Supt. says she’ll retire

After five years leading the Huntington Beach City School District, Supt. Roberta De Luca has announced her retirement.

“The timing was just right,” De Luca said. “I think the district’s in a very good place. It’s the right time for the district, and it’s the right time for me. I’m ready to do something different.”

For De Luca, “different” means volunteering in her community and her local animal shelter, traveling and getting back into golf.

She spoke highly of the instructors, staff, students and parents that comprise what she calls the “best private public school district in the county.”

“I’m very proud of the work that all of our staffs have been doing to improve the quality of instruction for our kids,” De Luca said. “I initiated the Preppy Kindergarten program, and that has just been a huge success.”

Before starting at the district, De Luca was an assistant superintendent at Norwalk-La Mirada Unified. She also has experience as a human resources administrator, elementary school principal, reading specialist and teacher.

“We are very sad to lose her,” school board President Rosemary Saylor said. “Roberta has been an inspiration, particularly for me.”

Saylor is one of the board’s newest members, and said De Luca both educated her and took her under her wing.

“She’s got energy; ambition; integrity,” Saylor said. “She maintained such a connection with all of the school sites; she doesn’t just meet with the principals.”

“She’s done a wonderful job with academics in particular,” board Vice President Shirley Carey said. “It’s been wonderful; we’ll miss her.”

“I was very lucky,” De Luca said. “I have a fabulous board, and we’ve had a great run. I know they will always be my supporters, and I will always support them.”

“When the person who hired you retires, it’s sort of sad,” Dwyer Middle School Principal Don Ruisinger said. “I think she was at the district during an incredibly important transition time.”

Ruisinger started his tenure at Dwyer, a Title I school, during a time of building remodernization — back when the campus was labeled a “Program Improvement School,” meaning it had failed to meet its Adequate Yearly Progress goals for two or more years.

This year, it was named a Distinguished School, the highest honor in the state.

Ruisinger said De Luca taught him how to be a principal

Saylor said the board’s next steps are to search for either an interim or permanent superintendent. She and her colleagues held a preliminary meeting Tuesday night to go over their options.

De Luca will be at the district until July 1.

She will depart after helping the board make difficult financial decisions for the coming years, following hefty budget cut mandates from the state.

De Luca said she hopes the district will continue its ascent, and do the best it can under present and future financial circumstances.

“I’m really a leader who builds, and right now, the state is going to require us to destroy things. I’m really not that person,” De Luca said.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS:

Under De Luca’s guidance, the district has:

 Revitalized its special education department

 Implemented Professional Learning Communities for its staff

 Introduced a fee-based preschool to bring ongoing revenue to the district

 Improved test scores and increased enrollment

 Added choirs at the middle schools

 Created an annual student art exhibit