Ocean View School District appoints Julianne Hoefer as superintendent

Julianne Hoefer was advised that if she wanted to become a school superintendent, she should not take an interim position.

Yet, there she was last summer, moving into an interim role in the Ocean View School District after Supt. Michael Conroy retired for the second time.

“At home, I was called the duct tape,” she said with a laugh. “It was a leap of faith.”

Hoefer emerged from the interim role even more convinced that the role was for her. The district Board of Trustees felt the same way.

She was appointed the new Ocean View School District superintendent at the board meeting on Feb. 11 by a unanimous vote of 4-0, with Trustee Morgan Westmoreland absent.

The appointment of a new superintendent comes after a contentious election cycle, after which Gina Clayton-Tarvin was reelected to the board and Keri Gorsage was also elected.

“I really believe the board did it right,” Hoefer said in an interview with the Daily Pilot. “They waited for the election to conclude before identifying someone. Some districts would have pushed that decision through, because those five wanted to make the decision and ensure that it was who they wanted. I’ve seen that in other districts, and ours really trusted the voters to weigh in and make their selections.

“In many ways, I feel like I have the support of not only the board, given it was a unanimous vote, but the community as well. That’s who they selected, and then that board made that decision [to appoint] me.”

Julianne Hoefer has been with the Ocean View School District since 2018.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

Hoefer, 55, is a Seal Beach resident. She has been with the district, which features 10 elementary schools and three middle schools in Huntington Beach, Fountain Valley, Midway City and Westminster, since 2018.

Her new contract runs through June 2028 and features an annual salary of $327,000, with the same salary increases provided to other certificated district administrators. She also receives an allowance of $500 per month for district-related car expenses, as well as a $2,000 annual stipend for possessing a doctoral degree.

“Clearly, this board is unanimous in thinking that you are the right candidate for this position,” Board President Patricia Singer said at the Feb. 11 board meeting. “The board believes strongly that we’ve seen a really strong, compassionate leader in the last months since you took over in August. You’ve ensured that we’re moving forward ahead, but you’re being innovative, you’re being kind. There’s a balance that I’m hearing from a lot of our staff members, with great work expectations but also ensuring that they feel heard, supported and loved for.”

Hoefer has a bachelor’s degree in child development and master’s degree in school administration, both from Cal State Fullerton, as well as a Ph.D in urban education and public school administration from Claremont Graduate University.

She said she loves the Ocean View School District staff and students. She added that she knows plenty of parents as well from her visits to school sites when she was assistant superintendent of educational services, a position she held from 2018 until she was promoted to deputy superintendent of human resources last March.

“Public education is under attack,” she said. “Folks think you’re crazy for wanting to be a superintendent. Even internally, they’re like, ‘Do you really want this job?’ And the answer is resoundingly every time, ‘Absolutely.’ I felt like all along that my job is to keep this community together, because the community represents diverse perspectives. In the middle are students, and how do we keep our community united in doing right by our children?”

Ocean View School District Supt. Julianne Hoefer, center, pictured with Board of Trustees members Gina Clayton-Tarvin, Jack Souders, Patricia Singer and Keri Gorsage, left to right, at last week’s board meeting.

(Courtesy of Julie St. Cyr)

The district has considered school closures in recent years, in the face of continued declining enrollment. In November 2023, the Board of Trustees voted to consolidate Spring View Middle School, while leaving three other elementary schools that were considered for consolidation — Golden View, Circle View and Village View, all in Huntington Beach — open.

More recently last August, the district’s 7-11 Committee recommended that the district sell two of the 26 sites it owns. They included the Crest View site at Beach Boulevard and Talbert Avenue in Huntington Beach, a 13.8-acre site that includes Walmart and other businesses, and the 10.9-acre Pleasant View site near Warner Avenue and Magnolia Street.

The board has yet to take action on these recommendations; Hoefer said assistant superintendent of educational services Keith Farrow is doing research based on them.

Hoefer noted that the district has many innovative programs, including the farm at Golden View Elementary, a guide dog program started at Hope View Elementary and a culinary arts program at Vista View Middle School, to name a few.

“How do we keep those programs intact, because that’s what keeps us special?” she said. “People want to talk about the past and school consolidation, [but] I want to talk about how we keep our programs alive and what is a better tomorrow … Every decision needs to be made with a focus on what the impact is on students. I think we have to be disciplined. We’re going to have to say no to some good stuff because we want to say yes to the important things.”