Pictured is what the first day of school for students at Lindblom Math and Science Academy on the city’s South Side in West Englewood looked like. It began with a walkout organized and led by the student council on Monday, August 22, 2022. Hundreds of students exited the building at 6130 S. Wolcott Avenue with signs in protest of the firing of Assistant Principal Karen Fitzpatrick-Carpenter. She was known to the students affectionately as “Ms. Fitz” or “Mama Eagle.” Carpenter was a Lindblom graduate and had been the assistant principal there for 24 years. The faculty and students were notified in a letter on August 9 from Dr. Abdul Muhammad, the principal, that Carpenter would be departing and two new assistant principals would be joining the staff. Carpenter sent an email in response, indicating it was not her choice to leave at this time but expressing her appreciation for being able to help shape a “long legacy and history.”
(Photos by Marcus Robinson)
