Who exactly are the new principals at our school? Dr. Green is one of them, an Assistant Principal at Concord-Carlisle High School along with Ms. Maines. He has been “around the block,” previously serving as an administrator at Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School, Somerville High School, as well as a math teacher at Boston Public Schools.
Green describes his journey as “non-traditional.” He attended Temple University, where he was an athlete. However, his plans took a turn after feeling as though college athletes were being treated “as a commodity, instead of as humans.” Dr. Green switched to studying law, which had somewhat interested him since his mother was a legal clerk. He graduated from UMass Boston with a major in psychology and history, a double major he chose since he “wanted to know what came before us and how people felt during that time.” He also remarked that majoring in history was ideal for preparing for the LSAT (The Law School Admission Test).
However, Green did not ultimately pursue a career in law. After Dr. Green graduated, he found a job in the summer as a camp counselor for the Upward-Bound TRIO program, a program at UMass designed to give students an experience of college life. It was there that Green received his call to action: when a teacher went on maternity leave, Dr. Green offered to take the position of math teacher and “fell in love with it.” Thus, his path to becoming an educator began.
When asked about his childhood education and instruction, Dr. Green mentioned his father’s influence. As a former marine, Green’s father believed in structured time and making use of every minute. Specifically, this meant that “you’re going to work hard, and you’re going to play harder.” In addition, Dr. Green also mentioned his mother, who emphasized the importance of reading everything and not just what “schools force you to read.” He especially loved comics which brought out his creative side. In summary, he remarks that “it was about having a balanced life.” Indeed, Green’s childhood was filled with four-square, baseball, kickball, tennis, science kits, and visits to RadioShack. Dr. Green’s parents were rigid in parenting and their childrens’ education, but they also believed in “having time for ourselves.” Furthermore, Green’s grandmother also instructed him, and he fondly quoted one of his favorite sayings from her: “Good better best, never let it rest, till’ you good and better, and better as best.” Regardless of one’s pursuits in life, striving for improvement is what matters most, and for Green, this instilled a strong work ethic.
In the upcoming school year, Dr. Green is looking forward to three things, the first is wanting to get to know the community, as he does not have as much time to get to know students and staff due to his role as an administrator. He adds that to make improvements within CCHS, students must be involved because “they’re living this experience.” He notes that “if adults always made the decision, then they’re going to do adult decision things that may not be in the best interest of students.” He hopes the upcoming school year is when he can better integrate the voices of CCHS into the administrative work.
Second, Dr. Green looks forward to experiencing much of the extracurriculars students take part in at Concord-Carlisle, whether it be sports, plays, or clubs. “I want to see them in their natural environment, what makes them comfortable,” he remarked, explaining how it is in these activities, apart from academics, that students will show their authentic selves.
Lastly, he wishes to assist students in their academic journeys whenever possible. Since he has been in education for so long, he says he “sees the trends.” Specifically, he doesn’t want to see students “work so hard to get into a tier one or tier two [colleges], or post-secondary [opportunities], but [be] burnt out.” He shares that although he attended high school a while ago, “it’s very similar, like almost identical” to today. His intention is to make learning more fun, more engaging, and more relevant for the students.
We look forward to this school year with you, Dr. Green!
