Dublin School Official to Become Newark Unified's New Superintendent

Dave Marken, assistant superintendent of the , said Monday he has accepted the job of superintendent of the Newark Unified School District.

Marken will , who announced his resignation in mid-April. 

"I am looking forward to building a strong administration and leadership team and doing great things in Newark," he said.

While Newark school officials haven't announced Marken's hiring, on Tuesday the school board will hold a closed meeting to deal with personnel issues. The agenda for that meeting, released Monday evening, includes the item "superintendent employment contract."

The closed portion of the meeting is set for 5:30 p.m., with the public session scheduled for 7:30 p.m. At that time the board would announce any decisions made during the personnel session. 

Marken has been with the Dublin district for nearly 14 years in various roles, including assistant principal and principal of  School. 

During that time, he's seen students return as staff members.

"When you're anywhere for any length of time, we have people who are now working in this organization who were students when I was at the high school," he said. 

Marken was selected from a group of five finalists who were interviewed by Newark Unified’s Board of Education during a closed meeting on June 18. He was recruited to apply for the position and was offered the position the same day as his interview, he said.

Newark Unified serves about 6,700 students while Dublin has about 6,300 pupils. Like Dublin, Newark also has only one high school.

According to Marken, he will wrap up his final days in Dublin by the end of June. 

He said that while he is excited about the new opportunity, it won't be easy to leave.

"You can't spend the years and time with the kids, the parents and community to not leave a huge part of your heart here," said Marken.

Nika Megino contributed to this report.