At one time Patricia Escalante’s sons attended Hermosa Valley School, and now she has signed on as the school’s principal.
Is a “Welcome Back, Kotter” reference too dated?
“It has been a professional dream of mine to become an administrator in the Hermosa Beach city schools. Remarkably, Hermosa Valley School is my neighborhood school where for many years I was an active parent and from where my two sons, Michael and Matthew were educated and guided into the wonderful men they are today,” she wrote in an introduction letter to the school community.
“I have been a Hermosa Beach resident for many, many years, and I believe that I have a unique understanding of the qualities that make both the city and the school district very special to all members of the community,” she wrote.
Before taking the helm of the second-through-eighth grade Valley School, Escalante served as an administrator in the Beverly Hills Unified School District for eight years. She served as an assistant principal at the K-8 Horace Mann School for two years, as principal of the K-8 El Rodeo School for five years, and as the director of the adult school, preschool development and alternative education for one year.
Before that, she taught fifth grade for one year at Grandview School in Manhattan Beach and served for three years as a teacher on special administrative assignment. During that time she attended the University of LaVerne, earning a master’s degree in school management and an administrative credential.
She earned an undergraduate degree in education and a teaching credential from USC, after graduating from Palos Verdes High School.
She began her career in education as an elementary school teacher in the Hawthorne school district for seven years. Twelve years ago, after her sons graduated from Mira Costa High School, she resumed her career.
“The Hermosa Beach City School District has a reputation of excellence, and I am extremely honored to join a learning culture that focuses on community, high expectations for all students, innovation, and collaboration,” she wrote in her letter.
Escalante replaced interim Valley School Principal Rita Flynn.
