We invite you to explore the below videos to get to know our Head of School, Mr. Fanning Hearon; Head of Lower School, Mrs. Martha Bjorklund; and Head of Upper School, Ms. Shana Dutkewych. In addition, take a tour of our Lower Campus, home to our 2-year-olds through Third Graders and located on the Intracoastal of West Palm Beach, as well as our Upper Campus, home to our Fourth through Ninth Graders and located one block from the Atlantic Ocean in Palm Beach.
Get to know Mr. Hearon who became PBDA’s Head of School in July 2019. He was previously Head of School at Maple Street School in Vermont, prior to which he was Assistant Head of School and Academic Dean at Vermont Academy for five years. Fanning also spent thirteen years at the Brunswick School in Greenwich, Connecticut and began his 30-year career in independent school education at his alma mater, the Woodberry Forest School in Virginia.
Get to know Mrs. Bjorklund on PBDA’s Lower Campus. Prior to joining PBDA in Fall 2018, Bjorklund served as Assistant Head of Lower School at Allendale-Columbia School, Rochester, NY, where she was also Head of the school’s Pre-Primary Division, a first grade teacher, and admissions evaluator. Before, she was a first grade teacher and Reading specialist at Saint David’s School in New York City.
The PBDA Lower Campus is located on the West Palm Beach Intracoastal waterway and serves students ages 2-years-old through Grade 3. The Lower Campus is located 1.3 miles from PBDA’s Upper Campus in Palm Beach.
Stay tuned for an introduction to our new Head of Upper School, Shana Dutkewych. While this will be her first year as PBDA’s Head of Upper School, she has been an integral part of PBDA’s classrooms and culture since 2001. Shana served as PBDA’s Director of Student Learning at PBDA from 2016-2022 where she oversaw the academic support program for both campuses. She also worked with students in Grades 6-9 as a learning specialist. Prior to this, Shana taught at PBDA from 2001-2007. She also owned a private practice and worked as a learning specialist for 9 years. She graduated with a master’s degree in Reading Education from Columbia University – Teachers College, and earned her bachelor’s degree in Special & Elementary Education from the State University of New York at Geneseo.
The PBDA Upper Campus serves students in Grades 4-9 and is located one block from the Atlantic Ocean on the island of Palm Beach, FL. The Upper Campus is located 1.3 miles from PBDA’s Lower Campus in West Palm Beach.