Maine Township High School District 207 has hired Shawn Messmer as Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Innovation. Messmer, who has served as Maine South High School Principal since 2010, assumed his new responsibilities July 1. Mr. Messmer, whose appointment was recently approved by the Board or Education, will succeed Dr. Barbara Dill-Varga, who on July 1 will become Superintendent of the Carmel Unified School District in Carmel, Calif.
“Shawn has been a valued team member in helping us achieve the improvements that we’ve made and are on schedule to continue,” said Superintendent Dr. Ken Wallace. “During his time at Maine South High School, South has posted the highest challenge index in district history and has also achieved the highest objective ranking in district history after being named one of America’s top 100 high schools last year by Newsweek.”
Messmer’s selection came after an extensive search and two-round interview process conducted by a 20-member Maine 207 committee.
Messmer began his teaching career in Pennsylvania as a middle-level social studies teacher and has taught high school social studies in Washington, D.C. and in Pennsylvania. He began his administrative career at Souderton Area High School, north of Philadelphia, after earning his Master’s degree in Educational Leadership and principal’s certification at Lehigh University. He served as a dean and then as an assistant principal at Souderton, where he was instrumental in developing the district’s career pathways program. He also holds superintendent certifications in
both Pennsylvania and Illinois.
Messmer is currently pursuing his doctoral degree in educational leadership at Concordia University.