Board Member Joan Malczewski brings to the LBUSD Board of Education a distinctive blend of academic expertise as a historian of American education, financial fluency developed through her early career as a CPA, and direct classroom and teacher-mentoring experience. 

Dr. Malczewski joined the LBUSD Board of Education in December 2022. She moved to Laguna Beach nine years ago with her husband, who had been hired to serve as Dean of the University of California School of Education. Joan and her husband have a son who currently attends Thurston Middle School, and four older children who graduated from public high schools in New York City and are now pursuing graduate studies at UC Berkeley, UC San Francisco, the University of Texas at Austin, and Columbia University.

The Laguna Beach Unified School District Board of Education today announced the appointment of Don Austin, Ed.D., as Superintendent of Schools, effective July 1. The action quickly follows the governing board’s May 12 action to approve a mutual separation agreement with Dr. Jason Glass, which ends his service as Superintendent after May 31, 2026.

On Tuesday, May 12, the Governing Board of the Laguna Unified School District and Dr. Jason Glass reached a mutual agreement to conclude Dr. Glass’s service as the Superintendent of Schools effective May 31, 2026.  

The Governing Board of the Laguna Beach Unified School District and Dr. Jason Glass have reached a mutual agreement to conclude Dr. Glass' service as Superintendent of Schools effective May 31, 2026.

Laguna Beach families invest deeply in their schools and deserve an honest picture of what that investment is earning. Here's where LBUSD stands against state and national benchmarks, where the work continues, and what we're learning from districts performing at even higher levels.