Concordia’s Board of Directors is excited to welcome Mr. Todd Eklund as the new Head of School. Eklund has over 20 years’ experience in education and has served roles of Faculty Member, Coach, Department Chair, Program Director, Director of Professional Learning, Athletic Director, Assistant Principal, Principal, and most currently Chief of School at Orange Lutheran High School in Orange, Ca.
Mr. Eklund strives to exist as a collaborative and selfless leader who is known for his measured and compassionate demeanor, heart for students and their holistic sense of belonging, and fervent commitment to valuing the participatory voice of the community. He naturally gravitates towards environments of Christ-centered inclusivity that promote vibrant institutional passion and a respect for the history of an institution’s foundation. His leadership seeks to empower an energized posture for missional growth in current practice, while also maintaining one foot into the future through the translation of the “now” into the “next”.
Systematically, he is an inquiry-based practitioner who desires to gather and analyze data, nurture interpersonal relationships, and identify future opportunities for the sake of propelling mission centered strategic needs and pursuits. Mr. Eklund’s heart as a leader and educator is rooted through his diverse experiences in the creative process, self-directed learning, spirit of competition, upbringing between rural farm and urban environments, and through his affinity for Christ-centered stewardship, ideation, and optimism.
In his prior role as Chief of School at Orange Lutheran High School, which exists as the largest LCMS high school globally, Mr. Eklund maintained the responsibility of shepherding the execution of the schoolwide strategic plan while optimizing the daily operation of the school site across all student-centered areas and programs. This included the umbrella oversight of approximately 230 full and part-time employees and a current enrollment of 1,450+ students in grades 9-12.
Mr. Eklund’s school ministry tenure in a mature institution has also included various experiences with facility expansion, external facility management, vendor relations, international and domestic admissions, navigating external governing bodies, capital campaigns, alumni relations, media inquiries, campus safety strategy, risk mitigation, human capital management, financial strategy, online learning, student travel, service learning, and donor engagement.
His education background includes a BA in Studio Art, Secondary Education as well as the Lutheran Education Certification from Concordia University, Irvine. Additionally, Eklund has a MA in Arts Education & Administration from University of Arizona.
Eklund is married to Mrs. Rachel Eklund, who also will be joining the Concordia family as a part-time Social Studies instructor. Mrs. Eklund is the former Social Studies Department Chair at Orange Lutheran and is very excited to be joining the team at CLHS as well. The Eklunds have a son named Easton.
Please join the Board of Directors in welcoming the entire Eklund family to the Concordia Lutheran High School family!
Video Welcome from Todd Eklund: https://vimeo.com/988975320