Dan The Boss

All about your amazing interim head of school through the lyrics of a song!

As you walk around campus, you've probably seen a guy with a button-down shirt, jacket, jeans, which he attributes to his “ongoing lack of creativity and the fact that at 68, I have a fixed amount of cognitive capital to spend each day and I can't afford one point of IQ energy on sartorial choices,” and a big smile who's always excited to ask how you're doing.  If you haven't already, I’d recommend saying hello to Dan Vorenburg, before he is onto his next great adventure. I have had some conversations with him while he has been here, and he seemed like a really interesting guy, so I found a time to meet with him and asked him some questions. 

We sat down in his office, which was adorned with paintings of New Roads and lots of color. I saw his guitar case in his room, so I asked him what his theme song for his life would be, and he responded without hesitation. “Bruce Springsteen, Thunder Road.” It’s a song with themes like longing, the desire for freedom, and the pursuit of a better future. He then recounted first hearing it in high school, the song immediately resonating with him. “For me, Springsteen's song Thunder Road was about freedom and post-adolescent angst,” Dan says. I listened to the song, and I noticed a lot of the lyrics relate to his answers to my other questions and to everything he has done for the school.

New Roads has been around for 30 years as of this year, and has improved a lot over time, with the school getting better and better each year. Now, during Dan’s tenure at the school, many more pushes for upgrades and progress have been made. 

In the very first verse of Thunder Road, Springsteen sings: “So you’re scared, and you’re thinking that maybe we ain’t that young anymore.” Dan helped the school push through difficulties and worked to get many of the new things we have now, like the sports court or the middle school yard. He showed us that when we get older, we can make even bigger things happen. Being mature and established doesn't mean that we can’t take risks that bring about amazing rewards. Dan told me that “From [his] perspective, this campus really works for our community, but every year we should be pondering ways we might jazz it up to create opportunities for greater connections and activities causal to learning and living together here on campus.”

“Show a little faith, there’s magic in the night, you ain't a beauty, but hey, you’re alright.” For me, this lyric immediately brings to mind Dan’s willingness to show faith in the campus of New Roads and to strive to improve it. In his short time at the school, he has delved straight into how he could make the school more functional, look better, and be as great as it can be.

Dan’s all-school meeting performances with his guitar are a part of him that many of us have seen, and as Springsteen said in his song, “Well, I got this guitar, and I've learned how to make it talk,” I'm sure everyone who has heard Dan play can agree that his guitar speaks. He puts so much light energy into his playing, and when you watch him, you can tell he enjoys himself as well.

Dan told me that after he retires, he will be trying his absolute best to find “new, challenging, and innovative (all legal) ways of keeping busy.” He said that he doesn't want to think of retiring as just sitting on his porch and drinking coffee all day, and that he plans to enjoy more free time and put it to good use with his family and with new ventures. Although I’m sure we all hope he visits New Roads sometime after he is gone, we can also hope he has an amazing time.