The Morgan Hill Unified School District Board of Trustees on May 18 unanimously appointed Dr. Carmen Garcia as the next superintendent.
Garcia has been an educator for 22 years—most recently as Superintendent of the San Marcos Unified School District in Southern California. She is bilingual and bicultural, and has worked as a teacher, middle and high school administrator, researcher and central office administrator, according to a press release from MHUSD.
Garcia will take the helm as MHUSD’s top staff person July 1. She will replace Steve Betando, who announced in December that he would be resigning after the current school year.
“My life is proof that education is the world’s greatest equalizer that opens many doors to a better quality of life,” Garcia said. “I was born to immigrant parents who instilled in their 10 children the desire to work hard in order to reap rewards. These life and educational experiences inform my vision and belief system for excellence in teaching, leading and learning in order to empower those closest to our students—our teachers, staff members, classified personnel, administrators, parents and community—so that together we can effectively ensure an educational system that meets the needs of all of our students.”
Garcia resigned from San Marcos Unified School District in September 2020, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune. She did not cite a specific reason for her departure, but the resignation followed a personnel decision that was unpopular among parents of one of the district’s elementary schools, according to the Union-Tribune’s Sept. 16 report.
Garcia was hired by the San Marcos district in 2018. She began her education career as a teacher in the Long Beach Unified School District, according to the San Marcos Unified School District website. She continued her own education, earning a doctorate from the University of Southern California.
“After a diligent and thorough four-month process, we are proud to welcome Dr. Garcia to Morgan Hill Unified,” said MHUSD Board President Wendy Sullivan. “As a team-oriented leader with a wealth of teaching and leadership experiences, she has a strong vision for what our district can look like in the coming years and fervently believes that all students can achieve. Her data-driven and student-centered focus will help us make even greater gains in terms of equity and overall student achievement.”
Garcia is married and has three children who attend Spanish/English dual immersion schools.
The district will organize meet-and-greet opportunities for students, parents, staff and the community to engage with Garcia before the start of the next school year, says the press release from MHUSD.
