Dr. James Bertsch

Dr. James Bertsch is a lifelong school administrator and school board member who worked the first half of his career in neighborhood public schools and the second half within the Special Education Division of Nassau BOCES. A native New Yorker, Dr. Bertsch studied in the Midwest and out West before returning to New York to earn his educational doctorate at St. John’s University. Dr. Bertsch serves students in a region-wide public high school for children with psychiatric and life skills needs. The school has a unique partnership with Sagamore Children's Psychiatric Hospital and North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center; they are state mental health providers who provide talk therapy and medication management on-site where it’s integrated with the provision of educational services. The school hosts 25 off-site worksites for participants with life skills needs including students with significant psychiatric needs. Dr. Bertsch also hosts community forums in partnership with stakeholders like libraries and mental health providers. He conceptualizes of and runs unifying community projects like veteran gravestone restorations. Dr. Bertsch regularly publishes stories of interest in a local newspaper serving his community. James leads activities in his community for the environmental group Save the Great South Bay. Dr. Bertsch also serves on the Board of Education for Sayville Schools and serves on the board of both the LT Michael P. Murphy Navy SEAL Museum and the YMCA (Patchogue, NY).