Partnership Principal
Dan Besett

Listen to Dan!

    
    Tacoma’s Wilson High may be small with only 1,200 students, but big things are happening there, ranging from the best assessment test scores in the district, to probably the top high school glass-blowing program in the nation, to a nationally-acclaimed show choir, to an athletic program that produced one of the National Football League’s (NFL) top defensive backs. And students enjoy being there!

    Keys are a staff that is very compassionate about the students, parents who stay involved, and a principal, Dan Besett, who leads by example.

    “Our success comes from a group effort,” explains Besett who came to Wilson High four years ago after being a superintendent at the American International School, Lagos, Nigeria. “We are all comfortable with what we are doing. When students or parents enter the building, they are always greeted by a friendly support staff, and the administrative team is constantly out and about talking with students.”

     The intercity school offers a full range of academic programs including AP courses and an honors program. Students have shown steady growth in state exams during the past four years, and 70 percent of Wilson graduates go on to additional education, whether it’s a four or two year college or a technical school. Wilson also has the best attendance record and least number of incidents of the seven Tacoma High Schools, according to Besett.

    But what stands out about the school, which was built in 1959 and remodeled three years ago, is its climate.

   “Our goal is to make sure a student’s day is a positive day,” Besett says. “We are always talking with students, and we have developed an inviting culture that is calm, controlled and relaxed.”

   
  Leading by example, Besett is committed to serving people.

  “I try to make a point of dropping everything on my to-do list that can be dropped if a student, parent or teacher wants help. If a student wants assistance with his or her schedule, I’ll help instead of pushing the student to a counselor. Also, I never leave the building until I return all my voice mails and emails.

  “I truly love having contact with our kids, staff and parents. Some may call me weird, but I enjoy meeting with a parent when there’s a problem. I want to see if I can make things better.”

  Besett also has turned his photography hobby into a recognition tool for students at Wilson. Having found that there was little valuable professional development available for principals, until he became involved in The Principals Partnership, he gave up on traveling to conferences for three years and spent that money on photography equipment. Now he brings his camera to every school event he attends and takes shots of the students. On weekends he makes 8 by 10 prints that he then presents to students in class.

   “Now, when I enter a classroom, kids don’t think I’m coming because someone has been bad.”

  While academics are a priority at Wilson, the school also has major accomplishments in its elective and student activities programs. The 14 to 16-student Show Choir is in high demand throughout the community, making around 75 appearances annually at retirement centers, civic clubs and local celebrations. It also has been highly successful in a yearly contest in California that attracts some of the top high school choirs in the state.

  “Our kids arrive in a school bus with their teacher and a few moms who help out,” Besett recalls. “Other schools come with vans of equipment, hair stylists and costumer designers, but we always finish first or second.”

   Many students in the Tacoma area come to Wilson for its music program, which also features a jazz band and one of the few marching bands in the area that still performs on the field during halftime of football games.

 Wilson also has a long history of athletic accomplishments, including a swimming program that has produced 29 state championships and a number of Olympians. Wilson High was won the All-City Sports Trophy, which is given annually to the school that has the top performance among all boys and girls teams, since the school was built.

   Besett is especially proud of graduate Marcus Trufant, a Seattle Seahawk who recently was named defensive back of the week in the NFL.

  “Marcus has given back to Tacoma Public Schools better than any athlete I know,” Besett reports. “His foundation provides $25,000 in scholarships annually, and he has provided weights and other equipment for our school. But the best is that he returns to Wilson to talk with our students.”

  Another high point at Wilson is the glass-blowing program, which was initiated nine years ago by Dale Chuhuly, a nationally known glass blower from Tacoma. Chuhuly contributed some equipment and knowledge, and a program was developed originally for dropouts. It now appeals to all segments of the Wilson population with approximately 150 students participating during the regular school year or summer. Many graduates go on to work in glass-blowing or to maintain it as a hobby. In fact, one of the current instructors is a Wilson grad who learned glass-blowing as a student.

   Besett calls The Principals Partnership “the best professional development experience I’ve had in my 28 years in education.”

  “Frankly, I had given up on going to professional development conferences because I never came back with anything useful. Now, every fall I set aside two days of staff development for our staff and much of it is based on what I have gotten from the Summer Institute that year.”

   
    More information about Wilson High School can be found at this link, and Besett can be contacted at dbesett@tacoma.k12.wa.us.

  
Past Focus Principals:

Focus- Rodney Matheney
Focus- Catherine Guy
Focus- Bob Rodriguez
Focus- John Brumley
Focus- Nancy York
Focus- Jerrylyn Jones
Focus- Gloria Erkins
Focus- Ron Sing
Focus- Bill Hittman
Focus- Jeanene Sampson
Focus- David Gilligan
Focus - Joy Walton
Focus- William Roberts
Focus- Franklyn Wesley
Focus- Magdalena Gutierrez
Focus- Kent Bergum
Focus- William "Rick" Johnson
Focus- Ken Ball
Focus- Dan Tenuta
Focus- Charlesetta Deason
Focus- Rene Posey
Focus- Stuart Baker
Focus- Paul Smith
Focus- Christie Gestvang
Focus- John A. Butterfield
Focus- Janie Hill Hatton
Focus- Steve Warmack
Focus- Glen Clark
Focus- Kittie D. Weston-Knauer
Focus- William Dunn
Focus - Richard Pemberton
Focus- Dr. Anthony Spivey
Focus - John Weigel