When you step foot on the ESAT campus, you’ll immediately understand what I mean when I say that “ESAT is a very special place with amazing staff and students who embody compassion, joy, and a true sense of welcoming someone into their family.”

 I feel so honored to be able to welcome you to the ESAT community’s long track record of success in providing an engaging and high-quality education for all students. As your interim principal, I am deeply committed to listening and learning from each and every student, parent, and staff member to ensure that we all collectively know what has made our community successful in the past, where you believe our focus should be for the coming year, and what you hope for the future of our Grizzly Graduates. I am looking forward to working side by side with you all this year. 

I have been in education for 12 years, and have had the pleasure of working  in a variety of school settings that range from large traditional public schools to sister Alliance schools in our network. I spent my first seven years as a history teacher and student government teacher at La Puente High School, where I loved every minute of teaching. While at LPHS, I was honored  as a Los Angeles County Teacher of the Year, a Carlston Family Foundation Outstanding Teacher of America, and a Claremont Graduate University Outstanding Alumni Teacher.

When I eventually made the difficult choice of leaving the classroom, I had the pleasure of serving as Assistant Principal at Pasadena High School. I recently served as the Assistant Principal of Alliance Dr. Olga Mohan High School, where I spent my last four years working closely with fantastic teachers, students, and families to build academic persistence and a strong school culture. At Mohan, I had the pleasure of guiding initiatives on school-wide culture, increasing rigor for some of our highest performing students, and addressing the reading and fluency needs of our most vulnerable learners. I also had the pleasure of leading our  Nuclear Free Schools student club to advocate for nuclear disarmament locally and preparing students to present on youth initiatives internationally at conferences in South Korea, Japan, and Austria. 

As a father to 4-month old daughter and 3-year old son, I recognize the ever-important role that caring and supportive schools play in guiding our children to their best selves. I know the critical role that we as educators play in the lives of the children in our charge, and am committed to making it my primary responsibility to support our teachers to be the best to provide the highest quality education for all students and families. 

I look forward to sharing this school year with you and to working with you all to help all of our students meet their fullest potential. Thank you for choosing to be a part of the ESAT family.  Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions, concerns, or thoughts you would like to share. 

Andrew King

My wife, Kelly, and our kids, Amelia and Roger.