Alton Little Theater Presents School Secrets a Play by Patrick Anderson

ALTON - Alton Little Theater presents "School Secrets," a play by Patrick Anderson and directed by Lee Cox.

The story is set as the new principal of his hometown high school, armed with innovative new ideas, programs, and a precocious 2nd-grade friend, John Andrews finds himself struggling to make it all click. With pressure mounting from his superintendent, the school board, and reluctant old school teachers, John and his new social worker must fight to do what they know is right for their students. The everyday problems that face their students make it obvious that a new approach is needed. Will John and Diane fight through the struggles, or will John cave to his own insecurities of growing up just like his new students (poor, scared, and needing an advocate to find success in a school system designed to make him fail)?

The play was written by Patrick Anderson presently the Superintendent of Schools of Wood River-Hartford District #15. After graduating from Eastern Illinois University in 1993, he started his career teaching English and Literature in a small rural town in Central Illinois (Oakland School District). His family was able to move back to the Metro-East area in 1998 and he started teaching English and Literature in O’Fallon, Illinois (Central School District #104). He earned his master’s degree and specialist degree at Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville, and became principal at Central in 2007 and then superintendent in 2011. When the opportunity to become superintendent in Wood River arose, he was fortunate to get the opportunity to come back to his hometown of Wood River and be superintendent.

"My passion has always been in education and there was absolutely never a day that I didn’t love teaching. I wrote a book in 2012 (The Kid in Purple Pants: Structured Approaches to Educating Underprivileged Students)."

"Writing the book has given me the opportunity to share my thoughts on how to make certain that all students are successful regardless of their socio-economic background. It has given me the opportunity to travel across the mid-west providing professional development to teachers and administrators on approaches to educating poor students. Having grown-up poor (although extremely happy in a loving home) gave me insight into how many poor students may feel when coming to school. I earned my doctorate degree in education from Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville in 2013. I live in East Alton, Illinois, with my wife, Kimberly Anderson (principal at East Elementary, Jerseyville."

Anderson said what inspired him to write the play: "First, I have been very fortunate to recently become involved with Alton Little Theater. I have witnessed the power of theater and how it illustrates emotions, feelings, and thoughts better than the simple written word."

"I thought that a play addressing the needs of students from poor families, students suffering from trauma, and all students struggling to be successful in school could possibly help better show the public the needs of these students," he added. "I was also inspired by my own personal connection to poor students and the needs that sometimes keep them from being successful. I wanted to show, through the use of theater, that students aren’t sometimes successful because of our own inability to meet their needs."

The show dates are

September 27 at 7:00 pm
September 28 at 7:00 pm