Dunn History
Beginnings of Dunn School | A Transition Period | Expansion & Growth | Building on Excellence
The Beginnings of Dunn School
|
Tony Dunn, Founder |
 Bruce "Doc" Macomber taught at Dunn for over
two decades. He now serves as Historian and Archivist. |
In 1957 the Dunns formed a founding board comprised of Tony Dunn, President, Nancy Luton Sr., Vice President, Paul Squibb, William Shannon, and Mary Dunn, Secretary. The board re-incorporated the school with the name The Valley School and built a dorm that summer. In September 1957, The Valley School opened with 49-day students and 7 boarding boys, grades K through 8. In 1960 the board gave the school the name that it bears today.
Tony Dunn's objective was to establish a boarding high school which had, given his own experience, roots in Eton and the venerable history of English private education. By 1964 he had eliminated grades K-8. Mr. Dunn entered himself into the small fraternity of Heads in what was to become the Condor League. He was always looking for young men open to change, innovation and growth. Tony became mentor, guru, spiritual leader and visionary to a group of young men who flourished if only because of their need to vindicate Tony's faith. They were to forever (in terms of the school) refer to themselves as "Dunn Men". 9 boys graduated in the first class of 1961.
During the early years, Tony Dunn and two bachelors were the only teachers living on campus. Mr. Dunn followed the English practice of dormitory supervision by "Senior Prefects" whom he appointed. When the Prefects were of outstanding character this system worked well. However when Prefects were less well behaved, they sometimes abused their leadership privileges. Mr. Dunn believed that the possibility for character development inherent in Prefect governance was worth the occasional abuse of privileges and underclassmen. He thought that life in the real world was often "that way".
Most male-only boarding schools of this era presented rather monastic environments dominated by team sports and heavy doses of homework and chores. However, Tony Dunn did his best to provide dances and activities. Students started a radio station, Guitar club, Drama clubs and even faculty/student relay races. Mr. Dunn also presided over Sunday services in the barn. Soccer was the first formal team sport and early players recall digging rocks out of the only field and chasing the ball across bare dirt during games. Over the next couple of years the gymnasium and pool were built and more farmland was purchased and turned into athletic fields.
The Late 1960's and early 1970's – A Transition Period
Senior Dorm was created by piecing together old buildings. The building still exists today in a much renovated state.
The death of Tony Dunn on January 3, 1967 was a profound shock to the young school community. The transition year of 1967-1968 was a difficult one. As Headmaster, teacher, coach, and counselor Tony Dunn had become the embodiment of Dunn School. Many students and teachers chose to leave; only half of the class of 1968 returned. Through aggressive admissions and faculty recruiting Dunn School slowly returned to normal. The new Headmaster, Bill Webb, strove to increase enrollment by inviting applications from day girls, reinstating 8th grade and hiring a trained reading tutor, Nancy Roome, who founded what today is known as the Learning Skills Program. Senior Dorm was built and old houses from the region were donated to the school campus for faculty housing. Unfortunately, at the time of his death, Tony Dunn had nearly finalized the purchase of 104 acres of farmland to the west of campus, but the opportunity was lost when he passed. The school would have to wait another twenty years to expand the campus. A Discipline Committee was also created by Mr. Webb to review violations and a student government with class presidents and a Student Body President was organized to replace the Prefects. The quality of student life and the community morale, staffing and faculty slowly improved.
The Late 1970's thru 1980s – Expansion and Growth
In the late 1970's new Dean Ed Simmons saw that enrollment during that time had been skewed toward 11th and 12th grades. So Mr. Simmons founded the Dunn Middle School in two old houses that were moved from Solvang and fitted them out to become classrooms. In addition, these years marked the first for faculty living in the original Dunn dormitories, the "Quad".
In 1982, Ed Simmons resigned and Steve Loy became Headmaster. Mr. Loy initiated the first major fund-raising campaign, "Campaign for the Eighties" aimed at improving the facilities and building an endowment. To mark the start of the Campaign, an old one-room schoolhouse was moved from Buellton and put opposite the Red Barn from the original Valley School. These two buildings defined the then and still existing heart of the Dunn School campus. The campaign funded a 400-meter all weather running track with track and field facilities. Senior Dorm, the Quad, and Thacher House were refurbished. Steve Loy also put the wheels in motion for boarding girls. When the Roberts family offered to pay a significant part of the cost of construction of a new dorm Loy House was built by 1991. To ensure the safety and proper supervision of girls two faculty homes were attached to Loy House.
The original red barn from the Farm School marks
the hub of student activity still today
During this period, boarding life and behaviors had changed to create an environment more attractive to girls. Tony Dunn, a war veteran, had been preparing boys for the harsh realities of the Cold War in the 50's and 60's in the expectation that they might be called for service. Day girls had then brought in useful tuition but were essentially "incidental" to any social change. Bill Webb had seen the hazing and unfairness inherent in the English boarding school model of Tony Dunn and began the long, difficult, modification of Dunn's social fabric and extracurricular management. This social change extended through the tenures of Ed Simmons and Steve Loy until Dunn School came to be viewed with favor by parents of the girls who were Dunn's first girl boarders in 1991. Much of this change was a result of the gradual addition of faculty housing attached to dormitories. By 1991 Dunn was graduating classes of 30 students or more.
This era was also marked by the last property acquisition for Dunn. In the mid-1980's the ten acre farm paralleling the Roblar entrance became available when the owner died and his 2 daughters gave Dunn first chance to buy the land. The farmer's home became a faculty house and 2 athletic fields were formed from the land.
1990 to present – Building on Excellence
The success of the Campaign for the Eighties, the construction of a new dorm and the resultant boost in enrollment and improved reputation in the community allowed Dunn to set it sights on growth and improving its quality of education. In the mid-1990s a new campaign was undertaken to put Dunn School in the upper echelons of boarding schools. This campaign was called "Building on Excellence" and it financed the construction of a state of the art Fine Arts Complex, giving a much-needed boost to this part of the curriculum. Two modern and very comfortable boys' dormitories were built — Boone House and Knoles. In addition, new admissions standards were undertaken and both the quality of students and faculty steadily improved. Today Dunn School is ranked in the same consideration set for prospective students as ever-present rivals Cate School and Thacher.
