First impressions, as they say, are everything. At The New Century School, many people’s first impressions are formed when calling or arriving at The Front Desk—fortunately, that all-important post is helmed by the irrepressibly good-natured Lori Gorbey.
Ms. Gorbey joined TNCS in October 2020, and, although she wasn’t looking for a receptionist position specifically, the timing was right. She lives in Baltimore now but says she grew up “all around and up and down the East Coast.” She was born in North Carolina; then lived in Syracuse, NY; Peachtree City, GA; and finally here in Maryland during her high school years. The East Coast exploration then continued when she enrolled at Wilmington University in Delaware, where she majored in behavioral science, having a predilection for psychology.
She graduated in 2018 and is now ready to pursue a Master’s Degree in teaching. “I think I’ll end up in the classroom,” she says. She plans to go into Special Education or English (maybe both)—she likes to read and write.
In the meantime, she is enjoying her current position at TNCS and is sort of a nexus for school operations. “The really cool thing about the Front Desk is that I get to have my hands in a lot of different areas and figure out where I might fit best in the future.” These different areas encompass both administrative and educational environments. In addition to answering the phone and welcoming visitors and students to school, she handles billing, helps with lunches, monitors the car line, assists in the 4th- through 6th-grade ELA classroom (reading the assigned books right along with students . . . the list goes on. “I do whatever the task at hands demands,” she says. “I’m sort of the first responder to a lot of the little crises that we have throughout the day. I’m also on the ‘front lines’ for parent interactions such as during drop-off. It can be a high-pressure job, but I like being busy, and I work best under pressure.”
Because of her ability to stay calm yet get things done, another important role Ms. Gorbey played this year was Advisor as part of the new Advisory Board at TNCS. This entails meeting with her small group of students; talking; socializing; and providing a de-pressurized environment for them to relax and let go in. She also accompanied TNCS Middle Schoolers to Puerto Rico last month, much to the relief of co-chaperones Adriana DuPrau (TNCS Dean of Students) and Daphnee Hope (TNCS school counselor). Parents, many of you have also probably benefited from the comfortable atmosphere she creates.
In her spare time, Ms. Gorbey enjoys making resin jewelry, true creative spirit that she is.