Name: Andres Luna II Award: Continuation/Educational Options Administrator of the Year Title: Principal, Dr. John H. Milor High School  District: Rialto USD Region: 12 ACSA highlights: Member since 2000; President-Elect of Rialto Schools Managers Association. Andres Luna said he wanted to become an administrator to make a difference at the school-wide level and be part of a leadership team that is focused on transformation and helping students and teachers achieve beyond their expectations. “People who put the children first are what inspires me,” he said. “Administrators that are focused on doing the right thing and not just being right. Educators that work nonstop to improve their skillset and adjust to student learning.” Although he retired at the end of the 2018-19 school year, Luna made a career of putting children first and believes this should be the priority of every educator. What’s your favorite book on leadership? I have several favorite books on leadership. However, over the years, a few do stand out in my mind that are very useful to me on a daily basis (no particular order): 1. “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” (Covey) 2. “The Five Dysfunctions of a Team” (Lencioni) 3. “Start With The Why” (Sinek) 4. “Hacking Leadership” (Satlipno/Sinanis) 5. “Digital Leadership” (E.C Sheninger) 

What’s your favorite quote about leadership? “Great leaders don’t set out to be leaders … they set out to make a difference.” What’s the best advice you’ve been given? Never strive to be right … always do the right thing.

What are some of your favorite apps? Twitter, Flipgrid, LinkedIn, PodCast, Voxer, Health, and Facebook. What’s your best strategy for work/life balance? Over the last 35 years I have learned to balance work and life. First and foremost, I work and make it my priority to always build and remain spiritually connected to a God of my understanding. What are you most proud of accomplishing? I am most proud of the school where I was principal. Improvement was accomplished by a team effort and collaboration between all stakeholders, students, teachers, and support staff, most recently, receiving the following awards: California Model Continuation High School California Green Ribbon Award - Silver Level PBIS Silver Level Award 9 percent graduation improvement 5 percent improvement on student attendance.  What’s the biggest challenge you’ve overcome? The biggest challenge I faced was to get the district administration to embrace innovation and transformation to the 21st century. At times barriers are difficult to understand when you are not close to the most important people within the system, the students, teachers and support staff at the site level. What’s your pre-game ritual to get ready for a big meeting or presentation? I ask myself the following questions: Is my message clear and detailed? Is my message supported by current data? Is my message supported by current research? Have I forecasted all possible questions that may be asked? Are the visuals and group work supported in the presentation and does it have a moment of clarity?

I remind myself, though I am speaking to educators, their understanding is paramount and I must be willing to listen and answer questions and not move too fast. What was the best ACSA event you’ve attended? I especially enjoyed attending the Personnel Academy. What bucket list item do you hope to accomplish this year? I accomplished the awards for my students mentioned above. A continuation HS principal, as well as a continuation HS, at times, can be overlooked. My goal this year was to complete a four-year transformation plan based on a student-focused/centered strategic plan that was based on innovation and 21st century best practices. With that said, we were recognized at the state level and as successful (maybe more) than the other three comprehensive high schools. The theme of the 2019 Leadership Summit is “Lead Well: Equity and Excellence.” What projects are you working on which have equity as their focus? I retired at the end of the 2019 school year, however, the project which I was working on was to ensure that every student and staff member understood and embraced that every child deserves an excellent education. I am a graduate of the ACSA Equity Institute. My goal was to shape the next generation of student voices and minds. I wanted to empower students on their path to success. I ensured my staff had the training to provide the students with the tools, support, resources and high expectations for students to consistently succeed at the highest level.   At our school we understood that excellence is much more than a goal, it is the birthright of every child in our school. We also understood that equity is more than just a slogan. It is a promise we have made to every child that requires hard work for the staff. Ensuring opportunities for all students was the focal point for every one of our school goals outlined in our strategic plan.