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# District looks for temp supe
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/district-looks-for-temp-supe/
- Published: 2008-06-06T15:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-24T19:49:31.000Z
- Author: Melody Hanatani
- Tags: Education, Malibu, #archive-import

*Orange County firm tapped to lead interim superintendent search*

SMMUSD HDQTRS An Orange County-based management search firm run by public education veterans has been tapped to find an interim replacement for outgoing Superintendent Dianne Talarico, a vacancy that district officials hope to fill within the next few weeks.

Leadership Associates, which specializes in searches for executive-level positions, was appointed by the Board of Education on Wednesday to lead the short-term hunt for a temporary district head, a process that will include at least one public input meeting tentatively scheduled for next week.

Talarico, who was named former Superintendent John Deasy’s replacement in 2006, will leave the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District later this month to serve in the same capacity with the Burlingame School District, a small organization located in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Located in Mission Viejo, Leadership Associates was among three search firms that vied for the superintendent search after Deasy left, beaten out by Hazard, Young, Attea and Associates, which recommended Talarico as a candidate for the Burlingame position.

The interim search, estimated to cost $9,500, will be headed by Larry Aceves and Jim Brown, who served as the superintendents for the Franklin-McKinley School District in San Jose and Glendale Unified, respectively.

District officials hope to have an interim superintendent by July 1, the temporary official serving until a permanent replacement is hired, which is not expected to happen until next year. A separate bidding process will take place in the fall to hire a search firm for the next superintendent, a process that lacked in the interim because of the short time-line.

Among the names being floated is former City Manager John Jalili, who retired in 1999 after serving with City Hall for more than 25 years.

School board President Oscar de la Torre attempted to contact Jalili on Tuesday about coming out of retirement, his phone call spurred by correspondences he received urging him to consider the former city manager.

Board members have stressed that they want to select from a wide pool of candidates and would like to see public input be a key element in the process.

“We want to do our due diligence and get the best person for the job,” de la Torre said. “We want to widen the pool so we can ensure we have highly-qualified candidates.”

Though there has been mention of seeking a candidate with a non-educational background, some school board members said they would prefer to see someone with school experience, pointing to some of the issues the district is currently facing, including resolving problems within the special education program.

Candidates for interim superintendents are usually former district heads and individuals that have no interest in returning to work permanently, Aceves said.

“The universe of interim superintendents is very minute,” he said. “By and large it’s folks who are retired or are not looking for long-term assignments.”

The consultants advised that the interim replacement not be considered as a candidate for the permanent job.

Many within the district want the search to be as transparent as possible, the board pledging an open process from start to finish.

The consultant plans to hold a community input meeting next week, inviting parents and district stakeholders to express their thoughts on the qualities the superintendent should possess.

Rebecca Kennerly, the president of the PTA Council, said collaboration will be an important attribute for the next leader, interim or permanent.

“We have a lot of strong people in our community, all of whom are making major contributions to our schools all the time,” Kennerly said. “It’s important for all of us to be able to work together and all of us have the kind of skills and abilities that allow us to work well with our colleagues.”

“The permanent person needs to be really able to stand up for some educational values emerging over the last year, particularly in the area of special education.”

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on June 6, 2008.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/060608.pdf?ref=smdp.com)