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High school has not yet started for Anzar students, but their new principal, Shamoon Ebrahimi, has already begun putting his stamp on the campus. He comes to the job with close to two decades of experience in education, which has given him what he calls “a passion for promoting a pathway for purpose in education.”
Aromas-San Juan Unified School District Superintendent Barbara Dill-Varga said that she believes he will continue the tradition set by outgoing principal Angela Crawley of maintaining “a warm community where you know there’s not a lot of bureaucracy between the kids and the adults.”
“I think he’s going to be a great addition,” she said, “and he works really well with our administrative team, too. I know with his background, he’s going to be a really good fit for us and help us move the needle forward for our kids.”
A native of Iran, Ebrahimi came to the United States at eight years old, following two years in Germany as a Red Cross-sponsored refugee, after his Christian family fled their home in 1986 to escape religious oppression. They settled in New Britain, Connecticut, where he spent the next 15 years.
BenitoLink: How did you first get into the field of education?
Shamoon Ebrahimi: While going through the New Britain school system, I met teachers and mentors who took me under their wing and made me feel like I belonged. Specifically, during my freshman year of high school, I met my counselor, Mr. Desmond. I don’t even know his first name or if he is still alive, but he helped change the trajectory of my life.
As a first-generation student, I knew nothing about college or financial aid applications. Mr. Desmond guided me through that entire process, and I remember thinking that I really liked the feeling he gave me and that I wanted to do the same for others. That was the first time the seed of becoming an educator was planted.
What path did you take through higher education?
I went to the University of Connecticut as an undecided major. I explored marketing, communications, and sociology. I realized business and communications weren’t quite right for me, but sociology laid the foundation for my future career. I eventually asked myself what career made me feel the most connected, and the answer was always “school counselor.” I moved to Chicago for grad school, earning a master’s in Sociology from DePaul University and my school counseling certification from Concordia University Chicago.
Where did your professional career officially begin?
I started as a high school counselor in the Chicago Public Schools at Amundsen High School on the city’s north side. It was a small neighborhood school with a high-need population and many challenges, but I learned a ton and fell in love with the work. During my senior year of college, I completed an “urban semester” internship shadowing a counselor in Hartford, Connecticut, which solidified my interest.
After four years in the city, I moved to the suburbs to Maine West High School in Des Plaines, Illinois, where I was a counselor for 10 years. More recently, I served as the department chair at East Leyden High School in Franklin Park for two years, and I also had a six-month stint as an interim assistant principal.
How did you find your way from Illinois to rural California?
I was at a point in my career where I wanted to move to the next level of leadership. I was interviewing in the Chicago area and staying in touch with one of my mentors, Dr. Ken Wallace, a former superintendent. One night, he texted me and asked if I would ever consider California.
He reminded me of Dr. Barbara Dill-Varga, who had worked as an assistant superintendent under him. He told me she was looking for a principal for a small school in rural California and thought I would be a good fit. I initially thought I wasn’t ready to be a principal—I was looking for department chair or assistant principal roles—but he convinced me it was a unique opportunity to work under Dr. Dill-Varga’s tutelage.
Barbara and I talked for two hours that night. I asked her everything: what the job was like, what the community was like, and how I would navigate the move with my family. I have a child with special needs, another with a 504 plan, and an accelerated daughter, so the personal logistics were significant. The more we talked, the more the opportunity resonated with me. I researched the school, read news articles—likely yours, since you cover the district—and decided to go for it. I bought a last-minute $650 plane ticket, flew in on April 30, interviewed on May 1, and was offered the job.
You spent 14 years as a counselor. What did that experience teach you that you couldn’t learn in a college classroom?
Graduate school doesn’t teach you how to deal with a crisis. You cover social-emotional topics, but you don’t truly understand them until you live through them. I also learned how to use data to drive practice, which isn’t emphasized enough in academia. I went through the RAMP process with the American School Counselor Association, which involves reimagining a department to be proactive rather than reactive. That process of restructuring really prepared me for leadership.
What were the most common concerns students brought to you as a counselor?
A large portion of it was students being emotionally dysregulated and lacking coping skills. They needed help managing conflicts with teachers or peers, and we used tools like square breathing or peer mediation. The other major issue was being unfamiliar with the post-secondary process. Many kids blindly pick a major or a college because the weather is nice or their parents think it’s a good school, without understanding the cost or the return on investment. We have a societal crisis where families are spending $200,000 on educations that don’t offer a return, leading to massive student debt.
I believe we need to help students identify career pathways as early as sixth grade. By freshman year, they should be exploring these through classwork or internships. By senior year, they should be making informed decisions based on their experiences. This is why I am passionate about our 40 business partnerships in the community. They provide the career experiences students need in order to have clarity before they graduate.
What were the first things you did upon arriving on campus?
I reached out to staff members I had met during the interview and sent an introductory letter to everyone. I rearranged the office, put up some personal items, and started meeting with the support staff and the district office team. I’ve also made it a goal to have lunch in the community at least once a week to get to know the local entrepreneurs and community members. I’ve already attended a Rotary Club meeting.
What is your impression of your predecessor, Angela Crawley, and the state of Anzar High?
Angela has been wonderful. She built a great structure here and was incredibly passionate about helping me transition. She made a handbook for me, answered all my texts, and has been there for me in ways I never expected. I want it known how thankful I am for her. She left very big shoes to fill.
I see Anzar’s small size of 266 kids as its “superpower.” It is a close-knit community where I have the opportunity to know every single student and staff member. In my previous roles, I had individual caseloads larger than this entire school. Being in close proximity to everyone allows for stronger relationships, which makes difficult conversations easier when they arise.
Are there specific programs or curricula at Anzar that you find particularly valuable?
I love that we have AVID [Advancement Via Individual Determination]. It teaches executive functioning and college readiness skills, like “marking the text,” which can be applied across all subjects. I also value the Hawk Academy for dual enrollment, our AP Spanish courses, and the Seal of Biliteracy. These are all things I promoted as a counselor. We also have amazing CTE [Career Technical Education] opportunities that I want to expand. Anzar might not have 20 different electives like a huge school, but we can offer 40 different partnership connections.
What areas do you see as needing improvement or growth?
We have the physical pieces to address, and the community’s approval of the bond measure gives us the opportunity to remodel and reimagine our space. I want to take our list of 40 partnerships and turn them into more robust internship sites. Another big opportunity is “telling our story.” We have so many wonderful things happening, but not enough people hear about them. I’m looking at how I can use my newsletter or social media to better disseminate information.
What is your immediate focus for the coming school year?
I want to introduce a post-secondary handbook and structured advisory activities to help students make sense of their future plans. I’ve also reconfigured some space to create a “teachers’ lounge” because I believe if you take care of the staff, they will take better care of the kids.
Our motto moving forward will be: “Take care of yourself, take care of others, and take care of our school.” It’s a simple framework for decision-making. If a student picks up trash, they are taking care of the school. If they refer a friend to the wellness center, they are taking care of others. We want to celebrate those choices.
What is your ultimate vision for an Anzar graduate and for the school itself?
I hope a student who leaves here after four years has had the opportunity to truly learn about themselves. I want them to know how to build relationships, how to advocate for themselves, and what their place in society could look like. Ideally, they come out as prepared as possible with relationships that will last a lifetime.
I am genuinely excited to be here, and I can’t wait to meet as many people as possible. I have an open-door policy for any questions or concerns. I want us to dream big for the future together and create unique opportunities for everyone at Anzar to be excited about.
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