PUBLISHED JUNE 16, 2016
Mills Elementary teachers and students surprise principal with flash mob
By CARL MARIO NUDI
Mike Rio, outgoing principal of Virgil Mills Elementary School, is moving up to take a position at the Manatee County School District central office and his students wanted to give him a big send-off.
And what a big send-off it was.
On June 8, all of the students of the elementary school at 7200 69th St. E., north of Palmetto, amassed outside to surprise Rio.
As he walked out of the back door he was greeted by the students standing in five rows that stretched at least 100 yards down the side of the school building.
Rio was ushered over to mount a vertical high lift and he pushed the button that raised him at least 50 feet into the air.
Then the theme song from “The Jeffersons” television show, “Moving on Up” began to blast over the speaker and the nearly 1,200 students did a choreographed dance they had been practicing in their classrooms for weeks.
“Today was very humbling,” Rio said. “The reality is starting to sink in; I’m not going to work with kids anymore.”
Rio will start his new job as the executive director of elementary schools July 1.
“The nice thing about this job (as principal) is if I’m having a rough day I can go out and see the kids,” he said. “It’s very energizing.”
To ensure the flash mob dance was a surprise, the teachers and staff organized what they called a “clap-in” earlier in the day for the beloved principal,
All of the students stood along the wall in the halls outside their classrooms and as Rio walked past they clapped, stomped their feet, banged on drums and tambourines and gave their principal high-fives.
Some of the classes threw confetti, blew bubbles, and held banners and signs as they chanted, “Rio, Rio, Rio …” wishing Rio good luck.
A clap-in is traditionally reserved for the outgoing 5th graders on their last day of school, as they get ready for middle school.
The reverberation off the walls of the cheers and clapping of the students heightened the excitement level.
It was obvious that the show of love and appreciation was very emotional for Rio.
As he walked past the classes he gave hugs and handshakes to the teachers and staff.
“These people are like family,” Rio said. “They’re not just employees.
“I worked with some of them for more than 25 years,” he said. “Some came with me from Palmetto Elementary.”
The school planning team along with the parent-teacher organization cooked up the surprise farewell events, Assistant Principal Debbie Riley said.
“We wanted something really nice and to honor Mr. Rio,” Riley said, “which he deserves.”
She said the students have been talking about Rio’s departure for the past few weeks.
“He dedicated his life to these children,” Riley said, “and we wanted to give him a send-off through the eyes of the children.”
Rio has been the principal at Mills Elementary since it opened in 2004, and the admiration for his leadership style was reflected in the enthusasm the teachers projected in their send-off rally.
“I love the values he set for the whole school, and he lived those values every day,” said David Hahn, who started at Mills last fall as a music teacher.
“It’s nice that there’s not a lot of top-down pressure,” Hahn said.
In his new position, Rio will oversee the elementary schools, giving support and evaluations to the individual school leadership.
“Things I hope to accomplish are to increase the trust level between the schools and the district,” Rio said.
“I’m here to support those who work for me and get what they need to accomplish their goals,” Rio said.
Rio started his education career with Manatee County schools 31 years ago as an itinerate teacher, traveling between Myakka, Oneco and Daughtrey elementary schools.
After one year, he started at Oneco Elementary School as a special education teacher for kindergarten through fifth grades.
In 1990, Rio became assistant principal at Palmetto Elementary School, and then principal three years later.
Rio noted an interesting point in that the principal at Oneco was Tim Kobe when he started there.
Kobe convinced him to get a masters in leadership, Rio said, the new position he taking at the school district was once held by Kobe.
Jim Mennes, the former principal of Freedom Elementary School, has been appointed as the new principal for Mills Elementary.