Usually, the school principal doesn’t teach many classes, but this semester is different for Father Joel Konzen, SM, principal of Marist School. Father Konzen, with the help of a number of well-known leaders in the Atlanta community, is teaching a leadership seminar to sophomore, junior and senior students that explores the meaning and content of leadership.

Students read about each speaker before class and prepare questions to pose during the sessions.

Guest speakers scheduled for the classes include Dennis Kelly, director and chief executive officer of Zoo Atlanta; Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory; Vernon Jones, DeKalb County CEO; Jim Tally, president and CEO of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta; and Elizabeth Kiss, president of Agnes Scott College in Decatur.

Kelly, who said he never planned to run a zoo, spoke to the class about how plans change and how to stand apart from others.

“All your life, you will be presented with opportunities that are not your plan,” he said. “You want to show how you are different, better and special.”