Derby HS Principal Jennifer Olson
DERBY — A familiar face will continue to lead Derby High School.
Jennifer Olson, who’d been serving as DHS’ interim principal since last August, was unanimously appointed by the Board of Education during a virtual meeting last week to permanently fill the role.
Olson assumed the temporary post after former DHS Principal Martin Pascale left to take a teaching position across the street at Derby Middle school.
“I’m very excited about this opportunity, there is such a sense of community in Derby and I absolutely love the work,” Olson said Jan. 6.
Olson, who’d been working as the district’s Director of Curriculum Instruction and Assessment since 2018, first learned the principal job was up for grabs over the summer.
“When the Derby High School position became available over the summer, I came here to support the reopening of school through the pandemic while the search began for a new principal,” Olson said in a prepared statement. “While I was here, I became fully immersed in the work and realized how much I missed the relationships with students, teachers and staff, and the energy that exists within a school. This is what motivates and inspires me as a leader. I knew shortly after coming to Derby High School that I wanted to be the principal and applied for the position.”
Olson was selected from a pool of 20 applicants, and according to Superintendent of Schools Matthew Conway, was the perfect person for the job.
“I am very excited for Jen and the District as she continues in the role of leading our High School through one of the most challenging times in our history,” Conway said in a prepared statement. “I am confident her proven turnaround work in our District will transcend across all classrooms at Derby High School. This is hard work and takes an all-in, “just one more” attitude by everyone involved. I know Jen and our amazing staff at DHS are up for the challenge.”
Olson was part of a reopening committee that worked over the summer to ensure a safe return back to the classroom for students and staff amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Derby was one of only a handful of school districts that chose to reopen fully in-person, five days a week, although students were given the opportunity to learn remotely.
While the pandemic has presented some challenges, Olson said the pre-planning efforts paid off, and things have gone “very smoothly” since the start of the school year.
“We came up with a universal plan to keep the learning environment safe for all, and we have had really great success with that,” Olson said Wednesday. “We all wear masks, we changed the flow of traffic in the hallways, we added more lunch waves, we put lots of space in between all of us and it’s become kind of the new way we do business. The teachers are doing a great job.”
Olson said the staff meets regularly to discuss what’s working and what’s not and makes adjustments as needed. She also beefed up communication with families with a weekly newsletter to keep everyone in touch and continue that “small-knit” community feeling Derby and its schools are known for.
After Thanksgiving, amid a COVID surge in the Valley, DHS went about 60 percent online, with 40 percent of kids remaining in person. Olson can’t wait until things can get back to normal.
“There’s definitely a different feel when the building is so quiet,” Olson said. “Kids bring a lot of energy to the building and we just miss them when they’re not here.”
Olson, a mom of three, has always enjoyed working with kids. She started her career in education in 2003 as a teacher in the New Haven Public Schools.
She came to Derby in 2012 as Irving School’s new principal, and made quite an impact there. In 2017, Olson was a finalist in the selection process for the National Distinguished Principal Award or Elementary Principal of the Year Award. The school also earned an Exemplary School Climate Recognition from the Connecticut Association of Schools under Olson’s tenure.
As far as her goals for DHS, Olson has plenty.
“My first priorities will be to create a positive, strong school culture that promotes a sense of community and school pride,” Olson said.
Olson also plans to strengthen and expand opportunities for students to better prepare them for college and the next chapters of their lives. She holds a special place in her heart for the students as “about one-third of the current DHS students were my first (kindergarten) students at Irving School and it’s great to see them grow from young children to young adults.”
Increasing AP, dual credit and career-technical education courses and workplace internships at DHS is also in the works.
Olson, in a prepared statement, thanked the school board and Conway for the confidence they have in her to lead DHS.
“I am deeply committed and I am looking forward to working collaboratively with our terrific team at the high school to best serve our students and families,” Olson said. “This is an exciting opportunity and I look forward to starting this new chapter.”
Board of Education Chairman Jim Gildea was glad to welcome Olson into the role.
“The Board is always excited when we are able to see members of the Derby Public School family take on new challenges and grow within the school community,” Gildea said in a prepared statement. “Jen has a proven track record of leading and turning around a school as evidenced by the work she did as leader of Irving School. She created an environment of accountability that helped that school system move forward. Jen is a proven problem solver, tireless worker and someone willing to think outside the box to address issues and challenges. We wish her good luck and look forward to her continued impact on our school system.”
