You've got to meet this guy!
Dr. Grant Litfin has assumed the reins of Los Alamitos High School, replacing the retired Kelly Godfrey. Litfin comes to Los Al from Torrance Unified School District where he served as a teacher, assistant principal and principal. Litfin, who grew up outside of Minneapolis, is not lacking in a wide diversity of high school experiences. He said "I actually still have our school record for lettering--I lettered 27 times in high school."
Your editors had the pleasure of interviewing Litfin yesterday, July 6, his second day on the job. In describing how the great diversity of his own high school experiences makes him ideally suited to run a high school, he said "I think that's a strength of mine--when I'm working at a high school and working with kids, no matter what you like, I can have a discussion with you about it. He certainly can!
He grew up just west of Minneapolis in Minnesota. "I went to high school at a tiny little town, Delano, Mn. It has less people in the town than Los Al high has enrolled." He counts that as one of his strengths. "Being from a smaller place, I've had a lot of opportunities to get involved." He continued, "The one great thing about being at a tiny school, our middle school and high school are in the same place. Because of that, they allow you to play varsity athletics as a seventh grader. So, I made the varsity in track as a seventh grader and was able to letter very young in that, but I also did drama, band--I can play any brass instrument that there is--I'm a trumpeter at heart. I was able to get involved in just about everything--I did cross country, basketball, football, and track."
Since that was only a few years ago--he is only 30 years old--he has not forgotten the challenges high school students must overcome. "When people put together what year I graduated from high school or college, or glance at my resume - people realize that I’m not very old to be in an administrative position – especially one as significant as leading Los Al High School – one of the best and largest public high schools in America… I sometimes get a “really?” out of some people – but I always have – so after 6 years of that reaction in an administrative office - it isn't that new to me. I was a young high school graduate, a young college graduate, a young teacher, and a young administrator. I guess I really don’t find it that strange to be a younger leader on a campus, being an administrator in my opinion is really about listening to people, caring for people and students enough to tell them the truth, giving people options when you can, and firm direction when you need to, and above all - maximizing the potential of those around you. Age is just a number, you have to be willing to learn all the time and to recognize that being a principal is sometimes a lot like being a referee because every decision you make has those who thought it was a great call and others who think you made a bad one. After a couple years of sitting in the “big chair,” I think it is really about looking at what advantages being a younger administrator gives me – when you step back from the stereotype of what a “typical principal" looks like – I recognize that it may be a real advantage to “speak the same language,” listen to similar music, to know what video game students are talking about, be able to jump into a pick up basketball game and actually compete (even though I may require a few bags of ice afterward), to be able to remember in great detail the fears of high school kids, the headaches of the college admittance process, the pitfalls of high school age kids."
When asked about his near term goals for Los Al, he said "I think a big thing a lot of people are worried about is that I'm going to come in and change a bunch of things. I’m really excited to work with a talented faculty and with parents, students, and community members that care so much about their school and the success of their kids. I think I can help what is already great – get even better – I see that as my major goal in taking this job. I think it would be foolish of me to come in with an agenda and a list of changes / my agenda – I’m going to instead gather as much information as I can over the next semester or year from the leaders on our campus and in our community – and then apply our collective vision to best lead our school to new levels of achievement."
Litfin comes from teaching and sporting parents of German blood. His mother is a special ed teacher and his father is the head coach for girls golf and formerly, a high school Baseball, Basketball, Football Varsity Coach. Litfin said "It's a perfect fit for me to be in high school because they have everything and a great school like Los Al, they're good at everything and I'm really excited by that." He continued, "I want to connect with more kids, I want to make a difference with more people and I really think this is going to be a great school for that just because of the sheer talent that the kids have."
He moved out to California in 2001, three days after graduating from college. He started as a middle school tech and remedial reading teacher in Torrance. after 2 1/2 years, the principal went out on unexpected medical leave and they moved the Assistant Principal into the principal's position. "I was the only person on our entire staff that had an administrative credential and a Masters", so he moved into the AP slot and never looked back.
During his tenure at Torrance, Litfin completed a doctoral degree in educational leadership from the University of Southern California. He resides in San Pedro with his wife Heather and their four month old son, Gavin.
