Weston Awards: Meet Bradford Math Teacher Kevin Barry

This is the latest in our series spotlighting the winners of the 2025 Judy Weston Awards for Inspired Teaching. Follow along each week to learn more about the impact these educators are making in the Montclair Public Schools.

On a recent day, on the ride home from a music lesson, a Bradford elementary school student broke down in tears.

Naturally, the child’s parent was worried. But then, through tears, the child explained that his math teacher – Kevin Barry – had changed his life. 

“[My son] wasn’t crying from sadness. He was moved.” This is how one parent opened their nomination letter to the Weston Awards committee, who were obviously moved by this story, too. 

This child went on to tell their parent that every morning, "Mr. Barry speaks to his class—not just about numbers and equations, but about life. About how boys should be allowed to express their emotions, how society makes it hard for them to cry, but how it’s okay to feel. To be vulnerable. To be human. ‘Mr. Barry makes the world a better place,’ this student said, his voice thick with emotion. ‘I love him for it.’" 

This parent wrote: “As I listened, my heart swelled with gratitude.” 

Indeed. The entire Montclair Public Schools community is grateful for teachers like Mr. Barry.

Parents praised how he weaves real-life situations into lessons. “Mr. Barry doesn’t just teach numbers—he teaches how math shows up in the world around us,” one said.

Others mentioned Mr. Barry's humor, warmth, and signature Hawaiian shirts.They said he is more than a teacher: “He is a light in his students' lives." 

Mr. Barry, for making students feel supported, for your dedication to academic success and social-emotional well-being, for encouraging curiosity and fostering a love for math that extends beyond the classroom – you are an inspired teacher. Congratulations.