Pleasanton school board promotes interim superintendent permanently

PLEASANTON The Pleasanton Unified School Board will hire Maurice Ghysels to be the new permanent superintendent a job he s been filling temporarily for the last year Ghysels an alumnus of Pleasanton schools previously served between and as superintendent for the Mountain View Whisman School District until he revealed he had a romantic relationship with another principal and abruptly left his post He worked as superintendent for the Menlo Park City School District in and then served as an administrator for the Ravenswood City School District in East Palo Alto Last year he became PUSD s interim superintendent replacing David Haglund who took the job after the school board fired his predecessor Rick Rubino over charges of sexual harassment Board President Justin Brown commented in a message that Ghysels has proven himself as the right leader for PUSD Ghysels exemplifies the full range of qualities the district searched for and is well-positioned to guide the district forward with confidence and continuity In his new job Ghysels will inherit a shaky budget with the school board last month making million in cuts and approving a dozen layoffs PUSD has been experiencing declining enrollment and growing expenses The board on Thursday is expected to approve Ghysel s new permanent contract which states he will be paid an annual salary of plus benefits Since last October the district has paid Ghysels per workday according to his temporary contract Ghysels holds a doctorate degree in tuition from the University of San Francisco He got his start in learning as a instructor at Pleasanton s Amador Valley High School and has held other educational positions at the Campbell Union School District Loyola Marymount University Pepperdine University and the Santa Clara County Office of Schooling PUSD is facing a qualified multi-year budget with razor thin reserves which means we can t meet our financial obligations over the next three years We need to focus on more right-sizing that is centered on learner requirements Ghysels wrote in a July declaration as interim superintendent It s truly an honor to come full circle and return and I want to lead in a manner that sets us up for a superb permanent superintendent who we all deserve