At last week’s Board of Education meeting, Dr. Peter Knapik was introduced as the District’s new Director of Elementary Education. Dr. Knapik earned his Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from MacMurray College in Illinois, and a Master’s degree from Texas A &M University. He received his Doctoral degree in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Southern California.
Dr. Knapik has had a highly accomplished career in the field of education. He began his career teaching intermediate grades at the Assumption Parish School in St. Louis, Missouri, where he worked for four years. Dr. Knapik earned his first district office experience working for the Dallas Independent School District where he was responsible for professional development, teacher induction, coordinating appraisals, and leading the District’s new teacher/mentoring program. From that assignment, Dr. Knapik went on to become the Educational Program Director for the Texas Education Agency.
When Dr. Knapik came to the Los Angeles area in the 1990s, he first worked in the Baldwin Park Unified School District, where he served as a classroom teacher and K-12 instructional specialist. From there, he moved to the Mountain View School District, where he has served for the last 16 years as an elementary principal and Director of Curriculum, Instruction, and Staff Development. As a director, Dr. Knapik has been in charge of English Learner and Categorical programs, helping principals with school site budgets, and providing instructional leadership for twelve K-8 school sites that serve 10,500 students. Dr. Knapik led Mountain View in standards alignment, acquisition of high-quality instructional materials, parental involvement strategies, and data-driven instructional practices.
Dr. Knapik’s first day with BUSD will be April 1.
