Southeast : State to Name New School District Head

State education officials are expected to appoint Deputy Supt. Dhyan Lal on Thursday to take over as the state’s administrator of the troubled Compton Unified School District.

Lal would replace J. Jerome Harris, who has presided for two years over the school system that was taken over by the state in 1993 amid financial and academic collapse. Four members of the Compton School Board have sued the state seeking return of local control.

The Fiji-born Lal, who now runs alternative education and other programs for the state, said he would be up to the job.

Lal, who left the job as principal of Carson High School one year ago to take his post in Sacramento, has never served as superintendent of a school district. But he said that would not be an obstacle.

“I’m not a stranger to the community,” he said. “A good leader is like an excellent orchestra conductor. You don’t necessarily have to play every instrument. It’s the ability to bring the instruments together and make beautiful music. That’s what Compton needs right now.”

Given the nickname “D-Loc,” said to be a reference to his doctorate of educational administration, by his students in Carson, Lal took a street-style approach to leading the school, and came under some criticism for not embracing a more disciplined approach.