RAVENNA, Ohio — Building a school from the ground up is a challenge few educators ever face. For Principal Zack Penrod, it's another mission.
Penrod is helping guide the new Portage Leadership Academy, a tuition-free charter school that opened this fall in Ravenna inside the former West Park Elementary building.
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"The biggest thing we really try to focus in on is the concept of leadership through character," he said.
Around 120 kids make up this initial group of K-5 students.
"We opened these doors in July and it was an empty building," Superintendent and Regional VP for Excel Schools Darryl Lindsay said. "There was nothing. We had two months to get this from a vacant building to a functioning school."
The rapid transformation required extensive planning, organization and leadership — qualities Penrod developed during nearly a decade of military service.
Before entering education, Captain Penrod served as a U.S. Army Commanding Officer, including deployments to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Iraq.
Prior to coming to Portage Leadership Academy, Penrod worked at Canton College Prep. Lindsay and Penrod crossed paths years ago when Lindsay was a principal and Penrod was a middle school teacher.
"That was the year he found out that he was being deployed," Lindsay recalled. "He told his 6th grade class, I'll never forget because they were visibly upset, and he told them and gave them his word that when he returned home he would come back and teach them."
Lindsay says when Penrod returned, Penrod turned down other offers because he gave that group of kids his word he would come back.
"At that moment, I knew what his character was and that he was a true leader," Lindsay said.
Though he no longer commands soldiers, Penrod said several lessons from his military career continue to shape his approach as an educator.
"You've got to learn patience and you've got to take deep breaths," Penrod said. "It helped me a lot in the military and helped me a lot as a leader here."
Asked whether it is harder to command soldiers or a building full of kindergarten through fifth-grade students, Penrod laughed before giving his answer.
"The K-5 kiddos," he said. "It's easy with a team because they're adults. Kids are kids. They have emotions, they have feelings, and sometimes they don't make the right decision. Which is fair. It's my job to teach, coach and mentor them."
School leaders plan to add sixth grade at Portage Leadership Academy next year, and 7th and 8th grade in the years after.
Clay LePard is the Ashtabula, Geauga and Portage counties reporter at News 5 Cleveland. Follow him on X @ClayLePard, on Facebook ClayLePardTV or email him at Clay.LePard@wews.com.
