OC Register, "Santa Ana school board appoints new superintendent"

The Santa Ana Unified School District has named Asst. U.S. Secretary of Education Thelma Melendez de Santa Ana to succeed the retiring Jane Russo as superintendent of Orange County's largest school district.
Melendez, who will start Aug. 8, is a former superintendent of the Pomona Unified School District and since 2009 has been a leading advisor to U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan. - HTN Foundation

By SEAN EMERY / THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Dr. Thelma Melendez de Santa Ana. COURTESY OF THE SANTA ANA UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICTSANTA ANA – The Santa Ana Unified school board on Friday announced the appointment of Thelma Melendez de Santa Ana as superintendent of Orange County's largest school district.

Melendez, who previously served as assistant secretary for elementary and secondary education at the U.S. Department of Education, will officially become superintendent of the Santa Ana Unified School District on Aug. 8, according to a district news release.

Melendez assumes the position previously held by Jane Russo, who in late June retired after a five-year tenure as head of Santa Ana Unified.