First in a series
Re “The New Super’s Message to His Former Community in Washington State”
Not by accident did Dave LaRose and his family land in Culver City where he will be the new Superintendent of the School District.
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From left, Mindi, Madison, 18, Lyndsi, 22, and Dave LaRose
Any parent who ever has been an empty-nester can understand the feelings of Culver City’s new First Family of education.
“This is aligned with my belief systems around the whole child,” Mr. LaRose said Sunday afternoon by telephone from his Washington state home in Port Orchard.
“I think it is relative to the whole adult as well. When you have that balance in terms of your professional and personal life, that is when you have the opportunity to perform to the best of your ability.
“As a family, we are at a transition point. Our oldest daughter graduated from UCLA, and she decided to stay down there. Our youngest graduated high school this year, and she decided to go to Grand Canyon in the Phoenix area.
Choosing a Direction
“So my wife and I had conversations about the next chapter in our lives. One of the things that is really important to us is our own personal family. We had considerations about relocating to the Southern California area to maintain a personal and accessible relationship with our daughters.
“Our youngest, Maddy, would be leaving home, and we wanted to stay close to both of them,” said the 46-year-old Mr. LaRose who has spent the past eight years with the South Kitsap School District, four as the Super
“We researched the area. I am passionate about kids and public education, and I had initial conversations with Wendell Chun,” part of the headhunting team hired by the District to find a replacement for Supt. Patti Jaffe, retired as of last Friday.
Mr. LaRose and Mr. Chun “spent a lot of time reviewing the posting and what it said about characteristics and qualities. Based on the research, I thought my experience, my background and interests looked like a great fit. I love the size of the District. I think that as you transition through various roles in education, you have a tendency to get further and further away from what you like most – working with kids.
“To be in a school system that is still K-12, I really enjoy that type of environment in terms of the transition and being able to focus on pre-K all the way and beyond graduation from high school.
“To have five elementary schools, one middle school and one high school that clearly, intimately is connected to who and what the community is, I just saw a great alignment,” Mr. LaRose said.
(To be continued)
