About Princeton Day School

Meet the Head of School

Paul J. Stellato joined the Princeton Day School community as Head of School in July 2008. Mr. Stellato began his career at Blair Academy, where he served as an English teacher, coach, and dormitory master. He played similar roles at Williston Northampton School and The Albany Academy. In 1988, he joined the faculty of Millbrook School and during his 13 years there, in addition to teaching and coaching, carried a number of other responsibilities: director of summer programs, director of college counseling, dean of faculty and, before his departure in 2001, assistant head of school.

Until 2008, Mr. Stellato was headmaster of North Cross School, an independent, coeducational day school of 530 students in Roanoke, Virginia. While in Virginia, he sat on a number of not-for-profit boards, as well as the board of directors and membership committee of the Virginia Association of Independent Schools. Mr. Stellato earned his undergraduate degree, in English and classics, at Hamilton College; and an M.F.A. at the Columbia University School of the Arts. He and his wife, Maureen, have two children: Kate, an admissions officer at Princeton University; and Lauren, a recent graduate of Elon University.

Head of School Remarks and News

Article in The Educational Register, February 2013
Head of School Paul Stellato has written an article for The Educational Register, one of the leading websites about independent schools, published by VincentCurtis. Mr. Stellato’s article is titled “In Praise of Large Schools,” and begins, “I write in praise of large independent schools; of schools whose enrollments stretch to 700 students and beyond.... They are built upon the school-within-a-school model: two, three, or four divisions (junior, lower, middle, and upper schools), which are independent and yet informed by and share fully an institution-wide commitment to a set of values, virtues, and characteristics: the school mission.” As Mr. Stellato emphasizes, opportunity is the name of the game in a large independent school. To read the entire article, please click here or visit www.TheEducationalRegister.com.

Convocation Remarks
"The Princeton Day School’s mission – which you should read and know and take to heart – makes clear the role of each of us within the larger community, as we also it demands explore how we stand in kinship with our community. It values equally the individual and the community, careful not place one above the other. It speaks of things that are tough to argue against – truth, skill, commitment, character, integrity, responsibility. It is given life each day through one thing and one thing only: your actions. For each and all of us, it is never about getting something but always about becoming someone."

Paul J. Stellato Awarded Klingenstein Fellowship
In May 2011, Head of School Paul J. Stellato was awarded a Klingenstein Fellowship, a prestigious award for heads of school from Columbia University's Teachers College. Mr. Stellato will spend two weeks at Columbia in January 2012, engaging in intensive study and reflection, and will have the opportunity to share experiences and research among peers.