Local teacher receives national honor
Miano teacher, Sergio deAlba, has been selected for the National Teachers Hall of Fame. The National Teachers Hall of Fame honors five teachers who have demonstrated commitment and dedication to teaching our nation’s children.
Sergio will receive a permanent display in the National Teachers Hall of Fame; a Signet ring and lapel pin; $1,000 in materials; and a cast bronze bell tower award. Finally, he has the option to attend the induction ceremonies in Washington D.C. and in Emporia, Kansas.
District names two new principals
April Latta assigned to Westside
April Latta was selected as the new principal for Westside Union Elementary School following the retirement of principal Joe McColloch.
Latta is well known to the community of Los Banos as she began her career at Los Banos High School and taught in the social science department for 15 years. Additionally, she engaged in other facets of the Los Banos high community while mentoring new teachers, coaching and as a scholarship advisor.
Latta was a learning director and assistant principal at Los Banos High School from 2016 to this year. Most recently, she served as the assistant principal for Mercey Springs Elementary. In 2020 Latta entered the doctoral program at California State University Stanislaus and is currently completing her dissertation research and plans to graduate with her EdD in Educational Leadership in the Spring of 2023.
She officially begins her new role as a Pioneer on July 1 where she is committed to ensuring all students learn.
Maggie Ordunez will run Grasslands
Maggie Ordunez was recently selected as the new principal for Grasslands Elementary School.
She started her career in the San Jose Unified School district where she taught in a full Spanish Immersion classroom. For the past 22 years, Ordunez has worked in the Los Banos Unified School District as an elementary teacher.
During her tenure in LBUSD, she has also served as an academic coach, providing new teacher training and professional development throughout the district in the area of ELD and early literacy. Additionally, she served as a Resource Teacher charged with the coordination and administration of the ELPAC and CAASPP assessments. For the past five years, she has served as the assistant principal of Westside Union Elementary School.
We are very confident that Ordunez will do an exemplary job in her new role!
New director selected
Carolina Moreno has been selected as the Director of English Language Learner Services and Migrant Education Programs.
One of Los Banos Unified School District’s academic goals is to implement strategies to enable our English learner students to successfully transition to rigorous academic courses. Additionally, due to the increasing number of migrant students, it is essential that the district’s local program be operated by the district instead of a county agency, which is how it has been operating in the past.
Prior to her new assignment, Moreno served as principal at Creekside Junior High for the past seven years. In 2020, she was named Middle Grades Principal of the Year for the ACSA Region IX Merced Charter. Based on her training and extensive experience, she will do a stellar job in her new position.
