Professor draws on background as innovator to prepare educational leadership students

Dr. Bonnie Lehet grew up in Hopewell Township, N.J., just minutes from the Rider campus. Although she never attended Rider, the school always had a special connection to her family, as that’s where her mother earned her master’s in educational leadership.

Dr. Lehet did not initially set out to follow in her mother’s footsteps. While she was in high school, she was first exposed to computers at a time when their use in schools was in its infancy, and she was immediately drawn to the problem-solving aspect of computer programming. She would go on to major in computer science at Rutgers, becoming one of the few women to hold that distinction at that time.

After earning her degree, she anticipated that the next step in her career would be to work in a computer-related field. “I did not expect to go into education,” she says. “This was before the internet existed as we know it, and I thought that I would get a job writing software or doing computer programming.”

Due in part to the growing need for computer teachers, the first job offer she received out of college was a teaching position. “I thought I would do it for just one year and then figure out what kind of a job I wanted to get,” she says. “But I fell in love with it. It was just such a fun job.”

For the next dozen years, she taught classes in computer programming and computer science at Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School. During this time she also earned a master’s in math education and began teaching computer science and math classes at Rutgers and Middlesex County College.

As the use of computers became more widespread — not only in the classroom but throughout society — Dr. Lehet led the way in implementing their use in her school. “I had to really advocate to get computer technology for my students,” she says. “I was very involved in getting my school district online and building a computer lab. ”

Her efforts extended beyond the courses she was teaching, and had a positive impact across the whole curriculum. “My title was ‘technology coordinator,’ and I spent a lot of time helping my colleagues learn how to use technology for their own classes,” she says. “I had an opportunity to lead a lot of workshops, which put me in the position of helping teachers. I started thinking, ‘I wonder if I could do this in a different capacity in a school district?’ and that’s what put me on the path to a career in administration.”

She went on to become the technology supervisor in the Millburn school district before moving on to Princeton Public Schools, where she was the math supervisor for six years and then the assistant superintendent for 10 years before retiring in 2017.

Her retirement only lasted a short time. She came to Rider in the fall of 2017 as an adjunct assistant professor, teaching a math methods course in the Department of Teacher Education and then as a visiting and adjunct assistant professor in the math department. Two years later, she is joining the College of Education and Human Services as an assistant professor. She is teaching a course in educational change and political reform in Rider's Doctorate in Educational Leadership program, as well as an internship course for supervisor and principal candidates.

In addition to teaching, she is also looking to do research on the social-emotional factors that impact leaders in decision making. Dr. Lehet is excited to be embarking on the next phase of her career and happy to be part of the Rider family. “It’s a real community and the people here really do come together to support each other," she says. "I love that.”