Newberg School District is returning staff support for secondary teaching and learning and professional development.  Superintendent Kym LeBlanc-Esparza announced Tuesday night that Stafford Boyd, current Yellow School principal, will become the Director of Title Programs, Professional Development and Secondary Teaching and Learning. 

Boyd’s new position combines responsibilities from two district positions that have remained vacant -- Director of Teaching ad Learning and a grants manager position. While various district staff has assumed many of the responsibilities, the need has increased for curriculum support, professional development and management of the $800,000 federal Title budget.

“We have considerable ground to make up for to train and support our staff to be well prepared for Common Core Standards and teaching students in the 21st Century,” said LeBlanc-Esparza. “Stafford knows our district well and brings a skill set and systems thinking that is the right fit for this new role. He will be a pivotal part of moving our strategic plan forward.”

Since Boyd was hired in 2011 as principal of Yellow School, he has sharpened the focus on preparing students for college and career, community participation and continued learning.  He guided the faculty implementation of standards-based grading system and lead the development of a co-teaching model to provide great support for ELL students. Boyd launched a pilot of student-lead conferences at Yellow School and worked to engage the broader community in judging student senior project presentations.

Boyd previously served as administrator responsible for instructional programs at
Thornton High School, a 1750-student school recognized by the state of Colorado for high academic growth. In that position Boyd led numerous district committees around standards, teaching and learning and drop-out prevention. Prior to serving as Assistant Principal for Curriculum and Instruction, Boyd was Dean of Students and a social studies teacher at Thornton HS. He also served as a social studies teacher at Encina High School in Carmichael, California, where the National Foundation named him Teacher of the Year for Teaching Entrepreneurship.

Boyd holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in history from the University of California at Davis and a Masters Degree in Education Administration from Denver University in Colorado.