Congratulations to the four educational leaders appointed unanimously by the School Board on May 31:
Michelle Sinclair – Cragmont Principal
Juan Raygoza – BHS Vice Principal
Heidi Weber – Program Coordinator, Independent Study
Susannah Bell Fishman – Program Manager, Special Education
On announcing the appointments, Board President Ty Alper provided the following background about each person:
Michelle Sinclair:
“As an alum of Cragmont myself, I am very excited about this appointment. Ms. Sinclair joined the BUSD as the Coordinator of Professional Development four years ago. In that role, Michelle expertly supported the PD department, including District Teachers on Special Assignment in K-8 math, science, English language arts, English language development and response to intervention. One of Michelle’s references stated, “She is a friendly, collaborative colleague with a great sense of humor who brings positivity along with her deep commitment to the district and our students.”
Juan Raygoza:
“Juan Raygoza will join the BHS administrative team as a VP this Fall. Mr. Raygoza comes to our team highly recommended by his current colleagues at El Rancho High School in Pico Rivera, CA, where he serves as an assistant principal. Prior to serving in that position, he was a standout social studies teacher who earned high marks from students as well as his supervisors. Mr. Raygoza is a graduate of the Principal Leadership Institute at UCLA. His leadership experience and leadership goals bring a strong emphasis on classroom instruction, culturally responsive teaching, restorative approaches to school climate and culture.”
Heidi Weber:
“Ms. Weber has been a teacher, teacher leader and administrator in BUSD for 21 years. She served as the lead teacher for the English Language Learners program at BHS from 2007-2014. She graduated from UC Berkeley’s Principal Leadership Institute in 2014. She is a well-versed instructional leader as well, and we are confident that she will provide strong leadership at the independent study program, and work with staff on deeper explorations of how kids best learn in one-on-one or small-group settings.”
Susannah Bell Fishman:
“Ms. Bell Fishman has been a teacher at BHS for 19 years. She started the AP Augmentation program for the small schools. In recognition of that she was named 2008 BPEF Distinguished Educator. She was BHS PD co-coordinator and PD lead for the Special Education department. This past year she was a part-time Program Supervisor and has demonstrated herself to be a consummate professional who is dedicated to equity and accountability for all students and staff on campus.”
The School Board also voted to offer another BHS Vice Principal position to an unnamed candidate.
The former Executive Vice Principal, Erin Schweng, was appointed BHS Principal in February, leaving a Vice Principal position open. And current Vice Principal Tamara Friedman is going on leave in the upcoming school year.