Hero ex-principal Nadia Lopez banned from school she founded
Nadia Lopez, the former Brownsville principal who went viral after a student praised her on Humans of New York as the most influential person in his life – and people donated nearly $1.4 million for her “scholars” to visit Harvard – might understandably get VIP treatment when returning to the school she founded.
Instead, small-minded city educrats treated her like a prowler when she paid a visit to the school on April 13.
“I was told that my presence creates tension. I literally was told that I shouldn’t come back,” a stunned Lopez said on a cell phone video moments after leaving Mott Hall Bridges Academy.
She is now under DOE investigation for “unauthorized” visits, taking photos of students without permission, and posting images on her Instagram page, officials said.
“I can’t even express how hurtful this is,” Lopez told The Post.
She said she’s never been accused of any misconduct and wants nothing more than to lift up the 6-8 middle school and its 204 students, 98 percent of them low-income black and Hispanic. “I’m invested in it.”
After 10 years as principal, Lopez resigned from the school in 2021 to battle an autoimmune kidney disease, which doctors attributed to work-related stress — 12- to 14-hour days and what she called a lack of support by the DOE.
But she stayed in contact with Mott Hall Bridges colleagues and graduates – who call the school a second family – while gaining renown as a motivational speaker, consultant and leadership coach. She recently launched a podcast, Detention, which discusses the problems of public education.
The conflict with DOE brass erupted when Lopez was being filmed near Mott Hall Bridges for a documentary on empowering black girls, along with Laquana Lane, an alumnus who survived cancer at age 16.
Laquana wanted to visit a beloved teacher, Ms. Graham. So the two stepped into the school – and signed in with the safety agent.
Laquana, now 21, hugged and talked with her sixth-grade teacher, as Lopez stood by.
They also told the acting principal, Laura Onwuka, about Laquana’s trip to Ghana, which Lopez helped arrange through a non-profit run by a fashion model and activist she was mentoring. “It was a good conversation,” Laquana recalled.
But as they walked out, District 23 Superintendent Miatheresa Pate and her deputy, Josephine Van-Ess approached. Within earshot of Laquana, Pate told Lopez she was not welcome to return to the school.
“I was shocked,” Laquana said. “I felt bad for Ms. Lopez, knowing she wasn’t allowed to come back to the school she built. It was pretty sad.”
According to insiders, the friction started during a prior surprise visit in March. Lopez sat with Onwuka for nearly an hour, sharing the school’s history and best practices. She also gave her successor a bag with a candle, mug, box of tea, journal and signed copy of her book.
She also handed out mini-packages for teachers with Lifesavers and other candy, packs of tissue and flower seeds” — “because you plant seeds into (students’) lives.”
But she later ruffled feathers by sending faculty members an e-mail titled “Thank you team” that was critical of how the school is being run.
“It’s very clear that the current climate and culture does not represent the expectations I set for our scholars or the staff of our beloved school” she wrote. ”Those currently appointed to the role of [Mott Hall Bridges] leadership by the DOE, have no idea what it means to be a part of something that was created to defy mediocrity and the status quo.”
Lopez said teachers had confided in her about low staff morale.
During that visit Lopez also chatted with students, reminding some roaming the halls to get back to class. She filmed a short video and snapped photos of students doing work, posting several images on her Instagram page.
“It’s something I always did to celebrate the children of Brownsville in a world that had low expectations of them,” she said.
The Special Commissioner of Investigation for city schools confirmed Friday that the school lodged a complaint against Lopez. The SCI said it referred the complaint back to the DOE’s Office of Special Investigations. A DOE spokesman said the agency would not comment.
The DOE slap in the face comes despite Lopez bringing widespread acclaim for a public school in a poor, violence-plagued neighborhood. Lopez and Vidal Chastanet, the eighth-grader who spoke to Humans of New York, appeared on TV with Robin Roberts and Ellen DeGeneres.
President Obama invited Lopez and Vidal to visit him in the Oval Office. Lopez later received a “Black Girls Rock” award at an event featuring Michelle Obama.
Lopez gave a “TED Talk,” a popular online lecture, on her management style and mantra: “He who opens a school door, closes a prison,” as Victor Hugo put it.
For four years, Lopez used donations to take students in sixth to eighth grade on visits to Harvard – to let them know they belonged at the most prestigious institutions – as well as Yale, St. Francis College, LaGuardia Community College and historically black colleges.
She wrote a book, “The Bridge to Brilliance; How one principal in a tough community is inspiring the world.”
