Trish Peterson, Principal
ppeters2@schools.nyc.gov
Trish Peterson first joined PS8 in 2016 as Assistant Principal and was appointed Principal the following year. She studied Early Childhood Education as an undergrad while majoring in English Literature, and she went on to earn a master’s degree in Early Childhood and Elementary Education from Bank Street College of Education.
Trish began her teaching career at Packer Collegiate Institute in 1993. She then taught at PS 29 and went on to hold a variety of roles within the Department of Education: School-Based Math Coach, Gifted and Talented Coordinator, Assistant Principal, Instructional Specialist, Deputy Network Leader, and Instructional Lead at the Brooklyn North Field Support Center.
Trish loves being in a school setting and working with children. “People think it’s easy to teach the younger grades,” she explains, “But it’s not. There’s so much time and energy we spend as educators just making sure these young people are okay, focusing on the socio-emotional parts of a child. If you don’t have that, you won’t be able to focus on the math and science and reading. I’m all about rigor and high expectations, but it’s also important that our children are in a place where they know people support them.” Another key partnership, she says, is that between families and schools. Trish loves getting to know the PS8/MS8 community both informally and as partners in education.
Trish lives with her husband and two sons in Carroll Gardens.