After a tumultuous four months, Aromas School has a new
principal.
Ercilia Zavala, 32, took over the reigns of the K through 8
school earlier this month.
After a tumultuous four months, Aromas School has a new principal.
Ercilia Zavala, 32, took over the reigns of the K through 8 school earlier this month.
“I think that she has a really broad and very deep understanding of curriculum and instruction and felt that she is able to build a team – a team of teachers and the community,” said Jackie Munoz, superintendent of the Aromas-San Juan Unified School District. “She offers a lot to the district.”
After making it to the interview stage, Zavala was hired July 2 by the district’s Board of Trustees.
“The main thing was her assertiveness,” said Rachel Ponce, district trustee who was also on the interview committee. “She has the best interest of the students at heart. She referred a lot to the students. She’s someone that really stood out.”
Low campus morale, bickering in the community over a board member recall and bad feelings over the firing of former Principal Mary-Ann Tucker are all issues Zavala will have to deal with in the coming months. These matters surrounding the school did not frighten Zavala. Anyone seeking a principalship does their research, Munoz said.
“It didn’t scare me away. Of course, I had to think, ‘Am I ready for this?'” said Zavala. “I am ready. I’m really energetic.
“Even if you think differently, at the school, one thing that’s in everyone’s mind – it’s the children. I’m hoping to move from there. For me, I’d like for this to be a beginning. I want parents and the community to know that I have an open-door policy. If there’s anything I can improve on or change to benefit the children, I will do it.”
Zavala taught bilingual classes for the Pajaro Valley Unified School District from 1996 to 2000. She served as an assistant principal from 2000-02 at Prunedale School in the North Monterey County Unified School District.
Munoz said being bilingual was an advantage for Zavala, since Aromas School has a large group of English Language Learners.
“The fact that she’s bilingual – it’s her native language, Spanish – that fact that she will be able to communicate in both languages is definitely an advantage,” Munoz said. “She’ll be able to make connections with Spanish-speaking students as well (as with other students).”
Zavala earned a bachelor’s of arts in community studies from the University of California at Santa Cruz in 1998. She attended Bethany College in Scotts Valley where she received her multiple teaching credential in 1999 and continued on at San Jose State University with a master’s degree in school administration in 2002.
An important aspect of education is access, which is one reason Zavala said she moved from the classroom to administration. She also wanted to increase the representation of females and minorities in school administration.
Zavala was among a dozen applicants and four candidates that made it to the interview stage. She said she applied for the job because she wanted someone local to head the school instead of someone from outside the area. Zavala lives eight miles from Aromas and has lived in the tri-county area for 14 years.
A screening committee reviewed the applications and narrowed the field to those who were interviewed. The screening committee consisted of Munoz and a school board trustee – only two because the district was short on time. A separate committee interviewed candidates then advised Munoz on which applicant to recommend to the trustees. The committee was made up of two Aromas School parents, two trustees, San Juan School Principal Joe Hudson, two Aromas School teachers and a classified employee, Munoz said.
“She was so superior in her interview that the committee advised me to recommend her (to the Board),” Munoz said.
In May, a first round of applicants and interviews yielded no candidates because some found other positions, Munoz said. Zavala was the result of a second round of interviewing.
Members of the interview committee agreed that Zavala was a good choice, then Munoz checked Zavala’s references before going to the trustees. The Board hired Zavala on a 4-1 vote. Trustee Jeff Hancock dissented because of a lack of knowledge about the candidate, he said.
At a March meeting, the five-member Board of Trustees discussed the public employee performance evaluation of Tucker. Trustees voted 3-2 not to renew Tucker’s contract. A wave of discontent washed over the audience at the March and April meetings, setting off an effort to recall three Board members – Andy Hsia-Coron, Rachel Ponce and Sylvia Rios-Metcalf.
