Richard holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Oakland University in Communications and Marketing, he is an award winning educational speaker and author. He has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, The Detroit News, Fox News and was part of a national bully prevention expert panel on Voice America.
Born with a birth defect (his right arm is missing three fingers and shorter than his left), he has never let this so-called disability prevent him from living his dreams.
At age 11, Richard taught himself ventriloquism and at 12, he began to sharpen his business and presentation skills by producing and marketing a weekly show in his parent’s garage. He would charge 10 cents to get in and 25 cents to get out.
In his early years Richard worked at Sears as a credit authorizer and performed ventriloquist shows and puppet shows throughout Michigan. When he decided to leave the so called “real job” and start his own entertainment company, his boss told him that “he would be back,” but he was wrong. Throughout the late 70’s, 80’s and 90’s Richard’s company grew and so did his conference keynote speaking engagements and ventriloquist shows.
At a teacher’s conference in Lansing, Michigan, a teacher suggested that Richard start speaking at schools presenting self-esteem and diversity awareness programs. Soon after he produced his first bully prevention program, “I Feel Good,” a program that promotes self-esteem, self-respect and understanding and couple years later he added a conflict resolution, anger management program.
In the early 1990’s several teachers requested that he produce a school bullying program that would be funny but still explain what bullying is and what a student can do if they are being bullied. Richard knew what he wanted to say, but didn’t know how he could make it funny and still be educational. After a couple years of research and several re-writes, Richard’s No Bully Club program was born. It continues to be hit at middle school assemblies and elementary school assemblies throughout the United States and Canada. He now even has clients from Japan, England, Germany, Scotland and Australia interested in bringing him into their schools to present this hilarious, powerful, education program.
Over the last three years he has added on cyber bullying programs, authored a Duck Sense Bully Prevention curriculum and speaks at many anti-bullying, bully prevention, girl bullying and principal, teacher, youth and counselor “no bullying” conferences throughout the United States and Canada. After an educational conference, keynote speech or school assembly program, many teachers, parents and students have followed Richard Paul on Twitter, joined the No Bully Club on Facebook or joined in on the No Bullying Blog to share their success stories. Days after Richard’s elementary school assemblies,’ students have sent pictures and letters discussing how they plan to end bullying, improve self-esteem and reduce conflict. At the end of many of Richard’s middle school assembly programs students have shared how his program has motivated them to be better students and inspired them to want to set goals and look forward to their future.
He is a published author and member of International Bully Prevention Association, Association for Conflict Resolution, National Self Esteem Association, Michigan PTA, Michigan Education Association, National Speakers Association and Charter member and former President of the Central Macomb Optimist Club.
Richard’s mission is to change the world “one duck at a time.” By motivating students to appreciate and respect each other, inspiring teachers, school staff and counselors to want to continually offer a daily bully prevention message, promote parental bully prevention involvement and give students the tools needed to get involved, speak up and put an end to this international crisis.
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