A third generation Floridian who was raised on the shores of Lake Okeechobee, Brenda Herring Lopez attended Stetson University from 1971-75, graduating with a double major in English and Spanish. While at Stetson, the Junior Year Abroad program took her to Spain and ultimately motivated her to return to Madrid in 1976 where she taught at St. Anne's School, a prestigious bilingual school dedicated to providing an accelerated course of study in Spanish and British academic curriculums. In 1980, Lopez returned to Florida and continued her teaching career at Clewiston Middle and High Schools and the Clewiston Adult School. After completing her master's degree at Florida Atlantic University in 1994, she worked as an adjunct professor of Spanish for both Edison Junior College and Palm Beach Junior College.
She has served on a number of boards, including East Hendry County Cancer Society, Clewiston Chamber of Commerce, the Hendry Regional Medical Center Wish Foundation and the Clewiston Country Club. Since retiring from the Hendry County Schools in 2009, Lopez has chaired the Clewiston Redevelopment Agency Advisory Committee, the Dolly Hand Cultural Arts Center Board and the Clewiston Museum Board. She was also a co-host for the "Good Morning Glades" radio show for 91.5 FM, The Call. In 2011, she became a certified interior decorator and opened "Inside Job," an interior decorating business.
Lopez was elected to the Stetson Board of Trustees in May of 2012.