by SC Feature Writer Reanna Haase
While The Sanibel School is getting ready to welcome in the new school year, it is also welcoming in its new lead administrator – Principal Dr. Thomas ‘Tom’ Millins.
“I’m very excited. I’m very humbled,” Millins said. “My goal is to continue its success and just enrich and improve anything that can be done to ensure the success of the school.”
The Lee County School Board appointed Millins on June 16, and he began his work with the school on July 1. His role at the school is preceded by a nearly 30-year career in education and administration in Lee County.
He began his career as a Lee County teacher, and it wasn’t long before he held his first assistant principal position at Dunbar Middle School in 2004. Since then, he has held academic leadership roles at North Fort Myers Academy for the Arts (K-8), Pine Island Elementary and Edgewood Academy.
“I’m going to be able to bring some of my experiences from other schools,” Millins said. “However, this is a new school, and the expectations are extremely high.”
Heading into his 28th year in Lee County education, his main goals are clear: the kids, academics and safety. By focusing on these objectives, he strives to help The Sanibel School earn a ranking as one of the top 10 schools in the state of Florida.
“I’m going to be fair, firm and consistent,” Millins said. “I’m going to be opening the doors to my families to make sure that they feel confident in what’s taking place at the school, and making sure that we’re communicating that vision to our families.”
Millins maintains that he is invested in the success of Lee County and its schools, inside and outside of work. His commitment is shared at home as well: his wife works as a dean at a Lee County school, and his three children have all attended Lee County schools – including a stretch when he had one in elementary, one in middle and one in high school at the same time.
His ties to the area also run deep. He first visited Sanibel with his family in 1989, on a road trip around different Florida destinations.
“Sanibel was one of the stops that we knew was a special place,” he said. “The historical value, the ambiance of the island, the culture on the island. It has always captivated me.”
That visit helped draw him back and led him to attend the University of South Florida’s Fort Myers campus, despite growing up in the Chicago area. Ever since, he has dedicated his work to Lee County.
Millins said he is grateful to continue his career in the district he has been a part of for so long and is eager to welcome students back on August 11.
“There’s going to be excitement. We’re going to keep that excitement going,” he said. “We’re going to look at what’s going on in the school, and we’re going to focus on areas that show strengths, and then we’re going to review areas and look for opportunities for small improvements that are going to maximize what the community can do, what the teachers can do, and what the school can do to ensure the success of our students.”
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