Staff Writer

Experience and energy are qualities school officials used to describe new Scarborough High School Principal Dean Auriemma.

Appointed by a unanimous vote at last Thursday’s Board of Education meeting, Auriemma will replace departing principal Pat Conant on July 1 with a two-year contract and $100,000 salary the first year.

Auriemma, 43, comes to Scarborough after serving as principal last year at Thronton Fractional South High School in Lansing, Ill., located about 20 miles south of Chicago, he said.

Before that, Auriemma was principal at Minooka Community High School, a high school serving freshmen and sophomores and also located in the Chicago area. The classes were split from juniors and seniors to another school because of high enrollment levels in the district, he said.

Auriemma is an Illinois native who earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Northern Illinois University and taught high school art before shifting to administration. He said his career in education began 20 years ago.

Married last year in Kennebunkport to his wife, Mary Ellen, Auriemma said the position in Scarborough is both a chance to be closer to her family and a challenge he did not want to pass up.

“The school is one of the top in the nation, academically, artistically and athletically,” Auriemma said. Community involvement in the schools was a reason he wanted to apply for the position, he added.

School Superintendent David Doyle said a search committee comprised of parents, students, teachers, board of education members Jackie Perry and Brian Dell’Olio reviewed 19 candidates for the position, but had an early inkling who was best suited for the job.

“Dean was the clear choice of the committee from the get-go,” Doyle said. “We were impressed with his knowledge, energy level, perceptiveness and track record.”

Doyle said Auriemma impressed the committee with his knowledge of local schools and Dell’Olio praised the new principal’s outlook.

“He is a nice guy with a quiet demeanor,” Dell’Olio said.

Auriemma describes his teaching style as s “thoughtfully aggressive,” said his interest in becoming an administrator developed when he began mentoring new teachers about a decade ago.

He has taught in schools about three times larger than Scarborough’s 1,100-student school in environments where taking the lead was encouraged. He expects to bring the same emphasis to Scarborough while remaining approachable and consistent.

“You can’t always say yes or no, but need to communicate to the best of your ability and be fair,” he said.

Dell’Olio said the search committee was evaluating candidates on how they might lead the school forward – what he and Auriemma called “the next step.”

Dell’Olio said the next step fits goals board members developed earlier this year to provide well-rounded education that will best prepare students for the 21st century.

Auriemma said a first step is to assess where the school is and how it wants to be measured locally, in New England and nationally.

“I definitely want to maintain the sense of excellence and professionalism,” he said.

Auriemma, who graduated high school in 1985, said he does not see vast social differences in what he experienced as a student. But the immediacy of social networking sites and the Internet have heightened pressure on students, he said.

The interviews with the search committee and with Doyle individually were not daunting, Auriemma said.

“All you can do is be yourself. There are equally qualified people involved. It’s not about giving the right answers, it is about giving them truthful answers,” he said.

After settling into the job in Scarborough, Auriemma said he will resume his work toward a doctorate in curriculum instruction at Northern Illinois University. Auriemma said his thesis has not been completed.

“I can only hope my experience will help me serve the community,” Auriemma said.

Staff writer David Harry can be reached at 282-4337, ext. 219