Rory L. Pullens
Head of School

Having joined Ellington in January of 2006, Mr. Pullens has brought extraordinary vision, a greater sense of community, and unwavering enthusiasm to the Duke Ellington School of the Arts. A writer, producer, and script-editor before entering the world of education as a theater and journalism teacher and, later, administrator, Mr. Pullens’ career has taken him from Hollywood to the Los Angeles Arts Academy to Nashville Schools to an entertainment company and, most recently, the Denver School of the Arts (DSA). At DSA, Mr. Pullens served as Principal Director of the Arts, supervising ten art majors, the arts curriculum, recruitment, the audition/selection process, and the performance calendar, as well as fundraising and marketing.

John Francis Payne
Dean of Students

John Payne is an Augustinian Friar and native Washingtonian. He began his career as Associate Pastor of Saint Augustine Roman Catholic Church, where he developed this historic community’s internationally known liturgical tradition, focusing on music, art, dance and spoken word. Father Payne was very involved in community issues, especially those affecting the lives of young African Americans in the District of Columbia.

In 1996, Father Payne became a project director in the Kellogg Foundation’s African-American Male Collaborative, which led him to the HE*ROSE Project at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts, where he built support systems and developed programs to mentor African American male students. In 2000, he was named Dean of Students.

Father Payne is committed to issues of justice and enculturation in communities of faith and to building systems that nurture success for students in District of Columbia Public Schools.

Cullen Swinson
Dean of Academics

Cullen Swinson has held several positions at Duke Ellington since 1998. He has served as the school’s business manager, chair of the English department, and Dean of Humanities. Mr. Swinson has taught nearly the entire English curriculum from Freshman English to honors and A.P. senior English courses. He has also taught on the Arts side of the school, teaching Creative Writing for the Literary Media department and Dance History. A serious amateur cellist, Mr. Swinson has studied with critically acclaimed cellist Steven Honigberg of the National Symphony Orchestra and currently studies with Washington Post Music Critic and master cellist Robert Battey. Mr. Swinson received his teacher training at the Phillips Academy at Andover, where he taught several courses from Philosophy to English for three years in its Summer School Program. Mr. Swinson is past president of the Alpha Epsilon Rho chapter of Sigma Tau Delta, the International English Honor Society. Mr. Swinson holds a Master of Arts (Humanities) in Liberal Studies from Georgetown University and a Bachelor of Arts degree, summa cum laude, in English Studies from the University of the District of Columbia.

Tia Powell Harris
Dean of Arts

Tia Powell Harris’ career as an arts educator began at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts and spans over twenty years. Following her work at Ellington she served first as Manager of Community Partnerships at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and then as Associate Director of Education Programs at the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery. While at the Smithsonian she also acted as co-chair of the Smithsonian Institution’s Material Culture Forum. She has returned to Duke Ellington School of the Arts where she teaches Theatre History, Speech and Art and Culture classes and continues her work with the Smithsonian by designing and facilitating arts-based professional development opportunities for teachers nationwide. She holds a BS in Speech and Drama Education and an MA in Communication Arts and Theatre from the University of Maryland.