Thomas Jefferson Senior High School - Principal
Published Date: Aug 11, 2026
Location: US
Company: Los Angeles Unified School District
INFORMATION ON SCHOOL SITE(S):
THOMAS JEFFERSON SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
Principal, Secondary
A HISTORIC COMMUNITY SCHOOL
The Los Angeles Unified School District seeks an outstanding high school principal to lead Thomas Jefferson Senior High School toward sustained academic growth, stronger student engagement, and renewed enrollment. Founded in 1916, Jefferson is the fourth-oldest high school in LAUSD and has served as a cornerstone of South Los Angeles for more than a century. The comprehensive school serves approximately 490 students in grades 9-12, including a substantial population of English Learners and newcomers.
Jefferson is an LAUSD Community School whose work is grounded in integrated student supports, active family and community engagement, collaborative leadership, and expanded learning opportunities. Its mission centers on student-focused academics, restorative practices, constructive dialogue, and inclusive community engagement.
Students have access to nine AP courses, Honors and dual-credit opportunities, AVID, arts, athletics, and Career Technical Education pathways in entrepreneurship, graphic communications, and teacher preparation. A broad network of partners supports health, wellness, enrichment, and college and career readiness. The historic campus is also undergoing significant modernization, creating an opportunity to honor Jefferson's legacy while building a compelling vision for its future.
MOMENTUM AND OPPORTUNITY:
Jefferson enters this transition with real momentum. Publicly available 2025 results reflect continued academic recovery, including multi-year improvement in ELA and science and progress in mathematics. Preliminary 2026 indicators look promising, but those results are not yet publicly available. Jefferson also benefits from a committed staff, with 95% of teachers reporting satisfaction and strong ratings for professional learning. The next principal will build on these assets while improving attendance, strengthening student connectedness, increasing enrollment, and ensuring consistent access to rigorous, cognitively demanding instruction.
THE IDEAL CANDIDATE:
Will be a student-centered, instructionally focused, community-minded, and equity-driven leader who honors Jefferson's history while creating urgency and coherence around its next phase of growth. The candidate will know how to lead a comprehensive high school serving English Learners, newcomers, students with disabilities, students experiencing homelessness, and students who need stronger academic or social-emotional supports. The ideal candidate will demonstrate the ability to:
1. Lead high-quality instruction by ensuring consistent implementation of standards-aligned core curricula, including Myperspectives, Illustrative Mathematics, and OpenSciEd, while increasing cognitive demand, academic language, student discourse, and reasoning through frequent classroom observations, actionable feedback, and structured coaching cycles.
2. Accelerate mathematics and English Learner achievement by addressing the language and reasoning demands of complex problems, embedding effective language routines and structured talk, and leading cycles of inquiry that move more students toward grade-level proficiency.
3. Use data to improve outcomes by analyzing multiple measures, including CAASPP, i-Ready, ELPAC, interim assessments, attendance, A-G progress, student work, and classroom evidence, then setting measurable goals and monitoring targeted interventions.
CONTINUE - THE IDEAL CANDIDATE:
4. Improve attendance, belonging, safety, and wellness through strong tiered systems, restorative practices, student voice, family outreach, and coordinated use of Community School partners, with focused support for the grades and student groups with the greatest need.
5. Lead complex change through shared leadership by strengthening the Instructional Leadership Team, departments, and professional learning communities, aligning staffing and resources, sustaining Jefferson's positive adult culture, and navigating campus modernization and shared-campus systems.
6. Expand college, career, and enrollment pathways by strengthening A-G completion, AP and dual-credit access, AVID, CTE, arts, and community partnerships, while celebrating Jefferson's legacy and building a clear strategy to recruit, welcome, and retain students and families.
7. Promote a healthy, safe, and secure campus by building staff and leadership capacity to collaboratively develop and implement a site-specific Integrated Safe School Plan, engaging all stakeholder groups in proactively addressing the physical safety of students and staff, ensuring schoolwide adherence to safety procedures, and routinely practicing, evaluating, and adjusting those procedures as needed.
SALARY:
45G – E Basis ($141,159- $176,037) - 234 paid days
- For employees who change basis during the school year, this basis change may prevent them from earning a full year of service credit.
- For an annualized employee who is changing basis during the year, this change may result in an annualized “settlement” (i.e., the process by which the District resolves an under or overpayment).
- Selected individual may be subject to displacement due to norm allocation and seniority based RIF provisions or due to budget limitations.
REQUIRED EXPERIENCE (PUBLIC SCHOOL SETTING):
- Eight years of successful full-time public school certificated service
- Three years of experience as a teacher in a K-12 public school program
- Two years of experience at a middle or senior high school
- Two years of service in an administrative or supervisory position utilizing an administrative credential, such as assistant principal or equivalent position
Employees who have been issued a below-standard Performance Evaluation, or Notice of Unsatisfactory Act(s) and/or Suspension, shall be ineligible for application to any promotion process for one calendar year following the issuance of such a Notice.
MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS INCLUDE:
(All minimum requirements must be met on or before the filing deadline. It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure that documentation of minimum requirements is on file with the Human Resources Administrative Selection Unit. For information on submitting your documentation, please contact (213) 241-6886.)
- A valid California teaching credential requiring a bachelor’s degree and a program of professional preparation, including student teaching
- A valid California Administrative Services Credential • Multicultural coursework*
- Master’s degree from a regionally accredited college or university • District Master Plan requirements*
*Candidates have one year to complete this requirement
For all school based administrative positions, candidates must be in the appropriate LAUSD eligible pool for the position or currently serving in the class for which they are applying. In order to be placed in the eligible pool, candidates must successfully complete the appropriate LAUSD Aspiring Administrator Program. Qualified applicants not in an eligible pool from within or outside LAUSD may be considered if fewer than five applicants from the eligible pool apply for the position.
APPLICATION PROCEDURE:
To be considered, you must submit the following:
- Letter of Intent that describes successful experience in the following areas:
- Experience supporting diverse learners, including English Learners, Students with Disabilities, GATE students, and students in specialized programs
- Use of data to guide instruction, monitor student progress, and lead professional development
- Experience building collaboration with staff, families, students, and community partners
- Leadership in developing a shared vision that strengthens academic achievement, school culture, parent engagement, and student wellness
- Current resume (include employee number, if a District employee)
- Upload as a separate attachment, a list of four (4) references with valid contact information including your current supervisor, parent/community member, a classified staff member and a teacher.
FOR INFORMATION ONLY, PLEASE CONTACT:
Gerardo Loera
Region East
(818)570-0089
DEADLINE: AUGUST 27, 2026
The Los Angeles Unified School District intends that all qualified persons shall have equal opportunities for employment and promotion.