New Assistant Principals, Administrative Appointments Named For Stamford Schools: District

STAMFORD, CT — Stamford Public Schools announced Tuesday a number of recent administrative appointments, including new elementary school assistant principals.

According to a news release provided by the school district, Superintendent Tamu Lucero announced the following administrative appointments, effective July 1:

• Dr. Alfredo (Freddy) Fuentes from mathematics teacher at Cloonan Middle School to interim assistant principal at Dolan Middle School.
• Kathy Cibulkas Lane from assistant principal at Northeast Elementary School to assistant principal at Newfield Elementary School.
• Cynthia Manifold-Dougherty from assistant director at APPLES PreK to assistant principal at Toquam Magnet Elementary School.
• Corine Matarasso from assistant principal at Toquam Magnet Elementary to assistant director at APPLES PreK.
• Angela Plateroti from multi-tiered system of support specialist at Northeast Elementary to interim assistant principal at Northeast.
• Dr. Sidney Watson from coordinator at SPS Anchor to interim director at SPS Anchor.

"The experience of working in a different school community or taking on a new role within a school community is an opportunity for these talented professionals to experience new challenges and learn new approaches to leadership," Lucero said in a news release. "These moves are an opportunity for Freddy, Kathy, Cynthia, Corine, Angela and Sidney to continue developing their skills as building leaders within Stamford Public Schools."

According to the release, Fuentes will report to Dolan Principal Joseph Claps and will fill the vacancy created when Christie Robinson was named the assistant principal for special education at AITE and Rippowam Middle School.

Lane will report to Newfield Principal Sharon Longo and will fill the vacancy created when Sandra Ehlers was named principal at Davenport Ridge Elementary, according to the release.

The following descriptions were provided by Stamford Public Schools:

Dr. Alfredo (Freddy) Fuentes is a bilingual educator with more than 40 years of experience as a mathematics teacher, teacher leader, administrator, and college professor. Dr. Fuentes began his career with Hartford Public Schools, where he spent 15 years as a secondary mathematics teacher and district department chair. During the next 25 years he worked as a secondary school mathematics teacher and school administrator for Manchester (CT) Public Schools, Bloomfield (CT) Public Schools, Fort Worth (TX) Independent School District, Minnetonka (MN) Christian Academy, Grand Prairie (TX) Independent School District and Dalton (GA) Public Schools, and also was a professor at Southern Adventist University in Tennessee. He returned to Connecticut in 2022 as a mathematics teacher at Cloonan Middle School. Dr. Fuentes earned a Bachelor of Arts in Secondary Mathematics from the Universidad Adventista de las Antillas in Puerto Rico and both a Master of Education in Secondary Mathematics and a Doctorate in Educational Leadership from the University of Hartford. He is certified in Grades 4-12 Mathematics (CT 029), Grades 7-12 Bilingual Mathematics (CT 929) and Intermediate Administration or Supervision (CT 092).

Kathy Cibulkas Lane has more than 30 years of experience as a teacher and administrator with Stamford Public Schools. She joined SPS as a teacher at Springdale Elementary School in 1994, and was named assistant principal at Springdale in 2005. She was the assistant principal at Rogers International School from 2010-2012 and the assistant principal at Northeast Elementary from 2012 to 2025. A graduate of Stamford Public Schools, Mrs. Lane earned a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education from Eastern Connecticut State University, and a Master of Arts in Education, a Master of Arts in Educational Administration, and a sixth-year Certificate in Intermediate Administration and Supervision from the University of Bridgeport. She is certified in Intermediate Administration or Supervision (CT 092).

Corine Matarasso began her tenure with Stamford Public Schools as a student teacher and long-term substitute at K.T. Murphy Elementary School, later joining the school as a full-time classroom teacher where she taught multiple grade levels. She was the administrative intern at K.T. Murphy from 2017 to 2021 and the assistant principal at Toquam Elementary School from September 2021 through June 2025. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from the Fashion Institute of Technology (SUNY), a Master of Science in Elementary Education and a sixth-year Certificate in Intermediate Administration or Supervision from the University of Bridgeport. She also earned a certificate in remedial reading from Sacred Heart University and completed the PK-3 Leadership Program at the NEAG School of Education at the University of Connecticut.

Cynthia Manifold-Dougherty has more than 20 years of experience in Stamford Public Schools, serving first as a K-2 Reading Interventionist, Special Education Teacher, and Classroom Teacher from 2003 through 2015. She joined the central office as Curriculum Associate for Professional Development (English Learners) in 2015 and was promoted to Coordinator of Professional Development in 2018. She was the district’s Director of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment (Elementary) from 2020 to 2024 before joining APPLES PreK as an Assistant Director in 2024-25. Ms. Manifold-Doughtery earned a Bachelors in Hotel, Restaurant and Tourism from the University of New Orleans, a Masters in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages from Southern Connecticut State University, and a certificate in Educational Leadership from Sacred Heart University. She is certified in K-6 Elementary Education (CT 013), Adult Education Teaching Non-English Speaking Adults (CT 088), PreK-12 Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (CT 011) and Intermediate Administration or Supervision (CT 092).

Angela Plateroti has more than 20 years of experience as a teacher and teacher leader with Stamford Public Schools. She began her tenure with SPS as a teacher at Westover Magnet Elementary School, where she was a K-4 classroom teacher from 2004 to 2021. She moved to the central office as a Teacher on Special Assignment for K-5 STEM in 2021-2022 and was the Teacher Leader for Student Support at Julia A. Stark Elementary School from 2022 to 2024. She was named the Multi-Tiered System of Support Specialist at Northeast for the 2024-25 school year and served most of the year as interim assistant principal. In addition, Mrs. Plateroti has been a head teacher in the SPS Summer School Program each year since 2019. A graduate of Westhill High School, Mrs. Plateroti earned a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and a Master of Arts in Education from Sacred Heart University and a sixth year Certificate in Educational Leadership from the University of Bridgeport. She is certified in K-6 Elementary Education (CT 013) and Intermediate Administration or Supervision (CT 092).

Dr. Sidney Watson joined Stamford Public Schools as a secondary mathematics teacher at Stamford High School in 2010 and was a teacher on special assignment (TOSA) serving as a curriculum associate for secondary mathematics from 2013 to 2015. In 2015, he joined Rippowam Middle School as a mathematics teacher and math instructional coach. He served as the Assistant Principal at Rippowam from 2017 to 2023, when he was appointed Coordinator of the SPS Anchor alternative education program for secondary students. Prior to joining SPS, Dr. Watson taught secondary mathematics in Norfolk (VA) Public Schools from 2006 to 2010 and was a teacher and paraprofessional at Chester Upland School District in Pennsylvania from 2003 to 2005. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from Norfolk State University, a Master of Education in Educational Leadership from Regent University, an Educational Specialist (Ed.S) degree in Educational Administration and Leadership from Walden University, and an Education Doctor degree (Ed.D) in Advanced Educational Leadership from Regent University. He is certified in Grades 7-12 Mathematics (CT 029) and Intermediate Administration or Supervision (CT 092).