New Superintendent Comes to Freehold Township

Ross Kasun takes the reins as superintendent of the Freehold Township School District on August 15. Kasun, a 17-year veteran in the field of education, most recently served as superintendent of Colts Neck schools. He will replace retiring superintendent William Setaro.

Kasun’s educational philosophy focuses on individualized learning. He derives his strategies from Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences. This theory holds that there are eight main types of student learning. Teachers are taught to indentify students’ areas of cognitive strength and use those in their teaching methods.

“What we do is not about teaching, it’s about student learning,” Kasun said. “We don’t employ you (teachers) to teach. If you are teaching something the student already knows, they aren’t learning.”

Teachers can meet students where they’re at and apply differentiated learning to any concept, Kasun said. He gave an example of using differentiated learning to teach area. Some students refer to the formula and solve problems on paper. For those who know it, ask them to find the area of a sheet of wrapping paper it takes to cover a box. For students who are off the charts, have them find out how many gallons of paint you need to cover the Empire State building.

“The goal is the same,” Kasun said. “Every student needs to understand area by eighth grade.”

Kasun said he was drawn to the size of the Freehold Township School District and its leadership. Elementary education is both his passion and area of expertise.

“Freehold has an excellent reputation for stability in leadership,” he said. “I’m looking for longevity. I hope to finish my career there.”

Kasun shared his observation on how school districts are governed at the state level. Kasun said changes in regulations to provide more district accountability are a good thing.  “But it’s gone too far,” he said.

New Jersey policies prohibit schools from using district funds on indirectly related educational expenses. Kasun said administration is unable to provide food for teachers and staff at group functions. “We need to be able to treat people professionally, to make people feel welcome and special,” he said. “We can’t give them anything.”

He spoke about state documentation and report requirements. Kasun said administrators have to submit weekly plans to the NJ Department of Education. He acknowledged the usefulness of district documentation, but critiqued the extensive process.

“We compile and print out hundreds of pages. The stacks are huge, and people don’t even look at them,” he said.

Kasun believes levels of reporting should be based on district performance.  “For the high districts, this (weekly reporting) doesn’t do anything,” he said. “It’s a waste of time, energy, resources, and sometimes money.”

Kasun holds a doctorate in educational leadership, management, and policy from Seton Hall University. He has masters degrees in administration and supervision from Rutgers University, and elementary education from Seton Hall.

While looking forward to new challenges in Freehold, Kasun is also sad to leave Colts Neck. “We’ve done great work in the past three years,” he said. “I’ll miss a lot of people here.”