PUSD Announces Appointments of Two New District Administrators

Pasadena Unified School District Superintendent Brian McDonald has appointed two new district administrators to join the central office Academics team.

Dr. Shannon Malone, currently principal of Washington STEAM Multilingual Academy, now known as Octavia E. Butler Magnet, has been named Senior Director, TK-12 Principals.

Robert Hernandez, currently principal of Pasadena High School, has been promoted to Director for Planning, Innovation, Accountability, and Special Projects.

Malone and Hernandez will report to Dr. Elizabeth Blanco, PUSD’s Chief Academic Officer. The new appointments are effective July 1.

“I am pleased to promote Dr. Malone and Mr. Hernandez to these critical positions at the District level,” McDonald said. “As the next generation of PUSD leaders, they bring continuity, experience, and deep knowledge of the strengths and potential of our students, employees, and community.”

The District will immediately launch a search for new principals for Washington STEAM and Pasadena High School.

A fluent Spanish speaker, Dr. Malone has served as principal of Washington STEAM Multilingual Academy since 2016. During her tenure, Washington STEAM received a second magnet school grant and became a Dual Language Immersion (DLIP) Magnet with a focus on college and career readiness, academic language acquisition, and social-emotional learning. Washington became the first STEM Certified school in California, and fifth in the nation, by the National Institute for STEM Education (NISE) in 2018.

Washington STEAM was also renamed in honor of Octavia E. Butler, a science fiction writer and PUSD alumna, during Dr. Malone’s term.

Before becoming principal at Washington STEAM, Malone served as the principal of Cleveland Elementary for six years. She was the district’s professional development coordinator and one of PUSD’s district math coaches. She also served as a summer school principal and language development resource teacher at Hamilton Elementary School.

Malone began her career as a Spanish teacher at Manual Arts High School in the Los Angeles Unified School District. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish degree from the University of Southern California, a Master of Science in Cross-Cultural Teaching from National University, and a Doctorate in Educational Leadership for Social Justice from Loyola Marymount University.

As Senior Director, TK-12 Principals, Dr. Malone will supervise PUSD’s K-12 principals. She is already a member of the district’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion committee and will continue to support the district’s work.

“It has been my honor to serve as Principal of Washington STEAM Multilingual Academy, where we came together as a team to serve our students and the community,” Malone said. “I am thrilled to be given this new and exciting opportunity to serve the community of PUSD. I am looking forward to working with district leadership in the effort to support our site leaders.”

Robert Hernandez has served as principal of Pasadena High School since 2016 and has a strong record of addressing long-standing inequities and leveraging community resources to improve the academic, emotional, and physical well-being of students.

Under his leadership, Pasadena High School implemented the Los Angeles County Office of Education’s Community School Initiative, a partnership among PUSD, PHS, LACOE, and county agencies that aims to disrupt poverty and address inequities. He also led the development of the Building Assets Reducing Risk (BARR) program to help ninth-graders better transition into high school.

Hernandez joined PUSD from Sheldon Early College High School in Texas, where he was principal. His career as an educator has demonstrated progressively more responsible positions, from a bilingual elementary school teacher, English Language Specialist, middle school assistant principal, middle school principal, and early college high school principal.

In his new position, Hernandez will lead PUSD’s Special Projects, State and Federal Programs Department and lead in the development of short- and long-term goals for the District’s Local Control Accountability Plan (LCAP). He will prepare all budgets and manage all restricted or categorical funding, in collaboration with the Chief Academic Officer.

Working with PUSD’s Executive Leadership Team, Hernandez will organize and coordinate a broad stakeholder engagement strategy in support of the LCAP, providing a positive climate of interaction and communication between school staff, families, and the community.

“I am honored to continue to serve the Pasadena Unified School District in the role of Director of Planning, Innovation, Accountability, and Special Projects,” Hernandez said. “I look forward to helping to fulfill the district’s mission, vision, and values by working with our various educational partners to ensure that every student receives equitable resources and support that will contribute to academic success.”

Also a fluent Spanish speaker, Hernandez has a Bachelor’s degree from Texas A & M University, and a Master’s in Educational Management from the University of Houston-Clear Lake. He is a candidate for an Ed.D. in Educational Leadership and Policy at Pepperdine University.