Oakland is the latest big district turning to an insider to head schools
When the Oakland Unified School District last month announced that it had settled on Kyla Johnson-Trammel to be its next superintendent, it was another example of a growing trend: school boards are turning increasingly to candidates with deep attachments to their districts to fill the top administrative post.
The 41-year-old Johnson-Trammell, who has never been a superintendent, attended elementary and middle schools in the district – and then returned to spend the last 18 years – her entire professional career – as a teacher, principal, and associate superintendent.
In announcing her selection, the district noted that she was born and raised in East Oakland, one of the city’s most troubled neighborhoods, and is in fact a third-generation Oakland resident. She also earned her doctorate in education from nearby UC Berkeley. “You have before you someone who embodies what it means to be of this town,” school board president James Harris declared.
Oakland is not alone in turning to an insider to head its schools. The move appears to be an increasingly popular – and unproven – strategy by California school districts as an antidote to the revolving door of school superintendents that can have a debilitating impact onOakland is the latest big district turning to an insider to head schools | EdSource: