Ardsley School District Gets New School District Superintendent
Ardsley School District Gets New School District Superintendent
Dr. Matthew Block started in the new position as of July 1st
By Kris DiLorenzo
Ardsley — The Ardsley School District has welcomed its new superintendent, Dr. Matthew Block, who started in his new position on July 1. Block was formerly Superintendent for the Livingston Public Schools district in Livingston, New Jersey, helming 9 schools.
After “getting his feet wet,” as Block put it, he spoke with the Rivertowns Current on July 16. Since being appointed to the job on April 2, Block spent months in communication with outgoing superintendent Ryan Schoenfeld, learning about district priorities. He’s spending the summer meeting with administrators, Board of Education members, and staff; and sitting in on professional development activities.
“I’m doing a lot of listening, a lot of taking notes, and learning,” he told the Current. Block expects that next month he’ll get out and about to meet more members of the Ardsley community. “At the same time, there are certain things where I have to hit the ground running, like the bond that was approved,” he noted. “The first stages of it are already in motion. I’m sitting in on those meetings. Dr Schoenfeld kept me very well informed as the vote occurred, and as the final touches on the bond were being put together.”
At the district’s budget vote in May, a bond of $49,999,000 was approved as part of a $53,499,000 capital projects budget; five variations of the project and its costs had been presented to the Board of Ed beginning in 2023, and underwent changes along the way as to scope and cost. Improvements are being made at all three schools; new air conditioners already have been installed.
Early in his career, as principal at Summit Public Schools in Summit, N.J., Block oversaw major renovations to a very old building. “It was a second full-time job…but it was worth it, because the results have an impact for a long time,” he affirmed. Block will be working with Facilities and Transportation Director Joseph Urbanowicz. “He’s got a lot of energy and a lot of experience, and knows Ardsley extremely well, so I’m looking forward to working with him and learning from him,” Block said.
One of the new superintendent’s goals is to increase student engagement. He wants to work toward putting students at the center of the learning process. Block explained, “It used to be that every day the teacher would come in and stand in the front of the room and impart wisdom. Now, with technology, and our ability to provide resources that students can access, I really do believe that students should be doing the bulk of the work. But it doesn’t mean that there aren’t times, with any kind of productive classroom, where the teacher does have to impart knowledge.”
He wants to keep taking steps to help students work toward their own learning, he says, “because learning how to learn is almost as important as the learning itself. If you learn how to learn, you can take that with you for the rest of your life. A noisy, boisterous classroom used to be looked at as a bad thing. I look at it as the best possible thing.”
According to the National Center for Education Statistics, as of the 2022-2023 school year, Ardsley’s student population was approximately 2,300. The Livingston district enrollment was approximately 6,370. As Livingston superintendent, though Block was out of his office daily to visit the schools, it was difficult to make the rounds of all nine on a regular basis. His styIe, like his predecessor’s, is hands-on: he likes to be involved, to be in the classrooms, and to know the students and teachers. “I think the best way to lead… is to really understand what’s happening on the front lines, in the classroom and in the school,” he stated. One reason the Ardsley district attracted him is its manageable size, which will enable him to do so.
Block looks forward to talking with more parents and community members and learning about the history of the district. In terms of growth and student success, he feels, “the sky’s the limit. There’s every opportunity here to provide the best for our students.”
He commented on his first impressions of Ardsley, “It certainly has been a very welcoming place to me. One thing about the district is that it’s ‘all hands on deck.’ To get the job done, you really have to work together. I like that atmosphere, so I think it’ll be a good fit.”
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