Pressure Cooker TrailerCulinary Art @ Frankford High

In Northeast Philly, students at Frankford High School are preparing fine foods under the tough tutelage of teacher extraordinaire, Wilma Stephenson.

Wilma Stephenson for PRESIDENT!!!!

I saw this movie lingering in my Netflix queue, and I passed over it a few times because I wasn't ready  (or so I thought).  I feared this was going to be another documentary rife with urban education clichés.  
I have no thanks for Hillary Swanks or those other tired movies, depicting disadvantaged youths getting rescued by some ball busting upstart with a heart of gold.  For those of us who prefer our tough love served in a steaming cup of Do what I tell ya' and a side of I'm not afraid to get up in that @$$, the Michelle Pfeiffers of this world simply won't do.
I was pleasantly surprised/deeply moved/inspired/twitterpated/and a lil hetero-gay for Mrs. Stephenson, after watching the film.  Where was she when I was depressed and trying to complete my senior project?  This woman is a certified gangsta when it comes to teaching/loving/learning kids.  Some may find her unconventional teaching style unsettling but the lady achieves results.  The students in her class graduate/obtain scholarships/learn how to burn and know that she cares.
Immediately following graduation, I held a brief stint in the Philadelphia public school system as an art instructor. I can testify that these kids are in desperate need of a highly dedicated teacher, who will stop at nothing to surpass the challenges students face today.  As far as I am concerned, her critics can say what they want.  Stephenson succeeds where others fail because she isn't afraid of her students.  She is definitely kicking it old school; a mixture of fire and ice just when her students need it.   
I'm not saying that her way is the only way, but I would like to see more novel solutions addressing the challenges of teaching urban students in a digital age.  Stephenson's approach kinda reminds me of Morgan Freeman's role in Lean On Me.  Like Stephenson, Mr. Clark's antics worked because you knew that he was going to be there next year...putting his size 30's in some other badass kid's behind.