“I’m back again,” Frederick Hardy, the new principal of Bruce K. Craig Elementary School said with a laugh.

Hardy worked at B.K. Craig Elementary as a fifth grade teacher for five years before he was called to be the assistant principal of Keith High School last year.

When he got the call to be the principal of B.K. Craig Elementary Hardy said, “I figured it was my destiny to get back here.”

Hardy admits initially he was worried about returning to the school where he used to work.

“At first I thought it was going to be difficult,” Hardy said. “The past five years I worked with these people; their gripes were my gripes. And now I have to come back as their principal.”

Hardy said he felt it was easier to be the head of somewhere new. “In the back of my mind it was always a question of how successful I would be coming back to work in a familiar place,” Hardy said.

Hardy’s fears however, came without warrant.

“It’s been a wonderful experience. I was welcomed with a very warm reception,” he said. “The teachers, staff went about and beyond to make my grand entrance very successful and smooth.”

Hardy’s experience as a teacher has helped prepare him for his role as principal

“I think to really understand the role of a principal you have to have been a teacher,” he said. “I know how [the teachers] feel when they say, ‘We can’t get this done,’ or ‘We need more time,’ because I was in their shoes.”

One of the best things to come out of Hardy’s return to B.K. Craig Elementary is the air of familiarity the teachers, students and parents feel.

“They know me,” Hardy said of the students. “It was no big surprise to them, having to learn someone new. It was good for them to see a familiar face.”

Hardy said that they parents were also very happy with his return. “They feel comfortable coming in,” he said.

Being a good listener is something that Hardy says is key to being a good principal. After listening, you turn into a problem-solver and do you’re best to make everybody happy, he said.

Hardy’s goal as principal is to be a mentor to these kids, he said. “They’re influenced most by the people that they are around. This is where it all begins,” he said. “I feel like if I’m successful doing my part of being able to reach them while they are young, It will make their life better; it will make middle school better.”

Hardy said he loves his job and loves interacting with the kids each day.

“I try to give them the image that I’m approachable, but at the same time I expect great things out of them.”