Meet the Superintendent
In May 2023, the Elizabethtown Area School District board of school directors unanimously approved Dr. Karen Nell as the Elizabethtown Area School District's eighth superintendent. Dr. Nell had been serving as the Acting Superintendent since October 2022. She officially assumed the leadership role in July 2023.
The District welcomed Karen Nell, Ed.D., to its leadership team as the new Assistant Superintendent in April 2021. As assistant superintendent, Dr. Nell was responsible for overseeing the implementation of the District's Life Ready Model and the associated academic initiatives. As a senior level administrator, she played a key role in leading curriculum and instruction efforts, professional development activities for the faculty, the District’s E-town Cyber program, and supervision and evaluation efforts.
Before joining the Elizabethtown Area School District, Dr. Nell served as Director of Secondary Curriculum and Instruction for the Manheim Township School District. She chaired Manheim Township’s curriculum review, professional development, and new teacher orientation committees.
Dr. Nell has also served as an elementary principal, an assistant high school principal, and social studies teacher with Manheim Township. She is an adjunct faculty member with both Millersville and Wilkes Universities. Dr. Nell is a member of the National Association of Elementary and Secondary School Principals, the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, the Pennsylvania Association of Elementary and Secondary School Principals, and the Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators.
Dr. Nell holds a Bachelor of Arts Degrees in Political Science and History from Millersville University, a Master of Arts in Political Science from Temple University, a Master of Education in Leadership in Teaching and Learning from Millersville University, and a Doctorate in Educational Administration from Temple University. She received her superintendent eligibility from Temple University.
Required Postings
The board of school directors shall post the mutually agreed to objective performance standards contained in the contract on the school district's publicly accessible Internet website. Upon completion of the annual performance assessment, the board of school directors shall post the date of the assessment and whether or not the district superintendent and assistant district superintendent have met the agreed-to objective performance standards on the school district's publicly accessible Internet website.