Davis to Head School District
Two weeks after Manhattan Beach City School District Supt. Douglas Keeler announced that he was leaving for another job, the Board of Education has named a local school administrator to succeed him.
Jerry Davis, 42, a former Redondo Union High School principal and currently assistant superintendent for personnel in the Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District, will assume the Manhattan Beach post July 16. Board President Barbara Dunsmoor said Davis was the only candidate interviewed and was the unanimous choice of the board.
Dunsmoor said Davis, who was recommended by Keeler and board member RosaLee Saikley, “had the advantage of knowing the district well and being known in the community.” Davis, who lives in Redondo Beach, was principal at Redondo Union High School for 4 1/2 years before moving to the peninsula district last August.
Davis said he took the Manhattan Beach job because the board “had faith in me based on my reputation.” He called it a vote of confidence. Davis is finishing a doctorate in educational management at the University of La Verne.
His salary has not been disclosed pending signing of a contract. He earns $70,000 a year on the peninsula.
Keeler, 45, who has headed the 2,200-student Manhattan Beach elementary district since 1986, has been appointed superintendent in the Claremont Unified School District, which has three times as many students and grades through high school.
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