Mr. Charles Voorhees is SPSD’s Director of Athletics, Physical Education and Health. He was hired by the SPSD in 1995 as a High School Math teacher. Mr. Voorhees was awarded Teacher of the Year in 1998, and served as a Character Education Coordinator from 2005 to 2011. In 2011, Mr. Voorhees was appointed to his current position.
Mr. Voorhees has served as the Head Coach of the Secaucus High School Football team since 1999 and in 20 seasons has 119 wins and 80 losses with six consecutive league championships - from 2006 to 2011. Mr. Voorhees has been honored as Coach of the Year for the BCSL, NJIC and Hudson County, and was named Athletic Director of the Year in 2015. He is a member of the NJSIAA Football Committee and the Chairman of the NJIC Football Committee. He is also a member of the NJIC Realignment Committee and the NJIC Facilities Committee. Mr. Voorhees was an Assistant Football Coach for Secaucus High School from 1988 to 1990, St. Peter’s Prep in 1991 and Jersey City State College in 1992.
After graduating from Secaucus High School, Mr. Voorhees attended Muhlenberg College where he received his B.A. in Accounting. While at Muhlenberg, he was a four-year varsity letterman in football and was a member of the Centennial Conference Championship teams in 1983 and 1986. He was nominated First Team All Conference as a Running Back and was given the Most Courageous Player Award in 1986. Additionally, during his time at Muhlenberg, he was a member of Phi Kappa Tau Fraternity and Vice President of the college’s Chess Club. Mr. Voorhees has two masters degrees: the first is from Jersey City State College in Mathematics Education, which he received in 1994 and the second is from Saint Peter’s College in Administration and Supervision, which he received in 2002.
Before beginning his teaching career Mr. Voorhees worked at Hartz Mountain Industries as a Project Manager and is a member of the Carpenter’s Union Local #6 and Local #253.
Mr. Voorhees resides in Midland Park; he is married to his wife Teresa and has two sons, CJ and Eric.
Ms. Grace Yeo assumed the role of Business Administrator/Board Secretary on April 1, 2016. Ms. Yeo was employed by the SPSD in January 2005 where she held positions as payroll accountant, staff accountant, and Assistant Business Administrator/Board Secretary. In March, 2013 Ms. Yeo was appointed the Acting School Business Administrator/Board Secretary, and held this position until February 2014 at which time she returned to the corporate sector. Previous to her employment with the district she worked for Unilever Best Foods in Bayonne for 19 years as their Purchasing Agent/Senior Cost Accountant. Prior to Unilever Best Foods, Ms. Yeo was the Assistant Treasury Manager for Urban Brands, Inc., in Secaucus.
Ms. Yeo received both her B.S and M.S. in Accounting from St. Peters University in Jersey City and resides in Secaucus with her family.
ASSISTANT BUSINESS ADMINISTRATOR
BOARD SECRETARY
Mr. Pasquale (Pat) Cocucci is a graduate of Montclair State University, where he majored in Business with a concentration in Marketing. He later earned his alternate route certification in teaching and was subsequently hired by the Secaucus Public School District in 2013.
Mr. Cocucci later went on to pursue his Master’s Degree in Administration and Leadership from Georgian Court University.
Throughout his educational career, Mr. Cocucci has taught both Mathematics and Finance at the middle school level, as well as Marketing at the high school level. In addition, he has served as a coach for the Secaucus High School Track & Field team, as well as an advisor for various clubs and organizations, including the Junior Math Club, Character Education Club, and Boys Group.
During the 2021-2022 school year, Mr. Cocucci was awarded the Secaucus Middle School Teacher of the Year.
Mr. Cocucci is a proud alumnus of the Secaucus Public School District.
DIRECTOR OF ELEMENTARY EDUCATION, CURRICULUM AND INSTRUCTION
Ms. Felicia Lott Chetrit is the Director of Elementary Education, Curriculum and Instruction. Her background consists of a wide range of experiences. Ms. Chetrit graduated from Rowan University with a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education, Special Education, and Mathematics. Additionally, she has a Master of Arts in Teaching Middle Grades Mathematics and a Master of Arts in Educational Leadership from Montclair State University.
Ms. Chetrit began her career as a resource mathematics teacher for grades 4-8. Then she became a general education mathematics and science teacher for grades 4-5. In the summers, she enjoyed working in the extended school year program as a PreK-2 educator. In her prior district, she was the District Coordinator for the Unified Champion Schools Program and the Technology Specialist for Grades 3-5. Additionally, she was the recipient of the New Jersey Governor’s Educator of the Year Award and the national Peary Award for Innovative Explorer from Pear Deck. Ms. Chetrit has experience executing professional development workshops at national and local conferences, providing technical support, monitoring program progress, and communicating district-wide events and information with the school community.
Ms. Chetrit enjoys piloting new programs, exploring new technology resources, and collaborating with the school community to promote student achievement. In her free time, she enjoys sports and spending time with her family. She is an avid skier and enjoys traveling during school vacations. Ms. Chetrit is happy to be part of the Secaucus community.
Upon graduating from Secaucus High School in 2010, Mr. Dylan Caruso attended Ramapo College of New Jersey where he earned a Bachelors of Science in Mathematics and a minor in Business Economics in 2014. He obtained his alternate route certification and was hired by the Secaucus Board of Education in December of 2014 as a teacher of mathematics. Mr. Caruso then received his masters degree in Educational Leadership from Montclair State University in 2021 and was hired as 6-12 STEM Supervisor in December 2022.
Ms. Allison Cunniff graduated Saint Peter’s University in 2005 with a major in English Literature and a double minor in Secondary Education and Mathematics, and in 2010 with her Masters in Educational Leadership.
Ms. Cunniff completed her student teaching in Secaucus in 2004 and was hired by the Secaucus Public School District in 2008 as an English teacher for the Middle School and High School. Ms. Cunniff taught all levels of ELA including Advanced Placement English Literature and Composition. Ms. Cunniff was the Secaucus Middle School Teacher of the year in 2013 and previously served as the advisor for MS Drama Club, MS Character Club, Class of 2014 advisor, and MS Girls Soccer Coach.
Ms. Cunniff was hired as the Supervisor of Humanities in 2018.
Ms. Christina Wiswesser (Calabrese) is a 2004 graduate of The College of New Jersey where she pursued a double major in English and Secondary Education. She then earned her M.A. in Counseling from New Jersey City University in 2009 and earned an endorsement to teach Psychology.
Ms. Wiswesser was hired by the SPSD in 2004 where she taught high school English until 2009. In 2009, she transitioned into the role as a high school/middle school guidance counselor. In 2011, she became a full time high school guidance counselor.
She was also the Head Varsity Cheerleading coach at SHS for ten years.
Ms. Wiswesser was hired as the Supervisor of Guidance, Business, Family/Consumer Science, Music, and World Language in 2018.
Ms. Wiswesser resides in Pompton Plains with her husband Jason and two children.
Mr. Robert Valente became a Principal in August 2013 and Principal of Huber Street School in July 2018. He began his teaching career in April 1999 at a charter school in Jersey City as a Fifth Grade teacher. Mr. Valente returned to his hometown of Secaucus in September, 2000. During his 13 years as a teacher at Clarendon School, he taught Grades Four and Six, and was hired to be the very first Math Coach in the school’s history .
Mr. Valente has coached middle school basketball and high school softball. He resides in Secaucus with his wife, two children, and dog.
Ms. Christine Candela is a graduate of The College of New Jersey where she pursued a double major in English and Secondary Education. She then earned her M.Ed. in Administration and Supervision from Montclair State University. She was hired in 2001 by the SPSD where she taught both middle and high school English.
In 2010 she was selected as Secaucus Middle School’s Teacher of the Year and became the Freshman Transition Coordinator at the high school. For the next four years she taught all levels of high school English, including Advanced Placement Literature and Composition, and was the co-advisor for the Class of 2014.
Ms. Candela was the District Supervisor of English and Social Studies for four years and was appointed as Middle School Principal July 2018.
Dr. Danielle Garzon was appointed as Clarendon School Principal, September 2019. She joined the Secaucus School District in 2016 as the Pre-K through Grade 5 Supervisor of Elementary Education and Testing.
Dr. Garzon began her career in the Jersey City Public School District as an elementary education teacher and continued to take on multiple roles such as K-8 curriculum coach, mentor, staff developer, NJDOE achievement coach, and NJEA/ECET2 presenter. During her tenure in the district, she was selected as the 2016 New Jersey Governor’s Hudson County Educator of the Year and the National VIP Women of the Year. Dr. Garzon was chosen as a Teach to Lead recipient and served as a subcommittee member to revise the New Jersey Student Learning Standards. Dr. Garzon received a Bachelor’s degree from Montclair State University, a Master’s degree from New Jersey City University, and a Doctorate from Seton Hall University.
Mr. Innis grew up in Secaucus and received a Bachelor's Degree in Elementary Education and American Studies from St. Peter's University in Jersey City. Mr. Innis taught in Secaucus Middle School for 10 years as part of the social studies department and coached middle school basketball and high school soccer.
He earned a Master's Degree in Educational Leadership from Montclair State University in 2015. Mr. Innis completed the standard administrator's license in the spring of 2024 as the principal of a pre-k -8th grade school in Bergen County for 3 years. Mr. Innis returned to the Secaucus school district in the fall of 2024 as the assistant principal of Secaucus Middle School.
He lives in Kearny with his wife, three children, and dog. He was named to the St. Peter's University All-Decade Team and inducted into the St. Peter's University Athletic Hall of Fame as a member of the university baseball team. He enjoys coaching his children's basketball and softball teams and is an avid baseball fan.
He is happy to be back in the Secaucus Public School District.
Mr. Steven Viggiani became principal in July of 2014 and principal of the High School in July 2018. He is a certified Learning Disabilities Consultant and was previously a member of the Child Study Team at Secaucus High School and Middle School. At the same time, Mr. Viggiani served as a district technology coordinator for the special education department. Earlier in his teaching career he taught at both the elementary and high school level as a special education teacher.
Mr. Viggiani resides in Emerson; he is married and has two daughters.
Ms. Amanda Jones is a graduate of the Ramapo College of New Jersey where she majored in History and Education. She then earned her Master’s degrees in both Educational Technology and Educational Leadership from Ramapo College. She was hired in 2009 by the SPSD where she taught both middle and high school Social Studies.
In 2015-2016, she was selected as Secaucus Middle School’s Teacher of the Year. Ms. Jones was also the Class of 2011 and the Class of 2015 advisor and the Head Varsity Softball Coach. She has also been a guest speaker at the NJEA Convention, at Rutgers University for the National Council for Social Studies and her students were recently featured in an HBO documentary about the events of September 11, 2001.
Ms. Jones was hired as the Secaucus High School Assistant Principal in 2018.