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King for a Day
Local CEOs shadow principals in Bridgeport schools
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Business New Haven
5/13/2002
By: Linda Mele
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BRIDGEPORT - Most adults would love to go back to high school. Not as students, but as the principal, the one who's large and in charge, the one with the juice.
Nearly 50 business executives and civic leaders from New Haven and Fairfield counties had a chance to do that May 1 when they became “Principals for a Day” at schools throughout the Park City.
The event was designed to “raise awareness of critical issues facing public education in Bridgeport,” says Superintendent Sonia Diaz Salcedo.
Those participating in the event shadowed school chiefs to “gain first-hand knowledge of the many and varied aspects of running a city school,” explains Salcedo.
Area companies and organizations participating in the day-long event included Habitat for Humanity, People's Bank, Cox Radio, Dictaphone, Housatonic Community College, Wheelabrator, Bridgeport Hospital, the Bridgeport Bluefish, HealthNet, United Illuminating, Southern Connecticut Gas Co., Sikorsky Aircraft and JP Morgan Chase.
Bridgeport Hospital President and CEO Robert Trefry hooked up with Warren G. Harding High School Principal Robert Durkin. The duo made a whirlwind tour of the school, stopping in classrooms and the library to meet with students and teachers during the two-hour time slot allotted.
The students were well prepared for Trefry's visit and they asked thoughtful and intelligent questions.
Trefry told the students that a number of things in the medical field have changed dramatically over the past ten years.
“Today, people come to doctors armed with information they gathered on the Internet because they think it applies to them,” Trefry said, “and many inquire about alternative medical procedures.”
“Technological advances in diagnostics and surgery help patients get on their feet faster and go home faster, which results in decreased hospital costs,” Trefry explained.
There were also questions about low-cost health care, HMOs, prescription drug coverage for seniors and medical-related careers.
In addition, students wanted to know how well the hospital would be prepared if ever confronted with a disaster such as that faced by New York City on September 11.
“As a matter of fact, just last week we had a drill with 50 volunteers and we recreated the entire scenario of a chemical disaster,” Trefry said.
The hospital does a complete re-creation several times a year and departmental readiness programs on a regular basis, Trefry told the students.
“This time we did find that shutting off the outside air supply to the building took longer than we expected so we'll get that looked at and fixed,” Trefry said.
Durkin explained that Harding High, with 1,300 students and a staff of 111, participates in the Health Magnet Program and shadowing him was a bit different than shadowing many principals in the system because he also teaches English as a Second Language and ESL Social Studies.
The second group of students that met with Trefry made it clear that they would like to change the school's image.
According to one student, Harding students “don't like the way the press treats us or the way it portrays us” and wanted to know how Trefry copes with the negative images conjured up by just saying you are involved in Bridgeport.
“Try to get businesses and residents to come to your school for events like this,” Trefry said, “and do a lot of positive things.”
Added Salcedo, “We definitely need to do this more often.”
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