Joe Louis Clark, the hard-charging high school principal who inspired the movie “Lean on Me,” の年齢で亡くなりました 82, his family said in a statement Tuesday.
Clark was the principal of Eastside High School in Patterson, ニュージャージー, and his efforts to improve standards at the school earned him national attention. Clark’s approach was heavy on discipline. As the family statement noted, he expelled 300 students for “fighting, vandalism, abusing teachers, and drug possession” in one day.
“Roaming the hallways with a bullhorn and a baseball bat, Clark’s unorthodox methods won him both admirers and critics nationwide,” 声明は言った.
He appeared on the cover of Time magazine に 1988 and the movie, “Lean on Me,” starring Morgan Freeman was released in 1989. Clark also publish a book, “Laying Down the Law” about his educational strategy at the Patterson high school.
Clark was a longtime resident of South Orange, ニュージャージー, but he moved to retire in Gainesville, フロリダ, the family said.
Clark was at home and surrounded by his family when he succumbed to his long battle with illness on Tuesday, 声明は言った. The family did not specify the illness.
