District Newsroom

Interviews with Outstanding Educators: Dr. Carmen Balgobin

Leading with Grace and Respect

By Joan Singley Schrysen

“Folks don’t join the field of education because there’s money there.” says Dr. Carmen Balgobin, Volusia County’s new Superintendent. “They join because they have that service mentality. They believe in making a difference.” Such people deserve to be led with grace and respect, her preferred leadership style.

Dr. Balgobin’s journey from her birthplace in Venezuela to Volusia County was arduoous. At age 16 she excelled as a good student in Venezuela despite a humble background. Her father, a self-taught priest, and her mother, with only a second-grade education, nurtured her strong value system, stressing the importance of being centered in a strong faith and the importance of a good education. Her father believed an English education would open more doors for his daughter, so the family moved to the United States, staying briefly on Long Island and then settling in Orlando.

These were difficult days for the teenager. Her constant companion was her Spanish-English dictionary. She says, “It was a very tough transition for me, physically, emotionally, academically, culturally.” But she persevered to graduation, not only from Evans High School, but also from UCF and Nova Southeastern University with a doctorate in educational leadership.

Her first job in education was back at Evans High in Orange County, where she worked her way from language teacher to Master Principal. Her expertise in transforming troubled schools put her in charge of the Transformational Office overseeing the eighteen D and F schools in the county. One year later, that number was reduced to seven.

After a brief two-year stint in Osceola County, Dr. Balgobin came to Volusia County as Deputy Superintendent for Teaching and Learning. Shortly thereafter the pandemic hit. To make matters worse, the Superintendent developed cancer necessitating a medical leave. Balgobin was named Interim Superintendent.

“We were leading, during a global pandemic in basically unknown territory. You had to decipher and make the best decisions based on what you knew. We all came together and I got to know Volusia’s people quickly. Every single day we get things done. We reopened schools. We worked as a team. We experienced a great deal of success. Working through that pandemic I truly got to experience the community and the staff and our strengths which are really what makes Volusia so unique.”

Once the Superintendent recovered and returned to work, Dr. Balgobin took advantage of an offer to work in Broward County, the sixth largest in the U.S. Only three months later the Volusia Board asked her to return as Superintendent. She says, “Knowing how special Volusia was, it was truly an honor to come back and serve in a county with such a big heart.”

One of the first tasks was formulating a vision statement and establishing goals for the year. Dr. Balgobin pointed out that because there are so many areas where educators have no control, it is important to find the areas that can be controlled. Then, with grace and respect, leaders must provide an environment and the supplies so that educators can experience success and well-being, that they will feel valued and part of the team. With these guiding principles, the team created a new vision statement and five goals.

Dr. Balgobin has not slowed down. After such an arduous journey, she is now hard at work leading a county she values and who values her with grace and respect.