Ad
Featured
Santa Fe Public Schools hires new superintendent
Published
Modified
After a two-month search, Santa Fe Public Schools has selected a new superintendent to lead the district.
On Thursday, the SFPS board voted unanimously to hire Christine Griffin, the current superintendent of Humboldt Unified School District in Prescott Valley, Arizona. She is set to make $205,000 on a one-year contract with the district.
Griffin was not available for comment Thursday because she was traveling back to Arizona, according to district spokesperson Tara Melton.
“The fact that she’s actually been a superintendent” was what set her apart from other finalists, board president Roman Abeyta said in a phone interview Thursday.
Griffin will succeed Hilario “Larry” Chavez, who in February resigned from his post amid sexual harassment allegations from former SFPS assistant principal and sitting Santa Fe City Councilor Amanda Chavez. Former SFPS Superintendent Veronica Garcia headed the district on an interim basis following his resignation.
“I think anytime you have a transition, you want to move quickly, but you also want to be diligent about it, and you want to make sure that you’re not moving too quickly,” Abeyta said. “The fact that we got so much interest … from inside the state, outside the state, we felt like more time wouldn’t necessarily draw more applicants.”
He added that Griffin’s parents live in Santa Fe, and that was reassuring because “it’s not like she’s coming here and isn’t familiar with the community.”
