Pasadena High School Welcomes New Principal

Please give a big Bulldog Bark and welcome Pasadena High School’s new Principal, Dr. Matthew Kodama! Pending Board of Education approval, Mathew Kodama, Ed.D. has been selected as the new principal of Pasadena High School starting in the 2022-2023 school year.

Dr. Kodama is an inspirational and highly experienced educator with a passion for unlocking the potential of a wide range of learners through the dynamic support of faculty, staff, and families. He served as assistant principal of PHS from 2013 to 2015 and returns to PUSD after seven years at the Covina Valley Unified School District where he served as a principal of a middle school, continuation high school, special education adult transition, and an AB130-aligned independent study school. While at Covina Valley, he expanded the Project Lead The Way Engineering Pathway from a single class to a fully developed pathway, established “Femineers”, an all-girl Engineering club, and Girls Who Code to challenge gender stereotypes in computer science. He is the recipient of numerous grants including Mr. Holland’s Opus
(2017) and an Arizona State University/Verizon Innovative Learning for Virtual Reality (2020).

Dr. Kodama has deep roots in the district and is the proud product of PUSD schools. He began his career at PUSD as an instructional assistant before working as a teacher, inclusion specialist, curriculum coach, support provider for beginning teachers, and assistant principal at PHS.

Dr. Kodama says, “I am honored by the opportunity to serve as the principal of Pasadena High School. After a seven-year hiatus, I’m excited to return home to PUSD and look forward to continuing the traditions of academic excellence, and innovation that has made PHS the Pride of Pasadena. Go Bulldogs!”

He has served as an adjunct assistant professor at Pacific Oaks College in Pasadena. Dr. Kodama has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Human Development and a Master of Arts in Special Education from Azusa Pacific University, a Master of Arts in Educational Administration from California State University, Los Angeles, and an Educational Doctorate in Educational Leadership in Urban Settings from the University of Southern California.

“Please join me in welcoming Dr. Kodama back to PHS and in thanking Dr. Hernandez for his dedicated leadership over the last six years.”

Elizabeth Blanco, Ed.D.
Chief Academic Officer