Our School
Welcome from the Principal
Welcome to the Ruth Asawa San Francisco School of the Arts!
Mr.
Sgarlato is the principal of both schools located on the McAteer campus
- the Ruth Asawa San Francisco School of the Arts and the Academy of
Arts and Sciences.
He is an ex-New Yorker and a product of parochial
schools. He made his way to California in 1974, earning a B.A. degree
in Biology and an M.A. in Educational Administration from San Francisco
State University.
His first teaching position was in science at
Washington High in 1984. He eventually transferred to Phillip Burton
Academic High School, the city's first consent-decree high school.
After nine years in the classroom (he taught chemistry and biology and
was the science department head), Mr. Sgarlato moved to the SFUSD
district office where he advanced from science resource and mentor
teacher to curriculum supervisor for K-12 science, math and technology
programs.
In 2005, he returned to work as the principal of James Lick
Middle School and received the San Francisco Principal of the Year honor
for his work there.
Since his arrival at SOTA in 2008, he has focused
on strengthening the academic and arts curriculum and creating an
environment where the artistic and intellectual development of the
students is its primary goal.
As an advocate for the arts and a believer in its power to transform lives, Mr. Sgarlato is committed to building strong partnerships with the greater Bay Area arts community, providing more opportunity for SOTA's students to work in their community to better develop their talent and increasing parental involvement in the continuing evolution of the Ruth Asawa San Francisco School of the Arts.