The BOCES Board of Education appointed J. Briggs McAndrews as interim director of the School Support Services (SSS) division, effective July 1, 2008. Peter Kopcha will retire as SSS Director on July 4 after 37 years of service to BOCES.

"Briggs will bring a wealth of experience to the position and will help us tremendously while we search for a permanent Director," said BOCES District Superintendent Charles S. Dedrick.

McAndrews’ career in education spans more than 40 years. Since retiring as superintendent of the Niskayuna Central School District in 2002, McAndrews served as interim executive director of the Schenectady Museum from September 2002 to April 2003, interim superintendent of the Scotia-Glenville Central School District March 2005 to August 2006, and superintendent in residence with New York State Council of School Superintendents (NYSCOSS) August 2003 to June 2006. McAndrews is currently a program consultant for NYSCOSS developing leadership training programs for school superintendents and an adjunct instructor for SUNY Albany’s Department of Educational Administration and Policy Studies.

Prior to his ten-year superintendency at Niskayuna, McAndrews served as assistant superintendent for educational programs and instruction for the Bethlehem Central School District for nearly 20 years. He also served as the district’s interim superintendent 1986-87. His earliest years in education began in Pennsylvania where he held assistant high school principal and biology teaching positions.

McAndrews has written several publications and has deep roots in the communities he has lived and worked.

A search for a director for the SSS division is underway.