New LHS principal ‘looking out for lost students’

David Roman went from dropout to administrator.

By: Lea Kahn
   Some might say it’s uncommon for a high school principal to randomly check students’ notebooks to find out if they have done their homework.
   But then it’s not every high school dropout who goes back to school and works his way up to become a principal.
   It’s exactly that circuitous path that Brooklyn, N.Y., native David Roman has taken on his way to become Lawrence High School’s top administrator, a post he was appointed to in July. He replaces former Principal Donald Proffit, who retired.
   Mr. Roman, 42, dropped out of school in 10th grade. After working for a few months, he decided to complete his education, earning a General Educational Development (GED) diploma.
   Family circumstances had caused him to move around a lot in his teen years, leading to his decision.
   "It was rough," Mr. Roman said. "I am 100 percent not advocating anyone going the road I went. It’s not a fun place to be."
   He later received a bachelor’s degree in forensic psychology from John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City.
   While he liked psychology, Mr. Roman said he gravitated toward education. He now holds three master’s degrees in education, and expects to receive a doctorate in education from the Teachers College at Columbia University later this year.
   Before becoming the new LHS prinicipal, Mr. Roman had been an assistant principal for eight years in Middletown Township and Staten Island, N.Y. He also had been a principal for two years in Burlington County.
   Being a former dropout, Mr. Roman said he knows what it’s like to be "on the other end."
   "I’m looking out for lost students," he said. "No one is going to drop out of Lawrence High School. We can’t let students fall through the cracks. We’re reaching out to everyone."
   To that end, Mr. Roman spends a lot of time in the hallways. He said he is not afraid to approach a group of students and engage them in conversation, or walk into a classroom and ask the students to teach him what they have just learned.
   "We’ll talk about what they are learning," he said. "If they are not learning, then I have to teach them how to learn. I am still learning. I love to learn."
   The students have been accepting of him, Mr. Roman said. One student walked up to the new principal and announced that he would be the principal’s "buddy." Mr. Roman responded with a smile.
   "The students are nice," he said. "They are getting a sense of where we are. They know I care about them and that I am serious about them."
   Mr. Roman said the district has great potential. Noting Lawrence High School is currently ranked 123rd among high schools in the state by New Jersey Monthly magazine, he said he believes the school can get into the top 75, a ranking they had several years ago.
   "It is unacceptable to me to be ranked 123rd," Mr. Roman said. "This school is primed. This school district can certainly rise to the level of accomplishment it used to have, if we only just talk. We may have to go down (in ranking) before we go up."
   Mr. Roman is confident that the district — and the high school — can be turned around. It means addressing the achievements of sub-groups, such as white students, black students, Hispanic students, economically disadvantaged students and students with disabilities, and examining the standardized test scores.
   "You have to look at the data," he said. "(But) the data are people. What are you doing for those people? For example, if a sub-population is failing in an area, what resources are we putting in to help them? You may have to reallocate funds to help them — to buy five pencils instead of 10 pencils."
   Mechanics know what tools to use, Mr. Roman said. Education is similar. One tool that educators must use is that of making the students feel at home in school, so they will be ready to learn. He said he tells students to walk over to the student who is standing alone against the wall, and invite that child into the group.
   An educator’s job is to go after every child and provide support for every child, Mr. Roman said. He said he realizes that while he cannot reach every student, he has affected some students.
   "This is a calling," Mr. Roman said. "I get to create a society and a culture. I love what I am doing. I enjoy the work. This is the greatest job to have. A carpenter builds a building and a mechanic fixes cars. What is it that we build as educators? Humanity."