The Rev. Dr. Robert S. Strenth, rector of St. Matthew’s, Orlando, has received the Orange County Public Schools’ 2023 Principal of the Year award. He serves as principal of Prairie Lake Elementary, Ocoee.

This award “recognizes outstanding principals who have succeeded in providing high-quality learning opportunities for students and demonstrated exemplary contributions to their schools and communities,” per an OCPS press release. OCPS also stated that “Strenth has created a family atmosphere where everyone is accepted,” also noting that he has worked with teachers and students to increase the school grade from a “C” to a “B” in 2022.

Strenth received the award at the Stellar Awards Ceremony on Friday, Feb. 10. Parishioners could watch the ceremony online via a church website link.

OCPS described Strenth as a “servant leader.”

“Ultimately it is about knowing you are here to serve,” Strenth explained. “As a principal, I can’t preach like Peter or pray like Paul, but I can be the balm of Gilead to others, whether it’s through helping a child with their education, gathering resources to help a student or family, or ensuring there is a support network for someone in need. It’s why I have worked hard to hire people who embrace servant leadership and are willing to serve all who come through our doors. We are a family who rallies to help and support one another and those we serve. We can all be the balm of Gilead.”

The rector and principal works hard at maintaining work/life balance. “I don’t have much down time because being a principal takes 50-60 hours a week,” he said. “It can be a challenge, and there are many late nights. I try not to work on Saturdays, at least while my wife, Leslie, and daughter, Caroline, are awake, so I can spend time with my family. I look forward to retiring at the end of June and becoming a full-time rector in August.”

Strenth said his parishioners were very happy about his honor. “They were more excited about it than I was,” he said. “The same was true for my school. Honestly, the award was earned by my teachers’ and staff’s hard work making our school such a special place. I am blessed to serve such a great set of people who have made our school a family.”

He said his calling to teach came several years after graduating high school. “By my mid-20s, I worked day labor with some flooring contractors,” he said. “While waiting for supplies or to get picked up, I talked with people about history and current events. Many of these guys had been unsuccessful in school like me, and they said that I made history interesting to them, and they thought I could be a good teacher.

“That thought stuck with me,” Strenth said. “I eventually started taking classes at Seminole Community College and then transferred to the University of Florida.” But he kept his day labor clothes in view to remind him of where he’d come from and where he would return if he weren’t successful. “I threw them out the day I graduated,” he said.

After retirement, one of the things he will miss most is also one of his pet projects. “I’ve worked each year to teach a group of fifth-grade students,” he said. “I meet with about 40 students each morning for 30 minutes and do a book study with them. I use a novel about a child’s experiences during the Holocaust. I do this to help generate an understanding of historical events and build the students’ capacity for compassion, empathy and courage to stand up and support those who are friendless, targeted by others or don’t fit in.”

Strenth earned a bachelor’s with honors in history, a master’s in secondary social sciences curriculum and a specialist in educational leadership degree, all from the University of Florida. He earned his doctorate from the University of Central Florida and also attended Reformed Theological Seminary.

PHOTOS: (L) Strenth (rear) meets with students for a book study. | Photo Credit: Prairie Lake Elementary School; (C) Strenth was joined at the Stellar Awards ceremony by Melissa Byrd, Orange County School Board Member, District 7. | Photo Credit: OCPS; (R)  Strenth (front) and the staff and faculty at PLES have vowed to wear specially designed pink shirts on Wednesdays to support a fellow teacher who is fighting cancer. | Photo Credit: PLES