Previous assistant principal now principal in Fountain Valley
A longtime Lee Elementary School teacher has been named the new assistant principal of McGaugh Elementary in Seal Beach. Wendy Wood, who has taught at Lee for 27 years, was chosen after a rigorous selection process involving school staff, parents, school board members and district administrators, said Superintendent Dr. Andrew Pulver. She will work with McGaugh Principal Roni Ellis. Previous assistant principal, Teri Malpass, left to become a principal in Fountain Valley.
Wood, who has lived in Rossmoor for 20 years, has taught every grade level except 5th grade and has held many leadership roles for Los Alamitos Unified. She was a third-grade Language Arts mentor who wrote reading and writing curriculum and assessments for the district. She was also an English Learners Coordinator, conducting after school writing intervention classes and presenting at parent meetings. She was a Fellow of the Cotsen Foundation for the Art of Teaching and most recently served a special assignment with the district’s Educational Service department.
Wood grew up in Lakewood and earned both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from California State University Long Beach. She has two boys who attended Lee Elementary, Oak Middle School and Los Alamitos High School. Her older son is currently a junior at California Maritime Academy, and the other is a senior at LAHS.
Wood is “an extraordinary instructional leader, passionate about teaching and learning, and dedicated to the values of Los Al,” Pulver said.
