The Whittier Union High School District Board of Trustees on Feb. 9 selected Assistant Superintendent of Business Services Martin Plourde, who has served the District in various leadership capacities for 15 years, as its next Superintendent. The selection follows extensive discussions by the Board of Trustees and widespread outreach to solicit input on the qualities, skills and abilities most valued in a superintendent, which included being collaborative and student-centered – tenets Whittier Union has long embraced.
Plourde will succeed Superintendent Sandra Thorstenson, who will retire in June after 39 years as an educator and administrative leader in the District, including 14 years as superintendent.
Whittier Union High Schools Honored for Contributing to Super Bowl History
Four Whittier Union high schools were recently honored with NFL 50th Golden Footballs and a place in the NFL’s Super Bowl High School Honor Roll. The honor roll initiative is part of the NFL’s Super Bowl 50 outreach program, which links the past 49 Super Bowls with this year’s game and honors the high schools and communities that have contributed to the game of football. Schools receive a Wilson Golden Football for each graduate who was a Super Bowl player or head coach. California High School was honored for Jim Vellone, who graduated in 1962 and played for the Minnesota Vikings. La Serna High School was honored for Dave Dalby, who graduated in 1969 and played center for the Raiders. Santa Fe High School was honored for Santa Fe alumnus and four-time NFL Coach of the Year Joe Gibbs. Whittier High School was honored for former Oakland Raiders George Buehler and Bobby Chandler.
Michael Fullan, a Canadian education researcher and former dean of the Ontario Institute of Studies in Education at the University of Toronto, visited the Whittier Union High School District on Feb. 3 to observe how collaborative cultures support teachers and increase student learning. Whittier Union is one of four California districts selected for a three-year case study administered by Fullan, who met with a team of English teacher leads to discuss best practices and the importance of teamwork. Fullan will be able to both validate and recommend improvements in the collaborative work being done at Whittier Union, which is now in year two of the case study.
California High School student leader Sophia Aldecoa is a homecoming princess who dreams of one day becoming a brain surgeon. But fulfilling these lifelong goals has not come easily for the 18-year-old, who once grappled with low self-esteem. During her younger years, Aldecoa took charge of caring for her younger siblings while contending with bullying and teasing at school. Still, she never wavered from the high expectations she set for herself, persevering personally and academically while at Cal High, where she has been named a Top 100 Student for four consecutive years. Now a social butterfly, she carries a 4.125 GPA and has successfully completed 16 Advanced Placement and honors classes. For her determination, Aldecoa was recently recognized with an Award of Merit by the Whittier Union High School District Board of Trustees.
To strengthen community outreach and communication, Whittier Union High School District has launched a Facebook page, where it will distribute news about its schools, activities and initiatives. For example, followers can access a superintendent search survey, read about students like Santa Fe High senior Daisy Nahoul, who was awarded a full-ride scholarship to the University of Chicago, or learn about the rigorous professional development teachers engage in to prepare students under the new California standards.
The Whittier Union High School District Board of Trustees is seeking written and oral comments from a wide array of sources and stakeholders as part of efforts to choose a superintendent to replace Sandra Thorstenson, who will retire at the end of the school year. Members of the school community and public may submit written comments via an online survey at www.surveymonkey.com/r/H8LV8RS through Friday, Jan. 29. The Board also will gather input from community members and stakeholders from 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 2 in the District board room. The Board is expected to culminate its deliberations and take action on next steps, which could include the selection of the new superintendent, during the open session of its Tuesday, Feb. 9 meeting.
A Santa Fe High School senior who was homeless the summer before her freshman year has overcome significant hardships to excel at school and win a $70,000-a-year QuestBridge Scholarship to the University of Chicago. Daisy Nahoul, 18, excelled in every Advanced Placement and honors class she’s taken at Santa Fe despite her family’s financial challenges and the need to shoulder additional responsibilities, achieving a 4.35 GPA and ranking at the top of her class. She will be the first in her family to go to college.
After a 39-year career as a teacher and administrator in the Whittier Union High School District – including over 14 years as District Superintendent – Sandra Thorstenson has announced she will retire in June 2016. Thorstenson led the transformation of the District – which serves more than 13,000 mostly Latino high school students and 7,000 adult school students – into a high-achieving district recognized across the nation as a model. Whittier Union has achieved special distinction because students at every school have demonstrated significant and ongoing increases in achievement on multiple indicators despite 69 percent of students facing socio-economic disadvantages.
Area School Districts Remain Open on Dec. 15, 2015
While there has been an action taken by Los Angeles Unified School District leaders to close schools out of an abundance of caution based on a threat made specifically to LAUSD schools, the following school districts are in session and are urging parents to send their students to school to maintain instructional continuity: Azusa Unified; Baldwin Park Unified; Bassett Unified; Bellflower Unified; Little Lake City; Lynwood Unified; Montebello Unified; Norwalk-La Mirada Unified; Pomona Unified; Santa Monica-Malibu Unified; Whittier Union High. As always, student safety is the first priority and all standard safety measures will be employed by school personnel.
Pioneer High School’s Titan Football program is among seven across the nation selected to share $100,000 in equipment grants awarded by helmet manufacturer Riddell. The selection recognizes Pioneer’s effort to build a safe football program for its student-athletes. As part of Riddell’s first-ever Smarter Football initiative, the football community was called on to join efforts to create a safer playing field by adopting the latest tools, teaching and techniques. Pioneer’s share of the award is about $15,000, which will go to buy upgraded Riddell helmets and shoulder pads for the team, which went 7-3 this season under Head Coach Chuck Willig.
