Dr. Steven Sullivan stepped into his new role as principal of Chapel Hill High School on December 14, 2023.
In the 2022-2023 school year, former principal Charles Blanchard announced his decision to step down from his role effective April 1; Valerie Atkins stepped in as interim for the rest of the year, and Shelba Levins took over her position for the 2023-2024 school year until Sullivan joined the district last month.
While Sullivan is new to Chapel Hill High School, he has plenty of experience in education and as an administrator. The Wilmington native was inspired to pursue a career in education by two English teachers he had in North Carolina.
“They just inspired me with the relationships that they built with their students [and] the excitement they had towards their subject matter,” Sullivan said. “They inspire[d] me to go and follow their footsteps.”
Sullivan attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and received a bachelor’s degree in Secondary Education with a concentration in English.
After graduating UNC, Sullivan started teaching. However, after one year, he decided to enlist in the United States Air Force and became a Chinese linguist. Simultaneously, he earned a master’s degree at Troy State University before pursuing a doctorate in education with a concentration in Curriculum Development and Systematic Change from Nova Southeastern University.
Sullivan said he decided to serve in the military for a variety of reasons. “[I got to] have so many great conversations and learn about so many different things that it helped me become a better person,” he said.
After his time in the Air Force, he again pursued jobs in education. Since then, he has taught and led at a variety of different high schools around the state of North Carolina, such as Isaac Bear Early College High School, Heide Trask High School and John T. Hoggard High School.
At Heide Trask, he received the 2009-2010 Pender County Schools Principal of the Year award, and, at Hoggard, he was presented with the 2016-2017 New Hanover County School Principal of the Year award.
Prior to joining Chapel Hill High School, Sullivan was the principal at North Brunswick High School. Under Sullivan’s tenure, the school increased student enrollment in Advanced Placement courses, bolstered college career enrollment and raised graduation rates from 50% to 80%.
Sullivan said he has been warmly welcomed by the Chapel Hill community. He made his first appearance at 2023-2024 Tiger Chill on November 18, 2023, and remarked that he felt that everyone accepted him “with open arms.”
Senior Will Droog, who uses they/them pronouns, said that they are intrigued with Sullivan. They are curious to see how Sullivan will become more involved and influential in the community. “I’ll remain optimistic that his presence will be beneficial for the school,” they said.
Freshman English teacher Brian Wasson praised Sullivan’s visibility around campus. “I think he’s doing a good job so far,” Wasson said. “He’s really making his rounds and doing [his job] successfully.”
Sullivan believes the school’s recently implemented flex schedule can greatly benefit students at the school; at his previous school, he has also implemented a flex schedule similar to Chapel Hill High School’s.
He said he plans to expand and modify the flex block.
“The days of after school tutoring have kind of waned,” Sullivan said. “[Students are] here seven to eight hours a day. That’s the time we need to work with our students, and that’s the time we need to provide those extra opportunities.”
Sullivan also emphasized that the 2023-2024 school year will be a “learning stage” for him. He wants to learn “what makes [the] school tick.”
“I want to be visible, I want to have conversations with students and have an opportunity to get to learn more about the school and about the people that make it run,” he said.
