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    Good evening, Wolverines!
     

    I bring you greetings as the newly appointed principal of Union Grove Middle School. I am excited and thrilled to begin this journey. I am an educator with over 20 years of experience. Twelve years of my career as an educator have been here in Henry County Schools; nine were in a leadership capacity and four were as a teacher. As a school administrator, I serviced Austin Road Middle School students, parents, and stakeholders. Most recently, I have been honored to serve Union Grove Middle School students, parents, and the community as the mathematics and student services administrator. 

    My time at Union Grove Middle has resulted in increased student growth and achievement on the Georgia Milestones Assessment System in the area of mathematics compared to results prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

    I am honored to be a member of this community that I have served in the capacity of teacher and administrator. As a parent in the Union Grove community, my children have matriculated through the Union Grove cluster, and my wife served as an assistant principal at Union Grove High School for nine years. The connections that I have with the Union Grove cluster are the reasons I am vested in the continued success of Union Grove Middle. Serving and being a part of the cluster as a teacher, parent, and assistant principal has allowed me to glean the knowledge and wisdom needed to be an effective leader within the cluster.

    I am honored to be named the next principal of Union Grove Middle School. Integrity along with the desire to ensure that Union Grove Middle continues its pursuit of remaining a high-performing school that believes ALL students can learn will continue to be my top priority. 

    I look forward to meeting and exceeding expectations as I turn the page to a new chapter within my educational career.

    Regards, 

    Dwayne L. Richards

    Principal

     

    Mr. Dwayne Richards

    Born and raised in a small town outside of Charleston, South Carolina called Hollywood, Dwayne Richards discovered the rewards of hard work from his parents at an early age. After a successful educational experience in grade school and secondary school, Dwayne graduated from high school in the top ten percentile of his graduating class. After high school, Dwayne went on to attend the University of South Carolina.  While there he managed to become a well- rounded student by engaging himself in such organization as Association of African American Students, Fellowship of Christian Athletes and a member of the USC men’s basketball practice team. Dwayne graduated from the
    University of South Carolina with a Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies and a Master’s degree in Mathematics from Walden University.



    The post – graduation era for Dwayne began as a teacher’s aid at W.A. Perry Middle school, located in Columbia, South Carolina. It was there and during that time Dwayne found his passion and discovered his purpose in life, to be an educator. During the summer of 2001, Dwayne moved to Lithonia, Georgia to pursue his career as an educator, first working as a math teacher at the Academy of Lithonia for two years. He later moved into a teaching position in Dekalb County at Lithonia Middle where he taught for five years and was the Math department chair, member of the school leadership team and head boys basketball coach. Mr. Richards made the move to Henry County in
    2010, working for one year at Henry County High School and three years at Union Grove Middle. It was there where he also led the Union Grove Middle, Wolverines to it's first ever eighth grade boys basketball championship.



    Mr. Richards currently lives in Stockbridge with his wife and two children. He is excited about the upcoming school year, looking forward
    to making an impact on the students at Union Grove Middle, strives to exceed expectations every day and is proud to be a Wolverine.