Amanda Martinez is the Principal of KIPP Freedom Middle School in the Bronx, where she creates joyful, student-powered schools where students and adults thrive. Her students grow into creative problem solvers who tackle real issues for real audiences, with real stakes — work that has produced students who won the KIPP Social Justice Fair, lead a high-impact Student Council, were selected as 2025–2026 NYC Junior Ambassadors under the Office of the Mayor, and built community campaigns with visible impact across the school and local community.

Amanda's path to school leadership began in the humanities before shifting into the arts. She earned her B.A. in Art History from Lehman College, and spent nearly a decade teaching visual arts before moving into school leadership. She became a KIPP NYC Principal in Residence in 2022 and Principal of KIPP Freedom Middle School in 2023. She also studied Art Museum Education as part of the inaugural cohort at the City College of New York. 

Amanda's own leadership journey started as a 7th grader when she joined Christodora, an organization that uses nature to cultivate leadership skills in young people. Today, KIPP Freedom partners with Christodora to offer that same opportunity to her own students. In 2023, she received Christodora's Living Legacy Award for her work in cultivating student leadership around environmental advocacy.