On his journey to eventually becoming our UC High School principal, Mr. Mike Paredes (Mr. P) was no stranger to his own principal’s office while going through his young teenage years in high school. Coming from a long educational career, Paredes has defied all odds by becoming one of the best principals ever, despite his slightly troubled time in his own high school years.

Many students go through their high school time enjoying lots of fun with their friends, playing multiple sports, joining many clubs, and participating in many school-sponsored events. For Mr. P, he too was very involved in many school activities at Crawford High School. “I was in ASB [Associated Student Body] and Yearbook, and I also played multiple sports,” said Mr. P.

“I never set out to be a principal. In fact, in high school, the last thing I wanted to do was to be a teacher,” said Mr. P, explaining how he never would’ve thought he would end up going through a college education to become a teacher, let alone a few years later becoming an assistant principal and then a principal.

However, while maturing, he realized that many of his teachers and coaches were a big influence on him. “It wasn’t until college that I realized a few of my teachers and coaches had the biggest impact on me,” explained Mr. P.

Throughout his high school career, his freshman and sophomore years were the two in which he gained a more significant bond with his principal and vice principal, Mr. David LeMay and Mrs. Joan Stewart, as they began to know him very well through the time they would spend together. Mr. P said, “I did mess around a bit in high school, but it was always good trouble. They each [Paredes’ principal and vice principal] knew me well for both the good and the bad.”

Wife Allison Paredes said, “Mr. P was known for challenging teachers, counselors, coaches, and administrators to get what he wanted for his friends and teammates. Mr. P had a lot of school spirit and always wanted the best rallies, dances, football games, and other school events to be the best.”

“I’ll be honest. I kind of pushed the boundaries a little bit. During my freshman and sophomore years, I got into several fights. But by the time I got into my junior year, I was in ASB and in Yearbook, and I had a lot of fun. We would paint our faces, make sure we were loud at games, and overall be silly,” said Mr. P.

“Mr. P’s high school experience was full of getting into some trouble and lots of school spirit. He was actively involved in campus life, serving in the ASB. His passion for sports led him to participate in football, wrestling, baseball and lacrosse, showcasing his dedication and team spirit,” said Allison Paredes.

Being in these extracurriculars, he sometimes found himself in a bit of trouble that was good in a sense. He explained that it was small things during games: “At Crawford, we were the Colts, which was a horse. During one of our games, we made a sign with ‘the dogs’ on it even though our mascot was a horse. We had many people that said we couldn’t hang it up because it was gang-related even though we called ourselves ‘the dog pound’ during football season.”

Mr. P said, “In my experience as a student, I felt like the adults at my school hushed the students a lot, whether they intended to or not. It’s almost like that philosophy as kids need to be seen, not heard. They would say these are the rules; we don’t need to explain why. That is why I kind of got into trouble as a kid.” This is something he keeps in mind now that he is principal, working to uplift students’ voices.