Administration and School Support

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Elizabeth Fazio
Principal
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Elizabeth Fazio has been the Principal at William N. DeBerry Elementary School since 2017.  During her twenty-eight plus years in education, she has held multiple teaching and leadership positions in both public and private settings serving students birth to twelve years of age. 

She received her B.A. in Education from Westfield State College in Westfield, MA and holds dual Masters, in Education and Organizational Management, from American International College in Springfield and Endicott College in Boston. In 2015, she was honored as a Harold Grinspoon Excellence in Teaching Award Recipient. 

Residing in the Greater Springfield area with her husband Dan and their English Setter Edgar, she enjoys traveling with her husband, and visiting their daughters at Drexel University College of Medicine in Philadelphia, and Connecticut College in New London. 

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Lamar Batiste
School Adjustment Counselor
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Mr. Batiste is currently the school adjustment counselor at DeBerry Elementary school. This is his first year working in the Springfield school system. Prior to coming to Springfield, he worked in both the Greenfield and Amherst-Pelham Regional Public schools.  He also worked for the Department of Children and Families among other positions. Mr. Batiste holds a Master’s degree in Social Work from Springfield College and a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Westfield State College. In addition to holding a School Social Worker/School Adjustment Counselor license, he is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker (LICSW).

Mr. Batiste grew up in Springfield with his father, mother (who was also a Springfield Public School teacher), sister and older brother. He currently lives in Greenfield, Massachusetts with his two children and two cats. In his free time, he likes to cook, work on his garden and spend time outside. He is excited to work with the students a DeBerry this year.

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Lynn Beglane
Reading Instructional Leadership Specialist (Reading Coach)
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Mrs. Beglane is currently an Instructional Reading Leader. This means that she works with students and teachers to support reading and learning in the classroom. Mrs. Beglane grew up in Springfield, MA and graduated from Framingham State University and from Cambridge College with a Masters in Education. 

Mrs. Beglane has taught Family and Consumer Science at both the junior high and high school level. Later, she taught at Mary Walsh and Talmadge Elementary schools before becoming and Instructional Reading Leader, a position she currently holds at DeBerry Elementary School.

Mrs. Beglane is married with three grown children, two grandchildren, and one more grandchild on the way. She enjoys reading and walks on the beaches of Cape Cod.


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Lisa Wetherell
Teacher of Deportment
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Ms. Wetherell is currently the Teacher of Deportment at DeBerry and will be working as a third-grade support teacher during remote learning.  The Teacher of Deportment works with teachers, parents, and students to provide behavioral support for DeBerry scholars. 

Ms. Wetherell was born and raised in Ludlow, Massachusetts where she attended high school and played volleyball, basketball, and softball.  After graduating from Ludlow High, she went on to Springfield College to Major in Physical Education and then later obtained a Master’s Degree from Emporia State University. 

Ms. Wetherell was inspired to become a Physical Educator by a combination of her amazing high school P. E. teachers and her love for children.  She is a giant kid at heart, loving to join in most activities with her students.  When she’s not at school, Ms. Wetherell loves to kayak, quilt, cook, play board games, do woodworking, binge watch shows on Netflix and spend time with family and friends. 

Ms.  Wetherell started her teaching career here at DeBerry 15 years ago and has developed a strong love for the school.  She is looking forward to working with everyone to try to make this school year memorable (in a good way ;). 


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Antoinette Forest
School Nurse
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Mrs. Forest is the School Nurse at DeBerry Elementary School and makes student care her priority. She believes that successful students become successful adults.  Mrs. Forest is starting her 18th year at DeBerry Elementary School and has been a Registered Nurse for over 24 years. She graduated from nursing school at Our Lady of Elms College in 1996 and received her National School Nurse Board Certification in 2015.

She was born and raised in Springfield, Ma. She has been married for thirty years and has two adult boys ages 24 and 22. She loves to cook, spending time outside walking, hiking, boating, and fishing with her family. She enjoys playing cards and gathering with her friends.

Mrs. Forest is excited and proud to begin another year as the school nurse at DeBerry Elementary. She looks forward to meeting all the new students and seeing the returning students.

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Michelle Polimeni 
City Connects Coordinator
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Ms. Polimeni is the City Connects Coordinator at DeBerry Elementary School. The City Connects Model is a systematic approach to student support. The City Connects mission is to have children engage and learn in school by connecting each child with a tailored set of prevention, intervention, and enrichment services needed to succeed and thrive. Ms. Polimeni works with students, teachers, families, and community partners to connect services to students and families. 

Ms. Polimeni grew up in Springfield, MA. She attended catholic school from Kindergarten until the 12th grade. After high school, Ms. Polimeni went to college at STCC, AIC, and Framingham State.   

Ms. Polimeni loves working with and helping people. She is proud to be a student support staff member at DeBerry and looks forward to working with all the DeBerry students, teachers, and families.

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Lisa Lombardi
Behavior Specialist
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Lisa Lombardi has worked in the district since 2004. During her 17 plus years in education, she has held a variety of teaching and leadership positions. In her current role as a Behavior Specialist, she supports and works closely with staff and students in the district’s SEBS Program.

She received her B.A in education from Bay Path University in Longmeadow, Ma and holds a master’s degree in Moderate Disabilities from American International College in Springfield, Ma.

Lisa was born and raised in Springfield. She enjoys spending time with family and friends and is passionate about helping the youth and families in our community. In addition to her work for the Springfield Public Schools, Lisa is a proud board member for a local non-profit for at-risk youth.


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Pamela Lopez-Wroth
Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP)
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My name is Mrs. Pamela Lopez-Wroth and I am the Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP) at William N. DeBerry Elementary School.  This will be my 7th year working at Deberry.  I have worked in Westfield, Sabis International Charter School, Curtis Blake Day School, Hampshire Regional, and in Alaska.  I live with my husband, my niece, and my rescue dog, Joey.  I went to college in Florida and North Carolina and I LOVE being a speech-language pathologist and helping kids be the best communicators they can be!  Some of the things I help children with are: following directions, asking/answering questions, increasing sentence length, using appropriate grammar, producing speech sounds, and speaking fluently.  I also help with pre-reading and literacy skills.  

This year we are lucky to have a grad student from UMASS helping in the speech dept.  Dave Busel will be here until December and we are both looking forward to working with you and your children during this school year.  Let us know if there is anything we can do to assist you in helping your child develop better speech and language skills at home.