Faculty

Stephanie Nicole Lee
Co-Director / Las Montañas (6-7-8)
Stephanie grew up in Illinois, studied architecture in Ohio and French literature in Colorado. She is the mother of two amazing children who (along with Ted Hamory) inspired her to open a charter school. She has taught grades K-8 since coming to California in 1990 with Teach for America. She has taught in Compton, northeast LA, and downtown Long Beach in traditional and bilingual programs. Most recently, Stephanie has been teaching 6-7-8 grade math, Spanish language arts, and U.S. history. She considers her biggest accomplishments to be raising nice kids, learning Spanish, and taking the 8th graders to Washington, D.C. Outside of school Stephanie advocates for peace, invents vegan dishes, takes too many photos, and tries to sleep in a tent every now and then. Friends say that she does not get enough sleep; Stephanie replies, “No comment.”

Ted Wyatt Hamory
Co-Director / La Tierra (3-4-5)
Ted grew up in and around Delaware, studied economics & Spanish at Vanderbilt, and education at Pepperdine. He came to California with Teach for America in 1991 and taught in Compton, Inglewood, and Lennox before opening The New City School with Stephanie Lee, where he has taught grades K-5. Ted enjoys teaching math in 1st-5th grade, but he is best known for his Roald Dahl read-alouds. If Ted were not teaching, he would have a lot more time to watch birds, a passion he shares with his father and his children. Ted also enjoys landscape design and reading everything he can get his hands on, which feeds his appetite for domestic and international politics. Friends confirm that Ted is extremely funny, but they usually think he does not like them at first; to which Ted replies, “Good.”

Brenda Rivera
Las Montañas (6-7-8)
Brenda grew up in Lynwood, CA and went to Long Beach State with a focus in Chicano studies. She worked for years as a teacher assistant in Long Beach and first came to The New City School as a student teacher. She has stayed in the middle school program ever since, teaching science and math, and now Spanish language arts too. Kids will tell you that Brenda loves to laugh, and that she really pushes them to try their hardest in everything they do. She has taught electives in everything from hip hop dancing to cooking and gardening! Outside of school, Brenda enjoys learning her history and Nahuatl through danza as well as spending time at gatherings and parties with her husband and their close-knit family. They will drive all the way to SF to see the 49ers, but her favorite long drive takes her every year to Juárez to visit her tíos and cousins.

Brooke Ann Henry
El Mar (K-1-2)
Brooke grew up in long beach after a cold stint in Illinois; she studied marine biology and art in Santa Cruz and education at Dominguez hills. Brooke was teaching for a few years in a traditional program before she came to the new city school in its second year - she knew she was home when she got to start that zoo in her classroom (the huge iguana wanders freely about) and teach her students to speak 2 languages, paint, dance, and read great stories. Brooke has trained many teachers in the district in SDAIE methods, and she served for 3 years on the NCS board. She has taught the Garden Art elective, but pet care has been the most popular elective for 2 years, so the animals are the focus these days. In addition to appreciating orchids, Brooke loves to spend time swimming in the ocean and camping with her husband and their dog Kayla.

José Hernández
El Mar (K-1-2)
José grew up in El Salvador and moved to Los Angeles in 7th grade when he started school for the first time in his life. He worked his way through college for ten years, and in 2005 he finished his credential, moved to long beach, and became a father! José is talented and extremely modest; everyone goes to him for advice on technology (he teaches our students to build computers), but his advice on living is just as appreciated. He enjoys running, eating healthy vegan food, and playing with his little boy. In school, José makes it a point to get to know his students and their families well, visiting everyone’s home and using those experiences to inform his teaching. He is best known (from his student teaching days) as the one who built a giant inflatable blue whale for his class to get inside for his incredible read-alouds at story time!

Gabriela Perez Ugalde
Music teacher / La Tierra (3-4-5)
Gabby has been teaching music at the New City School for 4 years, and before that for 12 years at home in Argentina. She plays piano, guitar, and an array of traditional and homemade instruments; her students are as likely to be seen chanting “boomchicka-boom” as they are to be singing a traditional Mexican folk song or playing the xylophone. Gabby’s accomplishments are many, but we are most proud of how her students see themselves as creators of music, rhythms, and songs. They even compose original scores for our annual fall, winter, and spring music festivals. Gabby also helps students with their Spanish literacy in grades 3-4-5; she works hard to accurately translate school documents and interpret during meetings and events. When not working overtime and helping everyone all over the school, Gabby and her husband play together in an Andean musical group called Tukuypaj.

Armando Muñoz
La Tierra (3-4-5)
Armando grew up in East Los Angeles playing basketball and watching Dodger games; as a grown-up he has continued to volunteer as a coach for young athletes in his old neighborhood and teach sports appreciation to our thankful K-8 students. He attended California State University Long Beach, where he quenched his thirst for history while earning his credential (fortunately he was placed at NCS for student teaching!). Though his quiet nature does not always belie his wonderful sense of humor and passion for education, they are evident in his thoughtful teaching. Armando is particularly careful in his research; he brings in just the right resources to help his students make sense of history. Everyone counts on his technological problem-solving skills and his ever-ready “it’ll be all right.”

Donald Grose
Las Montañas (6-7-8)
Don was born and raised in the Los Angeles area and attended a variety of colleges and universities that add to the wide range of teaching areas he shares with the students and friends – don is as comfortable teaching English and History as he is directing a play or leading his sculpture elective. He has taught middle school, high school, and adults, worked in a dinner theatre and backpacked throughout Latin America. If you ask him about something he will likely have done that, been there, or seen the documentary at one point in his 20+ years of teaching and traveling. His life’s path, combined with the fact that his 2 daughters are growing up in our multi-age program, are likely reasons why he has found a home at The New City School. His humor and storytelling draw the students in, and they especially love his talent-show renditions of “STELLA!!!” and the Pee-Wee Herman dance.