St. Thomas More
Catholic School
Principal Wins Award
Joseph Rosi was awarded the Pennsylvania 2018 Primary
School Administrator Award.
BY W.B. FRESA
W
Joe Rosi with his family and pastor. Photo by St. Thomas More Catholic School.
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ith only one year on the job, St.
Thomas More Catholic School
Principal Joe Rosi has already
made a huge impact on faculty
and students. By introducing the use of more
improved technology into the curriculum, he’s
pushed the envelope for everyone involved and
people have taken notice.
“The funny thing is, I studied Political Science
in college,” says Rosi with a chuckle. “It wasn’t
until I coached soccer at the local YMCA that I
decided to go back to school and get my degree
in education, and then later a certification in
administration. I’ve been fortunate to work
with, and be mentored by, really great IT
administrators who demonstrated the significant
value of tech integration.”
When he applied for the open principal
position, Rosi talked about his passion for
technology. “My priority was to bring 21st
century skills into the classroom and teach them
to our kids,” he recalls. “I knew it had to be a large
part of our educational climate. Once I found out
I was selected for the position, I got input from
everyone. I’m an all-inclusive type of person and
I wanted this to be a group effort. My supervisors
were very supportive and let me really run with
getting teachers and kids the tools they needed.”
Getting buy-in from his supervisors was
one thing; developing a knowledge base and
finding the money to buy the technology
would prove challenging. “Because our school
is funded primarily through tuition, our excess
money for additional upgrades is limited. So,
I began applying for grants and looking for
donors,” explains Rosi. “With that money, we
were able to give each student in grades three
through eight Dell Chromebooks. Kindergarten