John J. Pedicone is an educational consultant, having served as the Superintendent of Tucson Unified School District until his retirement on June 30, 2013. Prior to this appointment, he was a Distinguished Senior Faculty Fellow in the Educational Leadership Program in the College of Education at the University of Arizona, and the Vice-president of the Southern Arizona Leadership Council. Dr. Pedicone retired from Flowing Wells School District, where he served as an administrator for 22 years. His administrative leadership in the district included serving as junior high school assistant principal, high school principal (during which time the high school was selected as the #1 school in the State of Arizona A+ program and received the U.S. Department of Education Blue Ribbon School award), assistant superintendent and superintendent.Dr. Pedicone earned a B.A. with honors in English (pre-law) from St. Mary’s College in Winona, Minnesota, an M.E.D. with Distinction in Curriculum and Instruction from DePaul University in Chicago, and a Ph.D. in Educational Administration from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.
Dr. Pedicone has received numerous awards and recognitions including, most recently, the Dr. Raymond Sterling Kellis Leadership Award in 2018, the Metropolitan Education Commission lifetime Achievement Award in 2016, the Educational Enrichment Foundation Ray Davies Humanitarian Award in 2016, the Higher Ground Transformation Award in 2016, the Arizona Superintendent of the Year in 2002 and the Arizona Representative to the AASA National Superintendent of the Year Program in 2003. He was honored by Flowing Wells School District for his dedication to student achievement and the Arts by the Governing Board naming the fine arts center in his honor.
Dr. Pedicone served as a member of several state-level boards including the Arizona State Board of Education, the Arizona State School Readiness Board, and the Governor’s Education Advisory Board. He currently serves on a number of civic boards and is committed to supporting effective leadership at the local, state and federal levels.
He is married to Francine for 47 years and has three sons, John, Michael and James, and a granddaughter Vida and a grandson, Luca.
