BHUSD Taps District Veteran As Superintendent

BEVERLY HILLS, CA — A veteran educational leader with roots in the Beverly Hills Unified School District will start as the school system's new superintendent on June 1.

The Board of Education on April 10 voted to appoint Alex Cherniss as superintendent and on Tuesday voted to approve his three-year contract. Cherniss replaces former superintendent Michael Bregy, who resigned in February.

“Dr. Cherniss is a proven, visionary leader whose deep connection to BHUSD and track record of success in high-performing districts make him the ideal choice to lead our schools into the future,” said board Vice President Judith Manouchehri. “Our community values academic excellence, transparency, and strong communication—and Dr. Cherniss brings the leadership and experience to deliver on those priorities.”

Cherniss holds a doctorate in education from USC, where he has also taught doctoral courses in school finance.

He worked previously at BHUSD as a middle school math teacher, K-8 principal, human resources director and assistant superintendent of business services.

He more recently served as superintendent in the San Marino, Palos Verdes Peninsula and Placentia-Yorba Linda unified school districts. Beverly Hills school officials pointed out that the San Marino district was California's highest ranked school system during Cherniss' tenure.

And he also has worked as the chief financial officer for the Los Angeles County Office of Education, managing the budgets of 80 school districts totaling over $14 billion.

“As Superintendent of BHUSD, I intend to model the behaviors I expect from our staff and from our students. I will model urgency to serve underperforming students and schools, the necessity for innovation and creativity, and a commitment to excellence in everything we do. It’s an honor to serve as your BHUSD superintendent of schools," Cherniss said.