Luther has taken on managing school programs such as leading AVID revalidation and the Simon STEM Orange Chapman Scholars Program, which offers scholarships to students who are interested in attending Chapman University and hope to major in a STEM field. She aimed to improve access to these scholarships for her Orange High students by facilitating application and interview workshops.

“Dr. Luther is a skilled manager of change,” said Elaine Benaksas Schwartz, assistant dean for Schmid College of Science and Technology at Chapman University. “She is creative and willing to try new ideas, and most importantly, she will stick her neck out to improve educational opportunities for her students.”

What’s your favorite book or quote on leadership? My favorite book is Fisher, Frey and Pumpian’s “How to Create a Culture of Achievement in Your School and Classroom.”

Quote: “We rise by lifting others. Success breeds success. Learning is better than knowing. Choose kindness.”

What’s the best advice you’ve ever been given? You may be the best interaction with an adult a student has all day/week/month/year; use your position and platform to help them learn, unlearn or relearn in order to grow them into the citizens of the world we all need.

What’s your best strategy for work/life balance? Adhere to a “work hard, play hard” mentality. I aim for balance by having trips or getaways planned with my family where I can completely be present for them. But I’m still not very good at it!

What are some life hacks that you would recommend for a new administrator? Be visible and talk to students. Show up at their games, awards banquets and dances, and know how important it is to just be there for them. Calendar your instructional walks and classroom time and treat that as the most important meeting of your day.

What would people be surprised to learn about you? People would be surprised to know that I am a trained professional musical theatre dancer. I have performed in shows throughout the country — and still perform today!

What made you want to become a school administrator? I wanted to become a school administrator to be the type of leader I often needed, but couldn’t always find. I wanted to lead as a teacher would want me to. I aim to lead to empower others.

What are you most proud of accomplishing? I am most proud of the work I’ve led with curriculum alignment for English and math departments. With input from the teams, I’ve developed full days of professional learning based solely on the continuous cycle of improvement using data to drive conversations and decisions.