By Sergio Mercado
Dr. Charles Weis was appointed the Interim Dean of the School of Education, as announced by Provost Mitch Avila in a Campus Global email sent Nov. 19, 2021. Weis’ appointment started Jan. 1.
Weis has spent six and a half years at CI as coordinator for the Master of Arts program in educational leadership and co-director of the educational doctorate program, but his experience in education goes far beyond his time at CI. “I have over 40 years of leadership experience in education from preschool to twelfth grade serving as principal, director, assistant superintendent and superintendent in Ventura County,” Weis told The CI View.
Weis has a long history with CI, helping to found the University in the 1990s as Ventura County Superintendent. Weis said, “I worked for nearly a decade with other community leaders and State and Federal legislators to convince the governor to allow Camarillo State Hospital to convert to this university.”
The first in his family to attend college, Weis earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from UCLA and a master’s in school psychology at CSUN. He then went on to begin a career “as a psychologist in private practice (and) as an educational psychologist in schools.”
“My primary function in public schools in the 1970s was helping staff design and implement more equitable educational programs for children of poverty, English learners, Migrant students, and special education students. I then earned an administrative credential and joined Fillmore Unified School District as a director of special education,” Weis said. Afterwards, he pursued his Ph.D. in educational leadership at UCSB.
He continued his career in education, serving as assistant superintendent in Fillmore, and then serving as assistant superintendent for the Ventura County Office of Education. Weis explained, “In 1993, I became county superintendent of schools and served in that capacity for 15 years having been elected four times.” From there, he taught as a lecturer at CSUN, Pepperdine and California Lutheran universities, joining CI as a tenure-track assistant professor in 2015 and being promoted to associate professor in 2001.
While serving as Interim Dean of the School of Education, Weis hopes to pursue initiatives such as increasing enrollment, supporting the re-launch of the Bilingual Authorization and filling vacant positions, among other goals.
Weis’ career shows an emphasis on student success, and he takes pride in seeing his students follow similar career paths. “My greatest pleasure is seeing my students become principals and leaders of school districts and universities,” Weis said. “I am blessed to be working with my colleagues and students here at CSUCI and having the opportunity to help students of color advance in the field of education.”
