Robert Inza has come full circle at Barbara Goleman Senior High School. He is a member of the first graduating class, a former English teacher and Activities Director and newly appointed assistant principal, the first Goleman alumnus to be named an administrator.
From the time he was a child, Inza was an engaged and motivated student. He recalls being eager to go to sleep so the next school day would come sooner.
“I’m a lifelong learner. If I could go to school forever, I would,” he said. Considering Inza's track record for education, it seems as though he may very well go to school forever, even if not always in the classroom.
Inza attended Florida International University for his bachelor's in English Education, master’s in Reading Education and a Specialist in Educational Leadership. His first job teaching was back in the halls of Barbara Goleman High School.
After teaching English and a newspaper elective course for a handful of years, Inza transitioned into Activities Director for the school, initially while still teaching classes and eventually completely delving into his new position. After spending three years as Activities Director, he participated in an internship for Project Lead Strong, an opportunity for teachers and other administrative members to qualify and intern at various schools for career advancement.
Inza interned as an assistant principal at American Senior High School for the 2013-2014 school year and in participating as an intern, he completed a portfolio in which Florida standards of competency for school administration were met. Following the program there were no guarantees that he would be placed as an assistant principal at his Alma Mater, though as fate would have it, Inza would once again revisit his home school only this time as an administrator in June 2014.
“The transition I think was the best it could have been. The former assistant principal was appointed as principal of another school but we worked closely together, he was very much a mentor to me,” said Inza about Leonard Torres, now principal of Palm Springs North Middle School. “Overall the transition felt very smooth, for me, for the faculty, and for the students who already knew me, my style, my integrity, and my loyalty and love to the school.”
Sounding much like the English teacher he once was, Inza notes his all-time favorite book, To Kill A Mockingbird, and how Atticus taught Scout that to truly understand a person, one must walk in their shoes. It is a simple but deeply important belief that has shaped Inza’s style as an educator.
“I’ve seen this school from many perspectives. I’ve seen it from the eyes of a student, teacher, and now as an administrator,” said Inza. “I think it’s always so important to remember to put ourselves in one another’s shoes, so coming up through the school in so many different ways is valuable in understanding all the roles at work.”
Despite his position as assistant principal, Inza still catches himself referring to his former teachers, now colleagues, as misters and misses. The desire to climb higher within the school system, as a student sitting in his teacher’s classes to eventually calling them equals, came slowly and naturally.
“I wanted to keep growing and learning. I wanted to not only affect and inspire those in my classroom but reach out and touch the lives of others. It was a natural progression that led me to where I am today,” said Inza.
As for the continued success found at Goleman, Inza is well-acquainted with the process. He calls out parents at freshman orientations noting that the high school years are not the time to back off, rather, it’s the time to be most involved as those are the most critical years before college. “It takes a village” can be heard ringing out from the orientations, Inza’s reminder that no child is raised alone to their highest potential.
Inza has an open-door policy, as do other administrators, for parental involvement or concerns. Coming to the assistant principal that can say with ease that he genuinely understands, there is no better door to peer into.
“Ultimately we are a school family with unified goals: to educate, to learn, to inspire, and to motivate.”