CEOs and celebrities ring school bells: 1,300 support Chicago's "Principal For A Day" program

WHEN school bells and buzzers rang in Chicago a drizzly October day, an extraordinary group of "principals" started walking the halls and checking classrooms. One West Side school had Boston Public star Chi McBride walking the halls and shaking hands; other schools had celebrities such as Tony Award-Winning singer Heather Headley and CEOs like Philip Condit, chairman and CEO of the Boeing Co., and Linda Johnson Rice, president and CEO of Johnson Publishing Co., joining the administration's ranks.

These celebrities and CEOs joined other business and civic leaders in Chicago's innovative "Principal for a Day" program, which has grown from 677 "principals" in 1998 to the roughly 1,300 business, entertainment and civic leaders who served this year. Many participants have expanded their involvement by "adopting" schools and forming continuing relationships between "their" schools and their businesses or organizations.

Honorary co-chair for this year's event, Rice served as Principal for a Day at DuSable High School on Chicago's South Side. She says the event was "probably one of the most richly rewarding experiences" she's ever had. The Johnson Publishing Co. CEO, who was accompanied by EBONY Managing Editor Walter Leavy and Art Director Lewis E. Lee Jr., taught a graphic arts class.

"It was exceedingly important for me to get involved because so many African-American youths don't have the role models they need to understand their future role as leaders," says Rice, who led the attentive computer graphics class at the school her father, Johnson Publishing Company founder and chairman John H. Johnson, attended. "Whether you're a leader in business, politics, or in civic leadership, I think it's important that you get out in communities and be able to give advice, lend a hand, and just talk to students."

Modeled after a program in New York started by Public Education Needs Civic Involvement in Learning, the Principal for a Day program was brought to the city by Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley. The city's goal is to secure corporate partnerships and long-term relationships for each of the 600 Chicago Public Schools.

Michael Scott, Chicago Board of Education president, who served as Principal for a Day at two schools, said support from those outside the school system is essential to ensuring a future for the public school children of Chicago. He encouraged a class of eighth-grade students at Lawndale Community Academy to start thinking about their life's plan and told the students how "lucky" they were to attend the prep school in the neighborhood where he grew up.

"The Principal for a Day program provides an opportunity for companies and industries to support the school system at the local level," Scott said. "This experience has helped us gain a better understanding of the everyday challenges that principals and teachers face as they work to improve our schools."

Mary Neely, longtime principal at Lawndale Community Academy, agreed.

"I think it's a great program because it gets private citizens involved in the education of our children," Neely said. "They see the day-to-day operations of the schools."

Mayor Daley challenged participants to continue supporting their school. "I firmly believe that every child has potential," Mayor Daley said. "And none of us should turn our back on any child here in the city of Chicago."

One important aspect of the program is that it gives some of Chicago's hometown heroes--many of them products of the Chicago Public Schools--an opportunity to give back.

Chi McBride, who plays a tough high school principal on the hit Fox show Boston Public, attended Westinghouse High School on the city's West Side, where he served as Principal for a Day.

"I'm very proud to be a part of the Principal for a Day celebration," McBride said. "Those kids at Westinghouse High School lifted my heart and my spirits with their courage, their willingness and desire to be valuable citizens who will make serious contributions to society ... All of us should remember that these children are our assets, and it is our responsibility to give them a place to learn, in a safe environment."

President and CEO Rice says she looks forward to continuing her involvement with DuSable High School, and hopes that other cities will implement the Principal for a Day program in their schools. Several cities, such as Atlanta, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Arlington, Texas and San Diego, already have the program.

"The whole premise is to have a corporation partner with a school, so that you really become the champion of that school in whatever way you can," Rice said. "It doesn't have to be financial. It can be sending volunteers, taking interns from the school into your corporation. There are several ways you can be their champion without having to necessarily give money. It's a terrific idea. I wish other cities did this as well as Chicago."

COPYRIGHT 2003 Johnson Publishing Co.
COPYRIGHT 2003 Gale Group