My friend, Barry Rodgers, is finishing up his first year as the Principal of North Side College Preparatory High School. The school is one of Chicago’s eight selective enrollment high school. It is the highest rated school in the state and the 14th best high school in the country.
This is a guy who, in the 1980s, shows up at Welles Park like a few dozen other gym rats and gets named Junior Citizen of the Year. Who becomes a lifeguard for the Chicago Park District and ends up captain of Montrose Beach. Who teaches Science at Mather and ends up Chair of the Department (and taught Max Levchin about mitochodria). Who is one of the teachers picked to help start North Side in 1999. Who picks up slots as Head Baseball and Swim coach. And who, last year, after an exhaustive nationwide search for the second Principal of the jewel of the CPS crown, ends up being chosen.
The guy is a flat-out leader, everywhere he goes. And he has succeeded there. This year, the school was ranked #14 in the annual Newsweek listing of the best American high schools. And people like him; they really like him.
The other night I got the idea that I wanted to go to North Side and take some documentary pictures of Barry. Images that he can look at 50 years from now and remember the last week of the first year he was ever a Principal. Here they are.
