School’s former leader takes on district role
By B.C. Manion
There’s a new leader at the helm of Freedom High, filling a vacancy created by the promotion of the school’s former principal.
David Sheppard was appointed principal of Freedom High effective Feb. 20.
Sheppard said he has aspired to become a principal for the past five or six years and is pleased to have the opportunity to assume the leadership post.
That said, he also knows that high school principals today face daunting challenges. The biggest one, he said, is to engage a wide variety of students in a manner that makes all of them want to come to school.
Freedom has more than 2,000 students, drawing from a range of economic backgrounds. The school, at 17140 Commerce Park Blvd. in Tampa, draws from Lutz and New Tampa, as well as the University Community area and areas to the south.
Some students are motivated and have a plan for their education, including which colleges they would like to attend, Sheppard said. Others are less motivated, the principal said.
The key is to have adults with the skills and personalities to engage students and to give them a desire to come to school, Sheppard said.
The new principal said his first order of business will be to listen and observe.
“I have a lot to learn about those important people who are already here,” Sheppard said. “That will take a little bit of time,” Sheppard said.
The educational leader, who lives in Lutz, is the former assistant principal for curriculum at Wharton High. He joined Hillsborough County’s public school district in 1992, as a teacher at Leto High. Sheppard then transferred to Wharton in 1999, continuing as a teacher until 2004, when he was promoted to assistant principal for student affairs. He served as assistant principal for curriculum at Wharton beginning in 2006.
He filled a vacancy created by the promotion of Chris Farkas, who will become area leadership director. In that role, Farkas will be working with principals at a number of schools in the district’s Area VII.
Farkas began his district career in 1999 as an alternative education/dropout prevention teacher. He came to Freedom as principal in 2006, moving from an assistant principal spot at Tampa Technical High.
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