Bellows Free Academy has welcomed a variety of new teachers to our community this year. Some of them are new to teaching or new to the Maple Run School District. Michael Konrad, a new gym teacher, is neither. 

Before coming to BFA, Konrad said he taught Physical Education at St. Albans Town Educational Center for 25 years. According to Konrad, he moved to BFA for a change of pace and has gotten precisely that.

“It kind of feels like my first year teaching again,” Konrad said. “I’ve been doing the same thing for over 20 years, so it’s great to try [new] things again.”

Konrad described being a bit nervous about starting at BFA but recognized that it was a normal phenomenon.

“I think it’s pretty strange not to be nervous on your first day,” Konrad said. “Plus [the other gym teachers] have been super helpful at giving me an idea of how things work here, which helped.”

Konrad also noted that he has enjoyed working closer to his wife, Jennifer Konrad, who teaches Human Services at the Northwest Career and Technical Center.

Konrad said he grew up in central New York before earning his degree from SUNY Brockport. According to Konrad, he chose Brockport because of its reputation as a liberal arts college, as he was interested in art, but ended up deciding to teach gym classes instead.

Now, Konrad lives in the community with his wife and three sons, all of whom attended BFA. 

When asked about his favorite parts of the job so far, Konrad expressed appreciation for the community resources he has been taking advantage of for different gym courses.

“We’ve been up at Hard’ack [and] using the Complex,” Konrad said.

According to Konrad, the school year has been going well, and he’s excited to see where the year takes him.

“It’s been pretty awesome here,” Konrad said. “I really love it.”