Park Ridge-Niles School District 64 has selected Paul Csongradi to be an assistant principal at Emerson Middle School, effective July 31, pending Board approval. He will work alongside Principal Tessa Shulman and Assistant Principal Maria Soulias at Emerson.
It's a homecoming for Csongradi, who is already familiar with D64 and Emerson. He was a 7th/8th-grade science/social studies teacher at Emerson for five years. Most recently, Csongradi has worked as the Assistant Principal for Student Affairs and Activities at Saint Patrick High School in Chicago.
Throughout his career, Csongradi has been active in leadership roles, which include: overseeing the counseling department for St. Patrick High School, implementing Shamrock Pride (a PBIS system designed to promote positive behaviors at St. Patrick), co-le the building committee that oversaw the creation of an MTSS behavior program at St. Patrick, led Emerson staff professional development on restorative justice practices, classroom management strategies, and positive discipline strategies.
Csongradi earned a B.A. from Carthage College and his Master’s Degree in School Leadership from Northeastern Illinois University.
Csongradi was chosen from a pool of 38 applicants. After the initial screening, four candidates were brought in to be interviewed by a District 64 administrative committee. After several rounds, three final candidates were then brought back and interviewed before a committee comprised of the Emerson administration, a District 64 central office administrator, and Emerson Middle School staff members.