Lisa Kissinger

President

president@nyscss.org

Lisa Kissinger was elected to her second two-year term as President in 2026. 

Lisa recently retired after 22 years of service as the Academic Administrator for Social Studies, Grades 6-12, for Shenendehowa Central School District.  A native New Yorker graduating from Binghamton Central High School, Lisa has worked in education in Maryland and New York.  Lisa has led professional development at the building, district, regional and state level. Lisa has served in a number of leadership roles within NYSCSS since 2014, including President, VP Member Outreach, Co-Chair of the NYSCSS Curriculum & Assessment, President of the New York State Social Studies Supervisory Association, and Program Co-Chair for numerous NYSCSS annual conventions. Lisa earned a B.A. in Communication from the University of Michigan, and an M.A. in Instructional Systems Development and certification in secondary social studies from the University of Maryland Graduate School, Baltimore and additional graduate coursework at Loyola College of Maryland, The College of St. Rose and the University of Albany.  Lisa is committed to civic education and is a member of the DemocracyReady NY Coalition and served on the NYSED Civic Readiness Task Force. 

Joshua Patterson, Ph.D.

Vice President of Policy & Administration

vppolicyadmin@nyscss.org

Joshua Patterson, Ph.D., was elected to a two-year term as Vice President of Policy & Administration in July 2026.  

Dr. Patterson's educational background encompasses a mixture of social studies/ELA curricular development/pedagogy, instructional technology, and pre-service/in-service teacher preparation. Prior to completing his Ph.D. at the University of South Florida in Curriculum and Instruction with a specialization in Social Studies in 2020, he taught secondary social studies, English, film, and debate classes for 12 years in rural, suburban, and urban settings throughout the state of Florida. He joined the Mount Saint Mary College Division of Education faculty in 2021, applying what he learned in the classroom to design and teach social studies methods courses with a focus on multimodal content literacy and community outreach.

Vice President of Member Outreach

vpmemberoutreach@nyscss.org

This Board position is currently vacant. 

Timothy Potts

Treasurer

treasurer@nyscss.org

Tim Potts was elected to his third two-year term as Treasurer in July 2025.

Tim Potts graduated from the State University of New York at Cortland with a BA in Secondary Social Studies. He also holds an MS Degree in Social Studies from the State University of New York at New Paltz. Tim has also completed additional graduate work at Cornell University. For 34 years, Tim has taught middle and high school Social Studies within the Monticello Central School District serving in various leadership positions. Tim has been a member of the council for 30 years and is a Past President (2012-13), former Middle School and Curriculum & Assessment Chair & Co-Chair. In 2005, he was awarded the NYSCSS Middle School Teacher Award.  Tim is the founding President of the Sullivan County Council for Social Studies in the 1990s.  During Tim's NYSCSS Presidency, he co-developed the NYSCSS Task Force to address the implementation of NYSED's SS Framework with other SS leaders statewide. Since 2015, Tim has held the position of the Treasurer and has updated and introduced new fiduciary practices making the Council's finances significantly stronger. He also serves as the chair of the Sites Committee which serves to locate & develop convention & conference locations. During the 2018 Convention, Tim was honored with the NYSCSS Distinguished Service Award for his years of service to the profession & organization. Tim was a member of the New York State Education Department’s Content Advisory Panel for Social Studies since its inception in 2011 to 2018 chairing the Curriculum & Assessment portion of the panel. Rounding out his service to his profession, Tim is also active in the leadership of the National Council for the Social Studies serving a second three year term on the board of the National Social Studies Leaders Association as a teacher liaison.

 Kristin Stelfox

Secretary     secretary@nyscss.org 

Kristin Stelfox was appointed Secretary to fill one year left on a vacant term of office in December 2025. 

Kristin Stelfox is a veteran teacher with over ten years of experience on Long Island teaching Global History and developing new social studies curricula specific to women's history. Kristin is currently the Curriculum Content Lead for High School at the Council on Foreign Relations. She holds an MA in American History from Pace University with thesis work centered on the hidden histories in local spaces. Her graduate coursework further explored the interplay between women's movements and significant global events such as World War I. She is an award-winning Model United Nations Advisor, and the New York Metro Region Ambassador for the Remedial Herstory Project. Kristin is the co-editor of the NYSCSS newsletter and is the Chair of the NYSCSS Communications Committee.

Sien Fernandez

Member-At-Large 

memberatlarge@nyscss.org

Sien Fernandez was elected Member-at-Large to fill one year left on a vacant term of office in July 2026. 

Sien Fernandez is a dually certified Special Education and Social Studies teacher in the Wappingers Central School District with more than 15 years of experience. She is honored to serve as Member-at-Large for the New York State Council for the Social Studies and has presented at the Council’s annual conference. Sien earned both her undergraduate and graduate degrees from Mount Saint Mary College, where she served as President of the college’s chapter of Kappa Delta Pi, the International Honor Society in Education. She is currently pursuing graduate studies in American History through the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History and Gettysburg College and is a member of Phi Alpha Theta, the national history honor society.

Tom Michalek

Tom Michalek continues to serve on the Board of Directors as Past President. 

Growing up in Western New York I was not what you considered a model student. By the time I reached high school I had attended two elementary schools, a junior high and then St. Francis High school in Athol Springs. I graduated with honors after having turned my life around, I credit this change to my teachers who modeled perseverance. My public and private experience would carry over professionally when I began my career as an elementary educator at St. James in Depew. Living in Albany since 1997 and teaching public education at Bethlehem, I now feel I have a unique perspective from both sides of the desk. Additionally, teaching in both Western New York and the Capital District has given me a different point of view in my professional experiences as well. Other qualifications worth noting include NYS certifications in Social Studies 7-12, English 7-12, Elementary Pre-K-12, Special Education, Superintendent Administration, and COMPTIA computer credentials in A+ and Network +. These credentials, as well as my 28 years experience in the classroom, continue to prepare me professionally to help guide successful students. Taking on leadership roles in the Boy Scouts, serving as a union building representative, and technology coach for Bethlehem CSD have reinforced my drive with helping others in my community.