Bronx. He was the girls varsity basketball coach at Saint Ignatius and at A. Philip Randolph. Mr. Predovan has a B.A. in History from SUNY Albany and an M.A. in Special Education from CUNY.
Staff
Lauren Keschner, School Psychologist, Rye High School
Ms. Keschner comes to Rye High School from the Bronxville Union Free School District, where she recently completed a year-long Internship in School Psychology. She conducted her Fieldwork Practicum in School Psychology at the Amber Charter School and the Mt. Carmel Holy Rosary School, both in East Harlem, N.Y., and the Immaculate Conception School in Bronx, N.Y. She began her career in education as a Teacher Assistant and Aide to a special education teacher at the Building Blocks Developmental Preschool in Commack, N.Y. Ms. Keschner has a B.A. in Psychology from Northwestern University and an Ed.M in School Psychology from Teachers College, Columbia University.
Rye Middle School
Teachers
Heather Moran, Special Education Teacher, Rye Middle School
Ms. Moran comes to RMS from the Anne M. Dorner Middle School in Ossining, N.Y., where she worked as a special education teacher for the past eight years, teaching English Language Arts (ELA), Social Studies and Life Skills classes. Before working in Ossining, she was an ELA teacher at Jose Celso Barbosa (M.S. 206) in Manhattan. She has a B.S. in Marketing from Arizona State University and an M.S.T. in Adolescent Education from Pace University.
James Pape, Jr., Special Education Integrated Co-Teacher, Rye Middle School
Mr. Pape comes to RMS from Preparatory Academy at P.S./M.S. 71 in Bronx, NY, where he worked as a Grade K-8 (Independent Educational Plan) IEP teacher for one year and as a grade 6-8 Teacher/Special Education Provider for nine years. Before working at P.S. 71, he was a Teaching Assistant for the Pelham Memorial High School Therapeutic Support Program Resource Room. He is the Director of the Edgemont Day Camp in Edgemont, New York. He is the varsity football coach, J.V. basketball coach and J.V. and modified baseball coach for the Edgemont School District. Mr. Pape has a B.S. from Sacred Heart University and an M.S. in Childhood/Special Education from Iona College.
Shaina Simpson, Life Science Teacher, Rye Middle School
Ms. Simpson comes to RMS from the Young Women’s Leadership School of Brooklyn, where she taught seventh grade science for the past four years. She previously taught at the Rose E. Scala (P.S. 071) K-8 school in Bronx, N.Y. While obtaining her Master’s, she worked as a Teacher Assistant at the Biotechnology Teaching Laboratories and as a Lab Instructor at Stony Brook University. Ms. Simpson has an M.A.T. in Biology and Chemistry Education and a B.S. in Health Science, both from Stony Brook University.
Staff
Kristin Quintano, Social Worker, Rye Middle School
Ms. Quintano comes to RMS from the Pelham Union Free School District, where she worked as the Pelham Memorial High School School Social Worker since 2018, and as the School Assistance Counselor at both Pelham Memorial High School and Middle School since 2017. Before working in Pelham, she was the Bully Prevention Counselor at Mildred E. Strang Middle School in Yorktown, N.Y. From 2016-17, she worked as a Youth Advocate in Ardsley, N.Y., designing and implementing school and community based substance abuse prevention programs for seventh through twelfth graders. Ms. Quintano has a B.A. in Rehabilitation and Disabilities Studies from Springfield College, an M.S. in Social Work from the Columbia University School of Social Work, and an Advanced Clinical Practice Certificate from the NYU Silver School of Social Work. She is a Licensed Master Social Worker (LMSW).
