{"id":313431,"date":"2026-06-19T19:38:13","date_gmt":"2026-06-19T19:38:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/313431\/"},"modified":"2026-06-19T19:38:13","modified_gmt":"2026-06-19T19:38:13","slug":"the-last-walk-north-principal-debbie-diggs-to-retire-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/313431\/","title":{"rendered":"The Last Walk | North Principal Debbie Diggs to retire"},"content":{"rendered":"


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North Fort Myers High School Principal Debbie Diggs takes one last selfie with her final graduating class, the Class of 2026. She is retiring on July 1 after 35 years of service with the School District of Lee County. PROVIDED<\/p>\n

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Debbie Diggs with her three sons, Drayton, Christian and George \u201cJordan\u201d and husband George. PROVIDED<\/p>\n

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North Fort Myers High School Principal Debbie Diggs with some students before her retirement on July 1. The sign is a reminder: \u201cOnce a Red Knight, Always a Red Knight.\u201d PROVIDED<\/p>\n

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North Fort Myers High School Principal Debbie Diggs is retiring July 1 after 35 years with the district. PROVIDED<\/p>\n

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After 35 years in education \u2014 10 of which have been spent at North Fort Myers High School \u2014 Principal Debbie Diggs is retiring on July 1.<\/p>\n

Her 35 years were spent in the district office, various schools, as a principal lead working with other high school principals and as a mentor to brand-new first-year principals in the later part of her career.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat has been a different leg of my career that has been very rewarding \u2014 being able to help with that as well,\u201d Diggs said. \u201cNorth has been a really great place. I know the team is going to continue with success. I am excited to continue to follow them and watch them grow.\u201d<\/p>\n

Diggs began working in the School District of Lee County in 1991, first as a math teacher at Caloosa Middle School before moving to Charlotte High School as a math teacher for a year. She then returned to the district as a math teacher and then a dean at Lehigh Senior High School for almost four years.<\/p>\n

Her journey then took her to the district office where she spent seven years in curriculum and staff development.<\/p>\n

Diggs said she then opened Ida Baker High School and spent 11 years there as an assistant principal of operations and then assistant principal of curriculum.<\/p>\n

\u201cNorth was my first and last principal job,\u201d she said, which began in July 2016. \u201cI opened Ida Baker \u2013 it\u2019s a very different feel when you go into a school that is already 60 years old and rich in tradition and history.\u201d<\/p>\n

Diggs said there was a very small senior class the first year Ida Baker opened who had the opportunity to decide on the motto, school colors, mascot, and traditions.<\/p>\n

North is known for its respect, pride, tradition, and success.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you see the kids, they live that. Most of the kids that come to North \u2014 audition in, or apply to get in \u2014 are already highly passionate about what they are doing \u2014 high academics, dancer, cello player \u2014 whatever their arts are, they already have that passion, so many of them,\u201d Diggs said. \u201cThey just have a super heavy work ethic and chase that success. That is what I see time and time again with our kids.\u201d<\/p>\n

The families also love, and are obsessed with, North to the core.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou see that with the spirit, pep rally days and game days,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

A newer tradition is the ginormous red knight that sits in the center of the campus. This knight has become a favorite spot for photographs \u2014 the first day of school for the student\u2019s freshmen, sophomore, junior and senior year.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur Cape Coral kids particularly, and North Fort Myers, too, they go away to school, and they come back here because it is where their families are,\u201d Diggs said. \u201cYou see them out and about in the community.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although there have been many memories, and highlights from the last decade, Diggs said the students stand out the most.<\/p>\n

Academic growth sits at the forefront.<\/p>\n

When she first arrived at North, the school grade was a B. In 2019-2020 the school jumped into the No. 1 spot with student grades and has remained there ever since, she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am proud of the kids and the work the teachers have done with continued support of academics,\u201d she said, adding that they earned even more points this year.<\/p>\n

With earning that No. 1 spot, Diggs said it means higher graduation rates, and kids improving academically.<\/p>\n

\u201cCollectively as a staff, we were very unified in what our goals were and we are always working with every single kid,\u201d she said. \u201cWe take each kid and help them move forward \u2013 kid, by kid. We have an incredible staff.\u201d<\/p>\n

Diggs said her teams meet every other week and look at data to see where they are, what they need and individualize their instruction.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe talk about it all the time and review data all the teens do their thing and see how excited they become when they meet their own goals.<\/p>\n

This recent graduation was both nostalgic and amazing for the retiring principal because as her students were ending their high school career, so was she. Diggs spent a lot of time at their events, activities, and sporting events.<\/p>\n

The new principal, Chris Drake, who is coming from Challenger Middle School will take the helm July 1 as a first-time high school principal. Diggs said the Drake family has a long history at North Fort Myers High School.<\/p>\n

\u201cI worked with both his dad, and uncle. Frank Drake retired after 40 years of teaching and coaching and his uncle, John Drake, was the assistant principal when I first came to North,\u201d she said.\u00a0 \u201cHe is very connected with the North community and has already been working with kids from the West Zone. I think he is going to be a great fit for North and I am very happy for my kids and staff because they are getting someone really good.\u201d<\/p>\n

When asked what she is looking forward to once she retires, she said not setting her alarm for 4:30 every morning, as she is not a morning person.<\/p>\n

For the last 21 years, Diggs has been in the earliest job that the district has, except for transportation.<\/p>\n

In addition to waking up without an alarm clock, she is looking forward to spending time with her family, and her first grandbaby.<\/p>\n

Life as a high school principal means time that is not your own.<\/p>\n

Diggs said there were a lot of nights, and weekends away from family. She was fortunate to have her three boys at her high school, as it helped her stay super involved in their life.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll three of my boys graduated in 2016,\u201d Diggs said of her twins, and her younger son who has Down syndrome. \u201cThey all walked the stage at the same time.\u201d<\/p>\n


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