School News: New Somerville High School Department Heads, Head of Nutrition Services

With the beginning of school right around the corner—the first day of school is Sept. 5—Somerville Public Schools have announced some new hires. All this information is from Somerville Public Schools.

New high school department heads

Somerville High School's new headmaster, John Oteri, has named three new department heads.

Science: Karen Woods, the new head of the science department, has taught biology at Somerville High School since 2005. She has a master's degree in education from Northeastern University and a bachelor's degree in biology and in science education from Boston University. She received the 2011 "Class Nobel Educator of Distinction for Excellence in Teaching" award from the National Society of High School Scholars and was named an "Exemplary Teacher of the Year" by the North Shore Science Supervisors Association in 2006, the announcement says. She is also instructor of the dance club, dance team and color guard, and she was the director and choreographer of the school's annual musical production from 2006 to 2011.

English: Jodi Remington is the new head of the English department. She previously served as assistant principal at Saugus High School. She also taught English at Winthrop High School for nine years. She has a master's degree in education from Salem State College and a bachelor's degree in English from John Carroll University, according to the announcement.

World Language: Jim Nocito will head the world language department. He comes to Somerville High School after 11 years at Lexington High School. He has also taught at high schools in Westwood, Framingham, Andover and Ipswich, N.H. A Spanish teacher, Nocito authored "Spanish for School Personnel" and co-authored "Spanish for Public Safety Personnel," according to the announcement. He has master's degrees in education, criminal justice and Spanish, and in 2001 he was a finalist for Massachusetts Teacher of the Year, according to the announcement.

Director of Food and Nutrition Services

Lauren Mancini has been named director of Food and Nutrition Services for Somerville Public Schools, according to an announcement from the school district.

Mancini previously served as assistant director of the Food and Nutrition Services since 2008. She has a bachelor's degree in food and nutrition from Framingham State University and is certified in food safety management and food allergy awareness, according to the announcement.