VILLAGE SCHOOL

Stephen Goldberg is Village School Principal. After graduating from SUNY Albany with a BA in English and attending a year of law school at St. John's University, he easily found his niche in Village School's English department. He began as a student teacher while earning his Master's degree at Hofstra University. He completed his Administrator's degree at CW Post. Steve teaches courses in English Literature and Musicology.

Lisa DiRosa is the School Psychologist at the Village. She earned an MS from St. John's University in School Psychology. She has worked with children in the preschool, elementary and high school setting. She began her career in Phoenix, Arizona for five years before returning to New York. Her interests include traveling, music, and dancing. Lisa has studied dance and has previous performance experience in ballet and modern dance.

Jeff Bernstein teaches Social Studies at Village School. He received a BA in History and an MS in Computer Systems, both from SUNY Binghamton. After 25 years in the corporate world, Jeff returned to school at Adelphi University to obtain his teaching license. He is completing an Ed.D. at Hofstra University in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies with a dissertation on alternative education. Jeff enjoys politics, history, film, music, and sports and spends way too much time on the Internet.

Ronni Graf teaches Mathematics at Village School. Her classroom is always decorated with student-created manipulative and visual representations that she uses to communicate concepts to her students, and to make mathematics fun and challenging. She spent several years in the private sector working in Banking, Marketing and Fund-Raising before switching to education. She has a BS in Business Economics from SUNY Oneonta and an MS in Mathematics Education from Queens College.

Sam Yellis comes to Village School with a fresh spirit, and a love of history. After launching new airlines, yogurt companies and selling everything from TV's to beds, Sam brings his experiences and perspectives to exactly where he was meant to be: Village School. He teaches what he loves; history, jazz, art and architecture. Sam has a BA in History and Political Science from SUNY Albany and an MA in Secondary Education/Social Studies from CW Post.

Megan Wilvert teaches Science at Village School. She earned her BS from St. Joesph's College in Secondary Education with a major in Biology, and a minor in Chemistry. Currently, she is working to complete her Masters in Educational Technology through LIU Post. Her love of Marine Science comes from years of working at the East Islip Shellfish Culture Facility as a Marine Resource Technician. Megan is an avid reader and thoroughly enjoys curling up with a hot cup of coffee and a Harry Potter book!

Lauren Sullivan teaches English at Village School. The works of F. Scott Fitzgerald, Arthur Miller, Sherman Alexie, Alice Walker, and Ernest Hemingway always find their ways into her classes, and she encourages all of her students to Google “Desiderata." She received her undergraduate degree in English from Stony Brook University and graduate degree from Teachers College, Columbia University. She is a lover of tattoos, poetry, live music, grandma slices, running, and suburban farming.

Cindy Pavlic teaches Special Education at Village. She provides individualized support and promotes independence in preparation for post-secondary education. She has a BS in Biology and an MA in Adolescent Special Education with an Annotation in Severe and Multiple Disabilities, both from St. Joseph’s College. She loves traveling, cooking, films, and superheroes. She is an avid reader and always has a book with her in the event she can steal away a moment to immerse herself in its world.

Ciao! Halina is the Village School office manager. With an organized and focused mentality, she strives to help the students and staff as much as possible. She has a BS in Music Business from NYU and an MA in Music Education from CUNY Hunter College. Her interests/hobbies include nutrition, playing piano, running, languages, travel, world history and music theory. When not at work, she can be found teaching piano to kids of all ages or convincing people to eat healthier foods!

Robin Ernst is a Computer Teacher at Great Neck North Middle School, as well as, the Instructional Computer Technology Professional Developer here at The Village School and at The SEAL Program.