Monterey County superintendent of schools will not seek reelection.

Deneen Guss, Monterey County superintendent of schools, announced Aug. 26 she will not seek reelection in 2026 and will retire once her second term ends in January 2027. 

Guss has led the Monterey County Office of Education since 2019. She was elected to this position twice, in 2018 and 2022; both times, she ran unopposed.

Guss has worked in education for nearly 40 years and her work has been recognized locally and statewide. In 2021, she received the Ruth Vreeland Memorial Public Official of the Year; and in 2024 she was recognized as the Superintendent of the Year, Region 10 at the Association of California School Administrators.

Under her tenure at MCOE, Guss led the office during one of the most challenging times in recent years: the Covid-19 pandemic and the transition to online learning.

Guss also launched the Monterey County Safe and Healthy Schools and Communities Coalition, a multi-agency collaborative with representatives from education, youth, the justice system, law enforcement and first responders. The agency developed protocols and best practices for crisis prevention, emergency preparedness, and mental health support. 

She launched two annual events, All in for Equity Conference in 2018, a conference that seeks to improve students' success by building a web of partnerships among different interest groups, and Inside Education, a program where anyone in the community can get a glimpse of the different programs MCOE and school districts offer.

For the remainder of her term, Guss will focus on expanding early learning programs, improving mental health services and continuing to advocate for public education among other projects. 

“I am looking forward to the next 17 months of my term and am confident that my team and I will be able to complete the important work ahead of us,” Guss said in a statement.