The Elementary and Secondary Education department is directly responsible for the oversight of our schools. Executive Director Sarah Crane oversees middle and some elementary schools, and Executive Director Lindsay Garcia oversees the balance of elementary schools. Frank Caropelo, Executive Director of High Schools, oversees high schools as well as alternative and options programs.  All employ a rigorous accountability system for schools and principals that focuses on the five dimensions of teaching and learning: Purpose, Student Engagement, Curriculum and Pedagogy, Assessment for Student Learning, and Classroom Environment and Culture; development and adherence to a School Improvement Plan; and specific attention on equitable outcomes for historically underserved students.

Executive Director Sarah Crane began her educational career in 2002 as a Special Education teacher for students in grades 5-12 in Lee County, Alabama. In 2004, she moved to Amarillo, Texas where she taught both general and special education students at the elementary level. She then spent a year as a Behavior Specialist before moving to Oregon in 2009 to become the Special Education Coordinator for InterMountain Education Service District (ESD). There, she assisted twelve school districts with special education services, behavior support, state reporting and paperwork, programs, and teacher training. Dr. Crane was promoted to Special Education Director for IMESD in 2012, and in 2013 she became principal of Ione Community School (grades K-12) in Ione, Oregon. She joined HSD in 2015 as the principal of Jackson Elementary School, and served there for three years before transitioning to the District Office for her current role.  .

Executive Director Lindsay Garcia began her educational career by spending a year as a volunteer English teacher in Mexico City, Mexico. In 2002, she was hired at Minter Bridge as an ESL teacher, and spent five years in that role before taking on a kindergarten dual language classroom. In the 2012-13 school year, Garcia taught 3rd grade then spent her summer both as a lead teacher for the Dual Language Summer Academy and as a bilingual coach for Migrant Summer School. 

David Nieslanik has a depth of teaching and leadership experience that began with more than two years in the Peace Corps in Nepal; encompasses teaching Humanities, Language Arts, Social Studies, and Leadership at the middle and high school levels in Colorado, Texas, Iowa, and Oregon; and includes spending the past twelve years as a secondary administrator in the Beaverton School District. He served as the assistant principal of Highland Park Middle School from January 2011 through December 2013, then was the school’s principal from January 2014 through June 2016. Welcome David!

Sarah, Lindsay, and David are passionate, student-focused educational leaders who are focused on establishing and supporting continuous learning for improvement.