Principal Richard Norman
With a jungle green sweatshirt that reads “Nicholas Senn High School” in bold white letters, Principal Richard Norman walks through his school’s hallways meticulously re-taping fallen school posters and making mental notes on walls with chipping paint. He has an affirmative glaze with that famous Chicago twang in his voice.
“Who’s the best principal in Chicago?” he asks as he nudges and high fives a passing student.
“You!” the student says as she jumps up to return the friendly gesture.
The principal of almost two years began his career in education on the North Side in 1972 at Waller High School, now Lincoln Park, where he taught special education classes for the mentally handicapped. Norman also worked as a counselor at St. Patrick, Mather and Northside College Preparatory High School.
But rather than withdrawing from the educational system, Norman wanted to take one step further.
“I’m a product of the Chicago Public Schools system so I wanted to participate and give back to the system,” Norman says.
On July 1, 2005, he was elected principal of Nicholas Senn High School—an inner-city school known for its diversity, with students from 80 countries who speak 46 different languages.
About 94 percent of the student population is below the poverty level and qualifies for government vouchers, according to the principal. The high population of students from the lower socioeconomic tier presents a dilemma for Senn.
“Teens join gangs to fill their need for support, security and family,” the principal says.
Faculty member Charlene Powell has worked at the high school for the past 27 years. She says Norman’s authority as a disciplinarian is exceptional compared with past principals at Senn.
“I adore working with him because he’s respectful and consistent in his policies,” she says. “He sticks to what he says and it’s working out.”
External factors at school and on the streets are not the only hardships teens at Senn face. Norman says that 10 percent of his students are either wards of the state or homeless; a population which has increased by 3 percent over the past few years.
To help prevent outside circumstances from interrupting students’ education, the principal and his administration attempt to place kids in programs where they will be encouraged to succeed. Sometimes that means placing a student in a lower level to ensure that they are competent.
“The hardest thing to do is to move a student down from a graduating class because you’re reinforcing that they’re failing,” Norman says.
Senn’s “homebound” program, for example, enables students who are pregnant or have medical needs to complete their education at home. A faculty member dedicates an hour per day to tutor and tailor a full course load to students with special needs.
Other programs such as the Senn Achievement Academy help students who did not graduate from elementary school. They can recuperate their academic standing over the course of two years and rejoin their high school graduating class by junior year.
Improvement in academics under Norman’s administration is evident. In the past, Senn placed four points below the state average in achievement tests. But within this past year, Senn has closed the gap by one full point, according to the principal.
School pride is an essence at Senn. Norman is trying to promote school merchandise by ordering more school apparel. He also requires students to wear their identification tags on lanyards with the school’s name and crest.
“I want the students to identify the school as a positive institution in their lives,” Norman says as he calls over a custodian to remove fresh graffiti writing on the side of a locker.
Apart from promoting school spirit, the principal makes an effort to interact with the surrounding community. As a white male of a predominantly minority school, he recognizes the need to undo the misconceptions that residents in the area have about the school’s youth.
“What breaks down prejudices is getting to know people,” the principal says.
Norman also values community service. He has students participate in community events such as singing the national anthem at ceremonies, cleaning up district parks and hosting international school festivals. Likewise, he promotes Senn by having community leaders take tours and interact with students.
But perhaps Norman’s largest contribution to the high school is his ability to personally connect with his faculty and students.
Powell feels that the principal’s support and attitude has changed the administration’s decision making dynamics.
“I feel I’m important around him because he takes my opinion into account,” Powell says. “He backs me up one hundred percent.”
To unite such a diverse student body, Norman reaches out and makes it a priority to get to know each student by his/her full name. He knows their personal stories and often sees potential in them when they can’t see it in themselves.
“[Education] is about human relationships,” Norman says as he heads off to the basketball game. “It’s as much an art as it is a science, especially for our students because they don’t come from a strong social support system.”
“Students know he’s more than just a principal around campus,” Powell says. “He goes out of his way for them.”
For Monique Jackson, a student in her third year, Principal Norman served as an inspiration to leave her old way of life and to focus on her future. For the past three years, Jackson lived on the streets selling narcotics. Cutting class to make a living has placed her on academic probation for failing classes. But Monique is already showing progress.
“He has a job to do as a principal but he takes personal time to talk to me,” Jackson says. “He makes sure that I won’t fall off track.”
Jackson is currently suspended from the team because of her academics. She says that Norman is helping her get a basketball scholarship at Chicago State University or the University of Iowa.
“I admire him because he saw something in me that I couldn’t see,” she says. “He told me I had potential.”
Jackson says the principal checks up on her three to four times a day.
“Monique,” Norman says as he walks by. “The team is having trouble with the ball. You better get out there soon,” he says with a wink.
