Pasadena school officials name new John Muir High principal

Tim Sippel, a former assistant principal at John Muir High School and Blair High Shool in Pasadena, has been named the new principal at Muir, Pasadena Unified School District officials announced Thursday.

Sippel replaces Sheryl Orange, who served in the role for four years. He will start in his new duties July 1. Sippel currently is the director of PUSD’s Linked Learning initiative, which prepares students for vocations and college careers. He was vice principal at Muir when it revamped its academic structure in 2007.

“As a leading force in the reinvention that transformed John Muir, Tim brings an unparalleled depth of knowledge about the school, its students, staff and community,” Pasadena Supt. Jon Gundry said in a statement.

“John Muir High School has accomplished an amazing transformation over the last four years, and I know it has the potential to attain much higher levels of achievement and opportunity for all of its students,” Sippel said in a statement. “I feel very honored to be entrusted with the opportunity to lead this great school at this critical juncture in its history.”

Before coming to Blair in 2005, Sippel was coordinator of English Learner programs at the Foshay Learning Center in the Los Angeles Unified School District. He has a bachelor’s degree from Georgetown University and a master’s degree in education from UCLA.

--Bill Kisliuk, Times Community News

Twitter: @bkisliuk