Double Duty School Leadership at SCVi
This week, at Santa Clarita Valley International (SCVi) school, a tuition-free TK-12th grade school in Castaic, we’re sending you directly to the principal’s office to learn more about our amazing directors Chad Powell and Martha Spansel-Pellico. Both joined us in 2021 and both worked together before this. We sat down with them to chat about their roles and whirlwind days. Here is what we learned.
Please tell us about your background and how you came to be at SCVi.
Chad Powell (CP): I started teaching in 1996 in the Lompoc School District. I was teaching history in the Hart District until 2011 when I became an assistant principal for them. I had that role at a junior high and high school until we came here. That’s been almost 30 years now. It’s been a while.
Martha Spansel-Pellico (MSP): It’s been a long time, because I started my career teaching in the Hart School District at La Mesa, in 1997 as a classroom teacher, then moved over to Bowman and taught there for one year, before I became an assistant principal at Saugus High School in 2005.
CP: Martha and I were assistant principals together at Valencia High School. We worked well together. It was a large school at that time- well over 2,500 kids. We were approached by iLEAD right as Covid was starting to wind down and they gave us a tour of SCVi.
When I heard about the philosophy of SCVi, the project-based learning, the social-emotional learning programs, the individualized attention, all the flexibility that leadership can have in a place like this, that you’re not bound by the restrictions of bureaucracy like you are in a very large school district and that you can make change happen quickly -if someone has a good idea in the morning you put in practice in the afternoon- it really spoke to me. Sometimes in a very large district, you just kind of feel like a cog in the machine: you’re producing a good result, but it’s been pre-programmed over the decades to do that. And I thought this would be sort of like building something new and exciting– not that the place didn’t already exist and have its own traditions. So for me, that’s what drew me to SCVi: the chance to be creative, to problem solve, to build something, and to respond to real issues and not just rely on past practices.
MSP: I agree with all of those things, but I think one of the main things that drew me here was the size of SCVi. It’s smaller, more of a community, more intimate, there’s a tighter relationship with staff, with the kids, too, and with the families.
What do you love about SCVi? What sets it apart from other schools?
CP: Well, I think part of it is what Martha said. I think what sets us apart from other schools is the size. How you can get to know the kids and the families– I think it’s easier to form a community in smaller groups than it is when you’re at an elementary school of 1,000 or a high school of almost 3,000. I think that’s the part that I like the best, and the part that I’m most proud of.
I think that over the last four years we’ve installed a lot of systems and structures here that are either different or didn’t exist. And I think that those structures now going into year five are starting to pay off. I think that we brought with us so much experience from other schools that we saw some things here that were happening that perhaps no one had thought of doing differently, and we saw that there were things that were working very well in other places that wouldn’t impact the the vision or mission here in any negative way, but could help things along. I know it’s a very administrative, logistical look at things, but I’m proud of what we’ve done here.
What does a day in your school life look like?
MSP: I start in my classroom teaching English for two periods. Then I resume my director job and it’s really whatever’s coming in as I’m walking in through the door. There could be disciplinary actions that I need to do with kids or some conversations I need to have with learners. Could be supervision. It could be filling in for a teacher that has to go to an IEP. It just is whatever is needed. It’s where servant leadership comes in.
CP: It’s never boring, that’s for sure. So while Martha is teaching, I’m the only administrator on the entire campus. So whatever comes through, I handle, whether it’s a parent, discipline issue, or covering a class. On a “typical day”, you launch school in the morning which is always a production, getting hundreds of kids into classrooms and getting them set and rolling. Then I’ll usually come in and just check to see if there are any parents in the office. Do a quick check of messages. I like to try to walk into some classrooms. And then the day quickly turns into supervision and recess- just rolls right along.
Tell us about the best parts of your role as a school leader at SCVi.
CP: I think for me it’s the relationships. The best part is knowing the kids and their families, and knowing the teachers. I like that I’m a big part of what’s happening here because I have to play a lot of different roles here. I have to be a principal of an elementary school, a junior high, a high school and a home school. You have to be able to switch gears very quickly. And that’s what I like about it– that it’s quick. It’s fast moving. You’re always solving problems. Sometimes it comes across as disorganized. And really all it is is high speed problem solving because there’s things that break and you have to fix them.
MSP: The best thing about being here is the intimacy that you really get with everybody because of that small environment which is what drew me here in the first place. That’s a great thing to have.
Fun facts that people might not know about you.
MSP:
– Woke up at 3 am to watch the Dodgers’ Tokyo game against the Cubs.
– Loves Mookie Betts of the Dodgers and tries to go to as many games as possible.
– Goal to go to all 30 ballparks…has been to half of them.
– Has a cat and a spaniel.
– Loves to go on cruises and travel in general.
– Married for 13 years!
CP:
– I wanted to be a fighter pilot when I was younger as I’ve always had an interest in planes because I grew up on Air Force bases.
– During my childhood we moved all over the place–I went to like three or four different elementary schools and two junior highs.
– I’ve never been to Europe (but would love to!).
– Married for 28 years! Two daughters- one is a labor and delivery nurse in Phoenix and the other one is now living up in Atascadero.
Thanks Martha and Chad! You do so much, not to mention make time for interviews at the end of a long day! Get to know our school leaders, staff, and learners– come take a tour of our school and enroll today!
About SCVi:
Santa Clarita Valley International School (SCVi) is a free public charter school empowering TK-12th graders to become conscientious, compassionate, and responsible citizens of the world. Founded in 2008, we use project-based and social-emotional learning concepts to inspire and motivate lifelong learners with the skills they need to lead in the 21st century. We incorporate technology into every component of our curriculum, and we value and encourage development of leadership skills by inspiring confidence and character in each of our unique learners. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook and find us at www.ileadsantaclarita.org.
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