SAN DIEGO — You may not recognize the name Fabiola Bagula, but San Diego Unified’s new interim superintendent is definitely not a stranger to the district. In fact, she's not a stranger to education all across the county, which is why believes that makes her a great pick for the job.
“I'm a consummate educator. I’m a little bit of a nerd,” Bagula said during a one on one interview with CBS 8. “I went to school for 17 years post high school and it's because I absolutely love education.”
The San Diego Unified School Board promoted Bagula earlier this week from acting superintendent to interim – a title that give her more power to make decisions. She took over after the past superintendent was forced out last month under allegations of misconduct. Bagula says, under her leadership, the district can move forward without distractions.
“I don't have anything in my closet," she says. "And I've always been just here trying my best and making sure that students come to school with joy in our learning and also that the teachers come to school with joy to teach.”
Bagula grew up in San Diego and has worked here as a teacher, a principal, and an area superintendent, but she's also worked with other districts, opening her up to new ideas.
“I think I'm a combination of both an insider and an outsider,” she said.”
So where does she stand on issues parents have expressed concerns about?
On the district’s new earlier start date, she said, “I know those decisions were made about graduation and athletics, and there was a lot of reasons for that shift, but we're done. That's the earliest we're going to start.”
She also addressed the new cell phone policy, saying she doesn't think kids should be punished for having something we all use. But she also understands the dangers of phones when it comes to social media and bullying so she'd like to include everyone in the conversation about campus rules.
“I want to make sure that students, with their families, have a say into how we enact this,” Bagula said. “And the reason I say that is because I've seen rules be enforced differently, even by teachers that are door to door.”
Bagula hopes to get the job permanently, but knows that's the board's decision, not hers. In the meantime, she's proud to be San Diego Unified's first Latina leader and hopes it inspires the district's growing demographic of Latino students to dream big.
“There is a lot of research that talks about how when children see examples of people, not only with degrees, but in careers, they start to dream really big and that's exactly what I hope to do, that I inspire students to say you can get a doctorate, you can get a master's degree.”
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