Middle School Principal From Stockton to Head Malibu High

An innovative middle school principal from Stockton will become Malibu High School’s principal July 1.

Michael Matthews of Delta Sierra Middle School was “the overwhelming top choice of the community panel that interviewed the 10 finalist candidates,” said Mary Kay Kamath, a member of the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District board of education.

Matthews has a bachelor’s degree in international relations and a master’s in education from Stanford University, and earned his administrative services credential at UC Berkeley. He was previously assistant principal at Lodi High School and a social studies teacher and department chair at San Lorenzo High School.

Members of the 19-member selection committee described Matthews as energetic and passionate about education. Yet, Kamath said, he appears “strong enough to work in a participatory way with an active, vociferous community like Malibu.”

At his previous posts, Matthews started or expanded advanced placement programs, established after-school study halls and peer tutoring, developed a “college club” that increased the number of students continuing to four-year colleges, and supervised interdisciplinary teaching teams.

Darla Bass, a Malibu High parent who visited Stockton as part of the selection process, said Matthews “knows how to motivate children. He knows how to discipline students while still building them up, strengthening their self-esteem.”

The board voted in closed session last week to hire the panel’s choice.

Both of the district’s high schools, Santa Monica and Malibu, will begin the fall term under new leadership. Sylvia Rousseau, assistant principal at Washington High School in Los Angeles, recently was chosen to head Santa Monica High.