Our Superintendent
Don Wilson
Dr. Don Wilson comes to Vista Charter Public Schools with a long and illustrious career in education. Dr. Wilson started his career in Los Angeles as a bilingual educator and has 17 years of classroom experience. He later served as the administrator in charge of Special Education at the renowned 3rd Street Elementary School in Hancock Park and then served as principal at Wonderland Avenue Elementary School where he increased student achievement six years in a row making Wonderland one of the highest ranked schools in the state. Later, Dr. Wilson served as the Instructional Director overseeing 11 LAUSD K-12 pilot schools and 18 Linked Learning high schools.
Dr. Wilson completed a double Bachelor’s Degree at Brigham Young University in English and Spanish Literature and received his Masters in Educational Leadership and Curriculum Design from Cal State Northridge. In May of 2017, he finished his Doctoral studies at USC with his dissertation that focused on the role of engagement in outperforming urban schools serving at risk youth. Dr. Wilson has been the recipient of many awards and received the California Distinguished school award for his work with Arts in Education and Way of Council, an innovative program that increases the social/emotional intelligence of students while focusing on oral language development. He also received the ACCIPIO Administrator of the Year Award for his work with diversity in education. In 2013 he was accepted into and completed the highly regarded SUPES Academy, a program designed to promote and train future superintendents. In 2015 he received the Administrator of the Year award from the California Music Educators Association (CMEA) for his commitment to keeping the arts and music in public schools.
Dr. Wilsons’ current leadership at Vista public Schools has already led to a greater commitment to a guaranteed, viable, and rigorous Vista curriculum and pedagogy that includes Way of Council, Kagan Cooperative Learning strategies, Project Lead the Way STEM offerings, and an integrated technology strategic plan connected to the 2016 International Standards for Technical Education. Significantly, Dr. Wilson has completed writing a new charter petition for K-5 Global Academies with a STEAM focus, which will open in Orange County in 2018 and Los Angeles in 2019.
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Dear parents and students,
Welcome to Vista Charter Public Schools: Home of the Eagles!
At Vista Charter Public Schools, we are committed to transforming the school experience. From the moment you walk into a Vista Charter Public school you will notice the difference. Beyond the warm welcome and inviting environment is a team of highly trained teachers, administrators, and support personnel, all of whom share the goal of ensuring that our students are highly engaged in their academic life and feel 100% accepted as part of the Vista family. Vista Public Charter Schools are the right fit for students of all achievement levels and aspirations, with an essential commitment to equity and a focus on improving college and career readiness skills for all students.
At Vista Public Charter Schools, we take an approach to education based on the idea that students work harder and dream bigger if their education is relevant to them. As students move through 6th to 8th grade, they will experience a well-rounded curriculum that will expose them to art, music, dance, and theater. Literature, history, math, and science are integral parts of their experience and taught in ways that excite and bring out the joy of learning. They will learn to use advanced technologies as a creative means to an end and not an end in itself.
At Vista, students master core subjects through the power of applying knowledge in a real-world context. In addition to rigorous academics, our schools focus on increased proficiency in crucial areas such as critical thinking, problem solving, and collaboration, which guarantees students are engaged and active participants in their own education. As a staff we will work tirelessly to make sure your children will be prepared for full participation in a 21st century global community.
I want you to know that you, our families, are an integral part of this experience and what you bring to the table as parents is highly valued and needed to ensure the continued success of our students. For those of you who have given of your time and energy, I invite you back for another year of service and participation at your school. For our new families, I invite you to get to know us better by becoming active members of the Vista community by volunteering in one of the many opportunities that abound at our schools.
With change comes growth and this looks to be a very exciting year. I thank you in advance for all you will do to make this the great educational community that it is. I look forward to working with you and will maintain an open door policy to ensure good communication between our schools and home. And speaking of home… Vista is your child’s home away from home. I invite you to make it yours too. Welcome to a new year and welcome to Vista Charter Public Schools where we transform the school experience.
Don Wilson
Superintendent
