Principal named for new high school in Lexington

After more than 25 years Fayette County is getting a new high school and Friday they got a new high school principal as well.

Lester Diaz is going into his 5th and final year as the principal at Bryan Station Middle School. Superintendent Manny Caulk announced that Diaz will be the principal of the new high school that is scheduled to open next year.

"This is home," Diaz told WKYT. It has been home for a while. So this transition is going to be bittersweet."

The new school is being built off Winchester Road. The unnamed school is set to open in 2017 and will be Fayette County's sixth high school.

"We want to open the doors Aug. 2017 and have the best high school in the state and the best high school in the nation, Diaz said. We want to be innovative and we want to establish a place where kids can grow and develop and find themselves in preparation for the rest of their lives."

For now the school is being called Fayette County High School number six, but Diaz told WKYT he plans to change that as soon as possible. He said one of his first priorities is to start a naming committee.

"Not just naming, mascot, color scheme the entire branding and how we are going to market and what community ties we are going to bring in," he said.

Diaz has been the principal at Bryan Station Middle School since 2012.

Diaz, who has 17 years of experience in education, started his career teaching in Miami, FL. He joined the Fayette County Public Schools in 2004, as a science teacher at Lafayette High School, where he also served as an in-school suspension instructor, dean of students, assistant athletic director, and assistant football coach. Diaz was an assistant principal at Henry Clay High School for three years before accepting the head principal’s post at Bryan Station Middle.

In his four years as principal at Bryan Station Middle, Diaz says he's seen the school grow. He said the middle school received a green ribbon from Washington D.C. and they started a Spanish Immersion program. Now, he is looking forward to incorporating what he's learned at Bryan Station into the new school.

"This is an opportunity," Diaz said. A great opportunity. To do something only a handful of leaders have done, great leaders. To start something from scratch."