Participants Coaches

Joseph Shannon is the Deputy Chief Academic Officer at the International Center for Leadership in Education. He assists in the development and implementation of education initiatives at the Center, and works with state education agencies, district, and schools to address school leadership, whole-school reform, and how to use data to drive academic decisions.

Joe has nearly 20 years experience in public education. Prior to joining the International Center, he served as a middle school principal at Broadalbin-Perth Middle School in Broadalbin, New York. During his four-year tenure there, Joe embraced the middle-level school philosophy of striving to provide academic excellence to students while being keenly aware of students’ developmental needs and being socially equitable to all students. During his tenure as a school administrator, Joe was involved extensively in curriculum and staff development, character education, and whole school reform. He also served as a regional liaison for the Statewide Network of Middle School Liaisons in New York and is currently a member of the National Forum to Accelerate Middle Grades Reform.

Joe began his career as dean of students, athletics director, and social studies teacher at Canajoharie High School in Canajoharie, New York, as well as assistant principal at Broadalbin-Perth High School in Broadalbin. He received his Bachelor, Masters, and Certificate of Advanced Studies in Education Administration degrees from Cortland State College, SUNY Albany, and Cortland State College respectively.

For the past 38 years Dan Johnson has been a pioneer in redesigning educational options for students by effectively managing the intellectual assets of a school community. Dr. Johnson has published five books and numerous articles focused on the human side of change. He has partnered in reform projects with and received recognition from the U.S. Department of Education, members of the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate, governors, and President Bill Clinton. Currently Dan is president of his own consulting firm, Triple C 21. He also advises a Colorado based non-profit, the Jabaily Center for Leadership and Learning, which provides 21st Century learning options emphasizing critical and entrepreneurial thinking. Dr. Johnson has been a classroom teacher, principal, assistant superintendent, and superintendent in three states. He has been chair of the Centennial BOCES Superintendent’s Advisory Council, co-chair of the K-12 Subcommittee for a Metro-Denver economic development grant, and staff development chair of a 20 school district consortium focused on math and science. Dr. Johnson and his wife live in Loveland, Colorado and have two grown sons and a granddaughter.

Paul F. Ezen is a school coach for the International Center for Leadership in Education who focuses on high school redesign, strategic planning, and mentoring programs, among other areas. Throughout his 22-year-career in education, he has served as interim commissioner, deputy commissioner, and principal. As deputy commissioner for the New Hampshire Department of Education in 2005, Dr. Ezen helped to develop a new state assessment that aligned the state with NCLB standards. He also worked on the development of the New Hampshire Approval Standards.

During Dr. Ezen’s 14 years at Kearsarge Regional High School in North Sutton, N.H., the school went from having only 10 computers to more than 180 for student use. He played an integral role in a major school-to-career initiative launched in 1995. He also oversaw a $7 million building addition and renovation program, which was completed in 1997.

Dr. Ezen was named New Hampshire High School Principal of the Year in 1999-2000.

During her 34-year career as an educator, Susan Gunderman taught English and ESOL at the high school and college levels. For 18 years, she served as a high school assistant principal and principal of both a diverse urban high school and a large suburban comprehensive high school.

In 2000, Mrs. Gunderman opened Kennesaw Mountain High School in Kennesaw, Georgia. Under her leadership, Kennesaw Mountain gained national recognition for its exemplary academic accomplishments as well as its outstanding Service Learning and Character Education programs. Through multiple pathways, Kennesaw Mountain personalized instruction around individual student interests, learning styles, and aptitudes. Among those pathways are career academies in finance, informational technology, catering, and event planning, as well as the Academy for Advanced Studies in Math and Science. There are also dual-enrollment opportunities with area colleges. The school also made an extraordinary commitment to meeting the needs of special needs students and in 2002 proudly opened the Mountain Top Café, an onsite coffee shop operated solely by special needs students. At Kennesaw Mountain, staff and students have made a commitment to providing rigorous and relevant instruction to all students, and they work together to establish a culture of mutual respect and a passion for learning.

In recognition of exemplary achievement, Kennesaw Mountain has been commended by College Board as a Demonstration School for outstanding implementation of AP coursework and was named by Atlanta Magazine as one of the Top 10 Schools in metro Atlanta. Mrs. Gunderman was honored by the Chamber of Commerce as the City of Kennesaw Citizen of the Year in 2002. Additionally, she was recognized by the City of Kennesaw as the recipient of the Citizen Impact Award, and by the Kennesaw Business Association with the Outstanding Leadership Award.

In July 2007, Mrs. Gunderman retired as principal of Kennesaw Mountain. She now serves as a consultant for the International Center for Leadership in Education and as a liaison for the Successful Practices Network.