Following the resignation of controversial former superintendent Bill Sanderson on Oct. 22, the Los Gatos-Saratoga Union High School District has been taking steps to rebuild relationships.
During their Nov. 12 meeting, board members voted unanimously to name Assistant Superintendent of Student Services Heath Rocha acting superintendent. His contract pays the same as before—a base salary of $251,216—but with an added daily allowance of $275 paid five days per week. The change represents a $50,000 salary bump for the rest of the school year.
Sanderson, who started in the District in 2022, drew backlash from the community, especially from Saratoga High’s music department and the Saratoga Music Boosters (SMB) nonprofit.
In September, the board unanimously approved a new contract for Sanderson that included an 8% raise, eliminating a teaching credential requirement and health coverage until 65. All three benefits were met with criticism. By the time Sanderson finally stepped down, hundreds of community members had shown up at meetings to protest his administration.
According to Board President Misty Davies, his separation came with an agreement that he’d be paid his full salary of $308,448, in exchange for waiving all rights to sue the District. Davies says that these “amicable separations” are common in California school districts.
Following the leadership switch, the District almost immediately walked back multiple policies. Just hours after Sanderson stepped down, Saratoga High School principal Greg Louie announced that flyers for SMB’s annual Cookie Dough Fundraiser could be posted at school, a practice previously banned for supposedly violating National School Lunch Program rules.
The board is reinstating office hours that were eliminated due to Brown Act concerns
And at a town hall that evening hosted at SHS library, Rocha committed to working with SHS music directors Jason Shiuan and Michael Boitz on hosting a school-sponsored tour to Japan, in summer 2026. On Oct. 28, Rocha met with Shiuan and Boitz personally. He agreed to allow the school’s annual concerto competition and CMEA music festival to continue, which were scrapped under Sanderson. Shiuan described the meeting as “an overwhelmingly positive experience and a total breath of fresh air,” in an email.
“For the first time in a long time, Mr. Boitz and I feel we can get back to pouring our full focus and energy back to the people that matter most, our students,” Shiuan wrote.
One main concern both Rocha and Davies have committed to addressing is a “breakdown in communication,” which they have cited as a significant contributor to the widening rift between the District and community.
The board is now reinstating their “board office hours,” a chance for any community member to ask questions or raise concerns. Office hours had been used by the board before the pandemic, but the practice stopped because of concerns that it violated Brown Act by allowing for serial meetings—separate, informal meetings with board members that combined to form a consensus on an issue. Rocha is also conducting monthly visits to school sites to strengthen the bond between the District office and teachers.
In 2022, LGSUHSD hired Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates, which brought Sanderson to the District. The process cost $26,000.
Davies said in an interview that Sanderson had actually expanded community involvement in some ways.
Former board vice president Peter Hertan, who was involved in Sanderson’s hiring, detailed his hopes for the District’s future leader in an interview on Nov. 8.
“You’re the caretaker of a set of responsibilities and money, to achieve an outcome for the community,” Hertan said. “You really have to listen to understand what the community is expecting you to do.”
