Edwin Diaz could have job offer by end of the day, move as early
as March
Gilroy – The fate of Edwin Diaz, Gilroy Unified School District and, arguably, students in Gilroy’s public schools are resting in the hands of a Southern California school board.
Pasadena Unified School District was scheduled to meet Tuesday night to work out a contract to offer the top candidate for their open superintendent position – Diaz, GUSD’s superintendent of six years. PUSD could offer him the job as early as today, setting into motion a nationwide search for Gilroy’s next superintendent.
PUSD Trustee Mike Babcock would not comment Tuesday, saying the board was “still concluding our decision-making process,” and other trustees did not respond to e-mails regarding their interview process with Diaz. PUSD’s superintendent is on administrative leave, vacating the position after a vote of no confidence by parents within the district in June. Darrel Taylor is acting as interim superintendent in Pasadena until a replacement is hired. Taylor also did not return calls for comment.
A consultant firm representing the Pasadena district, which is more than twice as big as GUSD and includes schools in the cities of Altadena, Pasadena and Sierra Madre, contacted Diaz several months ago.
“I wasn’t surprised to be approached because I’ve been approached many times by a variety of different search consultants, so that wasn’t unusual,” said Diaz, 53. “But up until this time, I’ve never submitted an application for any other district.”
Diaz said he was interested in moving to a larger, more urban school district, making Pasadena a solid match. The PUSD’s work in improving student performance also appealed to Diaz, as well as many similarities to GUSD, including the challenge of meeting needs of a very diverse student population, he said. Before formally applying, Diaz talked with his family and considered whether he would be able to form a connection with administrators, community leaders and the needs of the 21,000 students in the district.
“After careful consideration, I decided I would be interested in making this move, so I went ahead and applied,” Diaz said.
Diaz traveled to Pasadena the second weekend in December, meeting with the PUSD school board twice. On Monday, the mayors of the three communities in the district and three PUSD board members came to Gilroy, touring schools such as Gilroy High School and meeting with a panel of Gilroy education leaders.
A spokesperson for Bill Bogaard, mayor of Pasadena, said he could not comment at this time because “his participation is confidential.” John Buchanan, mayor of Sierra Madre, did not return phone calls.
The Gilroy panel included Pat Midtgaard and Jaime Rosso, GUSD board trustees; Steve Brinkman, assistant superintendent of business services; Jacki Horejs, former assistant superintendent of educational services; and Linda Piceno, assistant superintendent of human resources. James Maxwell, GHS principal, was invited to participate but could not attend.
“There were a lot of items discussed, and I had a feeling they’d already read quite a bit of material about Edwin from the tone of their questions,” Midtgaard said. “They asked about the major things he’s accomplished since he’s been in Gilroy. I think the meeting was a pretty solid recommendation in terms of Edwin’s integrity, ethics and follow-through. At the end (the Pasadena panel) said it was clear their gain would be our loss, which we agreed with.”
Midtgaard said she would personally feel a great sense of loss if Diaz left Gilroy, adding that she has a great deal of respect for him from her perspective as a school board trustee and as former principal of Antonio Del Buono Elementary School.
Midtgaard and Tom Bundros, GUSD school board president, knew Diaz had thrown his hat into the ring for the PUSD job in late November and they were told before his formal announcement at Thursday’s board meeting in closed session that Diaz was the top candidate for the position in Southern California. The announcement was made public on Friday.
“If Pasadena offers (Diaz) the job, we’ll figure out the best way to move forward,” Bundros said. “The board will discuss it at our first meeting in January and decide if we should hire a consulting firm to start the search for us. The $64,000 question is what we’re looking for in future candidates. That’s what we will have to determine in the next couple of months.”
Since learning of Diaz’s possible departure, Bundros said he’s already begun researching how other district’s have taken on the process of hiring a new superintendent and has made inquiries with the California School Board’s Association.
Because Diaz is under contract until 2009 – though the board recently offered to extend his contract to 2010 – it is up to the GUSD school board to negotiate his formal departure date. Diaz has said he could leave as soon as March. Both Midtgaard and Bundros said there is a good chance the district will have an interim superintendent while permanent candidates are sought.
Maxwell said he, like many others, has mixed emotions about the possibility of Diaz leaving.
“Of course, I’m happy for him, but it will certainly be a loss for us,” he said. “And people, myself included, are always nervous about change. A couple of the principals have said, ‘Oh my gosh, what happens now?’ and I think it’s natural to be nervous about a new leader. Time will tell. The board has an important job of finding someone else, and I hope they find the best candidate possible. In the meantime, I think everyone wishes the best for Edwin.”
When asked if he was nervous, Diaz responded with a quick and decisive “no.”
“I’m not nervous because whatever happens will happen,” he said.
