Steven Harper (TV character)

Infobox character
name = Steven Harper
series = Boston Public
colour =


caption =
first = 1x01 "Chapter One"
last = 4x15 "Chapter Eighty-One"
cause =
nickname =
alias =
species =
gender = Male
age =
born =
occupation = High school principal
religion = Christian
title =
family =
spouse = Louanna Harper (ex-wife)
children = Brooke Harper (daughter)
relatives =
episode = 81
portrayer = Chi McBride
creator = David E. Kelley

Steven Harper is a fictional character and the protagonist of the FOX drama "Boston Public", played by Chi McBride throughout the series' entire run.

Character history

Steven is the tough, level-headed principal with a heart of gold who constantly struggles with the hang-ups and problems of his employees and students, from Harry Senate's firing off a gun in his classroom to Milton Buttle's affair with a student in Season 1, and Danny Hanson and Marla Hendricks' bickering (and eventual fist-fighting) in Seasons 2 and 3. Throughout the series, Steven remained the most consistent character on the show, and its strongest presence and focal point. Considered one of the most important characters in the series, he was consistently the school's leader, handling teachers with problems, and much of his character revolved around his pride in the teaching profession and his loyalty to the kids and the faculty.

Little is known about Steven's past, but there are suggestions that he was a rebellious youth during his teenage years. Steven mentions in one episode that he crashed a car into a tree while drunk. In another episode, he reveals that when he was 14, he and some friends robbed a convenience store, but when one of his teachers' found out and didn't report him to the police, Steven began to turn his life around. This, years later, allowed Steven to admire, more or less, teachers who did not stop at nothing to help their students. It is also mentioned that Steven played football in high school.

Steven was married to a woman named Louanna, but they divorced. During the show's second season, Brooke, his rebellious, liberal activist teenage daughter, gets transferred to Winslow High after being expelled from her private school when an animal rights protest goes wrong. Steven manages to build a relationship with Brooke and his estranged ex-wife, who later goes on to date a man named Sam. By the end of Season 3, Brooke had been written out of the series, as she had graduated high school and was accepted to Harvard University. Once the show's fourth and final season began, Steven embarked on a relationship with Marilyn Sudor, which caused some friction between him and his assistant principal, Scott Guber, who had become attracted to Marylin.