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Jon Campopiano is leaving the San Ramon Valley Unified School District after more than a decade for the opportunity to lead a district in his hometown of Walnut Creek.
The Walnut Creek School District Board of Education on Monday confirmed a three-year superintendent contract with Campopiano, SRVUSD’s current executive director of secondary education and a former principal of Stone Valley Middle School in Alamo. He will succeed retiring Superintendent Marie Morgan on July 1.
“I believe a Superintendent must be a steady hand who leads with courage and character, listens more than they speak, and remains relentlessly focused on student achievement,” Campopiano said in a news release late last month announcing him as WCSD’s finalist. “I am dedicated to nurturing a community that exceeds its goals through a unified, positive focus on the success of every student, turning complex challenges into clear results that move us forward.”
WCSD Board President Wenlei Johnson lauded Campopiano for a “relentless focus on students and his commitment to authentic engagement with our community made him the clear choice. We are confident his leadership will build on the district’s strengths and help move Walnut Creek School District forward.”
With six elementary schools and one intermediate school, WCSD serves about 3,600 students in transitional kindergarten through eighth grade. The campuses include Buena Vista Elementary, Tice Creek Elementary and Walnut Creek Intermediate schools.
When Morgan announced she would be retiring after 10 years at the helm, the board embarked on a superintendent recruitment process with consultant firm Leadership Associates that included 19 community engagement sessions, nearly 300 survey responses and 40 applications before Campopiano rose to the top of the trustees’ candidate pool, according to the district.
“Jon is an incredible leader of the highest integrity and character,” SRVUSD Superintendent CJ Cammack told DanvilleSanRamon this week.
“I am thrilled for both him and the Walnut Creek community; they are gaining a talented leader who cares deeply for staff and students,” Cammack added. “It has been a true pleasure to mentor and work alongside him in SRVUSD. While his leadership will be deeply missed here, I am always proud to see our staff earn well-deserved advancements in the Bay Area, and I know he will be highly successful.”
A longtime Walnut Creek resident and University of California product (Davis for his bachelor’s and Santa Barbara for his master’s), Campopiano was a former social studies teacher, varsity basketball coach and vice principal at Northgate High School in Walnut Creek before moving on to vice principal at Oak Grove Middle School in Concord and assistant principal at Miramonte High School in Orinda.
He joined SRVUSD starting in 2015-16 as principal of Stone Valley, leading the campus for three years, including during its renovation and modernization project funded by 2012’s Measure D bond.
Campopiano moved to the district office for the 2018-19 school year as executive director of secondary schools under Rick Schmitt’s administration. He remained in that role supporting the district’s 13 middle and high schools – albeit with evolving job titles – for eight years.
WCSD publicly revealed Campopiano as its superintendent finalist on May 28, and his contract was confirmed unanimously by the board at Monday’s regular meeting. The agreement includes an annual salary of $263,000, standard health and welfare benefits, $500 per month for professional coaching during his first year and the requirement for an annual physical, among its terms.
“I look forward to serving as Superintendent and partnering with our community to support every student’s success,” Campopiano said in a press release this week. “I am committed to listening, leading with purpose, and ensuring we meet the needs of all learners.”
Among his early tasks will be leading WCSD through the budget implications of its $98 parcel tax apparently failing at the ballot box. Needing more than two-thirds voter approval to pass, Measure L sits at 64.73% Yes (12,381 votes) to 35.27% No (6,747 votes) with only approximately 2,100 ballots left to process countywide. It is unclear how many of those ballots come from WCSD’s boundaries.
