Under the Sun — Adrian Palazuelos, PhD, new school superintendent

On his first day on the job, the new head of the Sonoma Valley Unified School District spoke with the Sun’s Anna Pier.

What did you do today on the job?  I focused my time on the elementary schools. At Dunbar, I witnessed a Covid-era drop-off. Then to Flowery, where I visited with staff in Spanish. At El Verano, I visited the Family Resource Center and the preschool. I’m a strong advocate of preschool, in fact I started six of them in my former district. At Sassarini I visited classrooms and fielded great questions from the students, like “What kind of doctor are you?”  To “What is a superintendent?” I replied “A principal of principals.” The students had left for the day when I got to Prestwood, but I got to meet staff and see the YMCA after school. 

What will be your focus as a new superintendent?  Improving outcomes for our students. Advancing equity. It’s unacceptable – we’re in 2021, and we need to provide all the opportunities necessary for all students to be successful. We can look at districts nearby, and around the state, where Latino students are more successful. 

Which districts?  Napa, for instance. And Long Beach USD. Whittier.  All have done a lot to advance student success. There’s no excuse for Sonoma Valley Unified not to be a lighthouse for the work of embracing, encouraging access to higher level classes, AND ensuring success. We did it at my last district, as a team. This always takes a team.

What are some ways you accomplished this goal? First of all on the secondary level, we invested in staff, sending them to summer institutes for teaching AP classes. And the Board paid for AP tests, for tutoring, for study guides. Before 2014, 171 students took AP exams; before I left, we had over 450. And we made a strong career pathways program. We built a new career facility for agriculture and automotive, using state monies. In this work it’s “we.”  Here in Sonoma, we can have a culinary Capstone program with Santa Rosa JC, where students graduate ready to enter culinary academy.

What about improving outcomes in elementary? We need to capture the student voice, to find out where students are struggling. It is fantastic that Sonoma Valley has aligned curriculum across the District.  Alignment and consistency are key, and making sure that the staff has the tools to support students. This includes professional development, but it’s not always about money. The use of time for collaborating.  My colleagues in other states receive so much more money per student, but outcomes didn’t necessarily change. It does us no good to teach a failed lesson, and collaboration can change this. 

Can you talk about the Special Ed program, and the high percentage of Latino students designated to it? We will have to look inward to know why there is a disproportionate number of people of color in Special Ed in our district. This is a huge issue of equity and access. How are the children being evaluated and supported? We must take time to listen to parents and students, to know where our challenges are. I attended a SEAC meeting (Special Ed Advisory Council), and plan to attend all its quarterly meetings. By hearing the stories and experiences of our families, we learn where our challenges and barriers are. A recurring theme is the need to offer equal opportunities. And we need to connect families with staff. 

What issue are you excited about tackling? Making the district truly “unified.” Having a unified vision, a call to action for every school, every staff, every family. We are a public institution, and we need to have the mindset of doing the very best for every student. And it always comes back to “how we use our time.”

What will be a huge challenge? Anyone in public education knows that Covid put a huge hole in what we’re doing. Our teachers have done fantastic work this year, but the true cost will be borne. I am excited to have the support of the Education Foundation, such a dedicated group. They are emblematic of “champions for kids.” That’s my torch: you have to be a champion for every student. 

As a child, what did you dream of becoming?   A pediatrician. 

What was your personal academic path? I was raised in Oxnard. My mother was an instructional assistant and my father a corrections officer. I was the first in my family to get a college degree. I’m a proud alum of UC Irvine, where I got a B.A. in sociology. And I’m the first in my family to earn a PhD. I got my degree from UC Santa Barbara in Education, with an emphasis on Educational Leadership and Organization.  

What is your own experience as a classroom teacher? I taught 4th and 5th grades as a bilingual classroom teacher. 

What about your family? I started alone here in interim lodging, while my children finished school. My family, my wife and four children, are my support system. provide the inspiration and balance that I need to be an effective public school administrator. 

Have they moved here? We are still looking for a home. It’s a tight market.