Happiness and success were two trains of thought running on parallel tracks when Principal Steve Ramsey came to the school in 2002 as a coach and teacher. Since he became principal in 2016, administration has worked to allow students more free time on exam days, extra study time and freedom to eat lunch wherever they want. Ramsey believes that these changes to campus culture over the years have contributed to the school’s positive recognition, including its ranking by Niche as the country’s fifth best public high school.

Before becoming principal, he noticed a disconnect between students’ achievements and their wellbeing. The general ideology was that students couldn’t be both happy and successful at school, according to Ramsey.

“It was either you had to work the kids to death to get the results, or you had to love the kids to death and not worry about the results,” Ramesy said.  “You could either be highly successful and have miserable students, or you could have happy students and have miserable results.”

At a board meeting, Ramsey suggested that the school could achieve both student wellness and academic or extracurricular success. To ensure progress in both areas, the school organizes several activities throughout the year. Serious observances like Suicide Prevention Week address mental health. More festive occasions, such as Student Appreciation Week and the Club Fair, strive to improve students’ perception of school.

“We’ve worked really, really hard to develop a very unique culture that we’re going to have success,” Ramesy said. “At the same time, hopefully, our kids feel that they’re cared for, that there is value [in them].”

Students in Eanes are also granted more freedoms than those at other high schools, according to Ramsey. From the robotics building to the PAC, freshmen and seniors alike are allowed to spend their lunch period almost anywhere. Teens are rarely allowed such independence at most other schools.

“When … we bring other principals and superintendents in, and when they see our lunch, they’re pretty shocked and appalled that we give you guys so much freedom and that we trust you guys that much,” Ramsey said. “I think that’s probably one of the biggest things: a lot of other adults don’t trust kids as much as we trust you guys to do all the great things you do here each and every day.”

As non-Chaparrals express surprise at the freedom students have here, even teachers of this institution have opposed some proposed measures in the past. Ramsey remembers receiving lots of pushback on having no-homework nights when the idea was first discussed around 2009. Many faculty members warned that no-homework nights and dead days – when teachers are not permitted to assign new material, allowing students study time –  would take away instructional time and devastate academic results.

“That didn’t happen,” Ramsey said. “And if you look at our results all the way across the board—whether STAAR, ACT, SAT, National Merit Semi-Finalists … —they have only gone up with [this] kind of newer approach to how we treat students.”

Despite the initial hesitation, the school’s staff have adjusted to the new culture surrounding schoolwork over the eight years that Ramsey has been principal. The option of exam exemptions and half days exemplify the shift in the school’s approach in balancing the community’s ambition and student support.

“[We strive] to form a system that gives [students] the best chance to be successful,” Ramsey said. “What I mean by that is we live in an ambitious community. We have ambitious parents. We have ambitious students. We have ambitious teachers, coaches, administrators, and I think that’s a great positive thing … Our kids are going to outwork most students in the state of Texas, and that’s okay to say that.”

Another effort to counteract academic stress by the school is building a campus culture that emphasizes relationships, including on a daily basis. Ramsey coined the phrase ‘profound daily interactions.’ He explained it to be the idea that quick, day to day interactions between people on campus can be deeply impactful for students.

“[That] five second interaction can totally build up a kid or totally destroy him just like a 50 minute interaction can do the same thing, and so something we’re really conscious of is how we treat each other,” Ramsey said.

Ramsey has worked on improving the campus community as the principal for years. However, his philosophy centers more on observations of the present than on future goals.

“I’m different when it comes to, sometimes the way I think, compared to other people,” Ramsey said. “I don’t necessarily find ‘this is the goal for the year, we put an emphasis on what’s most important right now, in front of us.”

The school does not strategically seek out high rankings like the one it has received, according to Ramsey. Instead, he feels that such accolades are simply a confirmation that the school is doing well. He pointed out that his office walls are covered not with awards and certificates, but with mementos, like group pictures and sports equipment.

“[Awards allow] us collectively to be proud of the work that we all do, whether it’s the students, teachers, administrators,” Ramsey said. “I think it’s a confirmation … but it’s nothing that we go out and seek… Getting the right [people] in front of the students is much more important to me than any kind of ranking.”

Ramsey believes the campus culture and environment have changed significantly since he became principal in 2016. He continues to emphasize the importance of supporting students and being attentive to their needs in the present day.

“I think the biggest thing that we’ve done is try to create the best environment for kids to have the most success,” Ramsey said. “You do that by having kids who are rather content and happy to show up to campus.”