After 28 years of service to Roslyn High School as both a teacher and an administrator, Assistant Principal Joan Greenfield will retire this month. She has put her personal stamp on virtually every program, organization and activity in the high school, including graduation, awards ceremonies, freshman orientation, the Shared Decision Making Committee, Self-Awareness Day and numerous other special programs and events. She coordinated the annual publication of the course offering book and the teacher and student handbooks, and has also served as acting chairperson of the art, business and music departments.

Joan's presence in the high school has always been one of quiet authority and capable leadership. When a difficult decision needed to be made, Joan would make it quickly and fairly, giving all sides equal consideration, communicating her thought processes to those involved, and, whenever possible, arriving at a just and acceptable solution. Her concern for and interest in both her fellow staff members and students was always evident; whether she was following up on a student's prolonged absence or congratulating a teacher on a personal event, Joan radiated sincerity and caring on an equal basis to everyone she encountered. In her own low-key way, Joan administered to her students in the very best sense of the word, with integrity and compassion.

Joan grew up in Brooklyn and graduated from Erasmus Hall High School in the same class as Barbra Steisand. She continued her education at Brooklyn College, majoring in pre-med, and planned to go on to medical school. By this time she had met and married Steve Greenfield and, in 1968, they moved to Albertson. Deciding that her family took precedence over a career in medicine, Joan changed her plans and enrolled at Hofstra University for a masters in science education.

In 1972, Joan did her student teaching at Roslyn High School and was immediately hired as an earth science and biology teacher. After 12 years of teaching, she took a sabbatical and went to C.W. Post for a masters in administration. Upon her return to Roslyn, she was named assistant principal in 1985, serving with and helping to acclimate several senior administrators during the last 16 years. Her capacity to share her strength and knowledge has consistently kept the high school moving forward, even during times of change.

Joan's husband Steve is also retired, and they have two daughters and sons-in-law and four grandchildren. Daughter Ellen, a marketing director at Estee Lauder, is married to Ken Greenwald and they are the parents of Jessica, age 2 and Jake, age one month. The Greenfields' daughter Marji, a former executive at a major executive recruiting firm, is married to Richard Kaplowitz and they also have two children, Julia, age 2 and Amanda, age one month. Joan's post-retirement plans include spending more time with her grandchildren and doing "whatever she wants to do."