Dr. Von Mansfield was raised in Milwaukee, Wis., where he grew up in the Westlawn Housing Projects. He went on to complete high school at the University School of Milwaukee, one of the top prep high schools in the country. He received his Bachelor of Science in Education from the University of Wisconsin - Madison, his Master of Science in Counselor Education and Counseling Psychology from the University of Wisconsin – Madison, and a Master of Arts in Administration from Governors State University, University Park, Ill. He earned his doctorate in Curriculum and Instruction from Loyola University - Chicago.
Prior to beginning his career in education, Dr. Mansfield played five years of professional football. The majority of his football career was spent with the Philadelphia Eagles and the Green Bay Packers as a defensive back and kick returner.
Dr. Mansfield has maintained a passion for helping students succeed throughout his educational career. He has had a wealth of experience in a wide range of school settings. His past positions have included experiences as a high school science teacher, coach, guidance counselor, dean of students, assistant principal and principal. In his current capacity as superintendent of Homewood-Flossmoor Community High School he says, “It is our goal to mesh our educational expertise with student-centered learning, affording students an opportunity to maximize their acquisition of intellectual, social, and critical-thinking skills that will allow them to become life-long learners. Only through our common goal to expect the best can we prepare our students for the 21st century in a global society.”
H-F has been recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as a three-time national Blue Ribbon Award-winning high school, an honor achieved by only two schools in the state of Illinois. H-F has been ranked annually as one of the best high schools in the nation by Newsweek and the Washington Post. In 2010 and 2011, H-F received an exemplary ranking by the College Board for having one of the best AP Psychology programs in the country by having the most African-American students receive a 3 or higher on the AP national exam. H-F was the only Illinois high school to receive this prestigious ranking. Homewood-Flossmoor High School has a diverse enrollment of nearly 3,000 students and 300 faculty and staff members.
Dr. Mansfield is actively involved in the community and is a member of several professional organizations, such as Phi Delta Kappa, the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, and the American Association of School Administrators. Dr. Mansfield has served in leadership roles with several state and nationally recognized organizations, including serving as president of the Headmasters Association, which represents the top private and public schools in the nation, as well as president of the Southwest Suburban Conference of school districts, located in suburban Chicagoland. Dr. Mansfield is the recipient of the Paul Harris Fellow Award from the Rotary Foundation of Rotary International. In 2007, Dr. Mansfield received an Award of Excellence from the Illinois State Board of Education for outstanding contributions to Illinois education. In addition, he continues to serve on the Big Ten Advisory Commission, which supports minority athletes in the Big Ten. Currently, he also serves as a member on the Governing Board of Trustees of the College Board. Dr. Mansfield also serves on the College Board Superintendents’ Advisory Panel and the Vice Chair of the College Board Trustee Committee on Membership. Most recently, he served as the co-chair of the College Board’s 2012 National Forum in Miami, Fla., where more than 2,000 higher education and preschool – Grade 12 educators collaborated to address issues surrounding student access, equity, and rigor in education. He has also been featured as the cover story in Chicago’s N’DIGO magazine for his national recognition and success as an educator.
NOTABLE ACTIVITIES
- Honorable Mention All Big Ten as a junior
- Selected by the Wisconsin Alumni Association as the recipient of the Outstanding Student Athlete at the University of Wisconsin as a senior
- Selected by The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel as the Russ Winnie Award – for Leadership and Academic Achievement as a Football Player at the University of Wisconsin
- Selected to play in the Senior Bowl as a senior
- Fifth Round Draft Choice of the Atlanta Falcons
- Published School Social Work Journal, 1992, "Student Satisfaction with Peer Mediation"
- Winner of the Dr. Charles Gavin Image Award for Education
- Served as a member of the National Commission on National Assessment of Educational Progress 12th Grade Assessment and Reporting
- Member of the Big Ten Conference Advisory Commission