05 Sep Superintendent Announcement
On behalf of the PUC Schools Boards of Trustees, I’m thrilled to announce that longtime team member Concepción Rivas has been named the new Superintendent of PUC Schools. Concepción has been a leader at our schools since 2005 and will now take the helm of the organization to oversee 14 schools and 5,000 students.
This move to create the superintendent position to oversee both PUC Schools regions heralds a new and exciting era for PUC. In recent years, we’ve operated with one regional superintendent for the Los Angeles schools, and another for the Valley schools. Our schools have thrived, but the time had come to build a leadership structure that reflected the spirit of unity that runs across our organization. We are one organization and one culture and should be led by one strong visionary leader.
After conducting a months-long search, the board unanimously voted to appoint Concepción to the newly created position, believing she was singularly qualified for the role because of her extensive experience in education and her deep roots at PUC. She is a strong leader, a champion for all students as well as an advocate for quality teaching. Most impressively, she carried out her duties guided by the core values of service, accountability and integrity.
Concepción was raised in the neighborhoods we serve and knows what it’s like to grow up in historically underserved communities. As the first person in her family to graduate from college and pursue a professional career, Concepción is committed to getting our students ready to succeed in college. Part of that work includes addressing social inequalities through social justice.
In her own words: “I am dedicated to ensuring that schools serve as a vehicle for all students to guide them toward their purpose, voice, identity, and to develop the skills to self-actualize in order to uplift themselves, their family and their communities.”
Under her leadership, 96 percent of PUC graduates were UC- and CSU-ready and nearly 100 percent of each graduating class has been accepted to colleges and universities—approximately 3/4 of those to four-year universities. Four PUC schools this year were named by U.S. News & World Report among the top 8% of high schools in the country, continuing a long-standing tradition of recognition by the prestigious ranking. She also played a critical role in securing seven charter renewals at PUC Schools in her first year as a regional superintendent.
Concepción began with our organization as a special education teacher and then went on to become an assistant principal and then principal of PUC CALS Charter Middle & Early College High School. In 2018, she was named regional superintendent at PUC Schools, overseeing six schools in northeast Los Angeles.
She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in history from California State University, Northridge and later received a Master of Science in Special Education from National University.
We are excited to welcome Concepción as our PUC Schools Superintendent as she ushers us into a new era of even greater growth, achievement and excellence. Join us in welcoming her to this new role and in supporting her efforts to realize a vision that will continue to bring transformational change not only to our students, but to the entire community.
Sincerely,
Juana Maria Valdivia
Board President
PUC Schools Boards of Trustees