Prominent Lubbock High School Science Teacher Passes Away

Well known, and respected, Lubbock High School Science teacher Bradley J. Neu, passed away yesterday, Friday, August 26, after a brief battle with cancer.

Services will be on Tuesday, August 30, in Neu's hometown of Gainesville, Texas.

The 38 year-old Neu had won several teaching awards and was a favorite among students at Lubbock High School. In May of 2011, he was named a recipient of the Beaumont Foundation’s Newton Excellence in Education Award. Other teaching awards he won include: the Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellowship Award in 2002, Presidential Award for Excellence in Math and Science Teaching in 2003, Texas Outstanding Science Educator Award in 2007 and the Texas Society of Professional Engineers Visioneer Award in 2008.

Lubbock High School Principal Doug Young said of Neu, “Brad was passionate about science and he passed that passion to his students. He was very innovative and his classroom was a creative place for students to learn.” Most recently, Neu taught Physics, Robotics and Astronomy at Lubbock High.

KFYO News Anchor Cole Shooter worked with Neu at TexPrep, "I first knew Brad as a student at J.T. Hutchison Junior High, and then as a colleague when we both taught at TexPrep.  No matter which group of students he was with, Brad always made it clear that his first goal in the classroom was to help those students in any way possible.  He used humor and his natural good nature to help solve any problem.  Lubbock High School was lucky to have such a quality educator and an all-around good guy."

Lubbock ISD also notes that Neu was a member of NASA's Network of Educator Astronaut Teachers and coached a team of students to win a contest sponsored by NASA. As a result of winning the contest, Neu and the students were invited to witness the launch of the space shuttle Discovery in Florida in 2007. He also coached students to award-winning performances in regional and national robotics competitions.

KFYO News has been told that Neu's family is planning a memorial service in Lubbock within the next few weeks.