Merced Union High School District

Three of the MUHSD’s standout leaders were recognized at the annual Association of California School Administrators (ACSA) Awards Night on Wednesday at the Mondo Building in Downtown Merced. 

 

Atwater High’s Alexie Parle was awarded as Secondary Principal Administrator of the Year for the ACSA Merced Chapter. The Merced Chapter also awarded Buhach Colony’s Denia Amador as the Co-Administrator of the Year and Tiffani Gong, who works as the K-12 Pathway Coordinator for MUHSD, as the Career Technical Administrator of the Year. 

 

All three administrators were honored for their dedication and impact they’ve made on campus and in the District. 

 

Amador is in her second year as an associate principal at Buhach Colony. She joined MUHSD in 2018 as a counselor at Livingston High. She moved into administration as an associate principal at Yosemite High School in 2022. “That experience and my mentors there helped prepare me for my current role, and I was grateful for the opportunity to join the team here at Buhach Colony High School as an associate principal,” said Amador, who says she wouldn’t have received this award without the help of our BCHS team. “Each step in my journey has helped shape how I support students, staff, and the school community.”

 

Amador played a critical role in organizing data chats with the juniors, according to MUHSD Deputy Superintendent Mandy Ballenger. The data chats helped students recognize where they stood in a variety of data points and discussed how students can do their best on upcoming assessments. “BCHS saw gains in almost all dashboard areas,” Ballenger said. “Not only are Denia's vision and organizational skills superb, she builds positive relationships with students, parents, and staff.”

 

Buhach Colony principal Kyle Mesa says simply, “Denia is amazing.” As the AP of Teaching and Learning, Amador has a tremendous impact all across the BCHS campus, including leading the Instructional Leadership Team with the support of the Instructional Coach, librarian and ILT Teacher Leads. “We have seen growth in our instruction from the first semester to now.
Mesa said. “We are seeing teachers engage students in Deeper Learning Strategies and challenging students to support their thinking in all subjects across campus while engaging students in all four literacy domains.”

 

Mesa says Amador has also impacted the school’s CTE programs, leading to growth in the pathways and more students completing their pathways and certifications.  “I love my job because every day is an opportunity to make a difference for students,” Amador said. “Whether it’s supporting a teacher, helping a student through a challenge, or working on systems that improve the school experience, the work feels meaningful. I also really enjoy building relationships with staff and students. Schools are special places, and being part of a team that is focused on helping young people succeed is something I don’t take for granted.”

 

Gong is also in her second year in her position with MUHSD. Gong served as associate principal at Golden Valley when CTE programs were beginning to expand in the District. “So it has been especially meaningful to return and help support the continued growth of MUHSD’s CTE programs,” Gong said.

 

Ballenger says Gong has jumped right in and helped expand the CTE programs. She’s worked with middle school students, logging them into California colleges before they even get to high school. She’s coordinated presentations to eighth graders to introduce them to the CTE opportunities waiting for them in high school. Gong has also strengthened MUHSD’s relationship with Merced College, which has allowed the District to expand its CTE dual enrollment opportunities. 

 

“In addition to her work with outside organizations, Tiffany has facilitated collaboration opportunities for all the teachers in each of our CTE pathways that included discussions about the CTE standards, work based learning, programs of study and best practices,” Ballenger said. 

 

Gong says it’s an honor to receive the award because it takes a team for the CTE programs to expand and flourish. “This recognition means a great deal because CTE is truly a collaborative effort,” she said. “It reflects the work of our teachers, administrators, industry partners, and students who are all committed to creating meaningful career opportunities for young people in our community.”

 

Gong says she loves working with educators and community partners who are committed to helping every student graduate with a plan, a pathway, and purpose. “What I love most is building connections that create opportunities for students,” Gong said. “Having worked as an administrator across elementary, middle, and high school levels, I’ve seen how important it is to create clear pathways for students. In this role, I get to bring together K–12 schools, Merced College, UC Merced, and industry partners to design experiences that help students explore careers and see a future for themselves.”

 

There are many challenges a high school principal must face and Ballenger says Parle handles her job as principal at Atwater High with remarkable grace, poise and steadiness. “Under Alexie’s leadership, AHS has developed a renewed sense of respect, pride and belonging among both students and staff,” Ballenger said. “Alexie has done the hard work of building a committed team that believes deeply in the success of every student.”

 

Under Parle’s leadership, AHS has transformed school climate and student supports by focusing on MTSS - SEL behavior, and academics, implementing CharacterStrong schoolwide and establishing consistent systems for corrective behavior and attendance, resulting in a 95% reduction in suspensions, blue Dashboard status and attendance is approximately 95%.

 

Atwater has also strengthened instructional quality and academic outcomes through a statewide focus on deeper learning and higher Depth of Knowledge, peer-led PLCs, and data-driven instruction, supporting strong graduation rates and student growth.

 

“Mrs. Parle has proven herself to be an excellent principal, AHS metrics have improved greatly under her leadership,” said MUHSD Superintendent Alan Peterson. “Alexie exemplifies our expectation of  leaders to self reflect, and improve their skill set every year.  Her perseverance and dedication is appreciated by the AHS school community.”

 

Parle says the award is a reflection of her school and staff. “Receiving this recognition is a tremendous honor and incredibly humbling because I know it reflects the work of an entire school community,” she said. “No principal accomplishes anything alone. This recognition represents the dedication of my team, our staff, students, families, and community partners who believe in what Atwater High School can be.”

 

Parle says she loves being the principal at her alma mater. She loves interacting with students, staff and everyone on campus. She says she loves being a part of school history, like the Falcons girls basketball team’s run to a section championship last year. She also enjoys just walking around campus and hearing laughter, chatting with students, and looking at how beautiful the campus is because of the dedication of her staff.

 

 “I love my job because every day we have the opportunity to change the trajectory and social mobility of a student's life,” Parle said. “High school is such a pivotal time. Students are figuring out who they are and what they want their future to look like. Being part of a school community that helps students discover their strengths, build confidence, and find opportunities they may not have believed were possible is incredibly rewarding. I also love working with educators. Teachers and staff bring passion, creativity, and care to their work every day. Supporting them, helping remove barriers, and building systems that allow them to do their best work with students is one of the most fulfilling parts of being a principal.”

 

Shawn Jansen is the MUHSD Program Manager Digital Media. He can be reached at Sjansen@muhsd.org.