At the May 30, 2024 regular meeting, the Board of Trustees appointed Shannon Rafat as the new principal of Las Animas Elementary School.  "I am thrilled to have Shannon complete our leadership team for the 2024-25 school year," shared Superintendent Anisha Munshi.  “She is a proven elementary school leader, and I am confident the Las Animas community will support her in this new role.”  Ms. Rafat begins her new role on July 1, 2024. 

Shannon Rafat joins the Gilroy Unified School District leadership team after spending 11 years as a parent, teacher, and school leader with the Morgan Hill Unified School District (MHUSD). She began her career teaching in 1997 and has taught multiple grades in Nevada and Alaska before moving to the South Bay.  During her teaching career, she has received a Districtwide Teacher of the Year Award in Denali School District (2001) and a Teacher of the Year Award at San Martin/Gwinn (2017) in MHUSD. 

Shannon received her Master of Arts in Curriculum, Technology, and Instruction in 2002 and completed her Leadership Credential through the Santa Clara County Office of Education in 2016.  In 2022, she completed a trainer program in restorative practices through the International Institute of Restorative Practices. 

Most recently she has led two schools that have dual language programs, and her daughter who attended one of those schools, is graduating from high school this year with her bilingual attainment award. As a San Martin resident, she looks forward to engaging with the Gilroy and the Las Animas communities. 

Shannon and her husband, an educator at San Jose City College, have two daughters. Her oldest daughter is finishing her fourth year as a student-athlete in Brooklyn, New York, and her youngest daughter will attend San Diego State University in the fall.  She enjoys traveling, reading, and being outdoors.