Darren joined the Rocky Mountain team in 1998, moving to the valley from Fort St. James, BC.  It was in Nechako District that Darren started his teaching career as a secondary English Language Arts teacher, 35 years ago.  In addition, he established the first alternate education program at the secondary school in Fort St. James.  It was in the North where Darren first became a vice-principal, which is also the first role he filled at David Thompson Secondary School (DTSS) here in the Windermere zone.   

Darren went on to become the principal at DTSS and served in that role until July 2020.  Throughout Darren’s admin career, he continued to teach secondary English classes, never wanting to completely relinquish the energy and the joy of teaching young people.  Given his insight to classroom instruction and assessment, he was excited to lead DTSS in the implementation of the new English Language Arts curriculum, fostering unique and innovative designs born of the dedication and the commitment to excellence which characterized the team of educators at DTSS. 

In the summer of 2020, Darren relocated to Vancouver in order to serve as the President of the BC Principals’ and Vice-Principals’ Association for two years.  This opportunity broadened Darren’s scope of the education system in BC, allowing him to engage with system partners and Ministry leaders at a high level.  It also provided him many rich opportunities to network with educators from all regions of the province,   

Darren is excited both to return to his valley home and to bring his expertise as an educator and a collaborative leader to his role as District Principal of Literacy.