Dr. Rodriguez began his career at Winter Springs High School in August of 2013, and will soon become the principal at Rock Lake Middle School.

Since becoming assistant principal he has achieved many things such as, bringing in new staff members and forming relationships with the business community of Winter Springs.

“I was fortunate to have the opportunity to hire some topnotch people. Additionally, I’m proud that I have been able to engage our business community and other community partners. These relationships will serve WSHS well as the school continues to grow,” said Rodriguez.

Being a principal of a school requires experience, patience, and hard work. Dr. Rodriguez will definitely be able to transfer his skills learned as assistant principal to principal.

“I have learned that you must be patient and genuinely listen to what other people have to say. You can’t just sit there and wait for your turn to talk. You have to understand where someone is coming from and take their insight into consideration before rendering a decision,” said Rodriguez.

As future principal of Rock Lake Middle School, he hopes to bring his enthusiasm and positive mindset to the school.

“Rock Lake Middle School is a historically successful school. I hope to bring my enthusiasm and positive mind set to the school in an effort to increase the opportunities for my students to be successful. Moreover, I hope to inspire my faculty, staff, and students to strive to be better than they ever have been.”

Transferring from working in administration in a high school to a middle school is definitely a change.

Dr. Rodriguez said, “My approach to dealing with people in a fair and positive manner will remain the same. My desire to reach out to community and enhance the available resources to the school will also be similar to how I accomplished things at WSHS. I think the biggest difference will be working with students who have not quite ascended to the level of maturity that I am accustomed to with high school students.”

As his last few days on campus come to an end, Dr. Rodriguez will miss many things, but most importantly he will miss all the people he has grown close to.

“I will also miss positively influencing students of high school age. There has not been a single day at WSHS in which I dreaded coming to work. When you love what you do and love the people around you, it doesn’t feel like work. ”

And finally, here is a farewell message from Dr. Rodriguez:

“When I turned 18, my dad presented me with a list of tips to be successful. To take a page out of my old man’s book, I leave you with this:

* Always make an effort to see the big picture.

*Don’t allow yourself to get stressed out over things that are out of your control. Similarly, don’t stress out over things that more than likely will not impact you in the near future.

*Be positive. People like being around those who are positive. Don’t just sit there and complain, propose a better way.

* Be resilient. Don’t quit. Take challenges head on, don’t avoid them. View them as an opportunity for growth.

* You catch more bees with honey than you do with vinegar. Be nice to people! You never know when your path will cross with someone again and it is in your best interest for them to have a positive perception of you.

* Always be aware of your surroundings.

* Always smell your best. No one likes being around the person who doesn’t know they smell.

* Remember the words of Edmund Burke, “all that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”

* Never get too big for your britches. Remember, there is always a bigger fish.

* Invest in memories, not material items. You’ll remember that road trip with your buddies much more vividly than the pair of shoes you once wore.