CCUSD Superintendent Leslie Lockhart Announces Retirement

CULVER CITY, CA — Culver City Unified School District Superintendent Leslie Lockhart announced Tuesday night that she will retire from the district after 23 years, including four years as superintendent.

“As many of you know, I have had some recent health challenges, and this has been an opportunity for me to reflect on what is truly important in my life,” Lockhart told the board during the meeting Tuesday night.

“Tonight, it is with mixed emotions that I announce to the board and to the community that I will be retiring as Superintendent of CCUSD, effective June 30, 2021,” Lockhart said.

Lockhart was named Superintendent in January 2018, after serving as Interim Superintendent for six months.

Lockhart was the first Black CCUSD Superintendent and oversaw the district’s increasing dedication to equity, diversion and inclusion – something she said the district continue to prioritize even after she is gone.

“I hope that our district continues to build on, explore, embrace and celebrate our diversity; and continuously work to be a shining example of how people of all races, religions, genders, and ethnicities can uplift and celebrate each other,” she said. “I hope that we will seek opportunities to bring people together, make our differences something we acknowledge and honor, and fight racism and inequity at every turn.”

Lockhart described how she is proud of the strides CCUSD has taken to focus on the whole child and address students’ mental health as well as their physical and academic health. She called the current leadership team “some of the most dedicated, professional, and outstanding leaders I have ever had the pleasure to work alongside” and saluted the district’s teachers and staff for their excellence and dedication, especially in the wake of the pandemic that changed everything.

“They adapted. They learned. They innovated,” Lockhart said. “In short, our teachers, administrators and staff put children first, and Culver City's children are better for their efforts. I want to thank them for the sacrifices they made over the past year and for the many, many ways in which they have helped CCUSD move forward.”

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