President and Head of School Rick Commons announced Thursday that Upper School Deans Department Head Beth Slattery will become Head of Upper School effective July 1, 2020. Laura Ross, who currently serves in the position, will become Associate Head of the school on the same date.

Commons said in an email that Slattery’s expertise distinguished her from the other applicants.

“At each stage in the process, Slattery stood apart for her deep understanding of student experience, broad background in secondary and higher education, and abiding commitment to the mission of Harvard-Westlake and the people in our community,” Commons said.

Commons said that he was grateful for the search committee that considered over 60 applicants, conducted 15 interviews, and brought six applicants to campus last month.

“I want to thank the Head of Upper School Search Committee—Terry Barnum, Sharon Cuseo, Janine Jones, Adam Levine, Krista McLain, Debbie Reed, Laura Ross and Jon Wimbish—for the many hours they devoted to this careful search process,” Commons said.

Slattery earned a bachelor’s degree with honors from Georgetown University and, in 2005, received a Ph.D. in Education from the University of California, Los Angeles, beginning her career as an Upper School Dean shortly after. In 2012, she was promoted to Chair of the Upper School Deans.