Dave Campbell
About
Dave Campbell’s 35-year career as an educator has always been focused on building hope, skills, and a plan in his students. Starting as a middle- and high-school social studies teacher, coach, bus driver, and Model UN Advisor laid a firm foundation of student-centeredness and the impact educators can have on young people. Serving as a high-school principal for eight years, local superintendent for 11 years, and ISD superintendent for 11 years helped Mr. Campbell develop a keen understanding of the impact public policy has on the lives of young people and educators.
Mr. Campbell’s leadership style is principle-centered, collaborative, and facilitative. He seeks to understand the root causes of issues in order to identify actions that will have the greatest impact on young people and the educators who serve and lead them. Building a balanced and shared understanding of issues and bringing groups of people to consensus has been a hallmark of his leadership since he was a social studies teacher.
Mr. Campbell has a deep understanding of how to best use the skills of consultants to leverage positive outcomes for young people—having employed and learned much from consultants in his leadership as a superintendent in areas such as leadership development, continuous improvement, strategic planning, program and personnel evaluation, and policy efforts (the passage of 10 millages). Furthermore, while serving as Superintendent of Kalamazoo RESA, Mr. Campbell played a key leadership role in the re-design of their system of Career and Technical Education (CTE), which will help build hope, skills, and a plan for young people. He was instrumental in securing funding for the program through his efforts to pass a CTE millage and obtain a $100-million donation to build a world-class CTE Center.
Education
Mr. Campbell earned his master’s degree in educational leadership from Illinois State University. He attained his bachelor’s degree in education from the University of Wisconsin at Whitewater earning his 7-12 certificate in history and social studies.
Also Notable
Mr. Campbell has served on numerous national, state, regional, and local boards and commissions including the National Institute for School Leadership, Launch Michigan, 21st Century Education Commission, the State Teacher Tenure Commission, Michigan College Access Network, Michigan Association for Superintendents and Administrators, and the Air Zoo.
