Darien Schools Hires New Canaan Police Chief As Director Of Security

DARIEN, CT — Current New Canaan Police Chief Leon Krolikowski has been hired by Darien Public Schools to be the district's first-ever director of security.

The Darien Board of Education on Tuesday night unanimously voted to appoint Krolikowski, who will leave New Canaan and begin working in Darien on Jan. 9, 2023.

The board also voted to appoint Dr. Alycia Dadd as the director of mental health. She will also be leaving her current role as director of consultation services at Cognitive and Behavioral Consultants of Westchester and Manhattan before coming to Darien in March 2023.

Krolikowski has been a member of the New Canaan Police Department for over 33 years, and rose through the ranks before becoming chief in June 2013.

Throughout his tenure in New Canaan, Krolikowski has worked closely with the New Canaan Public Schools on a variety of security enhancements and changes in trainings and protocols.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in general studies from the University of Connecticut and graduated from the Stamford Police Academy.

While working full-time as a police officer, Krolikowski earned an MBA from the University of Massachusetts Isenberg School of Management, a law degree from Quinnipiac Law School, completed an executive education course at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, and has begun coursework toward a Ph.D.

Krolikowski is admitted to practice law in Connecticut and New York, Connecticut Federal Court, the United States Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces, and the United States Tax Court. He is a graduate of the FBI National Academy in Quantico, Va., and he is a Marine Corps combat veteran.

"I'm thrilled to serve as Darien Public Schools' first-ever director of security. School safety and security must be a focused team effort that evolves, embraces best practices and mitigates risk," Krolikowski said during Tuesday's Board of Education meeting after his appointment was made official.

"Superintendent Addley's strong leadership and the Darien Board of Education's forward-looking risk mitigation mindset inspire me. I'm certain that the Darien school district will become a national leader for best practices in school safety and security. Ultimately, our collaborative work will make Darien schools safer, inviting, and student-centered," Krolikowski added.

As the director of security, Krolikowski will be responsible for the management of all campus monitors, school security officers, security infrastructure and emergency response efforts.

"Chief Krolikowski’s varied and accomplished experiences in law enforcement and school security as the Chief of Police in New Canaan provide the necessary credentials for this critically important leadership position. We welcome Chief Krolikowski as a member of our Darien Blue Wave community," Addley said in a news release from the district.

Dadd currently coordinates training and consultation services to over 100 school based mental health teams in 35 districts with the Cognitive and Behavioral Consultants of Westchester and Manhattan.

Prior to joining CBC, Dadd worked for 13 years as a school psychologist providing individual and group counseling, conducting evaluations and developing social-emotional programs for a wide range of students.

Dadd has also worked in residential programs, in mental health/educational research, and in therapeutic foster care. She has received specialized training in several evidenced-based treatments including dialectical behavior therapy, cognitive behavior therapy, and multisystemic therapy.

Dadd received a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Delaware where she majored in psychology and minored in Spanish. She earned a master’s degree in school psychology from Teachers College – Columbia University, and her doctoral degree from Fordham University.

Her pre-doctoral internship and fieldwork experiences were in public and private schools in Westchester and the Bronx. Her doctoral residency project focused on the developmental nature of executive functions in high school-age students.

She helped create and implement several specialized programs to address the needs of students with anxiety, depression, self-injurious behaviors, drug use, OCD, ADHD, eating disorders, Autism Spectrum Disorders, and neurological impairments.

Dadd has led a team of psychologists and social workers to create a credit-bearing high school class based on dialectical behavior therapy principles in a local Fairfield County school district. She was subsequently nominated for Westport’s Teacher of the Year for her development of social-emotional programming and her direct service to students and families.

"I've thoroughly enjoyed the initiatives Darien has already taken around student mental health, and I'm very much looking forward to coordinating with your leadership staff, the town and director of community services," Dadd said Tuesday. "I'm really invigorated by the initiative you all have taken in terms of meeting our students', our families' and our staff's mental health needs. I'm looking forward to being an active participant, and hopefully a leader in the community around this initiative."

Addley said in a news release, "Dr. Dadd’s extensive clinical, mental health and school experiences will be invaluable assets and resources to our schools and town in our efforts to support the mental health and social and emotional needs of our students and staff. We extend Dr. Dadd a warm welcome to Darien."