Chad Brady came to Loy Norrix unsure of what the school year would hold.
After 11 years at Kalamazoo Central as an AP U.S. History teacher, Brady decided to move on to a new role. He has joined Loy Norrix this year as an interim assistant principal and will be located in the B wing, working mainly with 9th and 10th grade students.
Being a school administrator will tap into a new skill set for Brady. Brady became a teacher because he loves working with kids and wants to make a difference in their lives. Brady is passionate about teaching government, history and geography and wanted to be a teacher since he was a child.
“My first love will always be teaching,” Brady said.
Despite this, Brady decided to step up and take on this new role as a challenge to himself. He has always wanted to touch as many lives as he can with his work and change them for the better. As an administrator, Brady feels that he will be able to guide more students in the right direction.
“My goal is to see these kids graduate on time with their class,” said Brady.
As an assistant principal, Brady handles business with the 9th and 10th grade students. Most of the issues he deals with are behavioral, but he is also there to help and support any students struggling in school or students that just need someone to talk to. His main role is to figure out how to keep kids in classrooms while minimizing disruptions.
Brady believes that although he is jumping into a very demanding role, all the stress will be worth it when he sees the students he’s worked with walking across the stage at graduation. Brady hopes to work with teachers, having a deep understanding of the classroom because his prior teaching experience.
Due to his many years of experience teaching in the Kalamazoo Public School District, Brady believes that he can relate well to teachers and understand what they need help with.
Atiba Ward, the business teacher here at Loy Norrix and a former colleague of Brady’s at Kalamazoo Central shared his thoughts about Brady.
“I used to work with him at Central. He’s a hard worker, I’m excited that they [the administration] hired someone who knows the district,” said Ward.
Brady was inspired by his own teachers as a child and said, “I’m still very close with many of them today,” which is not common among most adults today. The same teachers he adored when he was young, showed him the importance of an education and all the doors it can open. These are the people that inspired Brady to follow in their footsteps and make a difference in young people’s lives.
Brady intends to point students in the right direction. “I want them to think about what they want for themselves in the future,” said Brady.
Brady wants students to set goals and hopes to help them achieve these goals, ”I’d like to pave a way for kids to reach their goals,” said Brady.
Brady plans to keep students on the path to success and hopes to see every student at Loy Norrix graduate with their graduating class.
Brady said, “If they start slacking off now, they get caught in a vicious cycle that spirals downhill.”
Student attendance and behavior are also on his to do list. He plans to get students to understand how important their actions now are for their future.
Brady tries to relate to students by talking with them and understanding their needs. He counsels students that have been in trouble and tries to keep them in the classroom and give them the tools they need to succeed. Brady plans to work with with staff very closely in the coming years finding out what they need and how he can help them to help their students.
“I might have changed titles, but I’ll always be a teacher,” said Brady.
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Teacher to Administrator: Chad Brady Joins the Loy Norrix Staff
October 25, 2017
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