Newhall superintendent to retire
Paul Cordeiro announces plans to leave at the end of the school year
After nearly three years at the helm of the Newhall School District, Superintendent Paul Cordeiro announced he will retire at the end of the school year June 29.
“I am extremely grateful to have served an outstanding school District for a total of nine years,” Cordeiro said. “The Newhall Governing Board’s expectation of academic excellence has fostered a staff culture that singularly focuses on raising student achievement. It has been a privilege to be a part of a team that has worked tirelessly for the students over many years.”
Cordeiro said he is retiring from the district this year in order to spend time with his three grown children, volunteer for youth-serving organization and pursue interests that include cooking, gardening, fitness and writing.
“I embrace the transition to a slower pace, understanding that
there will be a period of adjustment,” he said. “I think I’m up to the challenge.”
Newhall School District Governing Board President Phil Ellis said the board will miss Cordeiro, but board members understood his choice to retire.
“He will be missed. He’s been an instrumental part of the district both as an assistant superintendent of instructional services before and now as superintendent,” Ellis said. “He’s been a very instrumental addition to the team and we were saddened to hear of his decision, but we understand why he is making it now and support it.”
Cordeiro was named superintendent in February 2015, when he replaced retiring NSD Superintendent Marc Winger.
He also was a part of the Newhall district for five years, from 2000-05, when he acted as the district’s assistant superintendent of instructional services and helped lead an instructional program that provided multiple California Distinguished School awards, a National Blue Ribbon Award and Title I Achieving Schools awards.
Cordeiro left his assistant superintendent position with the Newhall district in 2005 to become superintendent of the Carpinteria Unified School District where he remained for nearly 10 years.
Prior to joining the Newhall district in 2000, Cordeiro served as the assistant superintendent of the Santa Barbara County Education Office’s curriculum and instruction division from 1992 to 1999.
Cordeiro credited much of his success in the Newhall district to the forward-thinking teachers who use best
practices in the classroom, to the site administrators and district management team who work together and on behalf of the district’s students and families, and to the parents and community volunteers “whose contributions to the district are innumerable.”
“Without them, we would not be attaining the level of success our Governing Board expects,” Cordeiro said. “Newhall will always have a special place in my heart and I am confident that my successor will work with all of our stakeholders keep Newhall on top.”
The Newhall Governing Board is expected to begin a search for Cordeiro’s successor immediately. The district is expected to work with a superintendent consulting firm and have assistance from Cordeiro as they look for his replacement, according to Ellis.