GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (GRPS) -- Rodney Brown has spent the majority of his life at Grand Rapids Public Schools, first as a scholar and now as principal of the only high school on a college campus in West Michigan - Grand Rapids Learning Center at Grand Rapids Community College.
Born and raised in Grand Rapids, Brown attended Vandenberg Elementary Follow-Through Program, Jefferson Elementary, John Ball Zoo School, Westwood Middle School, and Union High School, where he was a scholar leader and student-athlete throughout his time with GRPS. Brown graduated college from Santa Clara University (CA) and began his career in East Palo Alto, California, as an emergency substitute teacher for seventh-grade math and science. After moving back to Grand Rapids, Brown became an Adjunct Professor of Political Science at Grand Rapids Community College and spent seven years teaching at GRCC. Beginning his career with GRPS as the District's Recruiting & Retention Coordinator in 2006 and serving as a 9th Grade Academy Principal as well, Mr. Brown, currently in his 19th year, is one of the longest-serving building administrators for the Grand Rapids Public Schools.
"I know as a leader, modeling is extremely important. And I learned from some tremendous administrators that were my principals or administrators within GRPS," Brown said. "I want to be the type of educator that they were."
Brown's dedication to his students and community is evident in the way he speaks about his role. "My kids and my families will say that Mr. Brown is certainly passionate," he shared. "My parents, my families, and my young people, my scholars in every school that I've been in, they're going to say, 'Mr. Brown is for us.'"
Under Brown's leadership, the Grand Rapids Learning Center has become a haven for students seeking a non-traditional high school experience.
"My school attracts students that may be having a challenge in another school," Brown explained. "I get a lot of students who are overcoming something. They don't want traditional high school, and as the only high school on a college campus in all of West Michigan, that fits for many kids who don't want the traditional experience of a high school."
For Brown, being an administrator in the GRPS is more than just a job - it's a dream come true.
"I don't think that there's anything else that I wanted to do. My community was calling me, I sensed, and I wanted to make a contribution to my community," Brown reflected. "I'm living a dream, to be an administrator with the Grand Rapids Public Schools."
