EdCal EdCalv47.7 | Page 5

September 19 , 2016 EDCAL 5

ACSA has welcomed retired superintendent Barry Groves as the new senior director of educational services .

“ Barry is a long-time ACSA member and his experience as an educational leader will continue to help us benefit members with first-class professional development programs ,” ACSA Executive Director Wesley Smith said .

Groves served 23 years as a California superintendent , first at Cambrian SD for 14 years and later for Mountain View Los Altos High School District . During his tenure at MVLAHSD , his schools were ranked in the top 1 percent nationally by Newsweek and US News and World Report .

“ One of our district priorities at that time was closing the achievement gap for Latino students ,” Groves said . “ It required a lot of teamwork , but we were able to improve achievement for all students for nine straight years .”

Groves also spent eight

Groves years as an assistant principal and principal , as well as three

years as assistant superintendent at Lucia Mar USD in San Luis Obispo County .

Groves will steward an Educational Services team offering more than 100 innovative professional development opportunities annually . These events have seen recordbreaking attendance over the past few years . He has first-hand experience in the ACSA offerings and says the organization was instrumental in promoting his career .

ACSA ’ s Personnel Academy helped Groves progress to an assistant superintendent , and the Superintendents Academy helped him move into his 23-year career as a superintendent . In addition to the academies , Groves has participated in more than 20 annual Superintendent Symposiums and numerous Leadership Summits .

“ I received the ACSA experience , and one thing I felt strongly about was having all of my administrators join ACSA ,” Groves said . “ I always advocated for paying the membership dues for all of my administrative staff because of how valuable ACSA was to my career .”

Groves replaces Chris Adams , who is directing his efforts to a wider community in the public and private sector .

Priority one for Groves moving forward is to serve , develop and advocate for ACSA members .

“ There is a need to provide members with professional development , from the beginning of their careers to retirement ,” he said . “ Our department is dedicated to providing opportunities that help participants grow professionally and collaboratively with their peers .”

Continued from page 1

the program is open to all first- and second- year administrators who are new to their position .

ACSA ’ s goal is to improve the effectiveness of administrative leaders , thereby increasing the success of their students and protecting the investment that is administrative personnel .

District and school administrators are expected to be great leaders from the very beginning of their careers , but the framework to hone their leadership skills primarily occurs prior to their gaining practical experience . ACSA Mentoring provide on-the-job , confidential , practical support for new administrators , and possibly the best aspect is that the service is absolutely free to members .

“ Each and every time a district hires an administrator , the district is making a substantial investment ,” Almond said . “ It simply makes sense to develop and protect that investment , and the Mentor Program is a great starting point . We are encouraging all superintendents to let their new administrators know of the program and encourage them to participate .”

You may wonder how ACSA can offer the Mentor Program at no additional cost to members or school districts . Well , thanks to the efforts of ACSA staff , a budget was developed with a funding source through our Legal Collaborative , which includes Atkinson , Andelson ,

ACSA Mentor Program regional facilitators provide practical support for new administrators . Left to right : Joe Ovick , Ron Williams , Trudy Arriaga , Latyna Young , Larry Perondi , John Almond , Arturo Flores , Marc Ecker , Mike Berg , Marilyn Shepherd and Dale Hansen . Not pictured : Diane Scheerhorn and John White .

Loya , Ruud & Romo ; Burke , Williams & Sorensen , LLP ; Dannis , Woliver , Kelley ; Fagen , Friedman & Fulfrost , LLP ; and Lozano Smith .

“ Funds provided by these firms have provided the support for the development and maintenance of the program ,” Ecker said . “ This support has enabled ACSA to offer the Mentor Program as a free service to its members . We are extremely thankful to these legal firms for their ongoing support .”

For all ACSA members who will be taking on a new position this year , it is very easy to sign up for the Mentor Program . Simply go to the ACSA website at www . acsa . org , click on Member Services , and then click on the Mentor Program . This link will take you directly to an application , where you can sign up to be a mentor or a protégé . It ’ s that simple .

Upon completion of the application form , you will be contacted by one of our regional facilitators .

National Hispanic Heritage Month is a 30-day celebration of Hispanic and Latino heritage and culture that started Sept . 15 and runs through Oct . 15 . The timing coincides with independence day recognitions , including 16 de Septiembre in Mexico , Sept . 18 in Chile and Sept . 15 for Costa Rica , El Salvador , Guatemala , Honduras and Nicaragua .

In California , where Latinos represent the largest population , officially surpassing whites in 2015 , contributions are immeasurable . We recognize that in the names of our cities , historic missions , and in the legacy of great civil rights leaders like Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta .

Resources for celebrating Latino heritage , culture and contributions can be found throughout the internet . A few notable choices include the federal clearinghouse www . hispanicheritagemonth . gov ; www . hispanicheritagemonth . org , which features promotional material ; the California Latino Leadership Institute , http :// calatinoleadershipinstitute . org , where links to many other sites are featured ; and the California office of Historic Preservation , www . ohp . parks . ca . gov /? page _ id = 27965 , which includes statewide news and resources .

LAST CHANCE TO REGISTER !

October 5-7 , 2016 | Holiday Inn Capitol Plaza | Sacramento

More information can be found by visiting acsa . org / personnelinstitute , or by calling ACSA ’ s Educational Services Department at 800.608 . ACSA .

Year-three Local Control and Accountability Plan training will focus on building capacity to effectively lead district-focused and site-driven improvement efforts that align with student performance .

Site leaders : From LCAP the Plan to LCAP the Achievement Game Changer

n Register at https :// goo . gl / xmry3t

District teams : Cultivating District-Level ‘ Systems Leadership ’ for Continuous Improvement

n Register at https :// goo . gl / 1Inlmp