Dr. Ginger Hovenic

Director of Education

Dr. Ginger Hovenic is a proactive educator and strong proponent of parent-school-community participation. Born in Louisiana, Ginger grew up in California and received degrees at San Diego State, Cal Western and United States International Universities. Trained in Psychology, English, Special Education and Educational Administration, Dr. Hovenic has taught most grade levels and has held various administrative positions. She also served as Head of International University High School in London, an Educational Consultant for the U.S. Department of State's Office of Overseas Schools, and as a George Lucas Educational Fellow. She has taught at International University Europe, Harvard University and San Diego State University sharing ideas of how schools can be different learning places for today's students. She serves on the Educate the Children Foundation Board, California State Superintendent's Charter Schools Board, and the National Charter Schools Board. Ginger's first priority is students at all age levels.

When the Chula Vista School District embarked on a pilot project with San Diego State University to establish a Professional Development School in 1991, Dr. Hovenic was chosen to head up the new project, Clear View Elementary School. Under her guidance, the school became the recipient of State Educational Restructuring Planning and Demonstration Grants (SB-1274), a State Technology Grant (SB-1510), honored as a 1993 and 1997 California Distinguished School, received a California School Boards "Golden Bell" Award, and named Cox Communications International Model Technology School. Clear View received grants from private industries, including Cox Communications, Challenge Foundation and IBM. The George Lucas Education Foundation and Learning Channel produced documentaries of her successful implementation of technology in the classroom and Education Week, NEA Today, CTA Educator, Wall Street Journal and twenty-six other publications have also highlighted her leadership.

As a result of the many innovative programs operating at Clear View (which include the training of 30 student teachers per semester, extensive staff development opportunities, Peace Patrol, "Families," alternative assessment strategies, student developed rubrics and exemplars, a Visitation, Observation and Staff Development Program (VOS) was established to facilitate the sharing of success with visitors. Dr. Hovenic led the Clear View staff in the successful establishment of a summer Multimedia Academy for Educators based on the principles of the Institute for Information Age Education and her written materials on alternative assessment.

In 1994, Dr. Hovenic was named California School Administrator of the Year by the Association of California School Administrators and a National Distinguished Principal by the National Association of Elementary School Principals, VALIC and the U. S. Department of Education. The Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge awarded her the 1995 Teacher's Medal, the highest educator award presented by this organization. In 1996, she received the prestigious Hart Vision Award presented by the California Network of Educational Charters for excellence in education through significant contribution to the success of a Charter School. She also served as a member of the prestigious national OERI Study Group for Achieving World Class Standards: The Challenge For Educating Teachers. She has been named Citizen Ambassador to South Africa and has consulted with Ministries of Education in Japan, Singapore and Malaysia.

As Executive Director and Founder of San Diego County's Classroom of the Future Foundation and Executive Director of Harborside School downtown, she was honored with the SONY Creator Award. Her achievements thus far reveal what can happen if you're not afraid to "dream high enough" to provide the best for all children.