TEMECULA -- Trustees picked longtime educator Carol Leighty on Tuesday to temporarily lead the Temecula school district as it faces a tumultuous contract dispute with teachers and as board members work to find a permanent superintendent.

Temecula Valley Unified School District trustees voted 5-0 to hire Leighty as interim superintendent, hailing her as a "people person" with impressive credentials.

Leighty, who most recently worked as an adjunct professor at Cal State San Marcos, starts Thursday and will earn $700 a day, district officials said.

"I think she is just what we need to help … not only as an interim, but also a transitory person who understands she's here for just that purpose," said Trustee Stewart Morris after the vote. "She's not here to camp out."

The trustees voted to hire Leighty one week after putting former Superintendent Dave Allmen on paid leave for the remainder of his contract, which expires June 30. Trustees have declined to state exactly why they dismissed Allmen, only saying it was best for the district.

Trustees are continuing their search for Allmen's permanent replacement and expect to name someone for the position in May.

For her part, Leighty said she feels humbled to work for the Temecula school district.

"I am very excited to be a part of the process and help as they go through this transition," said Leighty, who was on hand at Tuesday's special meeting to meet the district's administrators. "This district is on course and it's going to stay that way."

Board President Barbara Tooker and Morris met with Leighty on Friday afternoon to discuss the temporary position prior to bringing her employment contract to the board for approval, Tooker said. She came highly recommended by Riverside County Superintendent of Schools Dave Long, who helped facilitate the search, Tooker said.

Leighty was the top candidate from a pool of about six contenders, Tooker said.

Leighty worked as superintendent of the Redondo Beach Unified School District from 2004 to 2005. In a move deemed controversial by local Redondo press reports, Leighty was bought out of her employment contract in July 2005 by a board majority friendly with the district's teachers union.

Prior to the Redondo post, she worked as superintendent of the Lakeside Union School District in San Diego County from 1998 until 2004.

She also has worked as assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction and director of professional development for public schools in San Diego.

Overall, she has worked in public education for nearly 30 years and has earned numerous accolades, including being named as administrator of the year for the San Diego and Imperial counties region by the Association of California School Administrators.

In addition to serving as an adjunct professor at Cal State San Marcos, she has also held that title at San Diego State University and Point Loma Nazarene University, a release from the district states. Leighty earned a doctorate in education from the University of Southern California and master's and bachelor's degrees from San Diego State University, the release states.

The trustees said they were pleased to have Leighty on board,

"She comes to us with a good background," said Trustee Rick Shafer. "She's got really strong people skills, which I think is important for the next few months. Some of the breakdown here has been the lack of people skills."

Some teachers and other district employees often contended that Allmen was not very affable.

Trustee Bob Brown said hiring her will give district employees someone to go to with questions and concerns.

Trustee Ken Ray said he was pleased to bring someone of such "high caliber" to the district.

Contact staff writer Jennifer Kabbany at (951) 676-4315, Ext. 2625, or jkabbany@californian.com.