Principal Strode

Principal Strode is a character in the Showtime series Dexter: New Blood.

She is employed by Iron Lake High School.

Summary

 * "Smoke Signals"

It's Harrison's first day of school and he and Dexter are sitting across from Principal Strode at her desk. She tells "Jim" that her husband loves the fishing rod he talked him into buying.

Strode mentions her concerns about Harrison's grades and asks why he went from a 3.8 down to a 1.2, then back to a 3.0 in just one year. Dexter doesn’t know, so Harrison says his stepmom died, after which he was placed in the foster care system and moved to Miami from Argentina. Strode gives Dexter a displeased look and asks, "And where were you?" "Deb", dressed as Strode, asks Dexter, "Yeah. Why don't you tell them why you left your beloved son?" Harrison stammers, "Things were complicated, ma'am. Um... My stepmom and I had just moved. And when she died, uh, Jim had no way of reaching me. It's not his fault.”

Tess enters the room and greets "Jim." She introduces herself to Harrison as Ms. Silvera, the science teacher. Harrison tells Tess that he heard her speaking Spanish the other day and asks. "¿de dónde eres?" Tess answers, "Puerto Rico. ¿Dónde aprendiste español?" Harrison says he lived in Argentina for a few years and she chuckles.

Principal Strode says Ms. Silvera will be administering Harrison's placement exam so they’ll know which grade level he's at. Addressing Dexter, she says, "And you'll know a little more about your son."

While Dexter is at Matt Caldwell’s crime scene, Principal Strode calls him to the school. When he arrives, she tells "Jim" that Harrison scored higher than any student has ever scored on the school placement exam. She's suspicious because Tess had left the room for fifteen minutes and, when she came back, he was done. Harrison alleges the test was easy. Strode is skeptical and says, "Some of the questions on this test are for Advanced Placement students. college-level. I believe while Tess was gone, Harrison used his cell phone to look up answers. Harrison calmly states, "I did not," but Dexter asks if he cheated. Harrison quips, "You accusing me of lying... Jim?" Dexter quickly answers, "No."

Tess is happy to proctor the exam again, and Dexter advises Harrison to take it with no phones. Harrison again insists that he didn't cheat. When Dexter says that this will prove it, Harrison replies, "Oh, thanks for having my back. Like always." Dexter sighs.

That night, Harrison informs Dexter that he retook the test and got a higher score than the first time.

While at the bonfire, Dexter admits to Harrison that he was wrong for not standing up for him at the school. He promises to always be on his side in the future. Harrison says, "Thanks, Dad." ''This surprises Dexter and he thinks, 'Dad.' Wow. My new favorite word.''


 * "H is for Hero"

Harrison is considered a hero when it's thought he prevented a school shooting by Ethan Williams.

The students on Ethan's kill list gather in the auditorium and are addressed by Principal Strode: “Coach Logan, or should I say Sergeant Logan, is here with us today in his official capacity to talk to you because you were on Ethan's list. Listen up.”

Logan walks to the podium. "What's up, Coach?" Zach shouts as the other kids hoot. Logan tells them to settle down and begins speaking: "Um... first of all, I want to say how proud I am of how you all handled yourselves during a situation I obviously wish you'd never had to experience. You acted with... maturity and courage. Uh, but please be understanding of yourselves, or - or any of your friends who are going through a tough time in the aftermath. Counseling is being offered to each of you. It's a scary thing to be targeted like that. It's good to talk about it, how you feel. Uh, I'd like to open this up to anyone who'd like to share their concerns or... or ask me any questions."

Zach suggests a shout-out to Harrison for "saving all their asses" [cheering and applause] and Logan tells Harrison they are grateful he is part of their community.

"Speech!" Zach yells, inciting the students to chant, "Speech! Speech! Speech! Speech! Speech! Speech! Speech!"

Harrison stands and responds. "I mean, I don't really know what to say. Um, I'm glad no one got hurt." Scott interjects, "Except Ethan." [laughter]

Harrison continues: "You-you know, personally, I don't really hold anything against Ethan. I mean, yeah, he, uh, he planned to do something terrible. And he ended up stabbing me, but, uh, you guys picked on him for years. You-you beat him up, made fun of him. You kind of made his life hell, you know? And I guess it's like, yeah,  ...yeah, we're all victims, or whatever. And I know everyone's saying that Ethan was a-a-a psycho or a-a monster or something, but he was definitely also a victim. So... I don't know. I guess we all have two sides to us. Maybe we're a little bit hero and a little bit, I-I don't know, monster. It's all about which side wins out in the end."

Harrison receives a round of applause, including by Principal Strode.

Related Pages

 * Audrey Bishop
 * Deb
 * Dexter Morgan/New Blood
 * Ethan Williams
 * Harrison
 * Iron Lake
 * Iron Lake High School
 * Jim Lindsay (Dexter's alias)
 * Scott Ross
 * Sergeant Logan
 * Tess Silvera
 * Zach Wright