Employee Directory

Lou Candel

• Athletic Director; Varsity Coach
• 718-836-9800 x3780
• Email
• Dyker Heights
• Middle School, Upper School

“The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than facts…I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it.” —Charles Swindoll

The son of a celebrated lacrosse and basketball coach at Nassau Community College, Lou Candel starred in both sports while growing up on Long Island, eventually becoming a Division III All-American attackman in lacrosse and team captain in basketball at Amherst College. After graduation, his professional career took him to Wall Street, local arenas as a sports reporter for Newsday, and back to Long Island as owner of the Ultimate Gaga event venue. All the while, he retained his ties to lacrosse as a youth coach before taking over the Poly boys’ program in 2017. Lou believes that his main goal is “for this to be an experience for kids to look back 20 years from now and remember the positive athletic experience they had and the friends they made.” In 2024, Candel was named Athletic Director.

Away from Poly, Lou is a board member of the Joe Lapchick Character Award Foundation.

Athletics  Physical Education