Joe Clark, the principal of a New Jersey high school with a baseball bat that inspired the 1989 film “Lean on Me”, died Tuesday at the age of 82, his family announced.
Clark died at his Florida home, surrounded by his family, after a long battle with an unspecified illness.
As headmaster of the crime and drug-infested Eastside High School in Paterson, NJ, Clark walked the halls with a megaphone and a stick to keep students in line. His unique methods and “tough love” attitude put Clark at the center of national attention, winning both defenders and critics.
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Eastside High School principal Joe Clark is photographed at a rally by student supporters in Paterson, NJ on December 21, 1987. (Associated Press)
“This is a sad day for our city. Joe Clark spoke hard and carried a large cane. My condolences to the family, students and everyone he inspired. May he rest in peace. #LeanOnMe ”wrote Mayor Paterson André Sayegh on Facebook.
Clark was portrayed by actor Morgan Freeman in “Lean on Me”, which was loosely based on Clark’s management at Eastside. During that time, Clark expelled 300 students for drug possession, vandalism and fights, while challenging the remaining ones to perform better.
He explained that his decision to hold a club was a symbol of choice: a student can hit or hit a home run.
Clark was born in Rochelle, Georgia, on May 8, 1938, before his family moved north to Newark, NJ, when he was 6 years old. After graduating from Newark Central High School, Clark graduated from William Paterson College (now William Paterson University), earned a master’s degree from Seton Hall University and an honorary doctorate from the US Sports Academy.
He later served as US Army Reserve Sergeant and Training Instructor, which his family said helped to provide him with a basis of respect and order that would continue throughout his nearly three-decade educational career.
Clark retired from Eastside in 1989 and then worked as a director of a juvenile detention center in Newark for six years. He also wrote “Establishing the Law: Joe Clark’s Strategy for Saving Our Schools”, which detailed his methods for getting around Eastside High.
His success in reversing high school led President Ronald Reagan to offer Clark a position as a political adviser in the White House. Clark was also on the cover of Time magazine and made appearances on “60 Minutes” and “The Arsenio Hall Show”.
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Clark later retired in Gainesville, Florida, located about 70 miles southwest of Jacksonville. He died before his wife, Gloria, and left his children, Joetta, Hazel and JJ. He also left his grandchildren, Talitha, Jorell and Hazel.
Paterson School District Superintendent Eileen Shafer shared her condolences in a statement after his death.
“Joe Clark left his indelible mark on public education by being fiercely dedicated to the students in his care. He demanded more from his students because he believed they could accomplish more than they expected. And with his megaphone and baseball bat, and Joe Clark courageously stood in the way of anyone who dared to try to lure a young man the wrong way, “said Schafer, according to New York’s WABC-TV.
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“Joe Clark was even the subject of a Hollywood film. But in the end, it is the many lives that Joe Clark has influenced for the better that have become his greatest legacy, ”she continued.
The Associated Press contributed to this report