Steve Dissinger
Patton Middle School in the Unionville-Chadds Ford School District has a new pick for principal — longtime Hillendale Elementary School Prinicipal Steve Dissinger.
Superintendent of Schools John Sanville made the announcement Wednesday to the school community. Dissinger will replace Tim Hoffman, who was promoted to Director of Curriculum earlier this year. the district Board of Education will have to formally approve the hire. He is expected to start in his new post on July 1.
Although Dissinger has spent much of the last decade in elementary education, he also has deep roots at Patton, where he started his teaching career and then later served as Dean of Students.
Sanville said that the search for the Hoffman’s replacement began with a pool of more than 60 applicants, including what he termed as “both strong internal and external applicants.”
“We then narrowed the field through an intensive and thorough interview process,” he said in a statement. “Each candidate met with faculty, staff, parents, administrators, and Board members in a series of four interviews. The comprehensive process helped us identify who would be the best fit as our next Patton MS principal – in the end Steve was the clear choice.”
Dissinger and Hoffman are expected to immediately begin working on the transition together. Both are also expected to have input into the search for Hillendale’s new principal.
This move represents the latest in a series of internal promotions that started with the departure of former Assistant to the Superintendent Kenneth Batchelor, who was named Superintendent in Radnor. Former Director of Curriculum John Nolen was named as the new Assistant Superintendent, and then Hoffman — who was named Patton’s principal in 2012 — was promoted to Nolen’s former position.
