North Hardin High School mourning loss of band director killed in crash on Tuesday

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — North Hardin High School is mourning the loss of a beloved teacher.

Tuesday afternoon, Kelsey Dunn, 28, died in a car crash on the Western Kentucky Parkway in Grayson County, according to Kentucky State Police.

Dunn, of Elkton, Kentucky, was the band director at North Hardin High School.

KSP Trooper Scotty Sharp said the crash happened around 2:30 p.m. EST. Dunn was traveling eastbound on the Western Kentucky Parkway near the 116-mile marker during heavy rain when she lost control of her vehicle. Sharp said her car crossed the median and came into the path of a tractor-trailer traveling westbound.

Police said Dunn was pronounced dead at the scene. The driver of the tractor-trailer was not injured.

A portion of the Western Kentucky Parkway was closed for several hours, reopening just after 9:30 p.m. EST, so police could investigate the crash. The investigation remains ongoing.

In a statement provided by district spokesperson John Wright, Hardin County Schools said "generations will feel the impact" of Dunn's time at the school.

"Generations will feel the impact Ms. Dunn made on students, her fellow staff members, the school, alumni, band boosters and our community. She cultivated and nurtured relationships with students and ensured that their performances and presentations represented North Hardin High School with class, respect and dignity. Ms. Dunn was passionate about her students and their well-being," the statement read. "She was more than a teacher; she was a mentor and a friend to all she encountered. Her dedication to North Hardin was immeasurable. She gave so much of herself to her bands and NHHS as a whole."

Wright said the district's Crisis Response Team, made up of licensed and trained school professionals, will be at North Hardin High School on Wednesday, June 5 at 10 a.m. for any students or staff who may need support.

"We ask our Hardin County Schools family and the community to keep Ms. Dunn's family in their thoughts today and in the days, weeks and months to come," the district said. "The North Hardin High School Trojan family is devastated. And, when one part of the HCS family hurts, we all hurt."