School Board Commendations

Mt. Pleasant Elementary School District: At every step of the way we found the services of the staff at Leadership Associates to be responsive to the specific needs of our district and the rapidly changing circumstances surrounding the [COVID-19] crisis. I highly recommend the services of Leadership Associates and specifically Eric Andrew and David Verdugo.

Fresno Unified School District:  Thank you to Leadership Associates for all your assistance in the process. As you know, only two of us were on the Board the last time a Superintendent was hired, and at that time, there was no search process. It was invaluable to have the assistance of a team that has experience in the selection of a Superintendent.

Larkspur-Corte Madera School District:  Searching for and choosing a superintendent is one of, if not the, most important pieces of work a school board can undertake and Leadership Associates was the absolute right fit for our search needs. Our consultants’ collective years of experience as successful superintendents themselves elevated our thoughtful and thorough search process. They helped us identify our needs and reached out to their extensive network, bringing forward to our board a rich field of candidates for consideration. The consultants were responsive, patient, and adaptive to our process. We worked well as a team and that made all the difference.

Wiseburn School District:  Thank you for your thoughtful leadership and guidance in the process.  It was an absolute pleasure meeting you, getting to know you, and working with you. I certainly look forward to future opportunities and interactions with you.  I think we made two excellent choices in Leadership Associates and Dr. Blake Silvers.

Bass Lake Joint Union Elementary School District:  Thank you, Sally. I cannot express enough how grateful I am that we chose you and Leadership Associates for this process. The confidence I felt, throughout this process, in your ability to guide us, was tremendous. The step by step process that you lead us through was focused, intentional, and direct. It was a pleasure to be a part of something that was so well thought out, with excellence as your minimum standard. You are so good at what you do! I wish you continued success for all the districts that you work with in the future. They need you whether they know it or not!

Whittier City School District:  Leadership Associates’ process ensured the school and community that the Board valued their input and wanted them to fully participate in the process. Leadership Associates was very accessible to our needs and calls. We are extremely pleased with the support we received …and would rehire them again without question.

Plumas Unified School District & Plumas County Office of Education:  Leadership Associates are exceptional at what they do. They helped us find an amazing superintendent, which has allowed us to move forward in achieving our educational goals. We would emphatically recommend Leadership Associates to any district looking to fill a superintendent vacancy. Their outstanding competence and character combined to make the experience both wildly successful and pleasant. We don’t anticipate needing another superintendent for quite some time, but if we did, we would call them immediately.

East Whittier City School District:  The Board of the East Whittier City School District wishes to thank your organization for appointing Sandy Sanchez Thorstenson and Marc Ecker to supervise and coordinate our superintendent search this spring. I am confident that I don’t need to tell you that Sandy and Marc are two exceptional individuals to work with, but I will anyway. They ran the interviews like clockwork with plenty of time for reflection of each candidate at the end of the interview. We were presented with six outstanding candidates, which we enjoyed. It was challenging to decide which of the candidates was the best fit for our District. We are confident that our choice of superintendent is that best choice. We were delighted to work with Sandy and Marc, and will gladly recommend them as the premier search team.

Carmel Unified School District:  The entire process was extremely smooth and conducted with the utmost respect for all parties involved. We were on time, and communication was regular, open, and transparent. The most difficult part of the process was at the end of the interview process. The board had to choose only one candidate from the experienced pool of multiple candidates presented by Leadership Associates. We consider the superintendent search led by Leadership Associates an absolute success. The individual we hired is the perfect match for our students, staff and community.

Panama-Buena Vista School District:  Leadership Associates is well connected throughout the state. The process from beginning to end was well communicated and very organized. Leadership Associates is literally a “who’s who” of educators in the state. A successful superintendent search and hiring was our goal and Leadership Associates delivered!

Ft. Bragg Unified School District:  Leadership Associates brought to the search an impressive wealth and breadth of experience and contacts from large and small, urban and rural, coastal, and inland school districts. Leadership Associates listened to us and recognized that although we are a small, rural district, we have high, twenty-first century goals for our kids.

Palo Alto Unified School District:  We recognize the selection of a superintendent is the most important decision we make as a school board, Leadership Associates designed an effective process to get to know us and to meet our needs – including recruiting candidates who were not looking for a new position.

Summerville Joint Union High School District:  Thank you for all the work you and the firm have completed. WeI know we were demanding because we have a really involved community. But you just moved forward and got the job done Great work!! We will highly recommend your service to any District in our County. 

University Preparatory School:  Leadership Associates was constantly available to us. Leadership Associates brought much more than guidance and experience; (the consultant) brought genuine kindness, creative vision and integrity that underpin all great endeavors. I highly recommend Leadership Associates.

Encinitas Union School District:  Leadership Associates has years of experience in working with districts throughout California and their expertise was clearly evident when they provided us with an outstanding field of candidates. Their networking resources are unparalleled.

Irvine Unified School District:  With an unprecedented number of superintendent vacancies across the state, we were impressed with Leadership Associates’ ability to attract highly qualified candidates, due in no small part to their excellent reputation and exceptional attention to confidentiality.

San Ramon Valley Union High School District:  Your team was responsive to questions raised during the process. The background checks on our candidates were thorough and there were no surprises.

Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District:  Your diligence, patience, professionalism, and the confidential manner in which you conducted the search were exemplary. Indeed, one would be hard-pressed to find a team to match the level of expertise and recognition within the professional learning community which you so ably employed on our behalf.

Palo Alto Unified School District:  Not only does Leadership Associates bring an incredible wealth of experience and competence to the task; they also are so personally engaging and professional that it makes the process most pleasant.

Oceanside Unified School District:  Their work with our administrative staff, our teachers, classified staff, and our community groups was excellent. They received praise for this work throughout our community. Our principals and central office staff were treated with the utmost respect, and they were very complimentary of the professionalism of this search firm.

Walnut Valley Unified School District:  Not only are they consummate professionals, but their process in conducting the search was impeccable – from soliciting input from the Board and community members to developing personal and professional profiles, to screening the applicants to recommending the final candidates, to helping the Board finalize the main hiring points for our new superintendent.

Standard School District:  Leadership Associates had regular communications with the board and dependably delivered on each step in our timeline. Trust in the process was a result of Leadership Associates’ extensive experience and in the actions and care…. while respecting the role of trustees as the decision-makers of the district. 

Fullerton School District:  Our Board was especially appreciative of the professional manner in which Leadership Associates reached out in a meaningful way to the educational community and listened to the direction of the Board of Trustees. I highly recommend Leadership Associates to any board seeking to conduct a thorough and in-depth superintendent recruitment and selection process.

Eureka City Schools:  Leadership Associates persevered and actively recruited candidates suitable for our unique location. Their combined knowledge and experience were invaluable. It had been 13 years since our district’s last superintendent search and they supported our board throughout the entire process. 

Folsom-Cordova Unified School District:  They received applications from California as well as other states in the country. They performed in-depth reference checks that resulted in a list of outstanding candidates to interview. Without their services as recruiters, we would not have had the rich field of candidates from which we eventually selected our new superintendent.

Fowler Unified School District:  Leadership Associates was completely thorough from their initial proposal to the Board, through the actual hiring of a successful superintendent candidate. The communication to all members of the Board and the designated District contact was exemplary throughout the process. Parents/community members/staff felt very comfortable sharing with Leadership Associates representatives the various traits valued in our next Superintendent. The on-line survey they utilized was especially helpful for members of the community and parents, as it gave them an opportunity for their voice to be heard if they were unavailable to schedule a meeting in person.

Central Union High School District:  It has once been a great experience having Leadership Associates work with our District.  I truly believe we would not have had anywhere near the pool of applicants had it not been for you helping us.

Evergreen School District: Leadership Associates did an excellent job in our recent Superintendent Search process. This was the first time that our district has ever engaged in an external search process, and I found it much more rewarding and less stressful because of the superb support of Eric and Fred.

Santa Maria Joint Union High School District: Great candidates! Appreciate your thorough vetting; best work yet for this district. My first-choice search firm does it again!!

Kentfield School District: Each of us is grateful for your great work on the search for Kentfield. we could not be more pleased by the thoughtful and extremely thorough search process. We particularly appreciated your flexibility, responsiveness, and creativity with the search over the past several weeks. Quite simply, you never skipped a beat with the search process, despite a global pandemic looming in the background. If there is ever a potential client on the fence about hiring you guys have them call me. They would be lucky to have you guys in their corner.