Staff Bios

One of our greatest assets is the outstanding staff; all highly trained, caring, dedicated, and experienced professionals.

David Gregory School staff includes:

  • PhD level behavioral consultant
  • Masters level Board Certified Behavior Analysts (BCBAs)
  • Certified School Speech Pathologist
  • Occupational Therapy Consultant
  • Physical Therapy Consultant 
  • Full-time Certified School Nurse
  • Yoga Instructor 
  • Music instructor

Having worked at the school for many years, our staff has demonstrated their commitment, talent, and sensitivity to children with special needs.

 

MA | Co- Founder | Supervisor 

Marie Lupinski, is a life-long educator with more than fourty-five years of experience in the field of Special Education. She holds dual teaching certifications in both Early Childhood and Special Education and has a Masters Degree in Educational Administration. In addition to her teaching certifications Marie is also certified as a Supervisor and Principal. In her spare time Marie has written a childrens book which she is hoping to get published soon. 

MA | Principal

David Ruzich has a Masters Degree in Special Education from New Jersey City University, a K-12 Principal's Certification, and a pending Masters Degree in Educational Leadership also from NJCU. After a successful career in the business world, David returned to his true calling of working with special needs children.

To that end, he worked as a long term special education substitute teacher in Fort Lee public school system before joining the David Gregory School team in 1994.

M.Ed, TOSD : Master Teacher / Assistant Principal 

Maria DeMauro received her BA in Communication Studies from Fairleigh Dickinson University and her Masters in Education as a Teacher of Students with Disabilities from William Paterson University.  She holds several standard NJ teaching certifications including Pre-K, Elementary Education, Teacher of Students with Disabilities, and Supervisor. She is currently in the NJ2L Principal Residency Program. 

She has worked at David Gregory School as an early childhood teacher since 2009 serving students with severe language impairment. Maria has participated in several research studies under the guidance of Dr. Gladys Williams and contributes to the continuous editing of the Verbal Behavior Curriculum (VBC).  Maria also provides professional development at David Gregory School and oversees the implementation of the VBC curriculum.

M.ABA | BCBA  

Melina Morel received her BA in Psychology from Monmouth University and her Masters in Applied Behavior Analysis from Caldwell University. She has worked with children with developmental disabilities in settings such as clinics, public schools, and homes. She started working as a teacher assistant at David Gregory School in 2021 while pursuing her BCBA ( Board Certified Behavior Analyst ) Certification. She received her BCBA certification in December 2021.

She has presented at professional research conferences and is passionate about helping children with special needs.

PhD | Behavioral Consultant

Dr. Gladys Williams is a specialist in curriculum design and verbal behavior with Doctoral Degrees in both Special Education and Applied Behavior Analysis from Columbia University. She is the author of journal articles and chapters on teaching social and language skills to children with autism and other learning disabilities. She has also written on school effectiveness, eating disorders, and parent training and presented at both national and international conferences.

Recognized internationally, Dr. Williams has received many awards for her contribution to the field of special education and created effective programs for children with autism and learning disabilities in the US, Spain, Argentina, Mexico, and Brazil. She is currently on the board of several behavior analysis journals and is an active member of the Association of Behavior Analysis International.

Dr. Williams has been with David Gregory School since 1995. She is the director of Learnmore, Inc. (www.learnmoreinc.com) and is also the director and founder of Centro Ciel (www.centrociel.com), a school for children with autism located in Spain. 

Chris Romaglia

Chris Romaglia graduated with a BS in Environmental Science from Ramapo College. He started working as a teacher assistant at The David Gregory School in 2013, he quickly realized his compassion and love of teaching. As a result, he went back to school to receive his Masters in Special Education as a Teacher of Students with Disabilities from Rowan University. Chris is continuing his education and is enrolled in a supervisor certification program. 

Katrisha Aurich

Katrish graduated with a degree in Early Childhood and Childhood Education with a concentration in History from Dominican College. She currently is pursuing her Masters in Special Education at Ramapo College. She started working as a Teacher Assistant at David Gregory in 2020. Prior to her time at David Gregory, she worked as a Lead Pre-K teacher in Suffern, N.Y  for three years. Since her time at David Gregory, she realized how much she enjoyed the Special Education field and decided to continue her education.  

Katrisha enjoys watching movies and spending time with her family. She also enjoys traveling on her off time.   

Sierra Hayes

Sierra Hayes graduated with a degree in Communications and a minor in Women Studies from Fairleigh Dickinson University - Florham Campus. She started working as a teacher assistant at David Gregory School in 2012. Sierra enjoys teaching and has gained a passion for working with children and seeing their progress. As a result, she went back to school to procure her degree in Education.

Sierra enjoys adventurous activites, watching sci fi movies,eating different cultural foods and staying active.

Stephanie Wechsler

Stephanie Wechsler graduated from the University of Buffalo with a degree in Interdisciplinary Social Sciences. She got her teaching degree from William Paterson University and has been a teacher for more than 10 years.

In her free time, Stephanie likes to listen to music, go on nature walks, cooking and baking for her family and friends, and likes to dabble in arts and crafts.Stephanie considers herself a “home body” and has found a home at David Gregory School.

Ed Paone

Ed Paone earned his Bachelor Degree in Business from Montclair State University. After graduating, he began working at David Gregory School as a teacher assistant. This enabled him to realize that his love of teaching required him to go back to school for an Education degree. Ed has since earned his Master’s Degree in education and has been at David Gregory School for 20 years.

Ed likes watching the Giants and Knicks, his favorite sport teams. He also enjoys hiking in the countryside. Astronomy is one of his favorite past times, and we are glad he is one of our stars.