Pali Grad Is New Marquez Principal

When Marquez Elementary parents Allan and Pamela Popelka hosted a small welcoming reception for new principal Elizabeth Pratt in December, Elizabeth disappeared for a few minutes. She was soon discovered at the kitchen table, helping the Popelkas’ son with his homework. Not only were Marquez search committee members impressed with Pratt’s qualifications, which include a B.A. in child development and a master’s degree in education administration, they responded to her warmth. On her first day at the school Monday, Pratt visited every classroom and introduced herself to students. The next day, in an interview with the Palisadian-Post, she reiterated her guiding philosophy: “What I care about is the students at Marquez and being able to give them the best I can offer.” Pratt, who comes from Baldwin Hills Elementary School, where she was assistant principal, replaces interim principal Ruth Oates, who stepped in when principal Lewin Dover resigned last August. A 1981 graduate of Palisades High, where she was a cheerleader, Pratt went to Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland. “I always knew I wanted to be a principal,” says Pratt, who stayed on the East Coast for a few years, but “I’m a native of California and after a really rough winter, I came back. I couldn’t handle the cold.” She completed college at Cal State L.A., where she received her degree in child development. While going to school, Pratt started working for Western Federal (now Washington Mutual) as an operations supervisor. Every morning when she dropped her son off at elementary school she talked to Lynn Williams, her son’s principal, who encouraged her to follow her dream. After earning her master’s in education administration at Cal State L.A., Pratt went to work for LAUSD in 1997 as a teacher at 95th Street Elementary in a third/fourth combination class. Combo classes can be difficult for an experienced teacher, let alone a new one, because they’re often set up at the last minute as a way to accommodate the number of students and ensure that the school doesn’t lose a teacher. Pratt taught for five years at 95th Street before transferring to Dayton Heights Elementary, where for 18 months she was a categorical coordinator for Title I and bilingual education. Her next step towards becoming a principal was to work at Arlington Heights Elementary as an assistant principal/elementary instructional specialist for a year before transferring to Baldwin Hills. Working for different administrators at different schools, as well as her earlier experience overseeing bank employees, has given Pratt a wealth of knowledge about running a school. “I really feel that it has been my journey that has prepared me for this step as principal,” she says. Pratt is married to Gerald Watson, who is a L.A. City supervisor for waste-water collection. Their oldest son, Geralle, 21, is currently attending West L.A. College and working part-time. Their 8-year-old daughter, Gloria, has enrolled at Marquez, and 5-year-old Haleigh will enter first grade at Marquez next year. Wallace Hightower, Pratt’s second son, was killed two years ago when he was 18. He was hanging out in a garage with friends when two men came up and demanded their cell phones and cash. One of the men opened fire, killing Wallace and wounding several of his friends. Wallace, a stand-out football player for Westchester High School, had a scholarship to Portland State University in Oregon before he was tragically slain. In his honor, Westchester High started the Wallace Hightower Annual Turkey Bowl which is held every Thanksgiving. “My son’s death is a tragedy,” Pratt says. “It’s so unnatural to lose a son, but our friends, the school, family and community all support us. His friends still come by.” On parenting, Pratt has shrewd advice. “Wallace ate, slept and breathed football,” she says. “I learned early on that as a parent, what we need to do is to find a key for a child that will help them turn or unlock the door to their opportunity.” She reflects, “Was my son always as successful at school as I would’ve liked him to be academically? No, but he was successful enough at school and was hugely successful in what he loved. For him, the key to find opportunities was through football.” Pratt asked me what the key to my oldest son was and I answered, “soccer.” With her warm smile, she said, “You’ll use it to help him unlock his opportunities.” “I always wanted my children near me,” Pratt continues. “It’s important to be savvy as a parent to go about guiding children. You don’t want to push them so they’re achieving what you want, because then it pushes your children away from you. Find what each individual’s key is.”