The words ‘welcome back’ line the hallways of Cy Creek, displayed in a wide array of colorful posters with motivational sayings and charming drawings. The admin suite is just as vibrant—filled to the brim with balloons and handwritten messages, all there to celebrate the return of our beloved Principal Martin Drayton. From PALS, to Student Council, to Silvies, everyone at Creek gave Drayton a warm welcome back to his second year after an extended medical leave.
“It feels like I was on the worst vacation ever and now I’ve just arrived back home. I’m so ready to relax and just enjoy being back,” Drayton said.
Drayton spent nearly seventy five days recovering in the hospital from an undisclosed health issue—an experience that according to Drayton, not only taught him patience, but the value of surrounding yourself with loved ones.
“It did give me a lot of perspective on treating people with empathy and kindness, especially when they’re going through challenging times. I had so many people that literally nursed me back to health,” Drayton said. “I journaled and wrote down all of their names and everything I knew about them and their families. I was really just trying to show the love back that they were showing to me.”
Despite this setback preventing him from returning at the beginning of this school year, Drayton is excited to step back into his role at Creek. There’s a lot to get done in a shorter amount of time, but Drayton is determined to make his second year even better than the first.
“There’s a lot of challenges to address, but there’s also a lot to celebrate. Celebrating our students and creating a sense of belonging is important to me,” Drayton said. “Everybody wants to belong, right? I don’t want to be that type of principal that you can never get in touch with because I’m so busy. You guys are my busy.”
Coming into the new year, Drayton believes that there are three central goals that never stop being prioritized, no matter what campus he leads:
Ensuring Quality First-Time Instruction For Kids
Creating A Sense Of Belonging And Celebrating Accomplishments
Identifying The Needs Of Everyone And Adjusting The Necessary Approach
“Everything we do should be based on academics. We’re trying to make sure that we have kids in class on time, and we’re making sure that kids are not so disruptive that other kids can’t get their lesson,” Drayton said. “Even the ones who do fall into that pitfall sometimes and don’t make great decisions, we need to be helping them make great decisions.”
Along with making sure kids receive quality instruction time within the classroom, Drayton also wants to ensure Creek students feel seen and heard.
“We’re always identifying who’s doing great things around the campus. We have to identify what they need and then analyze data to determine what direction we should be going in so that we can support them,” Drayton said.
Drayton has been working for CFISD since 2007 and has over 24 years of experience in education, which has taught him more than he could have ever imagined.
“I think that I’m always learning lessons every single day. I am my biggest challenge because I want to consistently get better. So, the lesson is to continue to do the things that lift people up and help people grow,” Drayton said. “My goal is to make sure that the people around me get better at what they do, as well as make sure that the kids understand that we care about them and figure out how to create the best environment for them.”
Drayton is prepared to approach the 2024-2025 academic year head on, and students and staff at Creek can’t wait to see what he does next.
