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Cherise Ayers was president of the student council at Central High School in St. Paul in the late 1990s. Two years ago, the St. Paul native returned to Central in a very different leadership role: as principal.

Central is the oldest high school in Minnesota, founded in 1866. Known for strong academics, it was one of the first schools in the state to offer an international baccalaureate diploma program. 

Its graduates, including Ayers’ classmate St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter, have gone on to be prominent leaders in business, education, sports and politics.  

MPR News host Angela Davis talks with Ayers about returning to lead her alma mater, her vision for the school and what it’s like to follow in the footsteps of longtime Central High School principal Mary Mackbee, who retired in 2019.

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What’s it like to go to a high school and then come back years later to lead it? MPR News host Angela Davis talks with Cherise Ayers, the principal of St. Paul’s renowned Central High School, about her vision for her alma mater.

St. Paul’s Cherise Ayers on returning to lead Central High School

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