Gullett Elementary principal chosen to lead new K-8 school in Lakewood Ranch

While packing his office at Gullett Elementary School, Principal Todd Richardson stumbled upon an East County Observer article that showed a photo of him moving into his classroom at the new Freedom Elementary School. 

He recalled the excitement of being a part of the staff that opened the new elementary school in 2003.

As a teacher, Richardson didn’t have to make the decision in hiring teachers and staff or programming for the school, but he did have to help make smaller decisions that would have an impact on the every day life of a student, such as how students get to and from the carline? 

Richardson didn’t know that 21 years later, he would be preparing to open a new school once again, but this time, as a principal. 

Richardson has been named the principal of the new K-8 school being constructed in Lakewood Ranch. 

“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, especially this type of school being a K-8,” he said. “This is the first one that the district is building with the K-8 concept because the other schools added an elementary or added a middle. This one is being built strictly for that K-8 model.”

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Leaving Gullett Elementary, where Richardson has served as principal for the past seven years, next school year is bittersweet, he said. 

He’s watched the school grow from approximately 900 students seven years ago to ending the 2023-2024 school year with approximately 1,390 students. 

“This school wasn’t designed for that (many students), so we’ve had to do some really good teamwork, problem solving and collaboration to figure out ways to create safe spaces for them and ensure our academics are still being followed through,” Richardson said. 

Richardson said leading a school with a large enrollment such as Gullett has helped him prepare to be the leader of a school with a capacity of 1,692 students in pre-K through eighth grade.

The two-story elementary building on the K-8 campus is being constructed first followed by the administration building and media center. Work on the dining, arts and music facilities will follow, with the gymnasium coming soon after. 

The elementary portion of the school is projected to open in August 2025. 

Then the one-story middle school building will be the final facility constructed with a projected completion of January 2026, but middle school students will not be on campus until August 2026.

Richardson said the district has indicated the elementary school potentially will be open to school choice in the first year to hold off on rezoning school zones until the 2026-2027 school year as two other elementary schools in the northern part of Manatee County open. 

Once the K-8 school opens, Richardson said enrollment at the overcrowded Gullett Elementary will decrease. 

With students in pre-K through eighth grade being on the same campus, Richardson said creating a positive, collaborative, community culture will be imperative. 

“We want to create a K-8 school, not an elementary school and then the middle school sharing the grounds,” he said. “This is going to be a K-8 school. We’re going to build the culture that no matter what grade level you are, you’re a member of our school. We’re here to care for one another, we’re here to look after and support each other.”

He said a focus is on creating a good community within a classroom. The classrooms are grouped together by grade level. Students generally only interact with students in other grade levels during recess, physical education or dismissal. 

“If teachers can build a good community within the classroom, the students see them and their peers in their classroom and they don’t realize they’re one of 1,400 kids,” he said. 

Richardson said he wants to incorporate leadership and mentorship opportunities for the middle school students. He said there will likely be opportunities for the older students to work with the younger students. He said not only will the students be able to work together but so will teachers. 

Richardson said he’s awed knowing he will have the opportunity to have an impact on 10 years of each student’s life, a majority of their formative years. 

He said knowing how long the students will be at the school makes it more crucial to have the “best teachers, the best programs and the best curriculum.”

“You want to give them every opportunity for success because they are going to be there for a very long time in their childhood,” he said. “We have to get the parents right on board with us early on and often keep them a part of the community as well.”

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Richardson has tried to develop a positive and fun school culture by his willingness to dress up in costumes and participate in special activities as rewards for students. 

In the 2023-2024 school year alone, Richardson sang karaoke in the carline, participated in a sumo wrestler match with physical education teacher Sean Mackey, rollerbladed around the school dressed as a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle and dressed as Cupid for Valentine’s Day. He also was turned into a human hot dog and was taped to a wall. 

Richardson said his playful antics will continue at the new K-8 school. 

With a middle school comes opportunities for team sports and competing against other schools, which Richardson has not experienced as he’s spent his 28 years with the School District of Manatee County in elementary education.

He said having middle school athletic programs will boost school spirit and unite the school. 

“Having those opportunities for kids to represent their school and have the community there to celebrate with them and cheer them on creates a lot of good bonding between the kids and it creates a sense of school spirit,” Richardson said. “I’m very competitive, so going out there I will want to be coaching, cheering and I want to win, but I have to remember this is for the kids.”

Many decisions regarding the K-8 school have yet to be made and Richarson looks forward to receiving community input on various aspects of the school, including the school’s colors, name and mascot. 

“The excitement is everything’s brand new,” Richardson said. “Everything that makes the school click is going to be something we as a leadership team and a group will get to develop. At the same time, that’s also nerve wracking because you want to make sure you do it right. You only have one time to make a first impression.”