Janice D. Lombardi

Dr. Janice Lombardi has been the principal at Trinidad “Trini” Garza Early College High School at Mountain View College since 2009. The school, which is located in the southwest quadrant of Dallas, Texas, serves 424 urban high school students who are first-generation college attendees. The school has an identified enrollment of 87% Free and/or Reduced Lunch.

In November 2015, the U. S. Department of Education awarded Garza ECHS the 2015 Blue Ribbon School - high performing. Dr. Lombardi’s strengths as principal at Garza ECHS include the development of a positive, collaborative school culture focused on college success, the academic empowerment of students, the implementation of a common instructional framework, and the enactment of systems-thinking for discipline, grading, scheduling and interventions.

In her role as an early college principal, she and her team collaborate with Mountain View College on dual credit scheduling and resource sharing for the community. Dr. Lombardi has organized an academic climate (culture of achievement) as a learning leader for teachers and a purveyor of the self-management of learning for students. Her leadership style has established an emphasis on student empowerment in academics and as a discipline strategy. She plans for teacher empowerment through campus-based professional development. Her mantra is "a rising tide raises all boats" which means that all students must attain short-term wins in their journey towards scaffolded high expectations.