Superintendent Mays Kakish
A Shared Commitment Among Home, School, and Community
Hello! I am Mays Kakish, the proud Superintendent of the Beaumont Unified School District.
We are so excited to welcome each of you to our wonderful Beaumont school community, where we are
committed to providing high-quality educational opportunities for our students in a safe and secure learning environment through a shared commitment among home, school, and community. Our school community values positive academic and social growth, interest-based education, diversity, and decisions that are in the best interest of our school community as a whole.
Beaumont Unified is a growing school district as Beaumont remains one of the fastest-growing cities in Southern California. Our district has 1,300 outstanding employees and serves more than 11,000 students from the communities of Beaumont, Cherry Valley, a portion of Banning, and a small portion of Calimesa. The District is comprised of seven elementary schools, one K-8 school, two middle schools, one comprehensive high school, an alternative high school, an independent study program (that serves all grade levels), and an adult school. In the 2022-23 school year, Beaumont Unified proudly launched Beaumont Middle College High School (BMCHS) housed at the Mt. San Jacinto San Gorgonio Pass campus. BMCHS features a collaborative high school model with direct access to college-level courses and services in a community college setting.
Over the past 11 years, modernization and new construction projects have been underway in our district to meet enrollment demands. In 2018, the district opened a brand new state-of-the-art elementary school, Starlight Elementary School. In 2021, we celebrated the opening of the district’s first-ever K-8 school, Summerwind Trails School. In 2022, we celebrated the completion of the first phase of the Beaumont High School campus expansion project. The second phase will be fully completed by the end of the 2022-23 school year.
Our award-winning schools truly stand at the heart of our community, and through a shared commitment, we are dedicated to preparing our students with the tools and skills they need to thrive in college, in their careers, and as citizens. Our Be Ready Beaumont: Real Life. Real World. Real Careers initiative uses programs to focus on the positives of each student’s values, interests, and strengths creating a more personalized education that helps them explore how their individual characteristics may connect to the global workforce. Students research relevant and interest-based careers creating an early roadmap to meaningful professions.
In addition, the District offers a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) program, a Dual Language Immersion program in all grades, Career Technical Pathways, Dual Enrollment courses with Mount San Jacinto College for students to complete their associate's degree during high school, AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination) program districtwide, an online independent study program for all grade levels, and so much more.
We encourage you to navigate our District website to explore what all our Beaumont schools have to offer. I look forward to serving you and your family.
Mays Kakish, Superintendent
Beaumont Unified School District
Biography
Mays Kakish joined the Beaumont Unified School District in March of 2021.
She brings more than 21 years of professional experience in the educational field, including five years at Beaumont USD as Assistant Superintendent of Business Services from 2006 to 2011, where through her leadership she helped develop the financial, operational, and facilities planning of the District.
“The Board of Trustees is delighted to be bringing Mrs. Kakish back to Beaumont to lead our District,” said Susie Lara, President of the Beaumont USD Board of Trustees. “She brings many years of all-around leadership experience, including the expertise in creating safe, secure, and quality school facilities for outstanding teaching and learning for our students. Beaumont continues to be one of the fastest-growing areas in California, and Mrs. Kakish will help guide our District’s growth through the improvement of our facilities and the construction of new schools. We have full confidence that she will be the leader Beaumont needs to continue serving all of the needs of our students, families, staff, and community.”
Kakish’s leadership has been recognized at the local, regional, and state levels. She was the State Business Services Administrator of the Year by the Association of California School Administrators in 2015.
“I am honored and humbled to be given this opportunity to serve a District that I know to be fantastic,” Kakish stated after the Board appointed her as the new Superintendent. “Thank you for placing your confidence in me to continue building on the strong foundation that already exists. I am committed to earning your trust as we continue to navigate through a very unique time in the history of education and our country. I look forward to working together with the Board, staff, and families to serve our students with what they need to thrive today and be prepared for future success. I am eager to get to work and make a difference here in Beaumont!”
Kakish served as Chief Business Officer and Governmental Relations for the Riverside Unified School District from 2015 to 2021. During her time there she oversaw the divisions of Business and Operations, along with the divisions of Communications and Governmental Relations. Previously, she held the position of Chief Business Officer for Moreno Valley Unified School District from 2011 to 2015.
Prior to working in Beaumont USD, Kakish was the Director of Business Services for the Riverside County Office of Education and the Director of Fiscal Services for Perris Elementary School District. She started her career in the corporate sector in 1996 serving as a Senior Auditor for a firm that specialized in independent audits of school districts.
She is currently the Director of School Business Administration offered by the Association of California School Administrators (ACSA), and also serves as a mentor in the Fiscal Crisis Management Assistant Team (FCMAT) for future Chief Business officers.
Kakish also currently serves on several boards including School Business Executives (SBEX), Riverside Area Rape Crisis Center (RARCC), Joint Education Transit Board (JET), and the President of Alliance of Schools for Cooperative Insurance Programs (ASCIP).
She holds a degree from California State University San Bernardino in Business Administration.