About Me
Dr. Gonzales has a diverse background in public education, having started her career as a classroom teacher in Daly City. She has served as a site administrator at the elementary, middle, and high school levels, and supported the 29 school districts while a Director of STEAM at the Santa Clara County Office of Education (SCCOE). From the central office perspective, her roles have included Superintendent, Assistant Superintendent of Educational Services, and Chief Business Officer. In her current role, she leads an all star classified team of leaders including Fiscal Services, Information Technology, Food/Nutrition, Purchasing, Transportation, Maintenance, Operations, and Facilities.
Dr. Gonzales has been a long-standing public school leader in California and a self-proclaimed life-long learner. She is a graduate of the University of Southern California’s School Business Management and Urban Superintendent programs, as well as the Stanford University Executive Program for Education Leaders.
Her post-secondary academic career includes:
- Master of Business Administration Degree (MBA) - Georgia Southwestern State University
- Doctorate of Education (Ed.D.) in Organizational Leadership - University of LaVerne
- Master of Arts Degree (MA) in Educational Leadership - San Jose State University
- Bachelor of Science Degree (BS) in Business Management - San Jose State University
- Bachelor of Arts Degree (BA) in Theater Arts (Radio/Television Film Production) - San Jose State University
She is also a graduate of the University of Southern California’s School Business Management and Urban Superintendent programs, as well as the Stanford University Executive Program for Education Leaders.
Bio
Dr. Gonzales has many years of experience as a finance/operations leader, including Executive Director/Chief Financial Officer in the Marysville School District in Washington and Chief Business Officer for the Mt Diablo Unified School District in the Silicon Valley. She was President of the Association of California School Administrators (ACSA) in 2017/2018, the largest administrator's association in the nation with over 20,000 members.
Lisa was one of 100 Superintendents selected as #FutureReady by President Obama and Secretary Arne Duncan for her leadership in technology and innovation, and also serves as a cadre member for TICAL, California’s Technology Information Center for Administrative Leadership. She previously served on the State of California's Education Technology Task Force and CreateCA Arts Task Force.
Lisa is most passionate about mentoring other leaders in the public school world. Her advocacy work around instructional technology, closing the digital divide, connectivity, and funding at the state and federal level has resulted in numerous awards, including ACSA State Business Leader of the Year, ACSA Region 8 Business Leader of the Year, ACSA Leadership Matters Legislative Award, National “Women in Leadership” Award from AASA, Commendation for Public School Leadership from the City of San Jose, and Tech & Learning’s national award as “Leader of the Year.”
Committed to female leadership, she helped resurrect ACSA’s Women’s Leadership Network and speaks statewide and nationally on a number of topics around women’s issues in leadership, branding, networking, and technology. She was President Elect for CASBO Northern Section and worked at the state level to build out women’s leadership groups for CASBO. Lisa has written dozens of articles on topics related to leadership, safe schools, strategic planning, and leadership support programs for principals and other educational leaders. She is the mother of twin daughters who are products of California public schools and are now NCAA soccer players.