Herrington begins third term as county schools boss

Steven Herrington officially began his third consecutive term as Sonoma County Schools Superintendent when he was sworn in by Sonoma County Superior Court Judge Andy Wick on Jan. 7.

The county superintendent is elected by Sonoma County voters every four years. The superintendent oversees an office that provides leadership, support and state-designated fiscal and program oversight for the county’s 40 school districts and their more than 70,000 students.

Among Herrington’s accomplishments in his first two terms were:

• Promoting and spreading maker education, a form of hands-on learning shown to increase student engagement;

• Leading Sonoma County school districts through crisis response and recovery efforts during the 2017 wildfires;

• Addressing the teacher shortage through the creation of the North Coast School of Education and a state-of-the-art teacher training facility;

• Overseeing the county’s successful implementation of a new state funding formula and accountability system for schools;

• Moving the county office’s alternative education program out of a storefront property and into a new, modernized campus.

He said his goals for his new term include continuing to address the teacher shortage by partnering with housing agencies to build affordable teacher housing; partnering with childcare agencies to build additional early childhood education offerings; and providing more comprehensive support to school districts in their efforts to serve all students equitably, through a continuous improvement model.

Herrington was elected Sonoma County Superintendent of Schools in 2010. He took office on Jan. 3, 2011, and began a second term in office on Jan. 2, 2015.

He is a native Californian who began his career in education as a history teacher. He served as superintendent for three Northern California school districts. In those positions, he gained experience in rural, suburban and urban settings. He has led educational services for students from pre-kindergarten through high school.

Prior to his election, he was superintendent of Windsor Unified School District.