The Governing Board of the Hart School District is pleased to announce the appointment of Mike Kuhlman as the new assistant superintendent educational services effective December 22, 2014. The appointment was made at the Board’s regular meeting held November 5, 2014. This administrative opening is a result of the recent promotion of Vicki Engbrecht from deputy superintendent to superintendent starting February 1, 2015, following the retirement of Rob Challinor.
Engbrecht is the superintendent-elect as of November 1, 2014.
Kuhlman has served as principal of Canyon High School since 2012, and has worked for the Hart School District since 1997. He served as principal of Placerita Junior High School from 2006-2012, interim principal at Rancho Pico Junior High School in 2004, assistant principal of Canyon High School from 2001-2006 and taught social studies at Saugus High School from 1997-2001, including as a mentor teacher and Advanced Placement teacher.
“Our District includes some of the highest performing schools in the state and it’s a weighty responsibility to ensure that the students of the Santa Clarita Valley continue to excel. Nevertheless, with such an exceptional team to work with, I look forward with confidence to the many challenges that lay ahead,” Kuhlman said. “To Canyon staff, I am proud of the work we have done together and I will miss the opportunity to collaborate with our students and families, and with my Canyon colleagues and friends, on a daily basis.”
Kuhlman earned his bachelor of arts in history, Magna Cum Laude, from UCLA in 1994, his teaching credential from UC Irvine in 1995 and his administrative credential from University of La Verne in 2001. He is the current president of the Hart District Management Association, a member of the collective bargaining team since 2004, and has previously held the position of president with the Association of California School Administrators (ACSA), Santa Clarita Valley.
Kuhlman was named the Secondary Principal of the Year in 2014, received the Award for Schoolwide Effectiveness in 2012 and the Middle Grades Principal of the year in 2008, by ACSA – SCV. He also received the prestigious Charter Leadership award in 2007 and the Co-Administrator of the year award in 2005, by ACSA – Region VX. He was also named Teacher of the Year at Saugus High School in 1998.
As principal for both a junior high and high school, Kuhlman has successfully led professional development teams, supervised personnel and put plans into place to successfully raise API scores significantly. This past year, Kuhlman lead a team through the accreditation process with the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, earning the highest possible term of accreditation for a six year term with a mid-cycle progress report.