Bingham High School hired a new principal and for some students this may be a principal from their past. Christen Richards-Khong was announced as principal in May and was officially appointed the position in July of 2013.
Mrs. Richards-Khong was most recently the principal of the Jordan Applied Technology Center on the Salt Lake Community College campus where many Bingham students attend. She was first truly introduced to Bingham by Tom Hicks, Bingham High’s previous principal, and a former principal of Alta High School.
“Mr. Hicks indoctrinated me to Bingham when he was my boss at the district office,” said Mrs. Richards-Khong. “Through them I learned about Bingham and all the rich traditions and the great things, so much so that it was a place that we looked for our children to attend. We don’t live in the boundary, but we permit in.”
Although Bingham is not the closest school for Mrs. Richards-Khong and her family, she believes it’s worth the travel.
“It was our school of choice, even before I became principal,” she said.
Bingham may have a new principal, but Mrs. Richards-Khong isn’t ready to make any big changes to her school of choice just yet. She instead wants to meet the students that she is in charge of.
“Really this year is all about me learning about Bingham,” said the school’s new principal. “I’m just learning about the students, the faculty, the school, and the traditions, so I’m not really anxious to change anything drastic at all.”
Mrs. Richards-Khong is new to the school, but already speaks highly of the accomplishments Bingham High School has made. She even hopes to keep the tradition of excellence continuing.
“With any organization you have to be able to build a vision just so it can stay alive,” explained Mrs. Richards-Khong. “So what you have to do is look at the things that have made it great and try to do those things that will keep it vital. As a new person you have to come in and make sure you don’t have any unintended consequences by your actions because you want to keep all the great things in place and feed the great programs, making sure you’re taking care of all the students.”
The new principal is looking forward to getting to know the students and changing Bingham for the better
