Richard Southerland
Richard started his teaching career at the Dekalb Alternative Open Campus serving kids who didn’t fit into a typical school program. He later joined the Navy flight school , and upon leaving the military came back to the Atlanta area and landed a teaching job at NHS in the early 1980’s. Richard started Gwinnett County’s first AP Psychology program, and then later taught the IB Psychology program at Norcross. He remembers teaching in the same classroom for 18 years at the Beaver Ruin location, and worked his up to the #2 draw in the parking lot lottery. While at the school, he started the NHS chapter of Amnesty International, involving students in advocating for the rights of political prisoners. Most recently, Richard is known for his involvement with Relay for Life. He has guided the construction efforts of the award winning NHS fund-raising efforts since their first Relay. He has built a 50’ long houseboat, 35’ tall replicas of both the Golden Gate Bridge and the Matterhorn. He will continue to be involved in Relay for the coming years.

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