30-05-2025
- Politics
- San Francisco Chronicle
Oakland school board appoints interim superintendent
The Oakland school board has voted to appoint a veteran educator and former president of the teacher's union to interim superintendent, the district announced Friday.
Denise Saddler will serve as interim superintendent for the 2025-26 school year starting July 1, the district said. The school board will vote to approve Saddler's finalized employment contract at an upcoming board meeting.
'We thank our community for its continued engagement throughout this process and look forward to officially welcoming Dr. Saddler once the contract is finalized. Together, we remain committed to providing every OUSD student with the thriving schools they deserve,' the district said Friday in a statement.
The appointment of Saddler to interim superintendent comes a day after the former longtime superintendent, Kyla Johnson-Trammell, gave her final remarks at a news conference Thursday. The union-backed school board majority ousted Johnson-Trammell in April, eight months after extending her contract through June 2027.
Saddler, the interim superintendent, has more than 40 years of education experience under her belt, including as a teacher and administrator for the district, officials said. She has previously served as principal of Chabot Elementary and oversaw 15 schools in North and West Oakland as the district's former network executive officer.
From 2013 to 2015, Saddler served as assistant superintendent for education services for the Berryessa Union School District in San Jose, according to her LinkedIn profile. She also served as president of the Oakland Education Association, which represents the district's 3,000 teachers, counselors, aides and other educators, for six years, the district said.
