Balan Moorthy, a Langley principal with decades of experience in B.C. education, is the new superintendent of School District 78.
Coming from a 25-year career in education, most recently as a principal of Langley’s Walnut Grove Secondary, Moorthy is taking the helm of a school district stretching from the agricultural community of Agassiz to the mountain town of Boston Bar. Moorthy will be overseeing the district’s 10 schools, with 1,815 students and an annual budget of $24.8-million.
Moorthy will be taking over from Karen Nelson on August 1. Nelson is retiring after holding the top job at SD78 for over a decade.
The decision to appoint a superintendent comes from the district’s board of education, who referenced his “proven track record of building meaningful community connections.”
“The board has no doubt that through his strong leadership, he will effectively collaborate and inspire trust among students, parents, staff, administrators and community alike,” the board stated in a Friday news release.
In his Twitter bio, Moorthy states he is the “husband of a rock star primary teacher, and dad of four powerful young women.” His wife Shalegh, is a primary teacher and instructional coach in the Langley School District the SD78 news release stated.
Moorthy trained as a teacher at the University of Victoria, where he also completed a masters in educational administration. He has also studied Indigenous education at UBC and is completing a PhD with a focus on truth and reconciliation from Nipissing University. He is also a founding member of the Human Dignity Coalition in Abbotsford.
Dozens of Indigenous nations exist within Sd78’s catchment area, including members of the Sto:lo and Nlaka’pamux Nations. Indigenous students make up 37 per cent of the district’s learners. At Q’aLaTKu7eM Community School south of Mt Currie, a collaboration between SD78 and the Sea to Sky School District 48, 100 per cent of students are Indigenous.
