Los Gatos Weekly-Times

New LGHS principal: Trudy McCulloch

LGHS's new principal comes from San Jose's Mt. Pleasant

By John Pancharian

Los Gatos High School has a new principal. In a public special meeting April 28, the Los Gatos Saratoga Joint Union High School District board of trustees unanimously voted to approve Trudy McCulloch for the post, which will become vacant June 30 when Ted Simonson retires.

"I plan to spend a lot of time listening to the students, staff, parents and the community," McCulloch said of her short-range plans. "I'll spend a lot of time learning about the school and trying to support people here as much as I can."

McCulloch comes to Los Gatos from the East Side Union High School District in San Jose, where she has spent the past five years as principal of Mt. Pleasant High School. She began in the East Side district in 1968, working as a teacher, counselor, supervisor and associate principal before becoming principal of Mt. Pleasant in 1993. McCulloch leaves the East Side district having earned its Distinguished Associate Principal Award and Career Services Award.

Los Gatos-Saratoga superintendent Cindy Ranii said that she chose McCulloch to recommend to the board out of a field of about 32 applicants from all over California and out of state.

"This has been a three-month process which included a screening committee made up of staff, students and parents. They did a great job, and the results are that we've found a truly distinguished educator who's a good match for a truly distinguished school," Ranii said.

McCulloch's transition into LGHS comes at an eventful time, as other administrators leave and the school completes a six-year self-assessment.

This assessment, officially presented at a meeting on April 29 at LGHS, is used by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges for accreditation purposes. Ranii explained that having such a detailed portrait of LGHS available to McCulloch should help her find direction in her new job.

But Ted Simonson isn't the only one leaving. Assistant principals Al Simon and Patty Hughes will also depart LGHS this year, creating a significant leadership gap.

"It's a bit of a blow to the district and to teachers because--bang!--we suddenly lose three admired leaders," board president Ron Adolphson said. "But by the same token, this opens the door for our new administrator to create her own team and come in nice and fresh."

Ted Simonson, the 20-year principal of LGHS, said of his replacement, "Everybody who's looked into it has said to me that she's the kind of person the staff will love, and she'll love the staff." He said he envies McCulloch the times in which she will lead LGHS.

"If I were 10 or 15 years younger, I wouldn't dream of leaving," Simonson said. "If we pass Measure B, we'll have new facilities; we have $438,000 for technology improvements coming [from state Digital High School grants]. We may be in the best shape we've been in for decades, so I'm envious."

Simonson said he has received many job offers, as well as suggestions to run for both Los Gatos Town Council and the district board of trustees. Simonson, with 50 service years in the district, said he is still deciding on his various options but will definitely not run for the district board this year.

"I can't run for the board because with all the sick days I've got accumulated, I'll still be a district employee during the election," he said.

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