Although Erin was previously the assistant principal (AP) at Infinity, she sees the effort to revisit the mission statement as a key step in assuming leadership of the school. She frequently calls on her own past experiences as both a teacher and an AP to inform how she approaches her work, from day-to-day interactions to major strategic efforts. In that way, her principalship is a culmination of all of her previous roles.

However, only a few years ago, Walker didn鈥檛 see a principalship in her future at all. Like most 海角直播 (CPS) principals, Erin began her education career as a CPS teacher. She taught English in the district for about 16 years, and she had every expectation that she would continue growing in that role. 鈥淚 loved teaching,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 never thought I would leave the classroom.鈥� However, when an opportunity to serve as the coordinator of another high school鈥檚 International Baccalaureate program opened up, she decided to apply.

While Erin was not ultimately hired in that role, her resume garnered attention at other schools. Eventually, she was approached with a chance to interview for a role as AP at Infinity. Erin says she was still reluctant to move out of the classroom at that point; however, she took the interview, and when she was offered the job, she wanted to give it a shot.

Erin was unsure how well she would adapt to a new role in school administration. This uncertainty was amplified by her move to an entirely different school in a new neighborhood. She was initially worried that her lack of knowledge of Spanish would be an issue in a school where, according to her, a majority of students and staff are fluent in the language. However, she soon found that her enthusiasm for education followed her wherever she went: 鈥淜ids are kids,鈥� she says. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e what make my job fulfilling, no matter what that job is.鈥�

Erin Walker brings her 16 years of classroom experience into her role as a principal.

As she settled into her new role as AP, Erin applied lessons she had learned in her many years in the classroom. Chief among the qualities she brought with her to the role was resilience, and the sense that 鈥渆verything is 鈥榝igure-out-able,鈥欌�� as she puts it. 鈥淛ust like in the classroom, you have to have a sense of humor in this job, and you have to be patient, but no problem is insurmountable. So much of the job is listening and helping teachers work these issues out.鈥�

As an AP at Infinity for about 7 1/2 years, Erin became comfortable with the structures and processes of the school. During this time, her principal helped her build some of the skills she would need to eventually take on the top role. Last year, the principalship at Infinity opened up, and her familiarity with the school, her involvement in developing its structures and procedures, and her strong relationships with the staff made her the obvious choice for promotion to that role.聽

The transition from classroom to principalship hasn鈥檛 always been what Erin expected. 鈥淲hen I was a teacher, I thought being the principal was easy,鈥� she recalls. 鈥淵ou just get to sit at your desk the whole day.鈥� Now, she says, while she doesn鈥檛 discount the difficulty of leading a classroom, she has experience with the challenges of school leadership as well. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a different kind of hard.鈥�

Even the jump from AP to principal carries new responsibilities, Erin says. As she puts it, 鈥淥ften the AP is the 鈥榞ood cop,鈥� and the principal is the 鈥榖ad cop,鈥� meaning that the responsibility for making the hard choices ultimately rests with me.鈥� Fortunately, she identified a leader on Infinity鈥檚 teaching staff to serve as her AP, and hopes to develop his skills in the same way her predecessor developed hers.

Every day, Erin brings her memories of being a classroom teacher with her through Infinity鈥檚 front doors. 鈥淚f you鈥檙e working with teachers, you can鈥檛 forget what it鈥檚 like to be a teacher,鈥� she stresses. 鈥淵ou have to remember that some days are hard, and some days are better than others. Through it all, you have to keep your focus on the students.鈥�

Her classroom days also inform Erin鈥檚 approach to leadership. 鈥淲hen you鈥檝e been a teacher, you know that as a principal, you can鈥檛 micromanage everything; you have to let teachers make their own decisions,鈥� she shares. Erin sees her strength in distributed leadership 鈥� in recognizing talent in her staff and building on their strengths. 鈥淵ou have to hire people who are smarter than you, honestly, and empower them to create their own vision that鈥檚 in alignment with the school鈥檚 vision.鈥�

Refining that school vision has been a focus for Erin as she began to think about what her principalship would look like at Infinity. As she wrapped up her first year in the role, she realized that she had an opportunity to involve all stakeholders 鈥� staff, students, and community 鈥� in laying out a vision for the whole school. That work culminated in a powerful statement: The school would cultivate 鈥渁n empowered community of inspired innovators who actively contribute to positive change in society through becoming active and socially responsible leaders; excelling in post-secondary endeavors; and navigating the evolving fields of science, technology, engineering, arts, and math.鈥�

That vision comes through in the opportunities Infinity offers for its students. The school has long had a strong focus on STEM, and recently added an 鈥渆arly college鈥� designation, providing the ability for students to graduate with an associate鈥檚 degree from the City Colleges of Chicago. This is a selling point for the community, but Erin, her inner teacher shining through once again, naturally focuses on what it means for the kids: 鈥淚 knew that no matter what, we had to put students at the front of everything we want to do here at Infinity.鈥澛�

In his office, which also serves as a conference room, Vincent proudly displays several pictures from their inaugural trip to Senegal. One includes people standing around an enormous baobab tree that is more than a thousand years old and whose trunk appears to be over 50 feet in diameter. In another photo, he and the rest of the group pose in the courtyard of a reddish stucco building known as The House of Slaves on Gor茅e Island, about two miles off the Senegalese coast. Behind them, through a dark hallway, is the Door of No Return, where enslaved Africans were led to the boats that would carry them to the Americas.聽

The choice of going to an African country on every trip is an intentional one. As of 2024, 91.1% of Wells students identify as Black, and Vincent wants them 鈥渢o connect back to the motherland and make sense of that journey.鈥� For him, the experience of that travel can cultivate persistence in the classroom and beyond. 鈥淚 keep reminding them, 鈥楻emember, you are the descendants and children of the slaves that survived,鈥� he says, reinforcing the students鈥� resilience and the need to see class assignments and projects to completion despite challenges.

The stop in a European country on every trip is more of a logistical one 鈥� flights from 海角直播to African countries tend to stop in Europe on the way, he says, 鈥渟o we鈥檙e going to take advantage of that.鈥�

Principal Vincent Izuegbu shows some of his students photos of a past school trip to Senegal.

It鈥檚 clear that Vincent himself is globally minded. His office is decorated with the flags of many countries around the world. It also has a framed map of Nigeria, where he was born and raised, and where his journey to the principalship at Wells began. His mother was a teacher and later became a principal, and Vincent was one of her students. After public primary school, he and his siblings attended Catholic high school, which was important to his father. He not only wanted his children to receive an education grounded in Christian teachings, but ideally, he wanted one of them to join the clergy.聽

Indeed, Vincent would eventually attend a Catholic seminary, where part of his training 鈥� and a major part of pastoral work, he would learn 鈥� was teaching. After two years, he found that education, and not the clergy, was his calling. 鈥淚 decided that I want to choose a different path,鈥� he says. His mother鈥檚 profound effect on her students鈥� lives helped inform this decision. He frequently saw her past students 鈥渏ust stopping by and saying hello and reminding my mom [of what] she did for them while they were in the classroom, being their teacher for so long, and thanking her for all of that,鈥� he says. 鈥淎nd it kept happening over and over and over again, and I kept seeing that . . . so that really connected with me. It鈥檚 a good feeling to help build the capacity of others and to see others do well,鈥� he added.聽

His mother鈥檚 experience also allowed her to give him some important advice on leading a school. 鈥淎lways know that people are looking up to you, even your teachers, your staff,鈥� he recalls her telling him. 鈥淭hey want to see what you鈥檙e going to do.鈥� This has helped shape him as a principal. 鈥淵ou really don鈥檛 know what you鈥檙e going to run into on a daily basis. But I think that if you鈥檙e fair to people . . . you just have integrity and are trustworthy聽 鈥� they will fight for you. They will work for you, and they will do what you ask them to do, because they know it鈥檚 for the betterment of the school.鈥澛�

Another part of Vincent鈥檚 leadership is thinking about the students鈥� futures beyond Wells. 鈥淭he graduate profile of the Wells Prep student is always in my mind,鈥� he says. The school鈥檚 slogan is 鈥淎ll Roads Lead to College.鈥� To make this a reality for as many students as possible, he has established a partnership with South Shore International College Preparatory High School, an IB World School like Wells, where students can earn college credit before they graduate. This, he says, provides students a pipeline from pre-K to college and a career beyond.聽

The international trips, the partnership with South Shore, the IB World School status, Wells鈥� current classification as a Commendable School by the Illinois State Board of Education, and the fact that it鈥檚 one of the two Apple Distinguished Schools in 海角直播, are the result of years of work by Dr. Izuegbu and his predecessor, Jeffery C. White. Vincent was the assistant principal from 2011, when the school merged with Mayo Elementary, until 2022. In the ten years before he attained the principalship, however, Vincent had to take on more of a leadership role even as an assistant principal. It was a learning experience, to say the least, and allowed him to begin shaping the school.聽

Unfortunately, the former principal passed away in 2021, and about eight months later, Vincent became the principal of Wells. He and his staff remember Jeffery White fondly and continue to honor his legacy. The walls of the school鈥檚 gym feature not only a photo and biographical information about its namesake, Ida B. Wells, but also photos and information about its former principal. A banner hangs from one wall declaring it the Jeffery C. White Memorial Gymnasium.聽

All of this means that even though he has been a principal for three years, Vincent has much more school leadership experience. With that, he is now able to provide his own advice to other educators who would like to become a principal 鈥� just like his mother did to him.

A few things are crucial, he says: First, you have to be in it for the right reasons. 鈥淲hy do you want to be a principal?鈥� he recommends asking yourself. 鈥淚f it鈥檚 for more money, [you] need to look to a different field.鈥� Knowledge of curriculum and instruction is also extremely important. 鈥淵ou have to be able to understand the parts of instruction, understand learning,鈥� he says, and 鈥渒now when teachers are being effective and when they are not.鈥澛�

You also need to be as mentally ready for principalship as possible. The best way to do this is to be an assistant principal first. 鈥淵ou are an inch closer to what principalship is like,鈥� he says. It鈥檚 important to cultivate an eye for talent so that you can maintain a strong team as well. 鈥淚f you don鈥檛 have a good team, even with all of your knowledge . . . it鈥檚 going to be difficult.鈥澛�

Finally, after he was announced as a 海角直播 2024 Game Changer, Vincent noted that having a clear vision for a school is paramount to success as a leader. He said that his 鈥渟ecret sauce鈥� is his clarity of vision, which informs his team and gives birth to an unstoppable drive for innovation and systems of educational practices that bind his school teams and community together. But that didn’t happen over night. 鈥淥ver the years,鈥� Vincent continues, 鈥渕y vision for [Wells] kind of developed gradually and clearly.鈥�

That vision has guided his approach to everything from building his team to instructional and distributed leadership to providing life-changing international field trips. Beyond providing students a pathway to college and a career, 鈥渙ur goal is global citizenship,鈥� he says. 鈥淲e want to be able to 鈥� in our own little way 鈥� solve some of the world鈥檚 problems, as little as they could be. It could be helping to provide water to villages in Africa. It could be tree planting. It could be plastics recycling. It could be providing refurbished iPads to poor students and fixing leaking school roofs in developing countries. It could be preventing hunger and starvation 鈥� whatever we could do.鈥�

Parents and guardians filled out student forms at umbrella-shaded picnic tables on Sanders鈥� large outdoor patio. Children played games while adults laughed. A local artist showed his work at one end of the turfed space while sporting a black T-shirt that simply featured the words 鈥淏e Great.鈥�

鈥淲e are there to show each other some love, laugh, and have fun as a community,鈥� Paulette wrote in an email to The Fund leading up to the event. 鈥淚 love [social-emotional learning] for children and adults so you may see us laughing a lot.鈥�

The school district had provided money for back-to-school events the previous year, but with funding in question in 2024, she called on her community to help. 鈥淚 began to ask my neighborhood and a few CPS and non-CPS vendors and parents to assist with continuing my passion (Bringing Community Together and GIVING BACK),鈥� she wrote. The community delivered on that Sunday.

Principal Paulette Williams hosted a back-to-school event at Sanders BBQ Supply Co. in Chicago鈥檚 Beverly neighborhood, August 2024.

Aside from holding annual back-to-school events where families can fill out student forms and come together as a community, Paulette also encourages parents and guardians to spend the first three hours at Colemon Academy on day one of every school year. This allows them to have fun and ensure that everyone鈥檚 expectations are clear at the outset, she says.聽

Paulette is big on parent and guardian involvement in the school. 鈥淥ne of my biggest blessings is that I have remarkable parents that have bought into my repetitive, annual rhetoric 鈥� 鈥楧on’t enter this school believing that the children you gave birth to are your only children. ALL THESE KIDS BELONG TO US,鈥�” she wrote in the email to The Fund. Parents lead school activities throughout the year, bring treats for the staff, and donate school supplies for all students to use. 鈥淲hen we ask for 100% parent participation, they show up and show out,鈥� Paulette wrote. 鈥淚 am still in awe of the greatness that I am surrounded by.鈥�

This sentiment seems to be shared by Colemon鈥檚 staff and students. In , they rated the school as 鈥渧ery strong鈥� in the Involved Families category, the highest rank possible. The school is also considered 鈥渨ell-organized for improvement,鈥� the highest overall rating for a school in the .

Principal Williams has an undeniably calm demeanor, which may come naturally, or may be the result of her 16 years as the leader of Colemon Academy 鈥� an earned comfortability. With 2024-25 being her 17th year there, it might be a surprise that Paulette hadn鈥檛 planned on a career in education.

鈥淚 never wanted to be a principal, and I never wanted to be a teacher,鈥� she says of her career trajectory. 鈥淐an you imagine that?鈥� she continues, laughing. After college, she ended up getting her teaching certificate, but she waited two years before starting that part of her career, saying that she did not think she had the patience to work with children.

She had been prepared for the classroom by a mentor, though. One of her high school coaches was also involved in the Upward Bound program at the University of 海角直播and encouraged her to take advantage of it. While she started going there for tutoring and extracurricular opportunities, she eventually began tutoring other students. It wasn鈥檛 obvious to Paulette that this would ultimately lead her into education, but she sees a clear line from this experience to her current position.

That coach and mentor, Dr. Larry Hawkins, also provided her with a valuable approach to working with children. 鈥淗is philosophy was, you use some tool to make sure you get kids to where you wanted them to be,鈥� she says. 鈥淎nd so his tool was sports.鈥� Dr. Hawkins would not allow his student-athletes to play sports if they did not focus on academics first. Paulette uses that trade-off approach to incentivize students to this day. 鈥淗ey . . . I鈥檒l do something that you want, and then you do something that I want,鈥� she says. It is not just sports, either. She has formed extracurricular clubs at the request of students based on their interests, but they can only participate if they focus in the classroom.

The classroom, it turned out, is where another of Paulette鈥檚 passions lies. After putting it off for two years, she started teaching at Carnegie Elementary and found that she loved working face to face with students. Eventually, she would become a math resource teacher, and CPS later hired her to be the Area 18 Math and Science Coach. In that role, Paulette provided professional development for teachers at 32 schools on the Far South Side and Southeast Side of Chicago, including Colemon Academy. While this fed her love for math and science instruction 鈥� and also gave her more experience in reading instruction through collaborating with phenomenal and extremely knowledgeable reading coaches 鈥� she missed working with children and decided to move on.

After one year as an assistant principal in at Carver Primary in Altgeld Gardens (coincidentally, Paulette points out, this was where Dr. Hawkins had coached the 1963 IHSA State Championship), she became the principal of Johnnie Colemon Academy. Even though she is an administrator, Paulette still values classroom time with teachers and students. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 want to ask teachers to do anything that I鈥檓 not willing to sit by them 鈥� side by side 鈥� and do myself,鈥� she says about her approach. 鈥淏ut they have to see that. They鈥檝e got to feel the authenticity of that happening. And then, teachers 鈥� they鈥檒l do anything you ask them to do.鈥�

Though her career is not the one she envisioned when she was younger, there seems to be a sense of inevitability ribboned through the way Paulette talks about her path to the principalship. Her grandfather, another prominent influence in her life, was fond of saying, 鈥淣ot my will, but Thy will be done,鈥� a recurrent line in the gospels of the Bible.

Aside from this philosophy 鈥� a giving in to the flow or desire of something larger than us 鈥� Paulette鈥檚 temperament also seems to have led her to where she is. She realized years ago that she enjoys working with children and empowering teachers and other staff, and she loves a good challenge, she says. Her passion for bringing parents, guardians, and the broader community together to support all students at Colemon may also have come from her large family. Her grandparents had 13 children, and Paulette is one of 52 cousins 鈥� a loving community unto themselves.

When talking to Principal Williams, in other words, you get the sense that she is right where she was meant to be. 鈥淚鈥檝e never been disappointed; I鈥檝e always been excited,鈥� she says of her career, and she was more than ready for the start of the 2024-25 school year. 鈥淵ou can tell I鈥檓 so excited. We already had an activity together already on a Sunday, right?鈥� she said, referring to the school-year kickoff at Sanders BBQ. 鈥淚鈥檓 excited, and [the community is] excited too. They showed up!鈥�