Edhat StaffSanta Barbara Unified School District opened recruitment for the Director of English Learner and Parent Engagement, a position held by Dr. Jacqueline Mora since July of 2015. Dr. Mora was recently appointed as Assistant Superintendent of Education Services at Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District. Recruitment for the Director of English Learner and Parent Engagement opened on September 28, 2017 and will close on October 27, 2017.
“Santa Barbara Unified remains committed to continue to build upon the successful efforts led by Dr. Mora for Santa Barbara Unified’s English language learners and parents,” said Superintendent Cary Matsuoka, “We are fortunate to have had Dr. Jacqueline Mora’s leadership that strengthened essential partnerships throughout our district. She raised the bar with her commitment to children and families, often through her efforts to authentically engage families as equal partners in their child’s education. The district has greatly benefited from her educational expertise as a school leader and within the district office to improve systems and standards so that teaching and learning practices can better meet the needs of every child.”
Santa Barbara Unified developed the English Learner and Parent Engagement management position three years ago as part of a plan to improve student achievement and parent engagement. In Santa Barbara Unified, English Learners account for approximately 23% of the total student population. School districts are held accountable by the State of California and Federal Government to ensure that English Learners meet the same academic standards as other students.
Efforts to support students, parents, and district employees improved under the leadership of Dr. Jacqueline Mora as the Director of English Learner and Parent Engagement. Accomplishments over the last three years include: reclassified more than 2,287 English Learner children to be English proficient, developed an important stakeholder relationship with the District English Learner Advisory Committee, formed a Family Engagement Unit to provide fundamental parent education programming at all schools aligned with district goals and priorities, expanded a popular all-adult interpreter model for Back to School Night events at all schools, coordinated professional development for teachers to use strategies that accelerate academic language development as well as professional opportunities for bilingual staff to advance interpretation skills, and assisted with redesigning secondary school English language pathways to ensure students have access to core English language arts, math, science, and social studies classes.
“Despite progress being made for our English learners, we know that there is more work to be done to meet the educational needs of our students and continue important efforts to support families. The recruitment for the Director for English Learner and Parent Engagement is our priority and we will be seeking qualified candidates through October 27th,” said Matsuoka.
Recruitment for the Director for English Learner and Parent Engagement will remain open through October 27, 2017, applicants can apply by visiting: https://selfservice.sbunified.
