Superintendent Michael Maine will recommend Mrs. Cristina Smith for appointment as the new principal of Jensen Beach Elementary School during an upcoming meeting of the Martin County School Board.
Mrs. Smith brings two decades of educational experience and a strong record of instructional leadership to her new role. She currently serves as the principal of Warfield Elementary School, where she has led a schoolwide culture of high expectations, strategic collaboration, and continuous improvement since 2019.
A familiar and respected leader in the Martin County School District, Mrs. Smith previously served as assistant principal at Pinewood Elementary School, where she was named the District’s Assistant Principal of the Year for the 2018–2019 school year. Her background also includes roles as a title I program specialist, math coach and interventionist, and classroom teacher at Port Salerno Elementary School.
Ms. Smith is a frequent presenter at regional and national education conferences and has received numerous recognitions throughout her career, including a Bright Spot in Hispanic Education designation from the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics and the Florida Association of School Administrators’ Little Red Schoolhouse Award.
She holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology from the University of Colorado at Boulder and a master’s degree in educational leadership and policy studies from the University of Texas at Arlington. Ms. Smith also earned a Certificate in School Management and Leadership from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and Harvard Business School.