DR. KENDALL RICHARDS NOW SERVING AS ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL AT WALT WHITMAN HIGH SCHOOL

Former Administrative Dean at Walt Whitman High School, Dr. Kendall Richards, is now proudly serving as one of Whitman’s new Assistant Principals. 

At an early age, Dr. Richards became a sleepaway camp counselor where he monitored his own group of 10-15 students around the clock. He taught classes there as well, and from that moment in time, he got the feeling of wanting to work with young people and to work in education. Although he was unsure if becoming a teacher was the right fit for him, his desire to enter the educational field persisted.

As a former Administrative Dean, Dr. Richards’ feels he endured a rich experience with an easy transition due to his previous roles as Assistant Principal and Administrative Dean at the Success Academy in Manhattan. “What has helped prepare me in that role is having interactions with so many different entities within a school setting,” he shared. He has been able to communicate
with various levels of the school community, including parents, students, teachers,  administrators, and staff. His focus on the underclassmen at the high school when he first started working at Whitman was also beneficial, because as a new administrator, he was able to meet new students who were starting their early years in the school along with him.

Dr. Richards was born in the Virgin Islands and then was raised in the Bronx. Around three or four years old, he moved into New York City. Later on he was recruited for the basketball team at Stony Brook University, where it took some time to become familiar with Long Island. From there, he became a School Social Worker in Rockville Center for eight years and had his first
experiences in South Huntington when he interned as a Social Worker at Henry L. Stimson Middle School during his graduate program. “Everything came full circle because working at Stimson as an intern, that was my first true professional work experience where you had to handle yourself professionally, being on time, [and] dress appropriately. I actually learned all of
those things here in South Huntington,” he said.

As Assistant Principal, Dr. Richards recognizes the heightened responsibilities, checks and balances, and the importance of “communicating early and often” with fellow administrators. He explained that social work and this administrative role have many parallels, including “the ability to interact with various facets of the school in order to support the students’ needs, family needs, and the school’s needs at the time.”

In his new position, Dr. Richards wants to be as accessible as possible, in which he said, “I want to make sure that I’m visible throughout the entire building, to make sure that everybody in the building knows that I am a reliable resource.” He wants to stay on top of attendance, keeping students coming to school, and communicating with them and their parents on school policies
and procedures. He wishes to try to “ensure that our students have the capability of reaching their goals to the highest potential.”

Dr. Richards vocalized that he will do “everything I can to support that.”

Along with his important role at Whitman, Dr. Richards finds time to maintain his personal hobbies. He loves sports, especially basketball, where he started playing in elementary school and continued on through college playing Division I. Presently, he continues to play basketball as often as he can, while also being a fan of football and baseball. Dr. Richards enjoys going to the
high school games especially to show support for our teams, coaches and staff.

Overall, he is looking forward to a successful year, and keeping up the communication between the administration. “We’re working closely together to build a strong cohesive unit within the building,” he concluded.

About Dr. Kendall Richards:
Dr. Kendall Richards began his path to education at SUNY at Stony Brook, where in May 1999 he earned his Bachelor’s in Sociology, with a minor in Women’s Studies. In May of 2001, he earned his Master’s in Social Work also at SUNY at Stony Brook, while also being a part of the International Exchange Program in San Antonio, Texas and Beijing, China. Dr. Richards earned
his Ph.D. in Education at Walden University in May 2007. At Hunter College in May 2009, he completed School/District Administration and Supervision. He earned several certifications, including the NYS School Building Leader and School District Leader Certification, the NYS Licensed Master Social Worker (LMSW) and the New York Social Work Certification. He has
also been a part of several professional memberships, including President of the Eta Theta Lambda Alumni Chapter: Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., President of the Concerned Fathers Association of Wheatley Heights, and President of the Jack and Jill Fathers Auxiliary. Dr. Richards had much experience in education before joining the South Huntington family. He was a School Social Worker at South Side Middle School/High School in the Rockville Centre Union Free School District from September 2002 to June 2010. During that same time, he was a Home Instruction Program Coordinator. From June 2010 to December 2015, he served as Senior Dean of Scholars at the Success Academy Charter School. From September 2016 to December
2017, he was an Adjunct Professor at Touro College. Dr. Richards served as Assistant Principal at Success Academy High School before most recently, he was Administrative Dean at South Huntington’s Walt Whitman High School.

Dr. Richards began his new position as Assistant Principal on July 1, 2021.

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