Editor's note: Steve Perry is the founder and principal of the Capital Preparatory Magnet School in Hartford, Connecticut, and author of "Man Up! : Nobody is Coming to Save Us," which offers solutions to problems in the black community. Steve Perry says a question from a parent started his journey to creating a top-performing school. HARTFORD, Connecticut (CNN) -- "Why do only rich kids get good schools?" I was the founder and director of a part-time out-of-school college preparatory program. The questioner was a parent; herself a victim of a dulled urban education. The statement was more of an indictment than question, and I had no answer. "Well, why can't this program be a school," she offered.
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Steve Perry: A parent asked why only rich kids get good schools
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He says question started process of building a quality school
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Perry says his team fought bureaucracy, union to try something new
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He says his school is highly rated and sends all graduates to college
On a Friday afternoon elevator ride from the 10th to the seventh floor, he said, "@placeholder, we're gonna start a high school, you should run it."