Special education teachers Jamie Paterniti and Nicole Clemens have come from the middle school to strengthen special education at the high school.

In her nine years at the middle school, Clemens taught learning support. She was brought to the high school due to a need for a learning support teacher.

“I was approached the last week of school, and since Mrs. (Logan) Huber, who was here last year, had moved, the numbers of students at the high school, …[created] a greater need, and I was the only learning support teacher at the middle school certified to do high school,” Clemens said.

Paterniti is returning to Susquehannock after a year at the middle school. She served as a life skills teacher, which was her first experience outside of learning support.

“The [middle school] classroom closed because there wasn’t a need for the life skills classroom,” Paterniti said. “So, I came up here. I’m helping right now to transition those middle school boys into high school. Also, I’ll be covering for Mrs. Hedrick when she goes on maternity leave.”

Paterniti is excited to come back to the high school, as she feels a sense of home at Susquehannock.

“This is where I have been teaching for several years,” Paterniti said. “I went to school here myself. My kids went to school here. This is really a second home for me.”

During the 2024 and 2025 school year, Paterniti’s position was left unfilled. Special education teacher Christine Bosley, who acts as a lead for the department, is glad to see the two come to the high school to fill vacant positions.

“We’re very excited to have Mrs. Paterniti returning to SHS,” Bosley said. “She filled an important role at SMS last year, but it left a gap in our department. We are happy that Mrs. Clemens came from SMS to fill the vacancy left by Mrs. Huber’s move.”

When reflecting on her experience at the middle school, Paterniti finds it to be beneficial towards her understanding of freshman classes.

“I think it’s helped me see where the kids are coming from as middle schoolers and a lot of the support they have in place and how we transition them to high school,” Paterniti said.

Clemens is also finding her middle school experience to be beneficial to her understanding of high school students. This experience has also allowed Clemens to transition smoothly into the new setting.

“I have worked with all of these classes at the middle school, the freshmen through the seniors,” Clemens said. “Having some background knowledge of the students already, I think that’s made an advantage to just jump in and start working with them.”

Bosley believes that Clemens will integrate well into the new setting due to her ability to connect and adapt with students.

“Mrs. Clemens is very good at building relationships with students and families, which is especially beneficial in helping students do their best in all of their classes,” Bosley said.

Despite the support of knowing the students, Clemens notes that there will be learning curves, especially with graduation requirements.

“That’s something I’ve never had to consider before- learning how that rolls and how to make sure they’re meeting the requirements to graduation,” Clemens said. “I also didn’t have to do much with Keystone Testing in the past, so how that runs will be different too for me.”

Clemens hopes to stay in her high school for the foreseeable future.

“I wouldn’t want to have to shuffle back and forth,” Clemens said. “I don’t know what the district’s overall plan is.”

Every student has a different set of needs that teachers have to address. Paterniti acknowledges this challenge, but cites the impact on children’s future as a worthy return.

“This job always takes a lot of work,” Paterniti said. “It doesn’t matter what department you’re in or the kids you’re supporting. Teaching is a challenging career, but it’s an investment in children and their future. It’s always worth it. Whatever you put into kids, it’s not wasted.”

To support every student, Paterniti will focus on being flexible in the classroom, especially as her role changes throughout the year.

“When Mrs. Hedrick returns from her maternity leave, I will be going back into learning support,” Paterniti said. “I will be back into the regular ed. classrooms providing support there. It’s two very different jobs, so being flexible is what I will have to do.”

In order to be successful this year, Clemens is focusing on understanding the workings of the high school.

“I’ve already probably driven my co-teachers crazy just asking a million questions,” Clemens said. “I warned them that I will not sit here and struggle. I’m going to ask a million questions. That’s my game plan: to ask a million questions when I need it.”