Principal's Message
Greetings La Mesa Community,
It gives me great pleasure to introduce myself as your Principal. With 20 years experience in public education, I understand the importance of honest communication, shared goals, and consistent leadership. I know that we have a lot to learn from each other. Building capacity within our school site is only possible when each member of our team supports the school vision, creates specific goals and takes ownership of their role.
It gives me great pleasure to introduce myself as your Principal. With 20 years experience in public education, I understand the importance of honest communication, shared goals, and consistent leadership. I know that we have a lot to learn from each other. Building capacity within our school site is only possible when each member of our team supports the school vision, creates specific goals and takes ownership of their role.
I know that student success ultimately depends on the connection and interdependence of families, staff and students. Using YouthTruth’s surveys to gather data about your experiences at La Mesa is important to us. Thank you to all of the families, staff, and students that provided feedback. Your voice matters to all of us!
As a Staff, we dedicated time to read and analyze data from our families, students, and staff. Here are some of the trends that we noticed below. We will discuss in more detail at our next SSC meeting with community and family representatives.
Please extend a warm La Mesa welcome to our Assistant Principal, Susie Shin-Ma:
“I am very excited to be a part of the La Mesa community. I have been an educator in California public schools my entire career. I started teaching as a 1st grade Spanish bilingual teacher in 1996. In addition to being a multiple subject general education teacher, I’ve taught kindergarten through 8th grade as a drama teacher, Spanish teacher, and academic coach. I have been an assistant principal in Salinas and at the International School of Monterey for the last 8 years. During my years I’ve seen the many facets of the public school system from all perspectives, including that of a parent.
From my experience, I’ve learned that it is important to assume positive intentions. I’ve also learned that when we openly communicate and listen to solve problems, we, teachers, staff, parents, and administrators all want what’s best for students. I look forward to being a part of a team where student success and well-being are at the heart of everything we do everyday.”
Thank you in advance for your continued support. We look forward to meeting you all in person soon!
Sincerely,
Susie Shin-Ma
Assistant Principal