George McKenna
Director, Region 21, Los Angeles USD
George McKenna is a board member of the Los Angeles Unified School District and is the Region 21 Director of the California School Boards Association. McKenna holds an M.A. in mathematics and a Doctor of Education Degree from Xavier University.
McKenna worked as a mathematics teacher, an engineer for North American Aviation on the Apollo Moon Shot Project, taught at the secondary school and college levels, and held several secondary school administrative positions. As the principal of George Washington Preparatory High School located in South Central Los Angeles, McKenna developed and implemented the Preparatory School Model, which in four years, changed an inner-city high school that had been torn by violence, low achievement and lack of community confidence into a school with an attendance waiting list, and nearly 80% of the graduates enrolled in college.
He served as Superintendent of the Inglewood USD, Deputy Superintendent in Compton, Local District Superintendent in Los Angeles USD, and Assistant Superintendent of Secondary Schools in Pasadena. In September 2009, McKenna returned to Los Angeles USD as Local District 7 Superintendent, serving nearly 60,000 students in Central Los Angeles, and was elected in 2014 to the Board of Education.
McKenna has received international recognition for his work, receiving over 400 citations and awards from a host of civic, legislative and professional organizations, including recognition by President Reagan.
A strong advocate of building stable communities from within, McKenna believes that an educational system, which emphasizes justice, equal opportunity and non-violence, is the primary vehicle for positive change in a pluralistic and technological society.