Kyle Richard, a special education teacher, is running for the Lansing School District Board of Education in the Nov. 3, 2026, general election.

He faces Guillermo Z. Lopez and Jody Washington for one partial-term seat ending Dec. 31, 2030, according to the League of Women Voters’ candidate guide. The contest is nonpartisan. Voters can check their ballot through the Michigan Voter Information Center.

The following responses come from The Lansing Letter’s candidate questionnaire. Direct quotations are Richard’s own words and have been excerpted for length. Additional information is attributed to public sources throughout.

Asked why he is running, Richard emphasized the connection between housing and education.

“This is a Housing First campaign,” he wrote. “I’m running for Lansing School Board to raise up the housing crisis as an issue that needs to be solved and an issue that directly impacts children’s education and student success.”

He also cited his classroom experience: “I’m running for Lansing School Board because I’m an educator by trade.”

Candidate information

Background: Richard said he attended Waverly Community Schools through sixth grade and Eaton Rapids Public Schools through high school. His campaign biography says he grew up one block west of Waverly Road before his family moved to Eaton Rapids.

Education: Richard reported graduating from Grand Valley State University in 2016 with a double major in secondary education and group social studies, covering history, economics and government.

He said he was “the first member of my family to attend college as a traditional student.”

Family: “Both of my parents are Navy Veterans,” Richard wrote. He described a family background that includes military service, factory work, service jobs, elder care and volunteer firefighting.

Political affiliation: Although the school board race is nonpartisan, Richard said: “I am currently a dues paying member of the Democratic Party and the Democratic Socialists of America.”

Experience and public service

Richard said his first job after college was teaching at J.W. Sexton High School, where he taught U.S. and world history from 2016 to 2018.

He returned to classroom work at Eaton Rapids Middle School as a long-term substitute in January 2025 and was hired for the 2025-26 school year, according to his questionnaire.

Richard said he currently teaches special education in the school’s resource room serving students with autism and emotional impairments.

Between 2019 and 2024, he reported working as operations manager at Lansing Art Gallery & Education Center and as a field organizer for Rashida Tlaib’s 2022 reelection campaign and NextGen America. He also listed housecleaning and pizza delivery work.

Richard served as co-chair of the Greater Lansing Democratic Socialists of America from 2021 to 2023. He said his work included introducing two-way hybrid participation at chapter meetings and bringing the chapter into compliance with national grievance-policy requirements.

He also volunteers at the Mid-Michigan Tenant Resource Center.

“I’m a regular volunteer at the Mid-Michigan Tenant Resource Center (TRC) where I help tenants navigate the system and resources that are available,” he wrote.

On the issues

Housing: Richard identified housing instability as a central concern for students and schools.

He said he would work with community, city, county and state partners to pursue housing redevelopment at school buildings the district no longer needs.

The goal, he wrote, would be housing “for families, teachers, and staff.”

Transportation: Richard said transportation is the concern he hears most often while campaigning.

“The number one issue I hear on the doors though is Transportation,” he wrote.

He said he would seek alternatives that support students from kindergarten through high school. His longer-term ideas include electric vehicles.

“Long term we may want something more akin to an all-electric Amazon fleet,” Richard wrote.

Qualifications and perspective: Asked what distinguishes him from other candidates, Richard emphasized his current classroom work, age and housing focus.

“I’m a teacher working in the classroom today, I was born in the 1990s, and this is a Housing First campaign,” he wrote.

Asked how the district should balance academics, mental health, safety, teacher retention and other competing priorities, Richard answered: “One day at a time.”

Voters can find additional information on his campaign website.