Mr. Chase Arrington

I think about an article I often refer to when thinking about the purpose of schools and Steven Wolk’s work in “Why Go to School?” highlights the paradigm shifts requested as a means of changing the lens of education in the 21^st century.  Wolk highlights, a most interesting fact, that his deceased grandparents could enter any classroom in America and see the systemic structures within curriculum and instruction the same as it was when they were born in the early 1900s.  The purpose of schools allows students to transform socially and personally into who they will become as young adults and professionals.   I am a native of Eastern North Carolina, born and raised in Halifax County and attended Halifax County Public Schools. I often tell people, there is a world that exists in North Carolina east of Raleigh.  Growing up in rural North Carolina in a poverty area where a school system is ranked in the lowest performing percentile in the state was challenging to say the least.

As a black male that attended a predominately black school system for K-12 and then matriculated to receive my bachelor’s in mathematics from North Carolina A & T State University, an Historically Black College and University, I found myself sheltered from the many challenges faced by inequities and social injustices.  It is a simple thought; you cannot miss what you never had.  Until I was exposed to the opportunities other districts offer, I realized in my adult years I was deprived of the most equitable access to education during my K-12 years which led me to become a math teacher for 9 years prior to my current role as a 5^th year assistant principal.

I completed two years of work as an assistant principal at a charter school in Winston-Salem, NC then return to GCS in 2018 as an Assistant Principal at Western Guilford Middle School.  Prior to administration, I was an 8^th grade math teacher at Mendenhall Middle School where I found my leadership voice in education and desired the opportunity to grow to school administration by attending the University of North Carolina at Greensboro where I completed the Master of School Administration program.  I found myself interested in policy work while at the charter school due to the discipline policy and consequences served and this led me to my desire to do work as a social justice advocate in education through an equity lens.  From there, I decided to attend American University to receive my Master of Education Policy & Leadership.  After completing this program, I am now returning home to the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, where I am a student in the Doctor of Educational Leadership program.