Kaitlyn Wright, an English language arts teacher at Kent County Middle
School, is the 2023-24 Kent County Public Schools Teacher of the Year and was a finalist for
Maryland Teacher of the Year.

Educators from throughout the state joined in celebrating Maryland’s top teachers last week, among them Kaitlyn Wright of Kent County Middle School.

Wright was joined Friday, Oct. 4 by administrators and teachers from her building and the Kent County Public Schools Central Office, including Superintendent Dr. Mary Boswell-McComas, at the annual Maryland Teacher of the Year banquet in Hunt Valley.

Wright is the 2023-24 Kent County Public Schools Teacher of the Year and was a named a finalist for Maryland Teacher of the Year, an honor that ultimately went to Kat Locke-Jones of Baltimore City Public Schools Oct. 4.

“There is a reason people say teachers make every other profession possible,” said Maryland State Superintendent of Schools Dr. Carey Wright at the banquet. “It is absolutely true. The work you do each day allows students to pursue their dreams, whether it’s in college, in their careers and in their lives.”

Kaitlyn Wright is an English language arts teacher at Kent County Middle School. She has rejuvenated the theater program, leading productions of “Alice @ Wonderland” and “The Wizard of Oz,” serves on leadership teams and engages in curriculum development.

Among those cheering Kaitlyn Wright on at the state banquet were her fiancé and parents; Kent County Middle School Principal Mark Buckel and Assistant Principal Kelley Melvin; Kent County Public Schools Director of Teaching and Learning Gina Jachimowicz and Dr. McComas; and Kent County Board of Education President Joseph Goetz, Vice President Francoise Sullivan and member Aretha Dorsey.

“Kaitlyn Wright is so deserving of this recognition because it is absolutely clear that she centers her focus on students’ humanity, and in doing so, she unleashes their boundless potential,” Dr. McComas said of Kaitlyn Wright being honored as a Maryland Teacher of the Year finalist.

As part of the Maryland Teacher of the Year selection process, Kaitlyn Wright has worked with the other 23 school system Teachers of the Year, attending special events, meetings and conferences.

“Learning is ongoing. It’s dynamic. It’s personal, yet shared,” Wright said in a pre-recorded interview shown at the Oct. 4 reception. “But students will only be willing to share the experience with you when they perceive authenticity. I don’t try to be anything but myself.”

Buckel was overjoyed and incredibly proud of the recognition Kaitlyn Wright received.

“It is well-deserved, as Kaitlyn exemplifies what it means to be an outstanding educator. Her dedication, passion and impact on her students and colleagues is truly inspirational,” Buckel said. “We are so fortunate to have her as part of our Kent County Middle School family.”

Goetz said he was proud of Kaitlyn Wright and all that she has accomplished so far.

“Her dedication, passion and ability to inspire our students in English language arts and the theater program is truly remarkable,” Goetz said. “Ms. Wright has created an environment where learning is not just an obligation, but a joy, and for that we are all grateful.”

Dan Hushion is the director of human resources for Kent County Public Schools and leads the system’s annual Teacher of the Year awards program. He was also in attendance at the state banquet to celebrate Kaitlyn Wright’s achievements.

Hushion remembers first meeting her during the hiring process.

“I was inspired by her passion for teaching and her love for children,” he said. “Over the last few years, we have seen that passion and love on display each and every day, whether it’s during class, delivering engaging lessons, working with a student during her planning time, lunch period or even after school, or in other professional capacities where she truly aims to better herself and our district in every capacity that she can.”

Learn more about Kent County Public Schools, it’s staff, students and their accomplishments at www.kent.k12.md.us or follow the school system on Facebook at www.facebook.com/kcpsmdk12.

Lead photo: Kent County Public Schools Teacher of the Year Kaitlyn Wright is cheered on by her fellow teachers, administrators and Board of Education members at the annual Maryland Teacher of the Year reception. From left are Mark Buckel, Christine Clark, Kelley Melvin, Katherine Hughes, Francoise Sullivan, Samantha Reed, Dr. Mary Boswell-McComas, Joseph Goetz, Wright, Gary Duren, Aretha Dorsey, Gina Jachimowicz, Ida Nabb, Dan Hushion and Tom Porter.  

In rehearsal for the Garfield Center’s upcoming production of “Disney’s Beauty and the Beast” are (left to right) Jennifer Kafka Smith (Director), Michael Casey (Music Director), JW Ruth (“Lumiere”), Shannon Carter (“Belle”), and Mattew Rein (“the Beast”). The show runs December 6 – 21.

In 1991, Disney released an animated film that became an immediate classic. “Beauty and the Beast” was instantly loved by critics and audiences alike. It became the first ever animated film nominated for Best Picture at the 1992 Academy Awards. Though it did not win the big award, its title song, by music writer Alan Menken and lyricist Howard Ashman, won for Best Song, and Menken won for his score.

The success of the film encouraged Disney to turn it into a stage production. All eight songs from the animated feature were reused in the musical, including one musical number that had been cut from the film. Original songwriter Menken composed six new songs alongside lyricist Tim Rice, replacing Ashman, who died during the production of the film.

“Disney’s Beauty and the Beast” premiered on Broadway on April 18, 1994, starring Susan Egan and Terrence Mann as Belle and Beast. The musical was a massive commercial success and well received by audiences. It ran on Broadway for 5,461 performances for thirteen years (1994–2007), and became Broadway’s sixth longest-running production at the time of its closure.

The Garfield Center production, sponsored by Chesapeake Bank and Trust, Kent School, and Duke Law, opens on December 6th and runs for 11 performances through December 21st.

Performances will occur at special times and special days that veer from the GCA’s typical schedule.

Playing the central character of Belle is Shannon Carter. Well known for her incredible singing and acting talent, she has recently played the leading roles of Fiona in “Shrek the Musical” and Annabel Glick in “Lucky Stiff” for the GCA. Playing the Beast is Matthew Rein. Matt recently made his GCA debut in April as Dr. Watson in “Baskerville.” A regular performer for Tred Avon Players, he has appeared there in “Little Women” and “Camelot.” Max Hagan plays the hyper-masculine, narcissistic Gaston. Known for playing Donkey in “Shrek” and the leading role of Harry Witherspoon in “Lucky Stiff,” Max was also the Assistant Director for “The Addams Family.”

 As the famous animated decor within the Beast’s castle, JW Ruth (Fester in “Addams” and Vinnie in “Lucky Stiff”) plays Lumierre, Annie Sparks (Alice Beineke in “Addams” and Grace in “Annie”) plays Mrs. Potts, Natalie Hagan (Morticia in “Addams” and Dominique in “Lucky Stiff”) is Babette, and Maya McGrory (Star-To-Be in “Annie”) is Madame de la Grande Bouche. GCA newcomer Divya Shajwani plays Chip, and newcomer Colby Crawford is Cogsworth.

As Gaston’s buffoon sidekick Lefou, Russell Laing returns to the GCA stage after performing as Pugsley in “The Addams Family.” Playing Belle’s eccentric inventor father, Maurice, is Shannon’s real-life father Brian Whitaker. Brian has appeared at the GCA as Columbo in “Prescription: Murder” and in various roles over the years in “Short Attention Span Theatre.”

 Narrator is Todd Steffes, the Young Prince is Camden Hubbert, the Silly Girls are Grace Sutherland and S.R. Mohen. The Adult Ensemble includes John Mann, Bob McGrory, Heather Campbell, Maryann Shoge, Suzanne Thuecks, Steffi Ricketts, and Heather Robuck. The Teen Ensemble (Villagers, Enchanted Characters) include Olivia Coppage, Carly Mourlas. The Kids Ensemble (Villagers, Enchanted Characters) include Caroline Curran, Camden Hubbert, Clover King, Henry Mann, Mila Shepherd, Claire Williams.

The Director of the production is Jennifer Kafka Smith, the Music Director is Michael Casey, and the Choreographer is Natalie Hagan. The Producers are Steven Arnold, Nic Carter and the Garfield Center. Steffi Ricketts is the Production Assistant, Butch Clark is the Technical Director, Steven Arnold is the Scenic Designer and Photographer, Kayti Didriksen is the Scenic and Digital Projections Artist, Adrienne Wrona oversees Makeup effects, Heather Robuck oversees Costumes, Samantha Branham oversees Properties, and Francoise Sullivan does the Poster and Program.

“Disney’s Beauty and the Beast” will be presented at special times and with additional dates than are typical for the Garfield Center. Evening performances on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays will begin promptly at 7:00 PM, and the Sunday performances begin at 2:00 PM. Dates are December 6, 7, 8, 12, 13, 14, 15, 19, 20 and 21. There is no final Sunday matinee – instead, there are 2 performances on Saturday the 21st, the first at 2:00 PM and the second at 7:00 PM. Tickets are now on sale and can be purchased online at www.garfieldcenter.org or by calling the Box Office at 410-810-2060 on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM.

 Superintendent of Schools Dr. Mary Boswell-McComas wants to hear from families, staff members and the community at large about what the future of Kent County Public Schools should look like.

The school system has scheduled community conversations throughout October and November to help guide the preparation of Kent County Public Schools’ next five-year strategic plan, facilities plan and annual budget.

“We’re inviting the community in to discover what makes Kent County Public Schools so special and to help us build on that for the future,” Dr. McComas said. “We hope you will join us in these discussions and, please, bring some friends.”

Conversation sessions are scheduled to be held at each of the schools — with childcare provided at the elementary and middle schools.

The dates are:

• Wednesday, Oct. 16 at Galena Elementary School
• Thursday, Oct. 24 at H.H. Garnet Elementary School, Chestertown
• Tuesday, Oct. 29 at Kent County High School, Worton
• Wednesday, Nov. 13 at Rock Hall Elementary School
• Wednesday, Nov. 20, at Kent County Middle School, Chestertown.

The meetings will begin at 6 p.m. in the schools’ media centers.

After an introduction, attendees will break out into small groups for conversations on a variety of topics about Kent County Public Schools.

Additional conversations are being planned as well at community locations throughout Kent County.

No RSVP is required to participate, but organizers ask that those interested in childcare at the meetings visit https://tinyurl.com/298x3ff2 so the school can plan ahead for staffing.

WC Electric Boat Team speaks to Radcliffe Creek School students

Radcliffe Creek School (RCS) students were treated to a special presentation by the Washington College (WC) Electric Boat Team Friday, September 20, 2024. Team members shared their inspiring story, detailing the design failures they overcame in the process of building their electric boats, which eventually led to the team’s success, winning first place in multiple races against other teams from universities with large engineering programs.

Mac Sansbury, Tiyaba Jamil, and Team Advisor Brian Palmer, about the strategies they used to design their boats each year and remain competitive against teams like Princeton University.

By thoughtfully building better batteries, stronger electric motors, more efficient solar technology, and hydrodynamic hull designs, they were able to start bringing home top place awards. Palmer noted, “Our students are taking away technical insights that are valuable of course, but perhaps more important is the practice they are getting at recognizing problems to solve, learning how to design solutions, and not getting dissuaded when things don’t always turn out as they hoped.  It’s a great opportunity for them to build technical capabilities as well as perseverance and grit that is needed to see complex projects through to fruition.”

Palmer excitedly shared the news about the team’s most recent success–breaking the Guinness World Record for the greatest distance by an electric boat on a single charge without solar September 2, 2024.  WC team broke the previous world record by 21 miles. Hewes remarked, “When we were building the trimaran, we didn’t even think about beating a world record or­­­ even thought we could…Then, we did the calculations and then we realized, hey, we might actually be able to beat the record.”

The students had the opportunity to watch video footage of the record-breaking success and see the winning boat in person, as well as to ask questions about the boat’s design and the team’s plans for the future. “We are grateful to the Washington College Electric Boat Team for sharing their story about how they overcame failure to find success. It’s important for our students to hear that it’s okay to try hard and come up short; in all good design thinking, failure is just part of the learning process. It was apparent from the number of hands in the air and the thoughtful student questions that this remarkable story had a real impact on our young learners,” said Head of School Peter Thayer.

To learn more about the Electric Boat Team at Washington College, visit: WACElectricBoat.com.

To learn more about the immersive, individualized education program offered at Radcliffe Creek School, as well as the school’s robust transportation program, visit www.radcliffecreekschool.org online or call 410-778-8150.

Lead photo: Washington college Electric Boat Team.

Join the Kent County Public Schools Family Support Resource Center and the Special Education Citizen’s Advisory Committee for a free workshop on the special education process.

“Understanding Special Education” will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 25 in the media center at Kent County Middle School in Chestertown.

Attendees will gain a basic understanding of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and become more familiar with their role as parents in the development of Individualized Education Programs (IEPs).

Participants will also have the opportunity to learn practical strategies for participating effectively in IEP meetings.

Free dinner and childcare will be available.

Pre-registration is preferred, but not required. Register with the Family Support Resource Center at 410-778-5708, [email protected] or online at https://forms.gle/hjWzwpUbwWHv1S2B9.

Kent County Middle School is located at 402 E. Campus Ave., Chestertown.

A group of Montgomery County parents has asked the Supreme Court to review the school system’s refusal to let them opt their children out of classes that use LGBTQ+ books in lower elementary school grades.

The petition, filed last week, claims the school system’s refusal to let parents opt their children out of the classes infringes on their religious liberty rights by exposing the children to gender and sexuality norms that contradict their religious beliefs.

The policy gives parents – who include Muslim, Catholic and Ukrainian Orthodox families – “no protection against forced participation in ideological instruction by government schools,” as their petition claims.

A Montgomery County school spokesman said the system was aware of the Supreme Court appeal and was reviewing it, but that the system would not comment on ongoing litigation.

The appeal is the latest twist in a case that began two years ago, when the schools unveiled a list of “LGBTQ+-inclusive texts for use in the classroom.” Those included books to be used in lower grades, including one for use in kindergarten and pre-K classrooms.

The books were introduced in the 2022-23 school year and are not part of a mandatory reading list for the classrooms but can be used by teachers in classroom instruction.

At issue are seven books in the lower grades, which include titles such as “My Rainbow,” which tells the story of a mother who creates a rainbow-colored wig for her transgender child; “Uncle Bobby’s Wedding,” about a girl worried she will lose time with her soon-to-be-married uncle, until his boyfriend befriends her and gains her trust; and “Pride Puppy,” about a puppy lost at a Pride parade, which uses each letter of the alphabet to describe the people it might have met there. The last book, for kindergarten and pre-K, invites students to search for drag kings and queens, lip rings, leather and underwear, among other items, according to court documents.

In court documents, a school system official said the books were not planned to be part of “explicit instruction on gender identity and sexual orientation in elementary school, and that no student or adult is asked to change how they feel about these issues.” Instead, the official said, teachers were expected to make the books available in the classroom, recommend them as appropriate for particular students or offer them “as an option for literature circles, book clubs, or paired reading groups; or to use them as a read aloud” in class.

Parents who objected to the use of the books were originally allowed to opt their children out of lessons that included the books. But the school system in March 2023 announced that opt-outs would no longer be allowed, beginning in the 2023-24 school year. It said parents can opt students out of parts of sex education, but not other parts of the curriculum, like language arts.

That sparked a lawsuit by a group of parents who objected on religious and secular grounds. They said they were not trying to ban the use of the books in Montgomery County schools but argued that, with no opt-out requirement, they were being forced to expose their children to ideas that conflicted with their firmly held religious beliefs.

So far, the underlying elements of the case have not been heard, merely the parents’ request for a preliminary injunction of the school system’s opt-out policy, which the parents have repeatedly lost.

A federal district judge in August 2023 denied the parents’ request for a preliminary injunction and a divided panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that ruling in May, writing that the parents had not met the high burden of showing that they were likely to win on their claim that the lack of an opt-out policy was actually coercing them to abandon part of their faith.

The majority opinion, written by Circuit Judge G. Steven Agee, said that because the record in preliminary injunction hearings was extremely sparse, the parents had not been able to “connect the requisite dots” to show that a burden on their First Amendment rights existed.

While the parents had shown that the books “could be used in ways that would confuse or mislead children and, in particular, that discussions relating to their contents could be used to indoctrinate their children into espousing views that are contrary to their religious faith. … none of that is verified by the limited record that is before us,” Agee wrote.

“Should the Parents in this case or other plaintiffs in other challenges to the Storybooks’ use come forward with proof that a teacher or school administrator is using the Storybooks in a manner that directly or indirectly coerces children into changing their religious views or practices, then the analysis would shift in light of that record,” Agee wrote.

The fact that parents might feel forced to forgo a public school education and pay for private school was not sufficiently coercive to be a burden on the parents’ First Amendment rights, based on the record so far, he wrote.

In a dissent, Circuit Judge A. Marvin Quattlebaum Jr. said parents had met their burden for a preliminary injunction while the case was heard.

“Both sides of the issue advance passionate arguments. Some insist diversity and inclusion should be prioritized over the religious rights of parents and children. Others argue the opposite,” Quattlebaum wrote.

But the parents have made the case for an injunction of the opt-out policy for now, he wrote.

“The parents have shown the board’s decision to deny religious opt-outs burdened these parents’ right to exercise their religion and direct the religious upbringing of their children by putting them to the choice of either compromising their religious beliefs or foregoing a public education for their children,” Quattlebaum wrote. “I would … enjoin the Montgomery County School Board of Education from denying religious opt-outs for instruction to K-5 children involving the texts.”

by Maryland Matters Staff, Maryland Matters
September 16, 2024

Maryland Matters is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Maryland Matters maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Steve Crane for questions: [email protected]. Follow Maryland Matters on Facebook and X.