Education

Superintendent Balderas Leaving 4J School District For New Opportunity

KLCC | By Brian Bull

Published March 4, 2020 at 3:22 PM PST

After five years and winning several accolades – including 2020 National Superintendent of the Year – Gustavo Balderas is leaving Eugene 4J Schools.

The Edmonds School District in Washington State has announced an offer to Balderas to become its new superintendent. He’s expected to start July 1^st.

The new venue will be larger than Eugene’s. There are roughly 22,000 students in the Edmonds District, compared to nearly 17,000 at 4J.

Last fall, Balderas was the first Latino to be recognized as Oregon Superintendent of the Year. He’s earned praise for increasing graduation rates for Eugene schools, and improving diversity among the 4J administration.

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Brian Bull

Brian Bull is a contributing freelance reporter with the KLCC News department, who first began working with the station in 2016. He's a senior reporter with the Native American media organization Buffalo's Fire, and was recently a journalism professor at the University of Oregon.

In his nearly 30 years working as a public media journalist, Bull has worked at NPR, Twin Cities Public Television, South Dakota Public Broadcasting, Wisconsin Public Radio, and ideastream in Cleveland. His reporting has netted dozens of accolades, including four national Edward R. Murrow Awards (22 regional), the Ohio Associated Press' Best Reporter Award, Best Radio Reporter from the Native American Journalists Association, and the PRNDI/NEFE Award for Excellence in Consumer Finance Reporting.

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