Joe Louis Clark

He resided in Newberry, Florida during his retirement. Clark died following a long illness on December 29, 2020, at the age of 83.

Other educators defended and praised Clark. "You cannot use a democratic and collaborative style when crisis is rampant and disorder reigns," said Kenneth Tewel, a former principal. "You need an autocrat to bring things under control." Some critics focused on the fact that while Clark had reestablished cleanliness and order, education scores had not substantially improved, which resulted in Eastside High being taken over by the state one year after Clark's departure in 1991.

Clark was seen as an educator who was not afraid to get tough on difficult students, one who would often carry a bullhorn or a baseball bat at school. During his time as principal, Clark expelled over 300 students who were frequently tardy or absent from school, sold or used drugs in school, or caused trouble in school. Though some argue that his tough practices turned the school around, the data does not support that conclusion. "While math scores are up 6% during Clark's reign, reading scores have barely budged: they remain in the bottom third of the nation's high school seniors. While a few more students are going to college -- 211, up from 182 in 1982 -- Clark has lost considerable ground in the battle against dropouts: when he arrived, Eastside's rate was 13%; now [in 1988] it is 21%." After his tenure as principal of Eastside High, Clark later served as director of the Essex County Detention House in Newark, New Jersey, a juvenile detention facility.

Joe Louis Clark (May 8, 1938 – December 29, 2020) was the principal of Eastside High School in Paterson, New Jersey. He is also the subject of the 1989 film Lean on Me, starring Morgan Freeman. Clark gained public attention in the 1980s for his unconventional and controversial disciplinary measures as the principal of Eastside High.

Clark was born in Rochelle, Georgia, on May 8, 1938. At the age of 6, Clark and his family moved to Newark, New Jersey, where he would graduate from Central High School. He went on to receive a bachelor's degree from William Paterson College, a master's degree from Seton Hall University, and an honorary doctorate from the U.S. Sports Academy. Clark was a Sergeant in the US Army Reserve, where he was assigned as a drill sergeant. He was selected for honoris causa membership in Omicron Delta Kappa in 1997 at SUNY Plattsburgh.