Glendale Unified School District Board President Shant Sahakian announced he will not seek re-election to a third term on the GUSD Board of Education or any other elected office in the upcoming 2026 Election at the Board’s Annual Organization Meeting on July 15, 2025.
“As a proud lifelong resident of Glendale, proud product of our Glendale public schools, and proud GUSD parent, it has been the honor of a lifetime to serve as your Board President and as a member of the Glendale Unified School District Board of Education,” stated Board President Shant Sahakian during his closing remarks at the Board’s Annual Organization Meeting. “I am confident that my next decade will be defined by public service just as my last two decades have been – but it will be in new and different capacities. I look forward to dedicating the next school year to fighting for what’s good, what’s right, and what’s best for our students and then welcoming my successor who I hope will care about this work as much as I do.”
Sahakian was elected to his first term in 2017, becoming the youngest School Board member elected in Glendale history. He was elected in the first by-trustee area election to represent Area D which includes East Glendale neighborhoods such as Adams Hill, Camino San Rafael, Chevy Chase Canyon, Citrus Grove, Emerald Isle, Glenoaks Canyon, Mariposa, Somerset, and Woodbury. He was re-elected to his second term in 2022. He has served as the President of the Board of Education twice during his tenure. He will continue to serve as a member of the Board of Education through the completion of his current term in 2026.
As a member of the Board of Education, Sahakian championed STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts & Mathematics) education and financial literacy education to prepare students for college, career, and life success. As part of a bold vision to build a STEAM pathway, Cerritos Elementary School was transformed into the Cerritos Computer Science Immersion Magnet School, Roosevelt Middle School was transformed into the Roosevelt STEAM Academy Magnet School, and Glendale High School launched the Cloud Computing & Computer Science Academy in partnership with Glendale Community College. Additionally, the school district adopted its first ever financial literacy curriculum for fifth, seventh, and ninth grade students and is currently preparing for the new financial literacy high school graduation requirements.
Sahakian also advanced investments in early childhood education to establish a strong foundation for students’ long-term academic achievement. Universal Transitional Kindergarten (TK) was implemented to expand public education for the district’s youngest learners, Full-Day Kindergarten was implemented to increase invaluable instructional minutes for students, and Before and After School Child Care programs were expanded to serve thousands of elementary school students and meet families’ needs. During his tenure, the widely acclaimed Dual Language Immersion (DLI) program featuring seven languages was expanded from elementary schools to middle schools and feasibility studies were launched to explore the potential of adding new languages including Western Armenian and Filipino/Tagalog.
He has been a strong advocate for the most vulnerable and underserved members of the school community throughout his time on the Board. He supported initiatives that promote healthy, safe, and inclusive schools for all. The new Student Wellness Services department was established, mental health services and support were expanded, and wellness centers were added to school campuses to promote student success and wellbeing.
He has been a firm believer that schools thrive through the partnership between students, families, teachers, and staff. He provided steadfast leadership and served as a voice of reason for the school district as it tackled significant challenges including the global pandemic which impacted schools across the country, culture wars that divided the community, and the Eaton fire and windstorms which impacted the lives of students, families, and employees. The district strengthened collaboration with labor partners and reached historic wage agreements while preserving one of Los Angeles County’s leading employer sponsored health benefits programs for employees.
Sahakian’s most significant accomplishments reshaped the future of the school district through signature policy work and governance reforms. He authored and unanimously passed the district’s first ever term limits proposal which established a maximum of three (3) terms for elected Board members. The electorate enacted the term limits proposal with a resounding 89% approval of GUSD Measure T at the ballot box. He supported the launch of the award-winning Student Voice Panels program, which established Board meetings dedicated to learning about the issues most important to students directly from student panelists. He proposed and unanimously passed curriculum and textbook adoption reforms which established new requirements for parent and guardian input through parent and guardian curriculum review committees in addition to the standard practice of professional evaluation and public review. He authored and unanimously passed Board member training requirements which include annual ethics training, annual Brown Act training, and additional training programs to promote effective and responsible governance.
Most recently, he authored and introduced a new code of ethics and ethics complaint procedure policy proposal which represents the most significant ethics reform in the school district’s history and would establish one of the most robust public accountability systems for Board members and local elected officials in the State of California. The proposal is based on the basic principle that if there are high standards for students and employees and accountability systems to address student and employee conduct then the same should exist for Board members and local elected officials. The Board is anticipated to consider the proposal at a future meeting.
In 2022, Sahakian was elected by the School Boards of neighboring districts to serve on the Delegate Assembly of the California School Boards Association (CSBA), the leading organization representing elected officials who govern public school districts and county offices of education. He is currently serving his second term representing Region 23A which includes more than a dozen school districts and more than 100,000 students. As a Delegate Assembly member, he has advocated for public schools and education policy at the state and federal level.
Sahakian is a longtime community leader who has championed Glendale’s children, youth, and families through a distinguished record of public service including non-profit, volunteer, and civic work. In the past, he has served as the Chair of the City of Glendale Arts & Culture Commission, Chair of the Glendale Youth Alliance, President of the Glendale Parks & Open Space Foundation, and Vice President of the Kiwanis Club of Glendale.
His professional career began as a young entrepreneur at the age of fourteen when he founded his own digital agency serving businesses and non-profit organizations with design and technology services. He formerly served as the inaugural Executive Director of the Armenian American Museum and Cultural Center of California, a developing cultural and educational institution.
His work in the community has been recognized with numerous honors including the Man of the Year Award from the Glendale Chamber of Commerce, Hope Diamond Award from the Glendale Educational Foundation, Community Award from the Character & Ethics Project, Hero Award from the Glendale Youth Alliance, and Purple Tie Award from the YWCA Glendale & Pasadena.
Sahakian holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Art & Graphic Design with a Marketing Minor from California State University, Northridge (CSUN) and a Certificate in Marketing from University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA Extension).
He and his wife, Suzanna, reside in Glendale with their son, Raffi, and daughter, Lori.
