{"id":167652,"date":"2026-04-16T15:54:12","date_gmt":"2026-04-16T15:54:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/167652\/"},"modified":"2026-04-16T15:54:12","modified_gmt":"2026-04-16T15:54:12","slug":"board-appoints-special-education-interim-leaders","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/167652\/","title":{"rendered":"Board appoints special education interim leaders"},"content":{"rendered":"

At its April 15 meeting, the Bethlehem Central Board of Education appointed Laura Rosa and Sarah Laster as interim leaders of the district\u2019s special education department. The appointments follow the recent retirement announcement of the department\u2019s current director, Douglas Morrissey.<\/p>\n

Rosa, who is currently the assistant director of special education, will assume the role of interim director on July 1. Sarah Laster, a teacher and summer special education coordinator, will begin as the department\u2019s interim assistant director of special education, also on July 1.<\/p>\n

Read more about Laura Rosa and Sarah Laster below:<\/p>\n

Laura Rosa \u2013 Interim Director of Special Education
\n\"personLaura Rosa<\/p>\n

Laura Rosa has served as assistant director of special education since 2024. She brings 24 years of experience in education and leadership to her new role, with a diverse background that includes serving as a Committee on Special Education (CSE) chairperson in the district, as well as roles as a special education teacher, reading teacher, assistant principal, director of curriculum and professional development, and elementary principal.<\/p>\n

Rosa earned a bachelor\u2019s degree in special education from The College of St. Rose and a master\u2019s degree in reading from UAlbany. She also holds a school building leadership certificate from the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA) and a school district leadership certificate from SUNY Plattsburgh.<\/p>\n

In the interim director\u2019s role, Rosa will continue to work with building leaders, educators, and families across the district to provide inclusive opportunities for students and ensure individuals with disabilities have their individual needs met through a continuum of services at BC.<\/p>\n

The special education department is currently partnering with Alliance Education Associates (AEA) on an in-depth review of the district\u2019s special education programs and services. The review is focused on how programs, supports, and processes work together across the district by examining data and gathering input from special education staff and families.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m truly grateful for the opportunity to work alongside a staff I hold in such high regard,\u201d said Rosa. \u201cI look forward to leading in a way that prioritizes the success of every student while fostering strong partnerships with families and our community. I am committed to continuing to build strong relationships across our district, since that is the work most essential to supporting our students.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m eager to begin this next chapter and excited to bring my experiences across different roles to support and strengthen this work,\u201d added Rosa.<\/p>\n

Rosa and her husband, Jim, have a son, Roo (18), and a daughter, Mekey (16).<\/p>\n

Sarah Laster \u2013 Interim Assistant Director of Special Education
\n\"personSarah Laster<\/p>\n

Sarah Laster has 26 years of experience in special education and literacy. A Bethlehem Central faculty member since 2019, she has served as a special education teacher, reading specialist, and the district\u2019s Extended School Year (ESY) coordinator.<\/p>\n

Laster holds a bachelor\u2019s degree from Siena College and a dual master\u2019s degree in special education and reading from Sage Graduate School. She is currently completing her advanced graduate certificate in Educational Policy and Leadership at the University at Albany.<\/p>\n

Laster\u2019s professional background spans public school districts in New York and Colorado, as well as private therapy providers throughout the Capital Region.<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving worked across diverse instructional environments, including inclusion, pull-out, remote, and private clinical settings, I have developed a comprehensive understanding of the specialized needs of our students,\u201d said Laster. \u201cI am eager to translate my classroom and clinical expertise into broad-scale systems of support.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy priority is to foster strong partnerships with faculty and families to ensure that every student receives the resources and support necessary for their success,\u201d added Laster.<\/p>\n

Laster and her husband, Mike, are parents to two boys, Brendan (19) and Cormac (17).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"At its April 15 meeting, the Bethlehem Central Board of Education appointed Laura Rosa and Sarah Laster as…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":167653,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[43998,44237,153,155,154,65401,52634,67576,67577,67578],"class_list":["post-167652","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-bethlehem","tag-bchs-news","tag-bcms-news","tag-bethlehem","tag-bethlehem-headlines","tag-bethlehem-news","tag-eagle-news","tag-elsmere-news","tag-glenmont-news","tag-hamagrael-news","tag-slingerlands-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/167652","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=167652"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/167652\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/167653"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=167652"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=167652"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=167652"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}