The New School was fortunate enough to gain TWO new fabulous teachers this summer. Brad Lopes joined our faculty in August, but already feels like he’s been here for more creating his classes, leading an advisory, and getting to know the teachers. Brad refers to his role at The New School as his “dream job,” and is super excited to be part of this cooperative leadership model! 
A little about Brad: He graduated from the University of Maine at Farmington with a Bachelor’s Degree in Secondary Education: Social Studies and a minor in Psychology. His areas of interest include: the Revolutionary Atlantic Period, the World Wars, and the Slave Trade. He was born in New Bedford, Massachusetts, and is a member of the Aquinnah Wampanoag Tribe, located on Martha’s Vineyard. He was told frequently throughout his life that despite moving to Maine when only slightly over a year old that he will never be considered a “True Mainer”. However, after many winters of shoveling he would have to argue otherwise.
Brad states, “after many years of conjuring up images of what my ideal school would be like in my head, I believe I have found it here at TNS. A school that is democratically based, with students making crucial, important decisions about their own education, is certainly a school that I would love to call home. In many ways, I believe my journey through the state of Maine may be coming to a head as I transition to the only part of Maine I have never spent time in, and I am extremely excited to begin. Being someone who is new to the area and a beginning teacher, I am looking forward to this journey, as it is something I have looked forward to for years now.”
Brad finds hands-on learning in ways outside the classroom:
“I recently crossed something off of my bucket list this year, and it was something I have been looking forward to for awhile. After planning for many years, I went out and got my motorcycle license as well as a 2008 Honda Rebel. Right away, I knew I was going to have to replace the back tire to make sure it would pass inspection. To avoid spending an excessive amount of money, I asked my father to put the tire on with me since he is an avid rider and mechanic. Once we had it on, we said our good byes and I took off with my new back tire ready to go.
Now, my father lives roughly 30 minutes away from me. Despite that, it took me 2 hours to get home. Every single thing a motorcyclist can experience occurred during that ride. A vent hose to my gas tank kept getting caught in an area that would cause my bike to shut off by itself if pressure built up enough. This probably occurred 8-10 times during the ride. Someone almost ran me off the road during one of the moments this happened. It rained and thundered not once, but twice. On top of that, I was also chased by a dog that wouldn’t give up. That nice, relaxing ride became a storm of everything you can throw at a biker. In the end though, despite that dog almost catching me, I believe I’m a better rider for going through that mayhem.”
