Manuel Sanchez III, who serves as principal of Miami Lakes Middle School, won top honors as the District’s Principal of the Year. Miami-Dade County Public Schools (M-DCPS) honored its finest principals and assistant principals at an awards ceremony sponsored by the Dade Association of School Administrators (DASA), on April 21 at Jungle Island.
Sanchez has served as principal of Miami Lakes Middle since 2011. He brings more than 20 years of experience in administration and curricular expertise. He began his career as an Exceptional Student Education teacher at Miami Park Elementary in 1994, worked in special education, became a program specialist coordinating the ESE department, and earned a master’s degree in special education and Ph.D. in educational leadership.
Sanchez was nominated by the feeder pattern school for Miami Lakes Middle School, which is Hialeah Miami Lakes Senior High School, and after rounds of eliminations through committees and the north region four finalists were announced and presented before a district committee that decided upon Sanchez.
“It is humbling to be honest,” said Sanchez. “Even though it is a principal recognition I see this award as a validation of the school as a team and the work we’ve done together.”
Despite Sanchez’ humility teachers and students alike sing his praises. Once the word “Dr.” was uttered at the announcement of the Principal of the Year Sanchez wasn’t even able to hear his name stifled out by the roars and applause of his faculty and administration. Under Sanchez’ guidance the school moved from being drastically under enrolled at 700 students to near capacity this year. The school has also welcomed the inclusion of the Legal Studies Academy and Cambridge program and a number of clubs such as robotics, FEA, and student council. This is the first year in over a decade that the school will produce a yearbook.
“I feel my job is to meet the needs of the kids,” said Sanchez. “Some kids are so far above what schools can offer that the only option is to provide them with that opportunity somehow. We had two sixth grade students that completed all the levels of mathematics within middle school curriculums, so we arranged for them to take algebra 2 and chemistry so they can continue reaching their potential.”
Retention rate has reduced drastically after the implementation of tutoring, mentoring, and incentives like field trips.
Sanchez received a cash prize and the event’s top sponsors for the cash awards were AXA-Equitable, Wells Fargo, United Way of Miami Dade and the South Florida Educational Federal Credit Union. Winners also received gift baskets from event sponsors which include gifts from: Jungle Island, Bencor, VALIC, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Florida International University, The Fair Expo, National Life Group EdGenuity, Herff Jones, Age of Learning, The Betsy Hotel, Nystrom Education, Coco Key Water Resort and Miami Seaquarium.