When I first started working in the high school to an outsider the place looked like a disaster and the school had a bad reputation. The worst day was when we had to break up six fights, I was involved in five of them.

Most of our students were good students, some of them exceptional students. Our schools’ reputation was built on the 4 or 5 percent of the students that were causing problems.

Over the ten years our school has drastically improved. Of the 1000 plus students, I would say maybe 10-12 students cause serious or repeated problems. We still have, what is now, a definitely undeserved reputation, but has time goes by that will improve as well.

How did the school change? The first five years it didn’t. The school did not change until one administrator left and another took his place.

How he made a difference is written, but his story is only a part of everything that goes on in the school. Over my ten years as a Community Aide I have had the opportunity to see much of what goes on inside a high school, from the halls, to the classrooms, to the gym, and into the offices of the administrators.