Marlen Martinez has been selected as the new principal of Ortiz Middle School. An HISD alumnus, Martinez has served students as a teacher, magnet coordinator, and an assistant principal. Most recently, she served as the principal at Lewis Elementary School, where she built a strong academic program that shepherded the school out of Improvement Required (IR) status into meeting state standard. She earned a bachelor’s degree at Texas State University and a master’s degree from the University of Houston-Clear Lake.