A Close-Up Look At People Who Matter : Meeting the Challenges of Education

Glendale educator Joann Merrick believes educating elementary school kids in the 1990s is much more complicated than it was in the 1960s, when she started teaching.

“Our kids are facing more challenging situations than they have in the past, including economic concerns and the changing family dynamic,” said Merrick, who relies on experience gained during years as a teacher and a principal in her capacity as administrator of elementary education for the Glendale Unified School District.

Though she’s no longer in the classroom, Merrick continues to influence the education of elementary students.

Merrick, 49, believes that for schools to be successful, principals need to participate in the open exchange of ideas.

“If you pull principals together they can learn from each other,” she said. “I make sure they have access to good ideas both inside and outside the district,” she said.

The lines of communication must go even further, said Merrick, who visits each of Glendale’s elementary schools regularly to talk with staff, parents and principals.

In recognition of her involvement and philosophy, Merrick was recently named district office administrator of the year by the Assn. of California School Administrators.

Merrick began her career in education in 1966 as a teacher in New Jersey.

She later moved to California and went on to receive a master’s degree in early childhood education from Pepperdine and a doctorate in educational administration from the University of Southern California.

She spent 20 years in the Alhambra Unified School District, first as an elementary school teacher and then as an elementary school principal, while studying to earn her advanced degrees.

When she joined the Glendale Unified School District in 1988, Merrick realized there was no job club in Los Angeles County for those in elementary school administrative positions.

So she formed a group that came to be known as the Job Alike Group. The group now includes representatives of 12 school districts. She also started a forum for elementary school secretaries.

Merrick, who plays golf and serves on the boards of several community organizations, said successful schools involve the entire community.

Not only school staff, but community agencies, including the city, the school board, hospitals and nonprofit groups, must come together to better local schools, Merrick said.

“Schools that are successful involve the community at large,” she said.

While a philosophy making schools a community “center”--catering to students’ emotional, educational and even health needs--makes Merrick nervous about additional responsibilities for administrators, she agrees that it’s vital in today’s society of splintered families.

Such a philosophy is evident in a program planned for several Glendale elementary schools this fall dubbed Healthy Kids. The effort, which involves the city’s three hospitals, is targeted at low-income children who lack health insurance.

Merrick, who manages 19 schools, was chosen to receive the ACSA honor for central office administrators, one of 17 categories, said ACSA spokeswoman Judy Good.

Merrick’s resume was submitted by her peers in Glendale schools, who were asked about Merrick’s skill in supporting school management teams, her leadership abilities, her commitment to student achievement and her creativity in dealing with problems facing public education.

District spokesman Vic Pallos said Merrick has faced many challenges in her six years with the district, including a three-year effort to guide the transition of nine elementary schools to a year-round schedule.

Her current challenge, Merrick claims, is meeting high educational expectations with dwindling resources including time, money and staff to get the job done.

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