We are thrilled to share the news that the ĢƵ Governing Board unanimously voted to select Pablo Villavicencio as ĢƵ College-Ready Public Schools’ next Chief Executive Officer. Currently serving as ĢƵ’s President & Superintendent, Pablo will transition to the role of CEO effective January 3, 2022.

 has dedicated his life to ensuring better educational opportunities for low-income communities similar to the one he grew up in, El Sereno in East Los Angeles. He has proven to be a consummate strategic and inspirational leader for ĢƵ educators, and a committed, heart-centered role model with whom our scholars can closely identify. Like many ĢƵ scholars, Pablo was the first in his family to graduate from college, which drives his unyielding commitment to the mission of ensuring more children in Los Angeles have access to and can succeed in college.

ĢƵ Governing Board Chair Joe Drake stated, 

“Pablo’s combination of connection to our community, extensive experience across many roles in public education, including strong experience as a principal and educator, and unwavering commitment to the success of all scholars made him clearly stand out as the right leader for our schools. He is truly a transformational leader, and his work in public education has been a game-changer for the scholars we serve.”

Over the last half-decade at ĢƵ, Pablo’s strong leadership and educator expertise has had a transformative impact on our schools and scholars. Notably, he:

  • Led ĢƵ’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including the pivot to distance learning, enacting comprehensive health and safety protocols, and operationalizing ĢƵ’s return to in-person learning.
  • Set the vision for coaching and development of ĢƵ’s school leaders, which has led to an increase in instructional rigor in ĢƵ schools. This has resulted in increases in the percent of ĢƵ scholars’ meeting or exceeding California’s academic standings in both ELA and math for all scholars, English Learners and scholars with disabilities.
  • Improved school leader hiring practices, resulting in a significant increase in the number of Principals and Assistant Principals who identify as African American/Black and Latinx.
  • Built ĢƵ’s first Scholars, Families, and Communities team, ensuring that we are addressing the whole child through social-emotional learning practices.

After earning his bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Berkeley, and his Masters in Education from Bank Street College of Education, Pablo spent the first 10 years of his educational career as a teacher and school administrator in the Bronx, in New York City. He became a founding principal of a public school designed for recent immigrants and English Language Learners, also in New York City. Later he was appointed to senior administrator roles in both the Oakland Unified School District and the San Francisco Unified School District. 

We are deeply grateful to Dan Katzir, ĢƵ’s current CEO, for everything he has done for our scholars, staff and families. He helped take ĢƵ to new heights and he built the foundation upon which we will continue to build. Over the next six months, Dan will serve as an advisor to Pablo to ensure strength and continuity during this important transition. 

Stay tuned for upcoming opportunities to meet and hear from Pablo about his vision for ĢƵ’s future. And know that we are exceedingly grateful to you, our supporters, for cheering ĢƵ on through this exciting change, making our continued path-breaking work in education possible for thousands of scholars and families across Los Angeles.