In his first year as Floral Park Memorial’s assistant principal, Mr. Kenny may appear to be a new face to the students, but he certainly is not new to the district, or even our school.

Mr. Kenny worked at Floral Park Memorial as a guidance counselor from 1997 until 2000. He then served as the Chairperson of Student Support Services until 2006. At this time, Mr. Kenny left Floral Park, but remained in the district, serving as the assistant principal at H. Frank Carey High School for eight years. While he enjoyed his time in this role, Mr. Kenny is “very happy to be back.”

When he received the promotion to assistant principal, Mr. Kenny thought the transition would be difficult. He was concerned that he would have less time doing what he loves most, directly helping students overcoming obstacles to achieve success in their lives. But he was pleased to find out that the change in positions was easier than he thought it would be.

“I thought I would miss my job,” Mr. Kenny said. “But I didn’t realize that I probably do as much counseling as an assistant principal as I did as a guidance counselor, and certainly more than I did as the chairperson.”

Mr. Kenny added, “The most challenging aspect about being the assistant principal is learning the different personalities of the student population, faculty and staff.” Fortunately, his previous years working at Floral Park Memorial will help him tremendously with this transition.

In addition to his passion to help students, Mr. Kenny is also a big basketball fan. He believes that basketball is yet another way for him to interact with students and staff. He coached several years on the junior high level at Floral Park Memorial. Mr. Kenny did an outstanding job developing young talent in the program that enjoyed tremendous success on the varsity level. His favorite teams are the New York Knicks and St. John’s University. He is very excited about returning to a school with an excellent basketball tradition. His passion for the game will be obvious as he provides support to each team on every level.

If you see him in the gym cheering on the Knights, be sure to say hello to our great “new” addition.