Hilton Board of Education appoints
new principal at Northwood Elementary

On May 27, the Hilton Central School District Board of Education approved the appointment of Kirk Ashton as Principal of Northwood Elementary School. Ashton, currently Assistant to the Principal at Rush-Henrietta Central School District's Monica Leary Elementary School, will begin work July 1. He replaces Interim Principal Donna Hofsess.

Ashton has served as assistant principal for four years at Leary School. Prior to that he was an elementary special educator/consultant teacher for four years and has served as a counselor at Crestwood Children's Center where his expertise included assessing difficult situations in conjunction with positive problem solving techniques, Cognitive Coaching, with students, parents and staff.

He has received several awards in education including the Kappa Delta Pi graduate award. He received his B.A. in psychology from St. John Fisher College in 1994; his M.S. in education from Nazareth College in 1996; and his Certificate of Advance Study in Educational Administration in 2000 from SUNY Brockport. He expects to meet with Northwood parents over the summer. "One of the key priorities is to continue to foster a school climate where student and adult learning are at the center. I believe that high expectations for the academic and social achievement of students and the performance of staff are essential for fostering success," Ashton said. "I am thrilled and very excited. I'm really looking forward to getting to know Hilton."