By Jake BOWMAN

On Tuesday night, the Glendale Unified School District Board of Education unanimously approved a contract to affirm Dr. Vivian Ekchian as the next GUSD superintendent of schools, effective July 1.

Ekchian currently serves as deputy superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District. According to a press release issued by the GUSD, “Dr. Ekchian dedicated her career to serving students, educators, and communities in a variety of roles, including teacher assistant, classroom teacher, principal, director of instruction, chief of staff to the superintendent, chief human resources officer, chief labor negotiator, local district superintendent, associate superintendent, and interim superintendent.”

“We are confident that Dr. Ekchian is the right person to lead GUSD,” said Board President Jennifer Freemon. “She is a lifelong educator with a wide range of experience serving a large, diverse district. Dr. Ekchian is a visionary leader with a clear sense of purpose and a relentless focus on accelerating student outcomes.”

Ekchian replaces Winfred B. Roberson Jr. who was released from his contract in January. Roberson was under contract with the district until 2020 but, by enacting a clause in his contract, the board was able to end his employment early and without cause. The board stated in January that it was time for new leadership, but declined to give any additional information on its decision.

Since that time, the assistant superintendent, Dr. Kelly King, has been acting interim superintendent until a replacement was found. In February, the search for a new superintendent began and, according to Freemon, both she and board member Greg Krikorian were appointed internally to head the search. It was decided to use Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates as the search firm to assist in finding the right person for the job.

Freemon went on to say the board made sure the community was involved in the process and solicited feedback in the form of “an online survey, that we had a tremendous amount of response with, as well as several community and specific stakeholder meetings to really see what we needed and what direction we needed to go for the next superintendent.”

After a thorough vetting process, according to the board, it settled on Dr. Vivian Ekchian as the district’s new superintendent. Her contract will pay $301,000 annually and will be in effect until 2023.

Freemon said that, for her, the choice of Ekchian came down to her experience as an educator.

“That wealth of experience, that diverse range of experiences and really being an educator at the core, [was] for me one of the pieces that was so exciting,” she said.

In a statement released by GUSD, Ekchian stated, “I want to thank the Glendale Unified School District Board of Education for this exciting new opportunity. It has been such an honor and a privilege to serve the students, families and employees of Los Angeles Unified. I am thrilled to join the GUSD family, and I look forward to accelerating the transformative work that is occurring throughout the District, while maintaining a steadfast focus on preparing all students for college, career, and life.”

  Jake BOWMAN