SAN ANGELO, Texas — The San Angelo Independent School District welcomed two new faces to its administrative staff.
Dr. Merl Brandon will serve as the chief financial officer and assistant superintendent of business support services and Sun Cha is the new director of community relations.
Brandon is a West Texas native with deep ties to San Angelo and the SAISD, previously serving as principal at Lincoln Middle School and assistant principal at Central on Oakes. With more than 30 years of experience, Brandon has served in roles such as a superintendent, assistant superintendent, principal, assistant principal and classroom teacher and brings a broad range of financial and leadership experience to the SAISD.
“I am humbled by the opportunity to return to San Angelo ISD to serve in their Business Support Services area,” Brandon said in an SAISD release. “SAISD supported my growth as a leader and coming back here feels like coming home.”
Brandon is a graduate of both Angelo State and Texas Tech, where he received his doctorate degree. Brandon has received accolades such as Region 15 Principal of the Year, Texas Secondary Principal of the Year and Angelo State University Distinguished Alumnus. He served in many capacities as a leader supporting education professional organizations such as Texas Association of Secondary Principals, University Interscholastic League and the Bob Thompson Executive Leadership Program.
"I look forward to serving this community by facilitating the good stewardship of resources and helping the district maximize its ability to serve students and educators,” Brandon said in the release. “Supporting the tremendous work of the team within the business office to continue providing fiscal responsibility and financial integrity for our taxpayers is a top priority of the Business Support Services team.”
Cha comes to the San Angelo ISD with more than nine years of experience in journalism, advertising, public relations, marketing and business development. Most recently, she served as director of marketing and business development at Concho Educators Federal Credit Union. She is a San Angelo native and attended Angelo State University for three years and went on to receive her Bachelor of Arts in Advertising/Public Relations from Pennsylvania State University.
“I am honored to be a part of the SAISD family. I have such tremendous respect and appreciation for educators,” Cha said in the release. “It takes a certain caliber of person to be a good educator and too often their efforts go unnoticed or unappreciated. I’d like to do all that I can to help support and continue to improve SAISD and the experience of its educators and its students. Being able to do that, in any way, would still be insignificant compared to what educators do for our children on a daily basis.”
Cha also has a tremendous passion for community service and advocacy. She is currently serving her second term as the chairman of the San Angelo Chamber of Commerce’s Concho Cadre. She also serves on the Adult Literacy Council board of directors and has served as its president, as well as the president of the Young Professionals of San Angelo. Cha has received accolades such as 2021 20 Under 40 recipient and is a member of the 2022-2023 Leadership San Angelo class.
