Dunn School, Los Olivos

Last updated
The Dunn School
Dunn School.jpg
Entrance to the school from California State Route 154
Address
Dunn School, Los Olivos
2555 West Highway 154

Los Olivos
,
California
93441

United States
Information
Type Private, Boarding
MottoNe Tentes Aut Perfice
(All or Nothing)
Established1957
HeadmasterKalyan Balaven
Faculty65
Enrollment250 total (co-ed)
60% boarding
Average class size11 students
Student to teacher ratio4:1
Campus Rural
Campus size55 acres
Color(s)    Black, Red, and Gray
Athletics16 Interscholastic Sports
MascotEarwig
Tuition$66,900 (Boarding)
Website www.dunnschool.org

Dunn School is a private, independent, boarding and day school for grades 6-12 located on 55 acres in Los Olivos, California, United States, which is located in the Santa Ynez Valley, 35 miles from Santa Barbara. [1] It was founded in 1957, by Tony Dunn under the name "The Valley School."

Contents

The school comprises a middle school, which serves 75 day students in grades 6–8, and an upper school (grades 9–12). Approximately 60% of the 175 upper school students board in on-campus dormitories. Total school enrollment is 250 students.

Dunn's motto is the Latin phrase “Ne Tentes Aut Perfice,” which translates to “All or Nothing.”

History

Upon hiring headmaster Tony Dunn in June 1957, [2] The Valley School was incorporated and opened in September that year with an enrollment of 49 children, including 15 girls and boys in nursery-kindergarten, 14 boarding boys in grades 7-10 and 20 coed day students in grades 1–8. The 6-acre site in Los Olivos was previously home to the Valley Farm School, which was founded in 1949 by Mr. and Mrs. Percy Hodges. [3] In 1959, Valley School co-founder and parent Craig Hamilton wrote a proposal to name the school after Dunn, which was adopted prior to the 1960–61 school year. By 1964, Dunn School had evolved to become all-male and serve grades 9–12. In 1970, girls were accepted as day students, and the school had its first two female graduates since 1962. The campus has been coeducational ever since.

Accreditation & Associations

Dunn School is a member of the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS) and The Association of Boarding Schools (TABS). It is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) and the California Association of Independent Schools (CAIS). Dunn is also partnered with the California Teacher Development Collaborative (CATDC) for professional development.

Whole Student Education

Dunn School practices whole student education, sometimes referred to as holistic education, a movement that seeks to engage all aspects of the learner, including mind, body and spirit. Dunn teaches to its five core values: emotional wellness, physical readiness, intellectual growth, social responsibility and moral courage.

In 2021, Dunn Head of School Kalyan Balaven launched The Whole Student podcast, where guests recall whole student experiences of their own. The debut episode featured then-Santa Barbara mayoral candidate James Joyce III. [4] Later episodes included author and former journalist Irshad Manji, Instagram VP of Engineering Maria Zhang, [5] and physicist Tané Remington.

Campus

The Dunn School campus sits along California State Route 154, which connects points of U.S. Route 101 by passing through the Los Padres National Forest. On-campus buildings include the Sinclaire Art Center, which features a painting studio, ceramic studio, and multimedia classroom for digital photography and film-making students. The athletic facilities include six tennis courts, four athletic fields, a pool, gymnasium, volleyball courts (indoor and outdoor), basketball courts (indoor and outdoor), running track, and rock climbing wall.

There are four student dormitories on campus: Senior Dorm, which was refurbished in 2002–03; Knoles Dorm, named for longtime faculty members Rose and Peter Knoles; Boone Dorm, named after alumnus and trustee Mike Boone; and the largest and lone girls residence Loy Dorm, named after former Head of School Steven Loy.

Additionally, there are 25 on-campus faculty residences, 40 classrooms, a science center with labs, Learning Strategies Center, performing arts theater, health center, and dining hall. [6]

The Cindy Bronfman Leadership Center (CBLC), named for a former trustee and parent, opened in 2020. [7] The CBLC is the hub of the leadership program and includes an innovation lab, a student-run café, a college counseling center and space for student study, reflection and collaboration. As announced in 2022, the CBLC will also be home to the Bob Jurgensen Entrepreneurship Major. [8]

Dunn Middle School

Established in 1978, Dunn Middle School shares the same campus as the upper school but operates under its own motto, “Carpe Diem.” The middle school participates in outdoor education trips throughout the year, starting with a traditional all-school camping trip in Big Sur the 2nd day of school. The ‘Piece of Cake’ annual bike ride requires students to complete a 40+ mile round-trip ride to Los Alamos.

Arts

The Sinclaire Art Center features a drawing/painting studio, ceramic studio, and a multimedia classroom for digital photography and filmmaking.

Music classes take place in the historic schoolhouse at the center of campus, which is equipped with practice rooms, pianos, guitars, drums and many other instruments, as well as a digital recording facility. Music classes include vocal ensemble, instrumental ensemble, guitar/piano classes, music fundamentals, and jazz ensembles.

The school puts on two drama performances and one musical throughout the academic year. These performances and the rehearsals leading up to it take place in Nancy Luton Jackson Barn, which is named for a former Trustee.

Learning Strategies

Established in 1973, Dunn's Learning Strategies program provides individualized support for students with cognitive differences. [9] The program offers two levels of support in the learning center: one-to-one learning strategies and executive group.

In the One to One Program, students are paired with a learning strategies specialist and will meet with him/her individually four times per week. In the Executive Group Program, students meet with their Learning Strategies specialist in a small group setting.

Inclusion

In 2021, Dunn Head of School Kalyan Balaven founded the Inclusion Lab of Santa Barbara County, a joint collaboration between public and independent schools in Santa Barbara County with the expressed purpose of progressing inclusion efforts across the board. [10]

The Lab establishes professional development opportunities for educators within the County borders and beyond. Its first development opportunity was a workshop with author Irshad Manji in Jan. 2022 entitled Inclusion Through Moral Courage. [11]

Academic

Classes average 11 students, and are taught seminar-style by teachers. [12] Students enroll in a minimum of five academic classes each semester.

Athletics

Dunn School is a member of the Tri-County Athletic Association, a high school athletic conference that competes within the CIF Southern Section. [13] The Dunn athletic teams are nicknamed the Earwigs. Adopted in the 1970s, the nickname's origin is attributed to an urban legend describing a rush of earwigs exiting a building on campus in its earliest days. [14] In 2018, a trio of baseball players signed letters of intent to join NCAA Division I programs. [15] Brandon Lawrence, shortstop and pitcher, signed with Michigan Wolverines baseball; Ethan Cloyd, catcher and pitcher, signed with California Golden Bears baseball; and John San Jule, center fielder, signed with Columbia Lions baseball.

Boys Soccer

The Dunn boys soccer team has produced both collegiate and professional players as well as multiple CIF-Southern Section divisional championships. In 2014, Fifi Baiden, a 2010 Dunn graduate, was selected in the third round of the Major League Soccer draft by the Columbus Crew after starring for UC Santa Barbara Gauchos men's soccer. [16] Baiden was followed by Abu Danladi, drafted No. 1 overall by the expansion Minnesota United FC in the 2017 MLS SuperDraft after starring for UCLA Bruins men's soccer. [17] While at Dunn, Danladi was named the National Gatorade Player of the Year, the highest honor available to a high school soccer player in the country. He scored 25 goals and had 15 assists during his senior season at Dunn in 2013–2014. In 2017, Dunn's Rodney Michael was named Gatorade California Boys Soccer Player of the Year and concluded his prep soccer career with 74 goals and 43 assists. [18] Michael scored game-winning goals for Dunn in CIF-Southern Section divisional championship games in 2015 and 2017. The Earwigs also won a divisional title in 2020, going 20–0. Two players from the 2020 team also joined NCAA Division I programs: Brima Kamara (CSU Bakersfield) and Rene Pacheco (UC Santa Barbara). [19]

Varsity Sports

Fall

Winter

Spring

Notable alumni

Notable faculty

Dunn Heads of School

NumberNameYears
1stTony Dunn1957-1967
2ndWilliam Webb1967-1975
3rdNicholas Thacher (Interim)1975-1976
4thEdward Simmons1976-1982
5thSteven Loy1982-1992
6thEric Ruoss1992-1996
7thJames Munger1996-2008
8thMike Beck2008-2021
9thKalyan Balaven2021–Present

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References

  1. ↑ https://www.usnews.com/education/k12/california/dunn-school-313914
  2. ↑ "Anthony Dunn Appointed New Headmaster of Farm School". Santa Ynez Valley News. 1957-06-14.
  3. ↑ "New Coeducational School Starts in Valley Sept. 28". Santa Ynez Valley News. 1949-08-26.
  4. ↑ "Dunn School releases first episode of 'The Whole Student' podcast". Santa Ynez Valley Star. Retrieved 2022-02-28.
  5. ↑ "Latest 'The Whole Student' episode features Instagram VP". Santa Ynez Valley Star. Retrieved 2022-02-28.
  6. ↑ "Educatius | Dunn School in Los Olivos, California, USA". Educatius. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
  7. ↑ "Grand opening of Dunn School's Cindy Bronfman Leadership Center slated for March 13". Santa Maria Times. Retrieved 2022-02-28.
  8. ↑ "Entrepreneurship | Bob Jurgensen Entrepreneurship Major". Dunn School. Retrieved 2022-02-28.
  9. ↑ "Retired Dunn teacher Nancy Roome dies at 95". Santa Ynez Valley Star. Retrieved 2022-02-28.
  10. ↑ "Inclusion Lab". Inclusion Lab of Santa Barbara County. Retrieved 2022-02-28.
  11. ↑ "Inclusion Workshop Looks at Teaching in Time of High Tension". Noozhawk. Retrieved 2022-02-28.
  12. ↑ "Dunn School Profile (2020-21) | Los Olivos, CA". Boarding School Review. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
  13. ↑ "Dunn School Makes Changes to Coaching Staff". Noozhawk. 2019-10-02.
  14. ↑ "Cheer, cheer for the Banana Slugs? Earwigs? Prune Packers? California teams go nuts on sports nicknames". Los Angeles Times. 2018-08-05.
  15. ↑ "3 Dunn seniors sign letters of intent". Santa Ynez Valley Star. 2018-02-18.
  16. ↑ "Former Dunn School Star Fifi Baiden Selected in Major League Soccer Draft". Noozhawk. 2014-01-23.
  17. ↑ "Abu Danladi's story from Ghana to Los Olivos, then Los Angeles to the MLS". Santa Maria Times. 2020-11-09.
  18. ↑ "Dunn School's Rodney Michael wins Gatorade Player of the Year award". Lompoc Record. 2017-06-13.
  19. ↑ "COLLEGE NOTEBOOK : Three local stars among eight recruits to sign with UCSB soccer". Santa Barbara News-Press. 2021-05-15.

34°39′49″N120°06′39″W / 34.66375°N 120.11076°W / 34.66375; -120.11076

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