Campbell ready to lead county schools

Turns out her baby brother, literally a baby, did not discriminate. Both regular and purple mashed potatoes ended up everywhere. The brother who was a bit older and her parents preferred the regularly colored ones. The dog would eat anything and the cat wouldn’t eat either.

It was that unique approach that landed her first place. And it’s the same kind of thinking she uses today when approaching education. Hopefully, it will be the state of mind that remains when she begins overseeing all of the San Mateo County schools. Campbell is running unopposed to serve as the San Mateo County superintendent of schools. Barring a write-in candidate bumping her off, Campbell will take over where County Superintendent Jean Holbrook, who will soon be retiring, leaves off. Campbell will be only the fourth woman to hold the position and the first openly gay person to serve in the capacity.

"I’m thrilled she’s willing to step up to the plate,” said Holbrook, adding that decision makes retiring easier.

Holbrook believes Campbell will continue work on lessening the achievement gap but will bring a stronger emphasis on 21st century technology integrated into the classroom.

Holbrook’s assumption was correct.

Campbell comes to the position from a small district, two schools, but with experience about partnering with others to make programs happen. She’s interested in working with county agencies to enhance services like counseling now offered by a variety of agencies. Campbell is energized by the current economic crisis, looking at the challenge as an opportunity to see how education can be provided differently for less.

Talking about such challenges brightens Campbell’s face, allowing her passion to culminate in a single work, "Golly,” she said with a smile.

Campbell, 61, currently serves as the superintendent of the Portola Valley Elementary School District. The Redwood City resident and her partner Michelle have four children between them — Catherine, a 29-year-old who recently completed medical school; Doug, a 24-year-old investment analyst; 13-year-old Hannah and 10-year-old Emma, both of whom attend Tierra Linda Middle School in San Carlos.

Campbell, who was born in Palo Alto, did not grow up in the Bay Area. With her father in the Army, Campbell spent kindergarten in Newfoundland before the family settled in Seattle, where she spent most of her adolescence. She grew up loving the outdoors, playing games like kick the can, and always enjoying school. Despite an inclination for education, Campbell’s plans were to become a meteorologist based on a book she had been given.

Instead, Campbell attended Scripps College in Southern California where she got a bachelor’s degree in American literature. Unsure of what she wanted to do next, Campbell took some time off during which she got married. When she returned to academics in ’73, Campbell applied for both law and graduate school programs. She opted to attend Stanford University for the Stanford Teacher Education Program, known as STEP. Through it, Campbell had access to work in the classroom while earning her degree and credential. She  began working with middle school students and remained with that age group for years to come.

Abbott Middle School in San Mateo was Campbell’s home for years. She began teaching language arts and social science to seventh grade students. Campbell returned to school, at California State University Hayward (now California State University East Bay), to earn her counseling credential. Lucky for Campbell, Abbott needed a counselor once she finished. Campbell spent seven years counseling before becoming assistant principal.

She finally left Abbott in 1990 to become principal at Ralston Middle School in Belmont, a position Campbell held through ’97. In 1997, Campbell was asked to be superintendent of the Belmont-Redwood Shores Elementary School District. Campbell took the same position at Portola Valley in 2003, which she’s held ever since.

Heather Murtagh can be reached by e-mail: heather@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200 ext. 105.