SOON-TO-RETIRE GUSD SUPERINTENDENT KEEPS FOCUS ON EDUCATION.

Byline: Alex Dobuzinskis Staff Writer

GLENDALE - When he retires this month, Glendale schools Superintendent Jim Brown will end a 26-year career as the head of various school districts.

But the amateur runner with at least 25 marathons under his belt plans to stay the course and keep working in education.

``Work in leadership and education to me has not been about sprinting,'' said Brown, who has led the Glendale district since 1996. ``It's been about persistence over time, staying focused on what you want to accomplish and working with others to get the job done.''

Brown, whose last board meeting was Tuesday, said he plans to balance his time at home and at work. One of the organizations he will be involved with is the Bay Area School Reform Collaborative, which has the goal of closing the achievement gap between students and helping all children do better.

Michael Escalante, fresh from heading the Fullerton Joint Union High School District, will officially take over the GUSD on Feb. 1. Brown said he and Escalante will work together through the end of this month.

The diversity of public schools is among the things Brown has enjoyed most during his career.

One of the unique things about the Glendale Unified School District is that it spans both urban and suburban areas, making for a diverse student body, Brown said. English is not the primary language for 70 percent of the district's students, with the main languages being Armenian, Spanish and Korean, Brown said.

``And I think that's one of the best things in public education, is it brings people together from different backgrounds and circumstances and teaches them how to live well with one another,'' Brown said.

Art programs are one of the ways to get students from different backgrounds to interact with each other, he said.

Gregory Krikorian, vice president of the school board, said Brown's ``footprints'' will remain on the GUSD for years to come.

``I truly feel he's a man of integrity, and I wish him well with his new endeavors,'' Krikorian said.

Brown has always been open to the diversity of Glendale and ``willing to learn and grow,'' Krikorian said, adding that the superintendent helped him grow as a board member.

On one of the walls of Brown's office hang posters of the Boston and San Francisco marathons. The 61-year-old educator ran the Boston Marathon three times and counts a total of 25 to 30 marathons that he has run in. But Brown said his favorite is the Catalina Marathon.

``The scenery, the course, the people, the challenge. It's a real hilly course,'' he said.

Due to state budget cuts and reduced revenue because of a declining student population, the GUSD also faces an uphill climb in the years ahead. The school district anticipates an $8.2 million shortfall in the fiscal year starting July 1, and the school board is considering a plan to use $5.2 million in reserve funds for the next three years and make millions in budget cuts over that time. ``It will affect what's going on in the classroom by increasing class sizes, which we've had to do already,'' Brown said.

Last year the district had to increase class sizes for grades seven to 12 by two students per class. And because the district's budget is stretched, it may have to pull one grade level out of a state program that encourages districts to keep class sizes at 20 students or below in kindergarten through third grade, Brown said.

The school board had a special budget meeting last week and will meet again on Tuesday.

Alex Dobuzinskis, [phone]

alex.dobuzinskis(at)dailynews.com

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Glendale Unified School District Superintendent Jim Brown will retire this month but intends to keep working in education.

Hans Gutknecht/Staff Photographer