The Northwest R-I Board of Education approved the hiring of three new administrators at the Feb. 23, 2023 meeting.
Dr. Elizabeth Green will be the new Principal of Woodridge Middle School. Zachary Pizzullo has been hired as the new Director of Information Technology, and Kasey Schaffer has been named the new Director of Facilities.
Green, who is a 2005 graduate of Northwest High School, is currently the Assistant Principal at Woodridge Middle School, a role she has held since 2018. Prior to that, she was a teacher’s assistant from 2008-2012 at Valley Middle School. Later that year, she moved to Northwest High School, where she taught English for six years. In addition, Green has coached cheerleading for 15 years, including a state championship in 2019. She recently finished her final year as Varsity Cheer coach.
Green has earned two master’s degrees from Missouri Baptist University; one in Classroom Teaching, and one in Educational Administration. She earned her doctorate in Educational Leadership from Maryville University in 2019. Green will replace current Woodridge Principal Shannon Umfleet.
Pizzullo has 23 years of information technology experience in K-12 environments. He comes to Northwest from Allen Independent School District in Allen, TX, where he served as the Director of Technology Operations and an IT infrastructure architect from 2015-2022. From 2006-2015, he was a Network Engineer II at Val Verde Unified School District in Perris, CA, and a help desk analyst and network technician at Riverside Unified School District in Riverside, CA from 1999-2006.
Pizzullo earned a Bachelor of Science in Education from West Chester University in 1997. He has also taken courses in programming at Mount San Jacinto Community College in 2002 and database administration from University of California - Riverside in 2004. Pizzullo replaces Cindy Horn, the current director of information technology at Northwest.
Schaffer is a 2008 graduate of Northwest High School. He has vast knowledge in energy management, sustainability, commercial HVAC, electrical maintenance and installation, and property maintenance experience. He is currently a Facilities Manager for Westwind Construction, where he has been since 2022. From 2012-2022, he was the Warehouse Facilities Driver, then Trades Specialist, and ended his tenure at Special School District in St. Louis County, MO as the Facilities Supervisor. He also has experience at Northwest, where he was a Facilities Technician Substitute for several years.
Schaffer has earned many facilities-related certifications, including Building Automation Levels 1-3 and Advanced Troubleshooting, EPA Universal Refrigerant License, ABB Variable Frequency Drive Commissioning, Hazardous Materials and AHERA, and as a Certified Pool Operator. Schaffer will replace current Director of Facilities Ron Hill.
Umfleet, Horn, and Hill are retiring effective June 30, 2023. Green, Pizzullo, and Schaffer will begin their respective roles beginning July 1, 2023.
