An inspirational quote from an inspiring person! Introducing Autrilla “Sheba” Gillis! “The only missed opportunities in life are the ones that you do not take. Push yourself outside of your comfort zone and always step out on faith.”
Autrilla “Sheba” Gillis is a life-long Long Beach resident with a legacy in Long Beach community service. This powerful woman educator from ISANA Academies was recently named Teacher of the Year by CA Charter Schools Association and was featured on Fox 11 Good Day LA.
Autrilla “Sheba” Gillis
Autrilla “Sheba” Gillis is a life-long Long Beach resident, whose family legacy of Long Beach community service dates back to the 50’s and includes her mother, Sharon McLucas and late community activist grandmother Autrilla W. Scott. She has collected degrees, certificates, and academic accolades at CSU Long Beach, University of Phoenix, UCLA, and CSU Dominguez. Before pursuing a career as an educator, she spent years as an Advertising Executive at the Los Angeles Times and Press Telegram Newspapers.
As an educator, Sheba has been a middle school History teacher, curriculum specialist, vice principal and principal. While teaching 8th grade history in Los Angeles, her classroom was selected for feature in the Dream Project Documentary, a project centered on eradicating the United Nations Millennium Development Goals. Her participation in the documentary led to travels in Honduras where she met with president and first lady, and to Paris, France where she participated in a global summit at the United Nations Headquarters. Her appointment as the founding principal of Celerity Sirius Charter School in Compton made her the first African American principal within the Celerity Educational Group network of schools.
In 2013 she became the first African American District Director with her appointment as Director of After School Programs for Celerity Educational Group schools in California, Ohio, Louisiana, and Florida, servicing over 2000 students. On the County level she has twice been appointed as the Co-Facilitator of the Los Angeles County Office of Education’s Local Learning Community #8 which provides supports to charter school Expanded Learning programs throughout Southern California, and served as a founding member of the CA Charter Schools Association Inaugural African American Charter Leaders Symposium. On the state level, she has participated in numerous CDE Expanded Learning Steering Committees, been featured in numerous training videos disseminated throughout the state, and most recently appointed to the CA Dept. of Education Expanded Learning Policy Committee. She was awarded the CA Department of Education’s Visionary Leadership Award for Expanded Learning in 2020. In March 2022 she was named CA Charter School Association Teacher of the Year.
Her local community affiliations include past executive board appointments with the Long Beach Poly Football Booster Club and the Long Beach Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. where she served as chair on the publicity and public relations and political awareness and involvement committees. She currently works closely with the Long Beach Branch of the NAACP, NCNW, Jack and Jill of America – Long Beach Chapter, and Forgotten Images Traveling Museum. In addition to her current role as Director of Expanded Learning for ISANA Academies, a network of charter schools, she is currently pursuing a Doctorate in Educational Leadership while balancing her career and most important role, mother to an amazing 7yr old named Aubree.
