District shuffles principals at elementary school level
By Miguel Morales miguel@theacorn.com

Four Simi Valley elementary schools will begin the 2007-08 school year with new principals, according to a report this week from the school district.

Of the four administrators given new assignments, only one- Kathy Roth, currently assistant principal at Simi Valley High- is not already serving as a principal in Simi Valley Unified.

The reassignments are as follows: Roth will be leaving SVHS to replace the retiring Aileen Buhring as principal of Atherwood Elementary; Nancy Mason will be leaving Berylwood Elementary to become principal at Arroyo Elementary; Deborah Riley is going from Abe Lincoln Elementary to Berylwood Elementary; and Denise Vale is leaving Arroyo Elementary to become principal at Vista Elementary, replacing Barbara Patten, who is retiring.

The changes leave only one school- Abe Lincoln- without a principal. The district is currently searching to fill that position.

Don Gaudioso, assistant superintendent in charge of personnel services, said that every principal on the list volunteered for a change.

"Each principal and assistant principal was ready for new challenges," Gaudioso said. "We just tried to match them up with their strengths."

The district also released a list of new assistant principals, including Sean Platt (Berylwood), Sandra Josephson (Garden Grove Elementary), Laura Wellington (Royal High) and Jason Peplinksi (Santa Susana High). All were selected from within the district.

According to Gaudioso, the assistant principals were placed in schools that would train them in areas that are new to them, such as schools with a large population of English as a second language students.

The goal is to place them in an environment that will give them skills for the future, he said.

For more information about the 200708 administrative assignments or to ask questions, call Gaudioso at (805) 306-4590.