Hopkins Gets New Principal

The following is a release from Hopkins School:

Vincent A. Calarco, President of the Committee of Trustees of Hopkins School in New Haven, announced today the appointment of Kai Bynum as Head of School, effective July 1, 2016. He will succeed Barbara Riley who is retiring after a 15-year tenure.

“We are pleased to have an educator with Kai’s talent, integrity, leadership and passion for education join Hopkins”, said Calarco. ​“Hopkins is as strong as it has ever been as Barbara Riley comes to the end of her outstanding tenure. We are excited about the prospect of Kai Bynum building on that strength for the future.”

In his current position at Roxbury Latin, in the greater Boston, Massachusetts area, Bynum is responsible for all academic departments and leads the research, design and implementation for the School’s curriculum development, for key elements of the strategic plan and for a range of school-wide programs. Under his leadership, the School has successfully launched an innovative STEM program, expanded its summer program, initiated a campus plan and athletic facilities project, and managed critical issues involving the academic life of the school.

“I am deeply honored to be invited to join the Hopkins community”, said Bynum. ​“The School’s tradition of developing both intellect and character speaks to my own values that have called me to this vocation. I am excited by this opportunity to build upon the culture of excellence that serves as the foundation for this extraordinary institution.”

Bynum received a B.A. in History at the University of Washington and earned an M.L.A. in Literature at Harvard University, an Ed.M. at Columbia University’s Teachers College, and an Ed.D. at the University of Pennsylvania. He began his teaching career in public schools and has worked as an English teacher, an adviser, a coach, and a senior administrator at The Governor’s Academy and Belmont Hill School, both in Massachusetts. He has served as a trustee for the International Boys’ Schools Coalition, the Glen Urguhart School in Massachusetts, the Nashoba Brooks School in Massachusetts, and served on advisory councils on multiculturalism and diversity for the National Association of Independent Schools.