Londonderry High School House 1 Assistant Principal Paul Dutton will be the new Principal of North Elementary School. He will replace Mary Coltin, who is retiring in June.
“This is 16 years now for me being at the high school as a teacher and coach, and the last six years as an administrator,” Dutton said last week. “I just am really excited for this opportunity in the district to be able to work with the staff at North School, the students and the families.
“One of the things I’ve been involved with is Little Lancer Day,” he said. “We had set that up quite a few years ago, where our outgoing senior class kind of welcomes the kindergarten class into the school system as they leave Moose Hill and enter Lancer Nation. We give them little T-shirts, and it’s the class of 2026 this year.
“It’s big shoes to fill at North School,” he added. “I’m excited about the opportunity and excited to begin working with the staff.
“This is the community that I grew up in, and I’ve really been at the high school for over 20 years because I was here four years as a student,” he said. “I was so excited to get the job here coaching and teaching right out of college, and to be able to give back to the community right away. In a lot of ways it was teachers here at the school that inspired me to want to go into education.”
Dutton said he knew he wanted to be in education ever since his senior year at Londonderry High.
“I knew I wanted to get an education and work with children and really just had a love for learning and passing that learning on,” Dutton said.
Dutton said a teacher in the forefront of his high school student days was Larry Martin, who taught math.
“He was my coach, teacher, he was a mentor and he guided me well beyond my years as a student here – through college,” Dutton said. “When I first started back here as a fellow teacher, he was always one to guide me.
“My goal is to ensure the success of all students so they can all have success now and in the future,” he continued. “In high school we get kids ready to be college and career ready, and in the elementary school, I’m looking forward to getting the students ready to get to the high school so they can be college and career ready, so they can got from elementary to middle to high school.”
With each level a building block, Dutton said he’s looking forward to working with the beginning blocks of elementary school.
Dutton was chosen by an interview committee composed of several parents, faculty and staff from North School, school board chairman Leitha Reilly, and several administrators, including Assistant Principal Jill Connors, South School Principal Linda Boyd, Human Resources Director Suzie Swenson and Superintendent Nate Greenberg. A second interview was conducted by the School Board.
He is a graduate of the University of New Hampshire.
Reilly praised Dutton for his strong leadership and communication skills, highly touted parent relations, organization, outstanding student relations and strong grasp of college and career ready skills, with the ability to translate those skills to the elementary students.
“I intend, with the support of the truly outstanding North School faculty, staff and Assistant Principal, to continue to build upon the excellent programs and services developed and implemented at North School under Mary Coltin’s leadership, for the sole benefit of the wonderful North School students and parents,” Dutton concluded.
He officially begins his new job July 1.