Burbank Unified School District Board of Education President Dr. Armond Aghakhanian announced that he is running for re-election for the BUSD Board of Education.
“I am a proud Burbank resident, parent, and teacher. I have a vested interest in giving every Burbank Unified School District student the educational opportunities they need to succeed. I am running for re-election to the Burbank School Board because I want to build on the progress we have made in delivering equal opportunities and first-rate educational programs to our students and stakeholders. We are facing challenging and uncertain times. We need leadership with experience,” said Aghakhanian.
He is the Co-Founder of the Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Committee. The Committee’s mission is to ensure the District serves all students and grows a professional and diverse workforce and the districtwide multicultural appreciation initiative. As a current Board president, four Burbank elementary schools have received the California Exemplary Arts Education Award. He was also instrumental in securing a buddy bench at Joaquin Miller Elementary.
Furthermore, as a member of the Burbank Board of Education for the past five years, the District has expanded its mental health partnerships and resources. Forged a strong relationship with community colleges for dual enrollment classes. Received competitive grants which have increased career technical education courses. Increased STEM education opportunities and reduced suspension and chronic absenteeism rates
Aghakhanian currently teaches at both Glendale Community College and East Los Angeles Community College. He brings two decades of teaching to his profession, including stints at Woodbury University, Marymount California University, the Salvation Army College, and several other educational institutions. He is the Director of the East Los Angeles College (ELAC) Foundation, where he co-founded ELAC’s Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation and Incubator. The Center is the only institution of its kind in East LA. It was created to accelerate the startup and growth-phase for enterprises owned by minorities, women, veterans, the formerly incarcerated, and members of the LGBT community. Furthermore, Armond founded the Transforming Lives Campaign (TLC), which aims to provide support for students and their families who face significant challenges such as hunger, homelessness, digital divide, clothing, and transportation, as well as textbooks and other learning tools.
As an immigrant, Armond developed a deep commitment to equity and diversity and giving back to his community.
Aghakhanian lives in Burbank with his wife, Dr. Gayane Gasamanyan, a local pharmacist and their son Arameh, a soon-to-be third-grader at Joaquin Miller Elementary School.
Dear Sir, I grew up in Glendale and taught school in the Glendale Unified School District. I read today that the Burbank School District decided to ban classic books such as To Kill A Mockingbird and Huckleberry Finn. Your role as a school board is not to sanitize public education and the history of this country. Our country has had faults. However, in most cases, we have fixed many of those deficiencies better than any other nation on earth. Apparently, the School Board has now decided to become Nazi book burners. This is pure Maoism by the Board. This is not what free societies do and is why parents are fleeing the public school system. Shame on you