Best Head Of The Class

Ruth Kane, Principal, Lanier High School

When Ruth Kane started as principal of Lanier High School in 1993, she arrived at a dingy school marred by gangs and apathy. Five years later, the north Austin school became one of 18 secondary schools in Texas and 166 across the country to be named a Blue Ribbon school by the U.S. Department of Education. The school was also one of five schools in the country to be awarded a special Sering Learning Award by the Department of Education for the school's peer learning, anti-violence, and science and environmental programs. Kane refused to allow the school's reputation to dictate its reality - a good lesson for teachers, students, and parents throughout the district.

Ruth Kane
Lanier High School
1201 Payton Gin