Emilly De Farias Weihrauch
After a search of two months looking for a new Malden High School principal, an official announcement was released on February 13th via the official Malden Public Schools website. In this statement, Superintendent Dr. Timothy Sippel welcomed Michael Sabin (SAY-bin) as the successor to principal Christopher Mastrangelo.
He will be put into position starting July 1st, 2026.
Michael Sabin is a Harvard College graduate, and prior to applying to Malden High, was a four-year executive director of Boston Public Schools, working in school transformation. In total, he has had 35 years of experience in education, which he started in Cambridge, Massachusetts back in 1991.
According to AdvocateNews, Sabin was known for his distinct roles, being principal in the districts of Waltham and Boston for a combined total of 12 years. Additionally, he was also a school leader of a combined Somerville elementary and middle school.
This final decision was made after consecutive rounds of interviews with Maldonians across the city, involving Malden High School staff, students, parents, and caregivers.
Sippel highlighted Sabin’s excellence in leadership, noting how “he is very committed to people, both the adults in the building and also, most importantly, the students in the building.”
The process first began with an open-ended survey on January 16th, 2026, which was distributed via StudentSquare and email. Then, a series of three listening sessions were held to assess the qualities students valued in a principal, consisting of: a random selection of students, non-English speakers, and any volunteers.
Sippel commended Sabin’s goal of wanting to foster an enviroment at Malden High that challenges everyone to their utmost abilities.
“I think what was a consistent theme is how deeply committed he is to making sure that students are really given what they deserve, and he really cares about making sure that that happens,” Sippel noted.
“Sabin is bilingual, fluent in Spanish, including seven years as a bilingual teacher in Cambridge and Lawrence, as well as a year abroad, teaching at a high school in the Central American country of Colombia in 2007-2008,” Sippel stated in an interview with AdvocateNews. This aspect of Sabin was one of the things that distinguished him from the rest of the finalists.
“He’s very committed, he’s very humble from this standpoint. He comes to work not thinking that he has all the answers, but that the people who are teaching the students have a lot of answers, that if they are given the opportunity to work with each other and given some really consistent support and direction, that they can become stronger and support students better than they could on their own separately,” concluded Sippel.
As for Sabin’s plans for the school year, he wishes to take everything in and “hit the ground listening,”, learning the wants and needs of Malden .
Since Sabin’s official announcement, he has met and introduced himself to various groups of students, teachers, parents, and caregivers.
Senior Linh Do, and juniors Amelia Berliner and Sophia Chen, who met with Sabin in his formal introduction to the students, voiced their opinions in response.
Berliner, who is president of the junior class of 2027, expressed an initial reluctance with the transition of current principal Mastrangelo to Sabin, yet she is willing to get to know him better.
Berliner also wondered how his experience as a middle school principal will transfer to a high school. She wondered “how he will be able to support our class and the duties,” naming specific annual events like Junior Varieties and prom, as well as how he will specifically adjust to the culture of Malden High. She stated that the experiences of middle school and high school are vastly different from one another.
“He has an outgoing personality, and he seems like he will be able to learn, grow, and integrate himself into this community, but it will no doubt take some time. It’s always hard to start something new, whether that’s sports, a hobby, or a new school. Whenever you try something new, it will be an adjustment, but I do think once he finds his footing here at Malden High, he will make a fitting principal,” continued Berliner
Given the circumstances of how Mastrangelo’s departure was received with a protest and walkout from the students, there have been initial doubts about how Sabin will be perceived by students.
On the contrary, junior Student Advisory Board representative, Chen, welcomed him with open arms. “At first glance, he seemed like a person who had a lot of experience with teaching. I was surprised with his willingness to accept Malden as his own and his strong opinions.”
Chen expressed how students may be reluctant to adjust to a new authority figure since a principal’s role “t has so much emphasis on the students.” She added, “Filling Mr. Mastrangelo’s shoes is definitely going to be a challenge, where students will approach with curiosity and a new avenue of learning.”
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