Syna Morgan, chief system performance officer for the Douglas County Schools, has been hired as chief academic officer for the Jeffco school district.
Jeffco Public Schools announced the appointment Tuesday, a week after Dan McMinimee started work as that district’s superintendent. McMinimee was the assistant superintendent of secondary schools in Dougco before taking his new job.
In a statement, McMinimee said this of Morgan: “Her knowledge of curriculum, instruction and assessment is exceptional. She will lead our team forward in a positive and balanced way with a focus on student achievement and growth.”
In her Dougco job, Morgan was head of research, assessment and accountability for the district since August 2010. Prior to that she owned a local educational consulting firm and worked for the Nevada Department of Education. She was elementary teacher in Nevada from 1989 to 1996. She has a bachelor’s degree in education from Fort Lewis College and a doctorate in curriculum and instruction from the University of Nevada-Reno.
Morgan was recently appointed to serve on the Standards and Assessments Task Force, a new study panel created by the legislature to review the state testing system.
McMinimee, hired by a new conservative majority on the Jeffco board, has sparked concerns among board critics that he will try to copy some of the controversial initiatives undertaken in Dougco. Learn more about the new superintendent’s first day in this Chalkbeat Colorado story and read what he has to say on key issues in this article.
In Jeffco, Morgan takes the position vacated by Heather Beck, who left the job last month to become a superintendent in Oregon.
Corrections in Morgan’s professional background were made on July 10.