[NSD] – The Newhall School District did not have to go far to find a new superintendent to replace Superintendent Marc Winger, who is retiring on Jan. 31. The district announced Tuesday the hiring of Paul A. Cordeiro, former assistant superintendent of instruction for the Newhall School District.

For the past 10 years, Cordeiro has served as superintendent of the Carpinteria Unified School District (CUSD). He worked for the Newhall School District from 2000-2005, and prior to that was assistant superintendent of the Santa Barbara County Education Office’s curriculum and instruction division from 1992-1999.

“We’re very excited to have Paul back. He was very respected and well-liked in his time here,” said Christy Smith, member of the Newhall district governing board. “His resume speaks for itself, and we believe he will be an excellent leader for the district.”

In his current position as superintendent of the CUSD, Cordeiro oversees operations for seven schools comprising more than 2,300 students. In his time with the district, the API has been elevated to 809 in 2013 from 731 in 2006, even as the district’s population of poor, minority and English language learner students steadily increased.

Cordeiro has been invested in several forward-thinking initiatives in the CUSD, including THRIVE Carpinteria Cradle-to-Career, a public-private partnership focused on community-supported efforts to elevate students to college and/or career readiness. He also helped develop the K-8 Coherent Writing Program, a standards-based articulated program that has resulted in significant proficiency improvements. Under his leadership, the district created English language learner performance standards and introduced Guided Language Acquisition Design to the ELL instructional program.

In his previous position with the Newhall School District, he helped lead an instructional program that produced multiple California Distinguished School awards, a National Blue Ribbon Award and Title I Achieving Schools awards. He also served on management teams overseeing construction of three new schools and modernization of three others. Cordeiro is a graduate of the University of California, Los Angeles, and the University of California, Irvine.

The new superintendent is returning to the Newhall School District at a pivotal time.

Dr. Marc Winger

“Marc Winger was here for the implementation of the Common Core State Standards and the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium, which represented major changes in the California education system,” Smith said. “Paul will be leading us as we head into the future and learn how these changes affect schools and students.”

Following Winger’s retirement announcement earlier this fall, the district hired La Quinta-based executive search firm Leadership Associates, which specializes in the education field. The district’s two consultants were themselves both long-term school superintendents. The firm helped the district develop a candidate profile through an online survey plus meetings with district parents and staff. Based on the resulting profile, they opened a candidate search through related trade publications and websites.

The search resulted in a pool of 20 applicants, and the district worked with its consultants to match qualifications with the ideal candidate profile, perform extensive background checks and narrow the field to Cordeiro and two other applicants who were interviewed by the district governing board.

Cordeiro’s appointment to the position is pending, based on a visit to his current district, contract negotiations and final contract approval at the Newhall district’s Jan. 20 governing board meeting. Cordeiro will officially begin as superintendent on Feb. 1, 2015.