Seniors aren’t the only ones going off to college next year. Principal Tim Dohrer will be heading to Northwestern to be the Director of Teacher Education at Northwestern’s School of Education and Social Policy.
Since Dohrer’s career as a Trevian began in 1990, he has worked as an English teacher, journalism teacher, advisor, English department coordinator and, of course, Winnetka campus principal. Over the span of his career, Dohrer has worked with dozens of teachers and administrators who all have seen his tireless work ethic and enjoyed his contagious laughter.
“I love this school, I love my work here,” he said. “I love all the people I’ve worked with from students to staff to parents. It’s just been awesome.”
Not long after receiving his teaching certificate, Dohrer began working with retired history teacher Mitch Jones in a team-taught American Studies class. 20 years later, Dohrer still remembers the class as one of his best teaching experiences at New Trier, and Jones recalls Dohrer’s infectious energy and passion.
“The students loved him and they kind of took to him like ducks to water,” Jones said. “He was very much liked by his students, and he cared very deeply about them.”
Jones specifically remembers how Dohrer was able to understand students on a personal level, assess their needs, and provide them with opportunities for creative expression.
“I think he’s excellent at knowing how to motivate students and how to see what their strengths are,” he said. “He’s good at helping students recognize what they’ve accomplished and how they’ve grown. As a consequence, students feel good about themselves and want to do more for him.”
Jones remembers specifically how students loved Dohrer because of his unique ability to bring fun into learning. This kind of positive, light-hearted relationship with students is something both administrators and other teachers have all noticed from working with Dohrer, too.
“Dr. Dohrer’s infectious laughter and sense of humor make him fun to be with and a great team member,” said Superintendent Linda Yonke. “I can always count on him to keep perspective, and to say something to lighten the mood when we become overly-serious. He places students at the center of decision-making, and he is genuinely passionate about education and New Trier,” she said.
Working with Dohrer as adviser of the New Trier News starting in 1999, retired teacher John Lucadamo also recalls the principal’s passion for students and learning in general.
“When he walked into room 11, the respect and affection the student editors had for him was clear,” he said.
Lucadamo remembered once when a student tried to write an article that, upon consideration, probably could not have been published. But Dohrer wanted to work with the student to make the situation something that could prove helpful for the writer.
“Dohrer respects students and realizes that everything in high school can and should be a learning experience,” he said.
It was after working with Lucadamo on the newspaper that Dohrer began his career as a New Trier administrator. He started in 2001 as the first English Department Coordinator at the newly opened freshman campus. English Department Chair John Cadwell remembers working with Dohrer and other teachers and administrators to start the reopening of Northfield, which had not housed students for years.
“He was instrumental in helping us get the freshman campus going, our part of the process over there,” Cadwell said.

Cadwell also praised how Dohrer was always so easy to talk to and approachable for students.
“He’s never been too busy to talk to students and listen to their concerns,” he said. “He thinks about ways to make their experience even more exciting.”
Lucadamo agrees that the students and New Trier came first on Dohrer’s list of priorities.
“Whether he was in the classroom, working with student journalists or leading the Winnetka campus, his central focus was centered on students,” Lucadamo said. “How could New Trier better serve our students? That was a question always upper most in his mind.”
Dohrer’s dedication to the students of New Trier is evident in his work with Student Alliance. SA President Jeff Salvadore said that he has enjoyed working with Dohrer for the past three years he has been on student government.
“Dr. Dohrer is an unwavering advocate for student voice at New Trier,” he said. “He’s played no small role in creating the best high school experience for students here possible.”
Dohrer loved to serve the students at New Trier, but that does not mean he neglected his roles as both an administrator, nor as a family man.
Matt Ottaviano, the Assistant Principal for Administrative Services, and Superintendent Yonke both said Dohrer was a dedicated team member at the school.
“I provided him that look at the long view of New Trier and then he could apply his vision from that point forward,” Ottaviano said. “I was really proud to be working with him.”
Ottaviano also recounted how he got to know Dohrer as a dedicated father while traveling as a chaperone with him on the band’s trip to Australia last year.
“When you spend 10 days traveling with somebody in a foreign land, you get to know them even a little better,” Ottaviano said. “He and his daughter have a wonderful relationship.”
Denise Hibbard is to replace Dohrer as principal next fall.
“Tim will be difficult to replace because of his passion, his intelligence, his sense of humor, and his commitment to New Trier. He knows the community well, and he understands the community’s expectations of New Trier. He is a scholar, a manager, a visionary and a friend.”