For National Principals Month, we are highlighting school leaders who have made valuable contributions to their schools and communities. A few of the people they’ve impacted the most tell their inspiring stories. This week, Alexis Morada shares about her principal, Derek Bellow.

With more than 3,000 students, our school, Liberty High School in Henderson, NV, is one of the biggest in the state. You would think that a school with that many students would be sort of an impersonal place where it’s impossible for the administrators to get to know all the students.

But that’s not true at Liberty, and it’s because of our principal, Mr. Bellow. He knows so many students here by name. You see it when he walks down the hallways and talks to everyone. I think that’s one of the things that really makes him a great principal—he makes sure he knows his students and staff. And he helps to ensure there’s a real sense of community at our school, whose mascot is “The Patriot.” We know we are all part of the Patriot family, which is what we call it.

Culture is really important at our school, and Mr. Bellow is willing to say yes to all kinds of events and activities. That’s important to the student council because we are always coming up with new things that we want to do to keep things exciting, like playing music during lunch, or holding games and activities after school. That’s what creates traditions and makes Liberty so unique.