Studer Community Institute

Principal rides technology to the top

November 21, 2014
/ Reggie Dogan
/ early-learning

Only three principals out of thousands in the state of Florida are in the running to receive the 2015 Innovative Technology Principal Award. Milton High School Principal Mike Thorpe is one of them. For the second time in four years, Thorpe has been nominated for the award that is sponsored annually by the Florida Council of Instructional Technology Leaders to recognize outstanding leaders in the area of instructional technology. He will be recognized on Jan. 21 at a luncheon in Orlando as part of the Florida Instructional Technology Leaders meeting. Tim Wyrosdick, Santa Rosa County’s schools superintendent, will be among a team of supporters traveling to Orlando to cheer Thorpe on. Wryrosdick believes Thorpe ‘s creative use of technology and innovative leadership set standards that garner attention and praise. “Mike represents the finest in education leadership,” Wyrosdick said. “His passion for Milton High School and marrying technology with innovative ideas represents a model for the state of Florida.” Believing that technology can make a difference for his diverse student body, Thorpe has worked to maintain cutting-edge technology instruction in which students develop a solid basis in knowledge and experience for future careers. Besides traditional academic classes, Milton High School offers a variety of programs from both college and career-focused students, including dual enrollment, honor and advanced placement classes. One of Thorpe’s crowning achievements is the Milton Institute of Technology. It provides certified instruction in the Adobe suite of software products, as well as instruction in television production, computer programming and technology support. Using technology to focus on student improvement in core areas, Thorpe has promoted the use of interactive Smartboards, Read180, FCAT Explorer, ThinkLink reading and math probes, Discovery Education, GPS devices and WriteScore assessments. Thorpe said he is honored and humbled to represent Santa Rosa County School District statewide. While he is excited to be nominated a second time, Thorpe said the realizes he is one of many good leaders in schools across the state. “Being selected as a finalist within the state is exciting when you consider how unbelievably talented other principals in our district and across the state are in the area of innovation,” Thorpe said. “I am excited to be in the same conversation with the other principals, and I certainly hope that our district and my school could receive some recognition for their innovative strategies.” For the past 16 years Thorpe has been an educator in Santa Rosa County. During this time he has been a classroom teacher, an assistant principal and principal. As principal of Milton High School since 2009, Thorpe has led a staff that has consistently maintained high standards and brought technology to the forefront. The school’s letter grade in 2010 rose from a D to A in one school year and has remained either an A or B under his tenure as principal ever since. Two academies, the STEM/Aviation Aerospace and the Fine Arts, were implemented by Thorpe to expose more students to science, math, engineering and technology as well as technology resources and specialized software for creating and writing music and producing artwork. Thorpe increased communication between himself and teachers through the use of weekly Principal’s Vodcasts. These videos contain an overview of the school’s activities, special recognitions and accomplishments, words of motivation and instructional and technology tips. They are archived on the school’s local intranet and are available in a video on demand format through a podcast website programmed by Thorpe. “Innovation is a very broad term, but in my situation I think it is related to thinking outside the box and my willingness to push through all obstacles to provide technological solutions to educational needs,” Thorpe said. “I think I was selected because my faculty and students are willing to push the edge of innovation in many ways, and I have been able to feed ideas for them to use.”

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Principal rides technology to the top

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