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November 29, 2023

Talbot Spy

Nonpartisan Education-based News for Talbot County Community

Education Ed Notes

Talbot County Free Library offers Computer Help Sessions

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The Easton branch of the Talbot County Free Library (TCFL) is now offering a digital specialist to help the community to navigate through the basics of computer, internet, and online forms and applications.

The one-hour sessions are free and pre-registration is required. Computer sessions will take place on the following Mondays: November 27, December 4, December 11 and December 18.

The public can sign up at www.tcfl.org or call 410-822-1626 to register for a session.

“With basic computer skills no longer an optional skill set for daily, modern life, these classes are the perfect on-ramp to get help with technology or a computer application with which patrons may need assistance,” said Dana Newman, Talbot County Free Library Director.

Over the years, TCFL has worked to make using a computer as well as eResources easier to use for residents and library card holders. MyTech Clinic also offers their services once a month at both library branches to assist with laptop, cell phone, and even Microsoft Office questions.

For the future, Newman discusses plans to expand the one-on-one computer sessions to the St. Michaels Branch as well as to offer classes at other locations like the senior centers.

“At the Talbot County Free Library, we want to expand our resources to the public to cater to their schedule as well as their location,” Newman said. “We are taking this one successful step at a time.”

All programs are free and open to the public. For more information about the Talbot County Free Library, visit www.tcfl.org.

 

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Foundation of HOPE Annual Gala to Honor Local “Women of HOPE”

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Local nonprofit, the Foundation of HOPE (Helping Others Prosper & Excel) invites the community to attend its annual gala on Saturday, December 9th at the Hyatt Regency Chesapeake Bay. The event will honor local women who exhibit the qualities that the Foundation strives to instill in the girls served by the organization. The 2023 Women of HOPE award recipients are Dr. Mary DeShields, MD, the Kappa Theta Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc, the St. Mark’s Women’s Fellowship, and Lilyanna Cook.

Dr. DeShields is an accomplished oncologist who has treated patients on the Mid-Shore for more than 30 years. She is among the 3% of black women doctors in the United States. Dr. DeShields is a longtime member of the Foundation of HOPE’s Board of Directors, and a fervent advocate for the Foundation’s mission to help young girls and women lead productive lives in their communities by providing cultural, social, spiritual, and educational development.

The Kappa Theta Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. partner with the Foundation to help provide the girls with memorable and inspiring experiences. Individual members of the sorority have visited the classroom to speak to the girls about various topics related to the Foundation’s Economic Development and Empowerment Program curriculum. In addition, the chapter sponsored a trip to the Reginald Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History and Culture and hosted Foundation of HOPE participants at their annual Cotillion event.

The St. Mark’s Women’s Fellowship is one of the Foundation’s earliest partners, having provided funding for the Economic Development and Empowerment Program since its inception in 2017. Support received from the St. Mark’s Women has helped enable six cohorts to graduate from the program in the intervening years.

Lilyanna Cook is a member of the inaugural cohort of the Economic Development and Empowerment Program. The tools and skills she learned in the program helped her to excel in school and inspired her to want to become an educator. She graduated from Easton High School in May, and is currently attending Quinnipiac University in Connecticut, and is studying to become a Secondary Math Teacher. Lilyanna is the first-ever Foundation of HOPE college scholarship recipient.

Gala registration is open through Tuesday, November 28th. Tickets are $150 per person and include a sit-down dinner and dancing. Attendees will have the opportunity to bid on exciting prizes, including an overnight stay at the Hyatt Regency Chesapeake Bay with two rounds of golf, a pearl and diamond necklace, a $500 gift card to Nelson Coleman Jewelers, and much more. Those wishing to purchase tickets can visit FoundationofHopeMaryland.org or contact [email protected].

The Foundation of HOPE is a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping young girls and women lead productive lives in their communities by providing cultural, social, spiritual, and educational development. The program serves girls in sixth grade attending Middle School, with a goal of teaching them to be viable contributors to the future workforce. The program covers topics including addressing low self-esteem, bullying, social media, workforce development, economic and community development, entrepreneurship, financial literacy, and more.

The Foundation is currently raising money to build the HOPE Center, which will be located in Easton, MD, and will provide services and programming for the entire Easton community. To learn more, register your child, or make a donation, visit FoundationfHopeMaryland.org.

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Gunston Invited to Join Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association

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The Gunston School is pleased to announce they’ll be joining the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) for the upcoming 2024-2025 school year. MIAA is the state’s premier boys’ athletic conference and includes 29 private high schools across eight Maryland counties and Baltimore City. Divided into three tiers based on school size (A, B, & C), MIAA schools have a combined enrollment of 17,000, and it is recognized as one of the country’s most prestigious, competitive, and well-run independent school athletic conferences.

“Gunston first applied to the MIAA nearly 25 years ago,” explained Gunston Athletic Director Josh Breto, “and while our initial attempts to join were not fruitful, the recent combination of Gunston’s enrollment growth, expanded offerings, improved athletic performance, and facilities upgrades made our most recent application successful.”

Beginning in fall of 2024, Gunston’s boys’ teams which include soccer, cross country, swimming, basketball, lacrosse, tennis and golf will begin full-time MIAA competition in the “C” conference.

“Let me acknowledge the efforts of our current Athletic Director, Mr. Josh Breto, who coordinated this process, and I would be remiss if I didn’t also mention the impact of former athletic directors Jon Mellinger and Anita Gruss, both of whom helped to nurture the steady enhancement of Heron Athletics over the years. I also want to thank our Board of Trustees, whose continued support of our school’s athletic program and leadership, helped make this possible,” said Head of School John Lewis.

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Church Hill Elementary Blue Ribbon Success Story: A Chat with Susan Davis Walbert

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It is hard to escape the fact that a number of Mid-Shore public schools, particularly those serving economically disadvantaged students, are struggling a bit these days. Struggling to meet new performance tests, attract talented teachers, repair their school buildings, and a host of other issues, ranging from mental health to budget concerns and parental rights, as well as the ongoing challenge implantation of Maryland’s Blueprint for Education reforms.

In short, it’s a tough time for those schools and their teachers. And the Spy remains committed to reporting on those schools as they attempt to overcome these obstacles.

But the other day, we had a rare opportunity to report on the other side of the performance spectrum. A few months ago, Church Hill Elementary School gained a distinction only shared by six different schools in the entire state; it became a Blue Ribbon School.

The Blue Ribbon School program is a national one that recognizes elementary, middle, and high schools for academic performance in closing achievement gaps. And in Maryland, the only schools selected were:

  • Northeast Elementary School, Allegany County Public Schools
  • Oakdale High School, Frederick County Public Schools
  • Stone Mill Elementary School, Montgomery County Public Schools
  • Church Hill Elementary School, Queen Anne’s County Public Schools
  • Matapeake Elementary School, Queen Anne’s County Public Schools
  • Smithsburg Middle School, Washington County Public Schools

State Board President Clarence Crawford said, “Each of these schools demonstrates the best of Maryland’s school system representing every region of our State. The educators, students, families, and staff that have led their school community to this distinction should serve as models for how we can lean forward on transformation in Maryland and build on the great work being done in all corners of the State.”

The Spy sat down with Susan Davis Walbert, principal of Church Hill Elementary School, to learn more. 

This video is approximately four minutes in length.

 

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Community Conversation on Isaiah Fountain Trial this Saturday

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Join author Joe Koper this Saturday, November 18 beginning at 1:00 p.m. at Union United Methodist Church in St. Michaels, Maryland for this important community conversation on the Isaiah Fountain case that took place in Talbot County in the early 20th century.

Koper’s award-winning book, The Isaiah Fountain Case, is the first detailed account of the mostly-forgotten story that outraged Talbot County, Maryland a century ago during the Jim Crow era.  His book documents dubious investigative and judicial actions and raises questions about Isaiah Fountain’s guilt and the Jim Crow legal system that convicted him.

The program is sponsored by the St. Michaels Community Center and the American Association of University Women, with a light lunch provided by the St. Michaels Community Center.

Donations to the St. Michaels Community Center’s annual fund and proceeds from its Treasure Cove Thrift Shop, located on Railroad Ave. in St. Michaels, help provide essential human services, programs, and community events for people in St. Michaels and from throughout Maryland’s Bay Hundred area, with more at www.stmichaelscc.org. More about SMCC’s building renovations and new programming is at www.stmichaelscc.org/future.

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Woman’s Club of St. Michaels Scholarship Applications Welcomed

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The Woman’s Club of St. Michaels has awarded scholarships to St. Michaels High School seniors for more than 40 years and this year will award a total of $10,000 to one or more seniors graduating from St. Michaels High School in 2024. 

The successful candidate will exhibit outstanding academic performance, be active in their school and community, and be in need of financial assistance.  To be eligible, the applicant must plan to attend an credited two or four year college or university or an accredited trade or technical school during the semester following their high school graduation. 

In addition to information regarding academic performance and volunteer activities, students are required to submit an application and a personal essay. Finalists will be invited to interview with the Scholarship Committee in early spring. The recipient(s) will be announced at the Senior Awards Assembly. Each scholarship winner and their guest will also be required to attend the Woman’s Club of St. Michaels Annual Luncheon on Wednesday, June 5, 2024.

The application and additional information is available from Mr. JR Burkhardt in the SMHS Guidance Department.   The information is also available online through the SMHS website. The deadline for submitting an application is Monday, March 4, 2024.

We encourage all interested and qualified students to apply.

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Maco to State Leaders: More Clarity Needed to Implement and Fund Blueprint

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Maryland lawmakers should provide more guidance and flexibility to county governments as they work to find space in tight budgets for far-reaching public education reforms, a leading advocacy group said.

The Maryland Association of Counties made a series of recommendations to ease pressures on the effort to implement the 10-year Blueprint for Maryland’s Future education reform plan in a recent letter addressed to Gov. Wes Moore (D) and the legislature’s presiding officers.

“The Blueprint applies a one-size-fits-all approach to education investment and implementation that does not account for our state’s diverse local government capacities, processes, and abilities,” according to the letter signed by MACo Executive Director Michael Sanderson and Howard County Executive Calvin Ball (D), president of the organization. “As we move deeper into implementation, the diverse systems, constraints, and structures counties must work within become more apparent, especially financially.”

Sanderson said in an interview Monday that the goal is not to go back and legislate the Blueprint law, but to inform lawmakers and the public of the continuing challenges to funding the Blueprint on a local level.

One proposal, Sanderson said, is for the legislature to provide a more comprehensive cost analysis detailing how much Blueprint funding is mandated in local budgets. In addition, that analysis should take into account fluctuating school enrollments, he said.

Some counties received notice about how much money would be needed for Blueprint reforms in the next year just a week before budgets were approved last spring, Sanderson said. Most county officials release preliminary budgets between December and February. The General Assembly’s 90-day session is set to begin Jan. 10.

“What we tried to do was harvest the things we’ve been hearing at the local level,” he said. “The idea of more clarity in the funding projections and estimates and having that in a more timely and clear way [helps] everybody…as they go through their budgeting process.”

The Blueprint plan continues to be implemented based on its priorities: expanding early childhood education, hiring and retaining high-quality and diverse teachers, preparing students for college and technical careers and providing additional resources for students in need.

The Blueprint Accountability and Implement Board, an independent body established by the legislature to oversee the initiative approved some updates this summer. One of the board’s duties is providing recommendations to the General Assembly and the governor on proposed changes to the Blueprint law. The panel is set to meet next on Thursday.

The Blueprint law states that schools must implement a $10,000 salary increase for teachers who are designated as National Board Certified, and an additional $7,000 salary increase for certified teachers who work in low-performing schools.

MACo proposes those salary figures should be switched: $7,000 for all teachers certified, and an additional $10,000 for certified teachers in low-performing schools.

Brianna January, associate director of policy for MACo, said there still remains “a universal concern” about a requirement for school systems to raise minimum annual teacher salaries to $60,000, which must be done by July 1, 2026, according to the law.

January said county leaders are concerned the salary increase “will kind of pinch all the other staff positions into an upward trajection for their starting salaries.”

Carter Elliott, a spokesperson for Moore, said in an email Monday that “county leaders are important partners and [the governor] appreciates them stepping up to share their thoughts about the Blueprint and how to ensure its success going forward. The Moore-Miller Administration is looking forward to engaging in further conversation to ensure that all of Maryland’s children have access to a world class education.”

‘More flexibility’

Some of the other MACo recommendations for state leaders are:

  • Provide a specific cost analysis between the state and counties to fund dual enrollment programs at community colleges.
  • Offer greater flexibility for counties to utilize certain spaces such as libraries and community centers to provide prekindergarten instruction. Such spaces may be available but aren’t an option under the law because each would need “the presence of a school administrator, front desk person, and on-duty nurse.”
  • Consider best practices for expedited or alternative teacher certification without lessening the standard for high-quality teachers.

“To best ensure successful implementation of the Blueprint, county governments are seeking a more comprehensive cost analysis and investment from our State partners,” Ball said in an emailed statement. “County governments are funding partners for our local Boards of Education and have minimal oversight on how taxpayer dollars are spent. By having local costs required by the Blueprint clearly defined by the State, and transparently shared with the public, we can all have smoother budget processes and increased collaboration during our annual local budget cycles.”

Some Blueprint supporters, such as Michelle Corkadel, president of the Maryland Association of Boards of Education, said equity must remain a focal point in the plan.

The state Board of Education continues to review a possible revision to the “college and career readiness,” or CCR, standards that are part of the Blueprint plan. Current law states that students “meet or exceed” the standard based on standardized test scores. Under the proposal, students could pass the standard if their grade-point average is 3.0 or higher by the end of 10th grade.

Corkadel said there should be a more holistic approach to aide students who have a focus on career programs.

“It seems to me that we should be including more flexibility in the arena of those students who have chosen a career path. We know that the state does not allow you to sit for your cosmetology license, which would be the ultimate in verifying that your college and career ready. It cannot occur until you’re 18 years old,” said Corkadel, a member of the school board in Anne Arundel County, where schools provide cosmetology training. “I do think that closing our opportunity gaps is one of the desired outcomes of Blueprint and we need to make sure that we are mindful of that. We are hopeful that the decisions we make are going to include the perspectives of all of us.”

By William J. Ford

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A New Leader at Chesapeake College’s Cambridge Center: A Chat with Lorelly Solano

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The last time the Spy chatted with Lorelly Solano a few years ago, she had just begun her work at the Chesapeake Multicultural Resource Center. And her focus in 2019 was to help the organization train interpreters to help offer bilingual services on the Mid-Shore to various businesses and nonprofit institutions. 

One of the schools that Lorelly worked closely with at the time was Chesapeake College, so it was not a surprise to find her almost five years later working with that institution as the new director of its Cambridge Center. As the Mid-Shore continues to grow with a diversity of cultures and languages, Dr. Solano was immediately attracted to the challenge and opportunity of making the Cambridge campus a regional leader in adult education for high school equivalency, English language acquisition for immigrants, and non-credit courses like skilled trades.

In her new role, Solano has made it a goal to mirror the community’s diversity within the Center, ensuring that when people visit, they see themselves represented.  

Last month the Spy came by the Cambridge Center to learn more about Dr. Lorelly’s plans.

This video is approximately six minutes in length. For more information about Chesapeake College and its Cambridge Center, please go here.

 

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Lectures On the Shore Hits the Road with Neil King 

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Lectures on the Shore, Chesapeake Forum’s new speaker series, is pleased to announce that author Neil King will return to the Art Academy Museum on December 6th from 5:30 – 7:30 pm for American History at 3 mph.  King, author of American Ramble, a Walk of Memory and Renewal, was originally scheduled to give the talk on October 5th but was forced to cancel for health reasons. Tickets are $65 and are available at https://chesapeakeforum.org. Refreshments and light bites by Piazza.

King kicks off the first of Chesapeake Forum’s new speaker series, Lectures on the Shore.  He will be joined by his friend, and sometimes walking companion, Jeff McGuinness, a photographer and author of Bear Me Unto Freedom.  The two will share an evening of insightful, surprising and sometimes funny stories about King’s 26-day, 330 mile walk from his home in Washington, DC to New York City.

When he set out, King said his goal was to pay close attention to the land he crossed and the people he met.  Throughout Maryland, Pennsylvania and New Jersey, he does just that – stopping in forgotten corners and talking to overlooked people. Surprisingly, in spite of the political and cultural divides he encounters, what he comes away with is the profound power of our shared landscape.

American History at 3 mph is the first of several events planned for the 2023-2024 Lectures on the Shore season. The next event will be held in winter 2024 although a date has not yet been chosen.  Each one will be held at the Academy Art Museum in Easton and will be catered.  

Chesapeake Forum is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing lifelong learning opportunities to residents of the Eastern Shore.  To receive Chesapeake Forum’s newsletter, please send your name, address and contact information to [email protected].

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A few Final Chesapeake Forum Fall Classes

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We are wrapping up the Fall semester at Chesapeake Forum, but there is still time for a few more classes.  There are still spots left for William Messner’s lecture on the Rise and Fall of the Talbot Boys Memorial on November 14th and for Integrity and Effective Leadership at the USNA on November 15th.

Join Messner on Tuesday, November 14th as he lays out the factors that prompted the Talbot Boy’s statue’s removal last year.  As he explains, the pre-WW I period marked the zenith of racism in the nation. Especially in the South, this period saw the institutionalization of segregation and the utilization of extra-legal means, such as lynching, to insure the maintenance of the racial order. Not coincidentally, throughout the South memorials to the Confederate lost cause appeared, often in the form of statues of Rebel soldiers. Talbot County was not immune to this pattern of activity as a memorial to those county residents who fought for the Confederacy – the Talbot Boys – was constructed on the Courthouse lawn in Easton. A century later the statue, one of the last in the South still standing on public grounds, was dismantled, the result of a decade of agitation on the part of African American residents and their white allies who demanded the erasure of all vestiges of the old racial order.

Rise and Fall of the Talbot Boys Memorial is one session, Tuesday, November 14th from 1-2:20.  HYBRID (in person at Easton Family YMCA) or via ZOOM.  $20.  To register, visit https://chesapeakeforum.org

On Wednesday, November 15th, travel to the US Naval Academy for a lecture on how ethics and moral reasoning guide behavior, while integrity defines “how” individuals conduct their daily lives. Taking from both classical and contemporary thought in moral philosophy, Jeff Macris, Ph.D., Deputy Director of the Stockdale Institute, will show us how the USNA seeks to provide its future Naval officers with the ability to understand the moral complexities of leadership.

Integrity and Effective Leadership is a field trip to the USNA by carpool or private vehicle on Wednesday, November 15th from 10 am – 4 pm.  $20.  To register, visit https://chesapeakeforum.org.

Chesapeake Forum is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing lifelong learning opportunities for residents of the Eastern Shore.  To receive Chesapeake Forum’s newsletter, please send your name, address and contact information to [email protected].

 

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.