By Matthew Sockol
Staff Writer
FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP – Ross Kasun, the superintendent of schools of the Freehold Township K-8 School District, has been selected as New Jersey’s 2017 candidate for the American Association of School Administrators’ (AASA) National Superintendent of the Year Award by the New Jersey Association of School Administrators (NJASA).
According to a press release from the NJASA, Kasun was recognized by the New Jersey State Board of Education as New Jersey’s Superintendent of the Year in December during a ceremony at the New Jersey Department of Education headquarters in Trenton.
The NJASA names three regional superintendent of the year honorees prior to the selection of the state superintendent of the year. In October, Kasun was selected as the Central Regional Superintendent of the Year, according to the press release.
NJASA Executive Director Richard G. Bozza said, “Ross Kasun is a dedicated, hard-working professional who continually strives to improve the quality of education for all students. He is a remarkable chief education officer with vision, imagination and compassion for the students he serves.”
In accepting the honor as Superintendent of the Year, Kasun said, “This is truly a team effort and an awesome recognition for the Freehold Township schools. I admire and support the quote of President Harry S. Truman, who said, ‘It’s amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.’ ”
Under Kasun’s tutelage, the NJASA found that the Freehold Township K-8 School District initiated a blended and personalized learning approach with students being leaders of their own learning, according to the press release.
From his vantage point of 15-plus years experience as a school administrator, Kasun said he is most proud of fostering “leadership for learning” by developing, coaching and mentoring the district’s team of principals, assistant principals and supervisors. According to the press release, his leadership encouraged the team to be innovators, take risks and develop personalized pilots in their schools that impact student learning.
Kasun was appointed Freehold Township’s superintendent of schools in August 2011. Previously, he served as the superintendent of schools of the Colts Neck K-8 School District.
Kasun is a resident of Middletown. He is an adjunct professor at St. Peter’s University, Jersey City, where he teaches doctoral statistics and serves as dissertation chairman and committee member for several doctoral students. He also serves on an advisory board working to establish an Executive Doctoral Program for Education Leadership at Monmouth University, West Long Branch, according to the press release.
AASA will announce the National Superintendent of the Year at its annual conference on education in March 2017. The recipient will receive a $10,000 college scholarship for a student at the high school where the superintendent graduated.
