INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana Department of Education and the Milken Family Foundation recently surprised Kendra Randle, executive principal at Emma Donnan Elementary and Middle School in Indianapolis, with the prestigious Milken Educator Award — which comes with a prize of $25,000 from the foundation.
The Milken Educator Awards celebrate, elevate and activate the American teaching profession and inspire young, capable people to join it. The Milken Educator Award is not a lifetime achievement honor. Recipients are heralded in early to mid-career for what they have achieved — and for the promise of what they will accomplish given the resources and opportunities earned from the award.
Kendra Randle is a champion for education and for her students. A former classroom teacher, Randle has held various administrative positions as a founding elementary dean, principal fellow and elementary principal. Randle currently serves as the executive principal at Adelante Schools’ Emma Donnan Campus in Indianapolis, where she raised the attendance rate from 84 percent in 2022 to 92 percent in 2023.
Working alongside the director of literacy, Randle helped implement a multi-faceted, data-driven adaptive change plan for elementary students to increase growth in foundational literacy. Randle also coordinates monthly family council meetings, giving parents the opportunity to become active members of the school community. Randle was chosen for the yearlong Relay Graduate School of Education’s National Principal Academy Fellowship and participated in the school’s Leverage Leadership Institute. Randle is also a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc., Alpha Mu Omega Chapter.
Randle earned a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education from Kentucky State University in 2011 and a Master of Arts in Education from Union University in 2013.
