Marc Winger is a 25+ year Santa Clarita resident who was appointed as Superintendent of the Newhall School District July 1997. This position represents a return to Newhall, where Winger worked as a teacher for ten years, starting in 1974. From Newhall he went on to the Burbank Unified School District where he served as an elementary school principal and then to Sulphur Springs School District where he served for 12 years as assistant superintendent for instruction.
Winger graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with a BA degree in history in 1973. He received his master’s degree from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1980 and a doctorate from UCLA in 1992. His doctoral dissertation documented the effects of multi-track year-round education on the instructional leadership of principals, an extremely relevant topic as he led the Newhall School District through a conversion to this program in July, 1998. Under Marc’s leadership the Newhall School District also successfully passed a $35.5 million school construction and modernization bond and improved developer agreements in order to build sufficient schools to alleviate the district’s overcrowded situation. The District returned to a single track calendar in August 2003 after opening two new elementary schools.
Winger is proud of the fact that, in spite of the facilities challenges facing the district, Newhall’s elementary schools receive consistent high rankings for achievement and receive state and federal recognition for excellence. In 2000 and 2001 one NSD school received national Blue Ribbon School recognition and five others received State Distinguished School status.
Winger helped to organize the SCV Chamber Education Foundation’s Teacher Tribute Dinner and he helped to create the Foundation’s Principal For A Day program, bringing business and school leaders together to forge a deeper understanding of the challenges confronting today’s schools. He served for 12 years on the Board of Directors of the Santa Clarita Repertory Theatre and was instrumental in the creation of a state of the art 81 seat theatre in the Newhall Redevelopment corridor.
Marc believes that a child’s experience in school, the reputation of a school, and the success of a school district are a reflection of the efforts of teachers and administrators working together with parents.
Winger lives in Newhall with his wife, Eileen Mann, and two sons, Seth and Evan.