PRINCIPAL BACON

By Tai Caputo

As a student at City High in the 1990s, did you know that you would one day become its principal?

Absolutely not. In no universe did I ever consider it. At the time, I wanted to be a sports broadcaster. I wanted to be the voice of the Hawkeyes. I wanted to be the guy who did the sports on the news, and I wanted to be an announcer. So I think that’s why I like doing the [daily] announcements so much, because it’s my one little shot to be a broadcaster.

How has City High changed since you were a student here?

I think it has grown. We’re now over 1700 students, and it was around 1200 students when I was here. It is a much more diverse place now. I like to say that it’s like holding up a mirror of Iowa City: it’s a reflection of our community. We have people from all walks of life, all different backgrounds, and I think that is such a strength of the high school. I really believe that City High students get two kinds of education: I think they get an education academically, and I think our kids get an education from each other. I think getting to go to school with people from lots of different backgrounds, and getting a chance to make friends with people from lots of different backgrounds, helps our kids learn how to work with a broad spectrum of people. And I think that’s an asset for kids, because the world is a diverse place, and City High students are well-prepared because of their experience here. I think that’s a very positive thing. I think our school is a much more interesting, dynamic, vibrant place because of our diverse population. And it is a much, much more diverse high school than the school I attended in the early ’90s.

What do you think that you do well as Principal?

I want to believe that we have built a special sense of school spirit here at City High. I think that our students, and frankly, our entire East Side community, know that they are part of something special here at City High. I don’t think there is any other bastion of society that is quite like a large, diverse, public high school. It’s one of the only places–in any aspect of society–where people from all walks of life come together under one roof. And we’re all part of a school family, so I feel that we have a strong sense of community here at City High, and a sense of pride in this very special place, and I feel really proud to be a part of that.

You have a very enthusiastic and distinctive voice on the announcements each day. What is your goal in this regard?

The announcements are important for me, because it’s my opportunity to speak to all 1700 Little Hawks each day. I am not the kind of principal who wants to operate in anonymity. It’s important for me to be out there in front of our students. I want students to know me. I want them to know that I’m someone who is there for them. I want them to know that I’m an advocate for them, that I care deeply about them, that I care deeply about our school, that we are a team, and that we are all in this together. And I feel that the announcements give me an opportunity to speak to students each day. And not only are the announcements a chance for me to talk to students about all the great things going on on our campus, but they are also a chance for me to, a little bit at a time, shape culture on our campus, emphasize things that are important, reinforce a sense of pride in the school, and make people feel they are part of something. And the announcements are just one small tool that I can use to do that.

What is your favorite thing about being Principal?

Of [the] many, many things that I enjoy a lot, there’s nothing better than watching our students find something that they care deeply about, and work hard at, and get to experience some success. That’s really special. Whether it is watching a student try out for the musical and get up on that stage and perform for the first time and have that experience, or whether it’s watching the Mock Trial team work all winter long on Sundays up here, and then go and win a state championship in Mock Trial. Or whether it’s a sports team that’s competing side-by-side, Little Hawks together, going into competition together, making these memories that will last a whole lifetime. And I really enjoy watching students find their passion here at City High, and then work hard, and go out there and do their best. And that’s really fun to get a chance to be a part of that process and watch students grow over four years. The freshmen come in as kids, and you leave as a young adult. It’s a transformational four-year period, and our work here is really important. There are other factors–we’re not the only factor, but this high school definitely has the opportunity to play a role, and make sure all our students are walking across that stage at graduation hopefully into something positive that they’re excited about doing. That’s our job for every single Little Hawk.

What are your biggest concerns for City High? What are the biggest challenges it faces?

Whether it’s our political climate that we live in, or whether it is still feeling certain effects from the pandemic, I think that there is a little bit of harshness, or an edge, out there in our society these days. There are a lot of divisions between people, which our students and all of us are exposed to on a regular basis. And I think a challenge for all of us moving forward, all human beings is: How do we cut through those to just making sure that we treat each other with respect and kindness? And that we are good to each other. Fundamentally, you can either tear somebody down or you can lift them up. And none of us are perfect, that is for sure, and we all make mistakes, but I think that to the extent we can, we should try to place a high value on the way we treat each other, and spread kindness through this high school. I want every student to look forward to coming here every day. I don’t ever want a Little Hawk to say, ‘I don’t want to come to school because it’s not a happy place for me.’ I’m not naive, I’m sure that it’s real life, and obviously, every one of us is going to have hard times to go through, but I want City High to be as supportive and caring and positive a place as possible. So I think our biggest challenge is continuing to strive for that aspiration moving forward.

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