Dear Gates Chili School Community, 

I am pleased to announce several updates to our administrative team, pending Board of Education approval tomorrow: 

• Daniel McAlpin will be the next assistant principal at Gates Chili Middle School 
• Garonia Parchment-Magnussen will be the next assistant principal at Gates Chili High School 
• Mayra Ortiz will be the next assistant principal at Neil Armstrong Elementary School 

Mr. McAlpin will fill the immediate vacancy at Gates Chili Middle School beginning April 17. Meanwhile, Ms. Parchment-Magnussen and Ms. Ortiz will succeed Mr. Richard Pound and Mrs. Jeannine Bezon, respectively, who are both retiring on June 30. 

Mr. McAlpin is currently Director of Human Resources in the Newark Central School District. He joins the Gates Chili team after having served as both assistant principal and principal in the Bloomfield Central School District and an English teacher and ELA instructional coach in the Geneva City School District. He holds a master’s degree in educational leadership from St. John Fisher University, as well as a certificate of advanced study from Canisius College.  

Ms. Parchment-Magnussen is currently serving as an Advanced Course Advocates for the Virtual Academy of Rochester in the Rochester City School District. She joins the Gates Chili team after enjoying more than two decades as an educator in the Rochester City School District. Ms. Parchment-Magnussen holds master’s degrees in educational leadership and mathematics, science, technology education as well as a certificate of advanced study in adolescence education from St. John Fisher University. 

Ms. Ortiz is currently serving as Chief Ombuds Officer of Student Support Services in the Syracuse City School District. She returns to the Rochester area with a wealth of experience including director of student support services, director of bilingual education, principal, assistant principal, teacher and more. Ms. Ortiz holds a master’s degree in teaching English to speakers of other languages from St. John’s University and a certificate of advanced study in educational administration from SUNY Brockport. 

As part of the formal search process, there were more than 25 applicants for each position. Each candidate interviewed with two committees comprised of teachers, staff and other district administrators. Candidates also participated in student-led interviews. 

Thank you to the members of our school community who participated in this search process. We look forward to welcoming these newest Spartans to our team! 

Go Spartans!

Christopher J. Dailey
Superintendent of Schools