Sarasota County Schools recently announced that Pine View School’s Dr. Stephen Covert has been selected as the district’s Principal of the Year, and Brookside Middle School’s Ms. Jessica Fuesy has been selected as the district’s Assistant Principal of the Year. Dr. Covert and Ms. Fuesy are now in the running for Principal of the Year and Assistant Principal of the Year, respectively, at the state level! The Florida Department of Education’s Principal Achievement Award for Outstanding Leadership (Principal of the Year) was established in 1988 to recognize Florida principals for their contributions to their schools and communities. FDOE’s Outstanding Assistant Principal Achievement Award (Assistant Principal of the Year) was established in 1997 to honor assistant principals that have utilized teamwork and leadership to increase student achievement and greatly improved school environments. Florida’s Commissioner of Education, Manny Diaz, Jr., will announce three state-level finalists for each award this coming spring. The finalist for each award will be revealed in the coming summer. Sarasota County Schools has received two prior Florida Principal of the Year awards. Alta Vista Elementary School’s Dr. Barbara Shirley (Ret.) received the honor in 2014, and Booker High School’s Dr. Rachel Shelley received the honor in 2017.