SUN VALLEY, Calif. – Village Christian School is thrilled to announce the hiring of proven educational leader and former pastor Jeff Maljian as its new Elementary Principal.

Maljian, who has served in the same role at Willard Elementary School in Rosemead since 2018, will take over for Margie Chespak, who announced her retirement earlier this school year after nearly 10 years at VCS.

“We are praising God for preparing Mr. Jeff Maljian to become our new Elementary School Principal,” said VCS Head of School Tom Konjoyan. “His background as a pastor, teacher, and principal has made him a perfect fit for our mission. We look forward to him carrying on the great leadership that Mrs. Chespak provided.”

In doing so, he also brings a Christ-centered joy and passion for this special age group.

“In Elementary, what I love, there is just this love that goes back and forth with kids,” Maljian said. “They are just fun, and there is such a joy in younger kids. They are so formative, and these are such foundational years educationally, in their emotions, who they are as young people, and what they’re good at; there is so much adaptability and moldability.”

Prior to becoming the Principal at Willard Elementary, Maljian held a variety of developmental and intervention-based roles within the Pasadena Unified School District, including as an Instructional Coach for Elementary teachers and as an Early Intervention Specialist. These positions have been instrumental to his approach to faculty support and development, as well as in identifying and correcting learning gaps within students, he said.

“It kept expanding my experience,” Maljian said. “It wasn’t just teacher to administrator; it was God giving me this progression that prepared me – going from teacher to academic coach to principal. These steps along the way kept pushing me and pushing me and pushing me along.”

Maljian holds a Bachelor of Arts from Wheaton College, received his Master of Divinity from Fuller Theological Seminary, and has his Masters in Educational Administration from California State University Los Angeles. 

He also spent more than a decade in the classroom as an Elementary teacher and was a longtime youth pastor at Pasadena Covenant Church.

While Maljian has the heart for Elementary, he also has a vision for what he wants to see develop within each student academically.

“Leadership is a big thing and how they can grow educationally,” he said. “What I also love to see is kids working collaboratively—whether JK or fifth grade. Collaboration is a life skill that I want all these kids to have. Then there’s differentiation. All these kids are different learners. Giving them different opportunities—some will learn in more traditional ways, while others might need a different method.”

But what really has Maljian excited is ministry and helping bring people closer to the Lord. 

“That’s the thing that gets me most excited—I can go back to marrying ministry and education together,” he said. “For me, I think about people’s journey with the Lord. It’s really about building into students, families, parents, and staff, building up who they are in their walk with the Lord, in their faith, and their journey. If we have that grounded, everything else will fall into place.”

Please join us in welcoming Mr. Jeff Maljian to the VCS community.