An innovative educator who led a high-achieving elementary school and developed technology training for Apple has been named the new principal of Brywood Elementary School.
“Astrid emerged as the No. 1 choice during a competitive hiring process that featured a number of highly qualified candidates,” IUSD Superintendent Terry Walker said Thursday. “She brings an extremely impressive and varied resume to Brywood, working with diverse student populations and serving as the longtime principal of a high-performing K-8 school in Walnut, Calif. Most recently, she’s worked for Apple Inc., training schools and personnel to effectively leverage new technologies.”
Ramirez began her career in 1992 as a third-grade teacher at Alcott Elementary School in Pomona and became a bilingual resource teacher at Alcott three years later. In 1997 she was hired as a school site specialist at Westmont Elementary School, and the following year she was named vice principal at the high-performing Stanley G. Oswalt Elementary School in the Rowland Unified School District.
In 2001, Ramirez was named principal at Oswalt, and over the next decade she pioneered a number of strategies to further accelerate that school’s upward academic trajectory, including implementation of a successful One to One Laptop Learning Program. She also oversaw the school’s conversion to a K-8 campus, which was renamed the Stanley G. Oswalt Academy.
After a dozen years at Oswalt, Ramirez took on a new set of challenges in 2010 when she was hired by Apple Inc. Serving as an account executive, she has coordinated comprehensive trainings in the Los Angeles Unified School District designed to help administrators and teachers leverage the latest educational technologies and digital resources.
“Ramirez is a passionate and innovative educational leader,” Walker said, “and she is eager to begin working with the students, parents and staff of Brywood.”