Supt. John Roach, Assistant Supt. Devin Vodicka Leave School District

After working many years for the , Superintendent and Assistant Superintendent of Business Services are moving on.  

Roach, who has served as superintendent for eight years, will retire. Meanwhile Vodicka, who has worked for the district since 1999, will take on the role as superintendent for the Vista Unified School District beginning next week.

Roach said he plans to begin his retirement with a trip to visit his daughters. He'll continue to do some consulting work and teach education classes at University of Southern California and Cal State San Marcos. Roach said he will also direct an academy based in Oceanside for aspiring superintendents; about 30 administrators will participate in a course taught for seven weekends.

Despite the workload, Roach said he'll have plenty of time to enjoy retirement.

"I’m going to play a lot more golf," he said. "Although I probably won’t get better at it. I'm going to continue enjoying Carlsbad, my pool, and the beach."

Roach's work was recently honored by a  parent who threw him a retirement party at her home in the Batiquitos Lagoon.

"It was the most amazing retirement party," said Roach who joked that he's not sure if his daughter's wedding in October will be as nice.

Vodicka also complimented Roach.

"As a compliment to John, some of his defining moments have come in crisis," he said. "Years from now his legacy will come from those defining moments."

But some moments weren't so bright, said Roach.

"There’s never been a time in California for schools as bad as these past four years," he said. "We've had financial challenges, parents blaming their child's on one of our schools, pedophiles, and the . What a stroke of luck that the shooter was bad at what he was doing."

As for Vodicka, the transition to VUSD has left no time for summer vacationing.

"It’s exciting, but it’s difficult to leave a great organization like Carlsbad," he said. "However, I see real potential to make a difference in Vista. I live in the Vista school district, and the timing worked out perfectly. One door shuts and another opens when you least expect it."