Archive: Around Town

Timothy J. Turecek will be joining the New Roots Charter School staff in the role of Dean of Students beginning in the 2011-2012 school year.

For Mr. Turecek, this is the next stage in a career in education that spans over 20 years.  “New Roots embodies all that I have fought for and believed in throughout my career as an educator,” he said.  Serving for the past seven years as Superintendent of Schools at Marathon Central School District, Mr. Turecek worked as a high school principal and as an English and Social Studies teacher in small, rural districts earlier in his career.

“I have great admiration for the teachers, the administrators, and the Boards of Education in our local school districts.  However, rapidly-changing times call for a rethinking of how we educate our young people.  New Roots is the best model I’ve seen of what the future could look like in public high schools that support all students in reaching their potential and preparing for the new challenges of the 21st century,” he said. 

“Tim Turecek embodies the perfect combination of experience, values and skills to bring truly restorative disciplinary practices to life at our school,” said New Roots principal Tina Nilsen-Hodges.  “He has high standards and expectations for behavior, and is consistent in holding students accountable to these standards.  He also has a gift for establishing relationships with students who need help in reaching the high bar that support their success.”


Mr. Turecek was a founding member of the New Roots Charter School Board of Trustees.  He also served New Roots as a volunteer in its first two years of operation, providing professional development to staff in the area of student discipline and personnel.  In this capacity, Turecek has served as Hearing Officer for disciplinary hearings at New Roots since its inception, giving Nilsen-Hodges opportunities over the past two years to observe his work with students directly.

“I am consistently impressed with Mr. Turecek’s ability to use his kind but firm authority and genuine interest in students as a catalyst for students to make the changes necessary to keep them on track for graduation and success in their adult lives,” she said.

Turecek will finish out his duties at Marathon through the month of June and will begin his new role at New Roots on August 1.

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