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Fredonia hires counselor, three teachers

OBSERVER Photo by Braden Carmen Chad Szymkowiak was hired as a Special Education Teacher at the latest Fredonia Board of Education meeting.

Three new teachers and a new school counselor were hired by the Fredonia Central School District at its latest Board of Education meeting. Christian Ambrosioni, Maria Andalora, Chad Szymkowiak, and Jena Calph are now part of the Fredonia family.

Elementary Principal Mark Drollinger said a goal through the interview process to find a new Elementary School Counselor was to not only maintain the status quo, but to make the school better. He believes Jena Calph is the person to do just that.

“We are going to be better as soon as we appoint Jena,” Drollinger said to the Board of Education.

Calph is a Fredonia native and a district parent, and even brought her daughter with her to the Board meeting to witness her appointment.

“It was pretty cool to walk in and hold her hand to say, ‘Holy cow, she can come to work with me now’,” Calph said.

Calph is not only a Fredonia native and a graduate of Fredonia High School, but her husband is, as well. Her best friend also works at Fredonia Elementary School.

“It’s kind of full-circle. It’s pretty awesome. … It’s something that you talk about as kids, but never expect that it actually happens,” Calph said. “We’re very lucky.”

Calph was an undergraduate at SUNY Fredonia, who later obtained her master’s degree at Canisius University. She holds Permanent Certification as a School Counselor and will begin a three-year probationary appointment on Aug. 26. The Board later approved 22 days of unpaid leave for Calph to be taken between Aug. 26 and Oct. 31.

Calph has experience working with self-contained classrooms through BOCES, which Superintendent Dr. Brad Zilliox highlighted will be beneficial to the district because of the implementation of self-contained classrooms at the elementary level at Fredonia.

“We are definitely excited to have not only her skillset, but her positive energy and attitude with us in the Elementary School,” Zilliox said.

Szymkowiak was appointed to a four-year probationary Special Education teaching position at Fredonia Middle School, commencing Aug. 26. He holds Initial Certification in Social Studies for Grades 7-12; with a Grades 5-6 Extension, along with Professional Certification in Special Education, pending State approval in August.

Zilliox characterized Szymkowiak as polite, positive, and friendly. “He is absolutely committed to serving students with disabilities in this new role,” Zilliox said.

Szymkowiak grew up just down the road in Eden, and he drew many comparisons between the schools throughout his interview. He attended SUNY Fredonia for his undergraduate degree, and later attended several universities on his path to earning a master’s degree.

“I’m excited to get started. I’ve been working with not only administration but also the Special Ed Department to see how I can help best serve the students of Fredonia,” Szymkowiak said.

Ambrosioni was appointed to a four-year probationary teaching position in the World Languages tenure area, beginning Aug. 26. His position will be split between three classes of Spanish and two classes of English as a New Language.

Zilliox called Ambrosioni “a unique candidate” because he is dual-certified in World Languages (Spanish 7-12) and English To Speakers Of Other Languages. Zilliox called his skillset “exactly what we are looking for in the district at this time.”

Ambrosioni is a graduate of Buffalo State University. He has previously worked at Fredonia as an Extended Leave Substitute teaching foreign languages, and has also covered overages for English as a New Language students.

Andalora was appointed to a three-year probationary Business and Marketing teaching position, commencing Aug. 26. Andalora holds Professional Certification in Business and Marketing, and also has several years of experience teaching in the field.

Andalora is a Jamestown native, who attended SUNY Fredonia for her undergraduate degree, before graduating with a master’s degree from Canisius University. She is a member of the Chautauqua County Business Teachers’ Association and has experience teaching at Jamestown, Southwestern and Westfield school districts, as well as the Jamestown Business College. Zilliox said the district is “extremely thankful” that it found a qualified teacher in such a specialized field of expertise.

All four hires – Ambrosioni, Andalora, Calph and Szymkowiak – were appointed to temporary summer positions through Aug. 30, as well as recent hires Kayla Hagen and Jeni Wilson. Elizabeth Bumpus joined the 2025 High School Summer School Program for Grade 12 Economics through Aug. 15.

Starting at $3.50/week.

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