This year, Seabury is pleased to welcome faculty member Melody Barclay as she fills the role of sixth grade math and Algebra I teacher.
Barclay explored one of her many passions this summer: the great outdoors! She says, “I visited Bentonville and Rogers in Arkansas, because I love to be outdoors, so we do the bike trails, and we go hiking.” She also went to Utah: “I went to Utah to visit my brother and his wife and … it was beautiful there,” she says.
At home, Barclay is a devoted mother and grandmother. She says, “I have two daughters that live [in Lawrence] and three grandkids, so I’m very involved with their school activities and doing stuff with them.” She even assisted with her grandchildren’s summer camp. She says, “I assisted my daughter Hope; she ran a craft summer camp at the school that her kids go to, Limestone School. I was her assistant. That was fun.”
As far as hobbies go, Barclay says, “I do two things that most people don’t want to do … math and … going to the gym.” Barclay frequently visits Crunch Fitness. She says, “I go to Crunch gym every day that I can, of course, during the summer, when there’s no school … I could go there every day, but during the school year, I hit it about three to four times a week.”
She also loves reading and her church, as she says, “I was part of a book club, so I love reading … along with doing math, of course … I have a lot of friends … at my church, so we go out to eat a lot.”
Before being a math teacher, Barclay says, “I was an elementary ed[ucation] teacher and a private tutor and a United Methodist minister.” Though a happy member of the Lawrence community, Barclay is not a native Lawrencian, as she says, “I’m from the suburbs of Chicago, and my suburb is called Morton Grove.”
Barclay loves the energy at Seabury: “I love how [students] are outside when the weather is nice. I love how hard our students work on block days, 75 minutes of doing math, almost the whole time focused.” As far as traditions go, Barclay is looking forward to the pumpkin carving competition and especially Heritage Day. She says, “I think that is my passion, always giving back to our community and helping everyone.”
Seabury is fortunate to welcome Barclay into the community and excited to see what she does this year!
