The Whittier Union Board of Trustees has announced that two longtime administrators will advance into new positions in the Superintendent’s Executive Cabinet. Assistant Superintendent of Business Services Kevin Jamero will also serve as Deputy Superintendent and Pioneer High School Principal Lilia Bozigian will become Assistant Superintendent of Educational Services.
The Board of Trustees announced the advancements during its March 8 Board meeting. In February, the Board appointed Assistant Superintendent of Educational Services Dr. Monica Oviedo to replace Superintendent Martin J. Plourde, who is retiring in June. Dr. Oviedo, Jamero and Bozigian will step into their new roles at the end of the school year.
Bozigian, known to colleagues and students as “LilyBo,” began teaching in 1995 and has been with Whittier Union since 1997, serving Pioneer High as a teacher, GATE/Advanced Placement coordinator, assistant principal and principal, a position she has held since 2016. From 2004 to 2007 Bozigian served as a new teacher adviser for Whittier Union, working at Whittier, California and La Serna high schools.
At Pioneer, Bozigian has instituted a culture of academic rigor and success by providing all students with open access to courses and removing barriers to learning. As a teacher and coordinator, Bozigian established Pioneer’s Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) program, and the school was designated as an AVID National Demonstration School in 2017. Pioneer was named a California Distinguished School by the California Department of Education in 2021.
Bozigian’s goals as Assistant Superintendent of Educational Services are to continue the District’s focus on English learners and maintain Whittier Union’s high achievement levels.
“I am thrilled to be taking this next step at Whittier Union and look forward to many new challenges,” Bozigian said. “I want to thank Martin Plourde for giving me the opportunity to lead the school of my dreams. His support over the years has meant so much to me. I am ecstatic to be serving with Dr. Oviedo, who has been a mentor throughout my career, and I would like to thank her for trusting me to serve in this capacity alongside her.”
As Deputy Superintendent, Jamero will serve as Whittier Union’s chief administrator in Dr. Oviedo’s absence.
Jamero joined the Whittier Union High School District in 1997 as a physics and chemistry teacher at Santa Fe High School, where he also served as a football and baseball coach. In addition to his teaching and coaching responsibilities at Santa Fe, Jamero also served as a course lead, new teacher support provider and science department chairperson.
From 2006 to 2009, while still at Santa Fe, Jamero served as the Assistant Principal of Guidance and Counseling for two years, and as the Assistant Principal of Curriculum and Instruction for one year, before his selection to serve as the school’s principal in 2009 – a position he held for seven years.
Under Jamero’s tenure as Santa Fe principal, he led the school toward a California Gold Ribbon Award, the Title 1 Academic Achievement Award, classification as an AVID National Demonstration School, the California School Boards Association Golden Bell Award for student mental health services and multiple California Association of Student Leaders Awards for Outstanding Student Activities Program.
In 2016, Jamero was appointed as the Whittier Union High School District Assistant Superintendent of Personnel Services, a position he served in for four years before transitioning to the position of Assistant Superintendent of Business Services in 2020.
“I am grateful for the opportunity to serve as the District’s Deputy Superintendent,” Jamero said. “I would like to thank Martin Plourde and Dr. Monica Oviedo for their trust in me and partnership throughout the years. At Whittier Union, we pride ourselves in promoting a culture of excellence, and I look forward to continuing the work to ensure all students, teachers and staff have the tools they need to succeed.”
PHOTO CAPTIONS
WUHSD_ADMIN1: The Whittier Union High School District has selected Pioneer High School Principal Lilia Bozigian as the District’s next Assistant Superintendent of Educational Services.
WUHSD_ADMIN2: Whittier Union High School District’s Kevin Jamero, Assistant Superintendent of Business Services, has been selected as the District’s Deputy Superintendent.