City schools chief to retire

M. Magdalena Carrillo Mejia, superintendent of the Sacramento City Unified School District, announced Friday she will retire this summer when her contract expires.

Mejia has led the district since January 2004, when she took over for former Superintendent Jim Sweeney. She said she is leaving for personal reasons.

"It's a difficult decision for me because I love our district and I love serving this community," Mejia said. "But it's time for me to start spending more time with my husband, my children and my grandchildren."

An educator for 34 years, Mejia is not receiving any sort of buyout or golden handshake. She will serve out her contract until it expires June 30. Before coming to Sacramento, she was superintendent of the Montebello Unified School District in Southern California.

Mejia, 60, said she made her decision last week, informed trustees earlier this week and told administrators Friday morning.

"It's been a great journey for me," she said. "I'm most proud of having wonderful people to work with. It's always been an honor to serve families, students and the community."

Mejia came to Sacramento after a national search to replace Sweeney. She was the first Latina and first woman to lead the district, which has 46,000 students. She earns $265,504 annually in pay and extra benefits.

At the time of her hiring, the district faced numerous difficulties, including fallout over an elite and risky pension plan, acrimony with labor unions and controversy over a decision to turn Sacramento High School into a charter school.

According to Linda Tuttle, president of the Sacramento City Teachers Association, Mejia has helped bring greater harmony and stability to the district.

"She inherited a mess," Tuttle said. "Relations are greatly improved now. She has kept people talking. She's a problem solver."

Student achievement also has improved under Mejia's leadership, board President Manny Hernandez said. He noted the district's Academic Performance Index rose steadily in recent years. In 2007, the index was 715, up from 666 in 2003.

Not everyone has been a fan of Mejia. Heidi McLean, who has two daughters in the district, said Mejia and her staff members have ignored recommendations from parents, have not given the district's current reading program adequate evaluation and still have too many students reaching high school with low skills.

"I understand she has been a much less controversial figure than Jim Sweeney," McLean said. "But if someone is nicer, but the results are the same, it is not to our students' advantage."

District spokeswoman Maria Lopez said Friday that trustees will meet soon to set a timeline and process for finding a new superintendent.

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