By Matt Liebowitz
Source: Carmel Valley News, August 28, 2008
In a special meeting Aug. 20, the board of trustees of the Del Mar Union School District unanimously appointed Dr. Sharon McClain as the new district superintendent.
“I think Del Mar is a wonderful community,” said McClain in a telephone interview. “I know they’re very supportive of their schools, and growing quite a bit, which is exciting.”
The superintendent of the Hermosa Beach City School District since 2003, McClain was one of 21 applicants for the Del Mar position, and underwent two rounds of interviews.
“We really like her ability to collaborate with her colleagues, and her ability to work with the entire community,” said board president Annette Easton.
Easton also cited McClain’s background in art, music and Spanish—she earned her undergraduate degree from San Diego State University with a distinction in Spanish and taught vocal music for three and a half years in Escondido—as a valuable attribute to the district.
“That’s very important to our community,” Easton said.
Ken Noonan, a partner with the Cosca Group, the consulting firm hired by the school board for the executive search, said the process of hiring McClain was quick, but very professionally executed.
The search, which began in May, lasted only 13 weeks—“a very short period of time,” said Noonan—to accommodate the board’s desire to announce its new superintendent by the beginning of the school year.
“The board was most cooperative,” said Noonan. “They worked extremely hard on this and I think they made a very good choice.”
McClain brings to Del Mar a long and distinguished track record in education.
Prior to her superintendent position in Hermosa Beach, McClain served for three years as superintendent for the Mesa Union School District, and was assistant superintendent of educational services and human resources with the Ojai Unified School District for three years.
McClain also held adjunct faculty positions at the graduate schools of education of both Pepperdine University’s and UCSD. She earned her doctorate in education from the University of LaVerne.
Leaving Hermosa Beach for Del Mar isn’t a drastic move for McClain, as her San Diego connections run deep.
McClain is originally from the San Diego area, and, along with her mother, two of her six children — and four grandchildren —reside in San Diego.
From 1989 to 1997, McClain worked in the Escondido Union School District under superintendent McLean King, first as a teacher and later as principal of Central School.
“It’s like coming home,” she said.
Though she’s tendered her resignation in Hermosa Beach, McClain won’t officially take office in Del Mar for a few weeks. In the meantime, she will shuttle back and forth between the two cities; she is responsible for finding an interim superintendent as well as filling one principal position in the Hermosa Beach School District.
“The transition period will be a few weeks,” said Easton. “We expect her to be full-time within a month.”
Easton said the particulars of McClain’s contract are still being negotiated, but that her salary falls within the district’s budgeted amount, and will be made public as soon as it’s finalized.
Also keeping her moving back and forth will be her husband, Joe Condon, superintendent of the Lawndale Elementary School District in Los Angeles. Condon will remain at his job, which he’s held for 17 years, but McClain said he’ll move down to San Diego upon retirement.
Stepping into office, one of McClain’s first orders of business will be to address the district’s budget crisis, and to understand, in a non-biased, honest way, the distinct responsibilities and relationships of everyone in the school community.
“My leadership style is very open. I like to engage a lot of people and find out what their opinions are before making any decisions,” McClain said. “I try to meet as many people as I can and understand the issues. The first part of being a brand new superintendent is asking a lot of questions.”
|