The door to his office wide open, new Head of the Upper School Justin Brandon sits at his table with a mug of tea in his hands, eager to meet students. Down below outside the window looking out the courtyard, his daughter, Jozi, who is in JK, plays on the monkey bars, while elsewhere his wife, Angela Miklavcic Brandon, works as a seventh grade science teacher. Brandon, his wife, and his daughter have all started at Parker this year. Brandon, the fourth educator to take this position in four years, said, “We joke that we’re kind of like the all-in Parker family.”

On Saturday September 22, Brandon and his daughter Jozi strolled around the field and playground meeting parents and students. Under the 90 degree sun, Brandon stopped to talk about Parker, Chicago, or good restaurants nearby as he attended his first Parker Homecoming.

Starting at his post on July 1, Brandon was introduced to the community through a letter from Principal Dan Frank. “Already an experienced Head of Upper School, Justin is eager to join the Parker community to support our progressive mission and help Upper School students thrive both in and out of the classroom,” the message read. “Parker will benefit greatly from the experience, thoughtfulness, skill and energy that Justin Brandon will bring to our community.”

Brandon’s experience is suited to Parker and its mission. From JK through high school, he attended Riverdale Country School, a private school in the South Bronx in New York City, which, Brandon said, was “Kind of one similar to Parker, in its philosophy and everything else.” He then went to Macalester College where he studied political science and African American studies and was the first African American student at Macalester to study abroad in Australia. “That,” he said, “I can talk about forever.”

Brandon’s interest in education started during his time in university, when he tutored students in the neighborhood. “I really liked making those connections and seeing others make those connections as well,” Brandon said. “I started working with kids every week, and then I decided I should probably look into education as a career path.”

Most recently, Brandon has served as the Upper School Director at Moorestown Friends School in New Jersey, a school similar in size and ideology to Parker, with several other administrative and history teaching jobs throughout the country over the years. “At Moorestown Friends, I really got a great introduction to progressive education,” he said. “I wanted to learn more and find more opportunities to work in an environment where teachers and students really want to know what’s going on in the world.”

Upper School teachers, who look to Brandon as their boss, have regular meetings and interactions with the Head of the Upper School. “He runs a good faculty meeting, where there is always an agenda, and some interesting items that he could not just send an email about,” Upper School history teacher Andrew Bigelow said. “He always has a fun opening activity or some kind of reflection and a wrap up. I feel like when I am meeting with him, he asks some pretty straightforward questions, never interrupts, and spends more time listening, jotting down thoughts, and in the end, there’s sort of a follow through to our meeting.”

Bigelow has enjoyed working with Brandon so far. He said, “He just seems very — not quiet, or introverted, but I would say just methodical, curious, and willing and able.”

There are several ways in which the Head of the Upper School interacts with the community. In terms of diversity at Parker, Brandon has some insights. “I think it’s just important to bring everyone back to the center to make sure everyone’s voice is heard — that everyone feels that they are a part of Parker, that they do have a voice, that they do belong here,” he said. “I never want to be in an environment where students of color or students that identify in other ways don’t feel a part of the community. It’s also important to embrace that conflict, embrace that tension, to try to develop discussions where it’s possible to break through some of those pieces.”

“What I really want to work on is reminding people that I’m here,” he said. “I want to be a stable force for the Upper School. I want to get to know people and try to figure out where we can grow. This door tries to stay open as much as possible. I’m just here to listen.” Laughingly, Brandon said, “I’m not looking to change anything right away because I don’t know anything about Parker.”

New to this year, Student Body President and senior Kaden Florsheim has a standing meeting with Brandon every Friday to bring the voice of the students to the administration. “I think he’s awesome,” Florsheim said. “He’s been really great to work with, and during Plenary, he led the discussion very well. Also, I believe he will be a really healthy addition to the administration and the Parker community. He’s coming into a job where a lot of people have high expectations for him, and I think he is someone who can meet those expectations.”

Senate Head and junior Felicia Miller also attends these weekly meetings. “He’s been particularly receptive to listening to what the students want from the school even if it’s sometimes difficult for him to hear or actually do anything about,” Miller said. “I’m a fan.”

In the coming year, Brandon explains, there will be an effort aided by the Diversity Consultant Derrick Gay, who will working with Parker parents, teachers, and students in regards to inclusion and equity at the school, to improve Parker’s inclusion of people from different backgrounds. He also looks forward to collaborations with the new Upper School Diversity Coordinators, Leslie Holland-Pryor, Rolanda Shepard, and Terry Davis. Brandon himself worked as a Diversity Director at two different schools before coming to Parker.

While he has yet to fully get to know Parker, he meets twice a week with Assistant Principal Ruth Jurgensen to get input and work to learn about the school. “There’s a lot of great energy here,” Brandon said. “It seems like students enjoy being at Parker. There’s a great sense of community amongst students and faculty. It’s good that people want to see each other do well. There’s a lot of passion in this community. A lot of people want to see Parker be the best it can be.”