Ellen Dunn Named Principal of Darien High School

The Darien Board of Education and the superintendent of schools are pleased to announce the appointment of Mrs. Ellen Dunn as Principal for Darien High School beginning on July 1, 2013.  She will replace Ms. Arlene Gottesman, who is currently serving as Interim Principal for the 2012-13 school year.

Ellen Dunn has had a distinguished career in education, 25 of which have been at Darien High School.  Since 2007, Mrs. Dunn has been an assistant principal and previously served as science department coordinator and science teacher. 

Prior to her coming to Darien High School, Mrs. Dunn taught in the diocesan school system of Bridgeport.  She is certified to teach (and has taught) biology, chemistry, and physics including courses at the honors level.  

In addition to her teaching and administrative duties, Mrs. Dunn has served on the K-12 Science Curriculum Committee, the Darien High School Faculty Council, and as a class advisor.

In her role as teacher and assistant principal, Mrs. Dunn has been recognized for moving forward instructional initiatives focused on improving student performance and expanding opportunities for learning. 

As department coordinator, she was integrally involved in bringing technology to the classroom, particularly with the inclusion of electronic data-gathering tools.  She was the coordinator who helped to bring the Authentic Science Research program to Darien as well. 

During her tenure as coordinator, department offerings in science grew tremendously, AP program enrollment and offerings rose, and curriculum was continually refined to meet the needs of students. 

As an assistant principal, Mrs. Dunn has taken a central leadership role in the coordination of Professional Learning Communities, led the process for the development of the master schedule, and served as a leader in the NEASC visit preparation and follow-up process. 

Her efforts have been geared to ensuring that all students have a rich academic and personal experience, which has been reflected in her leadership in bridging general and special education as well as the coordination of the Names Day Program. 

She continues to exhibit a passion for mentoring teachers and supporting all teachers’ instructional growth.  It has been noted that she “uses her distinct teaching abilities to skillfully communicate and convey the intricacies of excellent high school teaching to the faculty she evaluates.” 

Ellen’s leadership has been collaborative as she has engaged students, parents, teachers, support personnel and others for the purpose of promoting student well-being and growth.  She has the highest integrity, compassion for the most vulnerable, and an ability to empathize. 

It, too, is important that these skills allow Ellen to put systems in place that support students.  As a colleague shared, “it is this openness to ideas, the respect for all perspectives, coupled with Ellen’s ability to translate these ideas into an actionable plan that sets her apart from her peers.”

Ellen Dunn earned her undergraduate Bachelor of Arts degree in Biology from Trinity College in Hartford.  She then received a Master of Arts degree in Teaching and a 6th Year in Educational Leadership from Sacred Heart University. 

She has guided student teachers in her role as a teacher coach for the district while she was Science Department Coordinator and has participated in numerous workshops throughout the state.

Mrs. Dunn currently resides in Fairfield, CT with her family.

Editor's note: This article originally was published at 10:09 p.m. on Tuesday, April 10. The timestamp has been changed for layout purposes on the Home page of Darien Patch.