Dr. Alissa Richards

Dr. Richards will serve as the new principal of Mahaffey Middle school. She has 8 years of elementary teaching experience before joining DoDEA in 2010 as an Instructional System Specialist at Fort Knox and Fort Campbell. In 2012 she began her administrative career as an elementary assistant principal and then principal at Central Middle School in Waterloo, Iowa. Dr. Richards was awarded the Patriotic Leadership award for outstanding support to the military community as well as the Global Leadership Award from her staff for positive culture and growth.

In 2017, Dr. Richards returned to Kentucky, leading Oldham County Middle School outside of Louisville, Kentucky. She received a Toyota grant for a PLTW implementation grant, allowing 3 STEM pathways to be introduced and connected to the local high school for students to continue their STEM passions. In 2018, Dr. Richards was awarded her Ed.D. from Liberty University after studying how participation in sports correlates to higher self-efficacy in middle school-aged students.
Dr. Richards continued her leadership by accepting a Professional Practice Improvement Specialist position with the Center for Instructional Leadership in Sembach, Germany in 2020. She and her family enjoyed being stationed in Germany supporting the East District administration community as they focused on DoDEA’s Blueprint priorities.

It is with the same passion that Dr. Richards returns to Kentucky as the Principal of Mahaffey Middle School where she is eager and excited to serve the families and community of Fort Campbell.
Dr. Richards hails from Wyoming and was a graduate of Montana State University in Billings in Elementary Education and Art, later earning a Masters in Reading and Literacy and an ED.D. in Educational Leadership. She comes from a long line of veterans including both grandfathers, her father, daughter, and husband. Together with her husband, they have a blended family of 7 children and look forward to settling in the Fort Campbell area. She enjoys sports, traveling, and hiking with her children.