Alisal Union superintendent seeks reorganization and outside baseline study to break stagnant student outcomes

Superintendent Monica Anzo told the Alisal Union School District board that she has spent roughly 100 days in the role and is recommending an organizational realignment to give principals more consistent instructional support.

Anzo said the proposed change would consolidate principal supervision under the deputy superintendent of educational services and revise job descriptions for the deputy superintendent, director of leadership and principals. She presented the changes as a way to align instructional leadership and promised a transition "no later than January 1" if the board approved the recommendation later in the meeting.

Why it matters: district-level academic indicators on the 2025 California School Dashboard showed ELA and math in the orange category and an increase in chronic absenteeism, prompting staff to prioritize targeted coaching, data-driven accountability and a sharper instructional focus.

Anzo also recommended a third-party baseline academic study to reduce reliance on program additions without clear evidence. "We have brought a lot of programs... yet we remain stagnant," she told trustees, arguing an external consultant can help identify blind spots and recommend evidence-based, scalable interventions.

Board response was largely supportive. One board member said the presentation "got down to the nitty gritty of it" and expressed appreciation for the superintendent's focus on principals and classroom practices. Trustees asked who would conduct the baseline study; Anzo replied the district is talking with research-based external partners and emphasized the need for an unbiased review.

The superintendent framed the changes as instructional rather than personnel reductions, saying job descriptions will be revised to reflect current responsibilities and to support fair evaluations. "Effective leadership is defined by results, not attributes," she said.

Next steps: the board voted later in the meeting to adopt revised job descriptions for the deputy superintendent and principals and to approve an administrative structure change on the staff recommendation. A separate procurement for a third-party baseline study was described as forthcoming; timing and vendor details were not specified in the meeting record.

Quotation: "Every system is perfectly designed to get the results that it does," Anzo said, urging a data-driven approach to change.

What remains unresolved: the transcript records that the district is seeking a consultant but does not name a vendor, state the study's scope in detail, or set a firm contract timeline; the superintendent said the study is intended to be unbiased and to surface classroom-level evidence that will guide targeted supports.