Eder Cruz Leo 2011 - The Highbeam Cutting Through the Pfleger Pfog

Eder Cruz flanked by Aurora Latifi and Margarita Silva of Leo High School


On April 21st, I posted the announcement of Eder Cruz Leo 2011 selection as one of 31 Illinois recipients of the Bill and Melinda Gates Millennium Scholarship. The Gates Millennium Scholarship follows the recipient for his or her post-secondary education: college, post-graduate ( Law, Medicine etc.)

Eder Cruz transferred to Leo High School from Cristo Rey in his sophomore year. For two years Eder was the only non-African American student here at Leo High School.

Tomorrow's Mark Brown column is a look at this remarkable young man. Mr. Brown does a splendid job in telling about the school that helped a tough, earnest and thoughtful young man. Albanian born math teacher, Mrs. Aurora Latifi, Spanish teacher Ms. Margarita Silva and Guidance Counsellor Ms. Kaitlyn Kurta are three special ladies who were particularly important to Eder in his quest for success. Leo High School is generally known as a Catholic school with a particularly high testosterone level, but it is the young women who are making real impact on our guys.

Since mid-March, Leo High School's true story has been fogged by the media concerning an Archdiocesan personnel matter between the Cardinal and Father Pfleger of St. Sabina's Parish. The story went viral and national and Leo was tagged as struggling, troubled and in Father Pfleger's words "literally failing." The fact of the matter the taggers of those terms have no skin in the game at Leo High School - not Michael Pfleger, not Jay Levine and not Phil Kadner. Not one of the foggy narrative taggers, took the time to phone, much less visit the Leo Leadership: President for Institutional Advancement Dan McGrath and Principal Phil Mesina. No one the taggers talked to Leo Alumni President John Gardner, or Leo Advisory Board President Bob Sheehy. No tagger gave a call to Leo Men with much monetary and spiritual skin in the game like Frank Considine '39, Bill Koloseike '45, Andy McKenna '47, Dick Landis '47, Don Flynn '56, Bob Foster '57, Terry Sherman '64, or Joe Powers '70.

Mark Brown visited Leo. Mark Brown helped cut through the Pfleger Pfog narrative.

Eder Cruz leaves a great deal of skin in the corridors of Leo High School. Eder Cruz is a game changer.

Click my post title for Mark Brown's great Pfog Cutter.

By the way, Yale University is dropping by Leo High School at 9AM to talk to another Leo Man - a game changer of the Class of 2012.