In her 38 years as an educator, Mary Fernandez relied on this simple guiding principle: Is it what’s best for children?
In sorting through the myriad issues and competing interests that a principal faces in the day-to-day work of running a school, that principle provided clarity when making decisions, Fernandez said.
Fernandez joined Lutz Elementary School’s staff in 1993, as an assistant principal.
(B.C. Manion/Staff Photo)
She took over the school’s top post 11 years ago, becoming only just the third principal to lead the school during the past 40 years.
Fernandez took the reins from Gloria Kolka, who succeeded Eulah McWilliams.
The decision to become an educator came early for Fernandez.
She vividly recalls sitting in her fourth-grade classroom at St. Patrick’s Catholic School in South Tampa, looking at her teacher Rebecca Thomas, and thinking: “I want to be her.”
She never wavered from that desire.
Fernandez attended the University of South Florida, graduating in three years, and began her teaching career at St. Lawrence Catholic School, when she was 21.
“I worked there for seven years. It is absolutely amazing the number of children, that are now adults, that I run into,” she said.
Indeed, one of those former students, Dr. Joe Lezama, of the James A. Haley Veterans Administration Hospital, surprised her at her retirement party.
“It was really quite touching.
“He talked about when he was 9 and he came to my class, and he had just moved to the city. He was lost,” she said. But he settled in, and life moved on.
Last year, he came with his children to the school, and when he walked in the door, he asked: “Are you Mrs. Fernandez?’”
She responded: “You’re my Joey.”
“It’s full circle,” Fernandez said.
After teaching at St. Lawrence, she went on to teach at Citrus Park Elementary, under the direction of Principal Virginia Urbanek, who is now deceased.
“What a great, great mentor she was,” Fernandez said.
When Fernandez told Urbanek she was interested in becoming an administrator, she said Urbanek told her: “Just come every Monday morning and sit with me.”
Urbanek was an early riser.
“From 6:30 to 7:30, whatever she was working on, she let me watch,” Fernandez said.
As the day progressed, Urbanek would pop in to tell Fernandez how she followed through on various issues.
When Urbanek opened Essrig Elementary as its first principal, Fernandez joined the school’s inaugural staff.
She took on her first administrative role at Lutz Elementary.
She was attracted to the school because of the community’s hometown feel.
“Lutz is well known for that,” Fernandez said.
“I didn’t want just a job,” she explained. “I wanted to be part of a family and part of a community, and I never left,” she said.
Despite her many years as an administrator, Fernandez said she has never forgotten what brought her into education in the first place.
“I loved being in the classroom, and I loved the children, and to be honest with you, I miss it every single day.
“But I found that by being an administrator, you could really be involved in so many other children’s lives,” she said.
At Lutz Elementary, she said, “We treat children like our own. If this were your child, how would you want them to be treated?”
It means being caring, but she added, “It also means tough love.”
“We just need to love children and take care of them, and I wanted to share that value with other people,” Fernandez said.
During her years as an educator, she’s seen a greater degree of attention being paid to schools at every level — federal, state, local and community.
She agrees that accountability is important, but she also thinks many communities need to do more to help schools succeed.
“The best schools are in communities that support them. That doesn’t mean wealthy, it means communities that support them.
“Lutz is a unique community. Honestly, my wish would be that a lot of schools could feel the connection to their community like we do,” Fernandez said.
And, while technology and curriculum changes, there are some aspects of education that are timeless, she said.
“You have to work with every child, individually. If you don’t understand them personally, it doesn’t matter what program you give them. You’ve got to reach them individually. You have to reach their heart,” she said.
“You have to know their family. You have to know where they’ve come from. Their values. What they’re afraid of. What their goals are,” she added.
“You have to let them know that you care about them.
“And that,” Fernandez said, “has not changed.”
Published June 10, 2015