About Dr. Thompson
John Thompson began serving as the superintendent of the New Haven Unified School District in July of 2019. Prior to working in New Haven, Dr. Thompson served as an assistant superintendent in the San Leandro Unified School District for nine years where he was primarily in charge of human resources. Before coming to San Leandro, Dr. Thompson worked in the South San Francisco Unified School District for 16 years where he was a high school teacher, high school assistant principal, elementary principal, and assistant/associate superintendent.
With over two decades of public education service, Dr. Thompson has experience leading work in many areas of education including curriculum development, student services, special education, human resources, and labor relations. He also has led and implemented school bond related design teams and construction projects.
Dr. Thompson's educational background includes a bachelor's degree from the University of California, Santa Barbara, a master's degree in educational leadership from San Francisco State University, and a doctorate in organizational leadership from the University of San Francisco. He is also credentialed to teach biology and general science.
Superintendent’s Message
Fall 2023
Dear Students, Parents, and Community Members:
Welcome to a new school year!
I am excited to welcome our students, families, and staff back to our sites this school year. We have been working hard to prepare our sites for the start of school, and all of our school sites have new upgrades. Some of these upgrades are easy to see, such as the new paint at Alvarado Elementary School or the new paving at Hillview Crest Elementary School. Other improvements are less visible, such as the new HVAC units at Kitayama Elementary School and James Logan High School. We also have many projects that are in various stages of completion. You can look forward to seeing new “Makers Spaces” at many of our sites and new turf fields replacing those at CCMS and IVCMS. These projects are funded with Measure M funds, and I would like to, again, thank our community for supporting our schools.
Over the past three years, our strategic plan goals and action initiatives directed our work. We developed these goals and initiatives using input from the NHUSD community, which kept us focused on the needs of our students, staff, and families throughout some very challenging times. This year, we will create a new three-year strategic plan based, again, on the needs of our NHUSD community. Throughout the fall, we will seek community input, so please let us know your priorities for our district when you get the opportunity.
I’m looking forward to seeing everyone at our school sites and events, and I hope you all have a great start to the 2023-24 school year.
Sincerely,
John Thompson, Ed.D.
Superintendent
SPANISH TRANSLATION
Estimados estudiantes, padres y miembros de la comunidad:
¡Bienvenidos a un nuevo año escolar!
Estoy emocionado de dar la bienvenida a nuestros estudiantes, familias y personal de regreso a nuestras escuelas este año escolar. Hemos estado trabajando duro para preparar a nuestras escuelas para el comienzo de clases y todas nuestras escuelas tienen nuevas mejoras. Algunas de estas mejoras son fáciles de ver, como la nueva pintura en la Escuela Primaria Alvarado o el nuevo pavimento en la Escuela Primaria Hillview Crest. Otras mejoras son menos visibles, como las nuevas unidades HVAC en la Escuela Primaria Kitayama y en la Escuela Preparatoria James Logan. También tenemos muchos proyectos que están en varias etapas para completarse. Usted puede ver nuevos ” Makers Spaces” (espacios creativos) en muchas de nuestras escuelas y nuevos campos de césped reemplazando los de CCMS e IVCMS. Estos proyectos son financiados con fondos de la Medida M y me gustaría, una vez más, agradecer a nuestra comunidad por apoyar a nuestras escuelas.
Durante los últimos tres años, nuestras metas e iniciativas de acción del plan estratégico dirigieron nuestro trabajo. Desarrollamos estas metas e iniciativas usando información de la comunidad de NHUSD, lo cual nos mantuvo concentrados en las necesidades de nuestros estudiantes, personal y familias a través de tiempos muy difíciles. Este año, crearemos un nuevo plan estratégico de tres años basado, de nuevo, en las necesidades de nuestra comunidad NHUSD. Durante el otoño, pediremos información de la comunidad, así que por favor díganos sus prioridades para nuestro distrito cuando tenga la oportunidad.
Espero ver a todos en nuestras escuelas y eventos, y espero que todos tengan un gran comienzo para el año escolar 2023-24.
Sinceramente,
John Thompson, Ed.D.
Superintendente
