Sage Hill School appoints new head

Judith Glickman, head of La Jolla Country Day School and a former public school superintendent, has been appointed to take the reins of Sage Hill School in Newport Coast.

After an extensive search, the Sage Hill board of trustees selected Glickman, 61, to succeed founder Clint Wilkins as the next permanent head of the school. In June, Wilkins stepped down after eight years at Sage Hill, and interim head Jacqueline Smethurst has filled in for him since then.

Glickman, who has overseen schools in both California and England, is set to take office in January 2008. She was moved to accept the offer, she said, because she wanted the experience of working for a campus still in its formative years.

“I’m just excited about being part of the transition from being a brand-new school to being a rooted school and presence in Orange County, and being part of helping that happen,” Glickman said. “I love Country Day because it really puts students first, and it provides a very well-balanced program. Similarly, I think that’s what I’m going to love about Sage.”

Born in New York, Glickman attended UC Berkeley as an undergraduate and has lived in California ever since. In 1968, she joined the Moraga School District in the Bay Area as a teacher and went on to become superintendent in 1982. Six years later, she moved to the helm of the La Cañada Unified School District, then journeyed across the Atlantic in 1992 to become head of the American School in London.

In her current job at La Jolla Country Day School, Glickman has overseen the 80-year-old campus’ first-ever capital campaign, redesigned the school’s master plan and increased tuition assistance. She also established student-exchange programs in Asia, Africa, Europe and Latin America.

“I’ve been in this business a while, and I love it as much as I did when I started,” she said.

Sage Hill, which opened for classes in 2000, has grown rapidly ever since. The campus, located in one of Orange County’s wealthiest neighborhoods, provides financial aid to 15% of its students and places an emphasis on community service. One of the school’s ongoing programs is tutoring elementary school students on Costa Mesa’s Westside.

“Judith is an accomplished educator with a wealth of experience in public, independent and international education,” said Doug Neff, the chair of Sage Hill’s board of trustees, in a release. “She is a leader whose intellect, ideals and commitment to education embody the highest aspirations of Sage Hill.”