Chapter 1 introduces two individuals, Nadine Burke Harris and Elizabeth Dozier, who share a common goal despite their vastly different backgrounds. Nadine Burke Harris, raised in privilege in Palo Alto, California, became a pediatrician and opened a clinic in San Francisco’s poorest neighborhood. Elizabeth Dozier, from more modest circumstances near Chicago, pursued a career in education, eventually becoming the principal of Christian Fenger High School, in a deeply under-resourced area.

Fenger High School, located in Chicago’s Roseland neighborhood, exemplified the challenges faced by many urban schools. Despite numerous well-funded reform efforts over the years, including those from esteemed education officials and philanthropists, Fenger remained entrenched in dysfunction. Dozier, upon assuming her role as principal, implemented significant changes, including personnel replacements and a zero-tolerance policy for violence.

The pervasive threat of violence at Fenger underscored the profound challenges its students faced. Many lived in poverty, surrounded by gang activity, with a quarter of female students either pregnant or teenage mothers. Tragically, a violent incident resulting in student Derrion Albert’s death brought national attention to Fenger, highlighting the school’s struggles.

Dozier, midway through her second year as principal of Fenger High School, recognized that traditional academic approaches were insufficient to address the deep-seated issues facing her students, particularly in the aftermath of Albert’s murder.