Baltimore Curriculum Project June 2018 Newsletter
In this issue:
  • HHA Principal Matt Hornbeck Wins "Heart of the School" Award
  • CareFirst Treats City Springs Elementary/Middle to Books and Bowling
  • City Schools Recognizes "All-Star" Volunteers from Frederick Elementary and Govans Elementary
  • Govans Elementary Begins Design Process for New Facility
  • EY Volunteers Make a Difference in HHA's Leaders Go Places Program
  • Wolfe Street Academy Braves the Storm for Wolfest 2018
HHA Principal Matt Hornbeck Wins "Heart of the School" Award
BCP would like to congratulate Hampstead Hill Academy Principal Matt Hornbeck on winning a 2018 Heart of the School Award! The Heart of the School Award was created in 2016 to celebrate exceptional Baltimore City Public Schools Principals who have demonstrated exemplary innovation, execution, and leadership, building strong school cultures.

Matt Hornbeck is in his fifteenth year as principal of Hampstead Hill Academy, which is a top performing school in Baltimore City. If you ask students and staff, their success starts from the top.

Principal Hornbeck gives students everything they need to succeed, including a positive environment; Restorative Practices (which includes a giant circle with 240 middle schoolers meeting every Friday morning); true arts integration; and a consistent celebration of the school's diversity.

It's no wonder families move to the Patterson Park area to attend this welcoming multicultural school.

"He has a deep commitment to the kids, the faculty, and the parents, which is a rare combination. It feels like no matter who you are and why you have come to him, he has your back" - Parent

"Mr. Hornbeck is a visionary who makes our school feel like a home. He is supportive, kind, and incredibly hardworking. Because of his dynamic leadership, we are able to thrive as teachers and push ourselves to work harder for our students." - Teacher/School staff

The annual Heart of the School Awards celebration is hosted by the Fund for Education Excellence, in collaboration with Baltimore City Public Schools.
CareFirst Treats City Springs Elementary/Middle to Books and Bowling
CareFirst gave away over 750 books - one for each student - during City Springs Elementary/Middle School's morning assembly on June 5, 2018. The books were selected from a Scholastic book list provided by teachers to ensure that each book was appropriate for students' reading levels.

On June 7, 2018, CareFirst sponsored the City Springs Elementary/Middle Year-End Teacher Celebration at Mustang Alley's. Teachers enjoyed a delicious lunch and bowling.

During School Year 2017-2018, CareFirst continued to provide City Springs with the Girls on the Run leadership and running program, and the Big Brother Big Sisters mentoring program. CareFirst also provided grant funding for Restorative Practices training, fitness equipment for school's the CareFirst fitness center, and a van for field trips.

CareFirst has been a City Springs partner since 2012, when Business Volunteers Maryland facilitated the partnership with City Springs and the Baltimore Curriculum Project. Business Volunteers Maryland recently hosted a panel discussion about this partnership at their 2018 PENCIL Mid-Year Collaboration Conference at Under Armour. Panelists included Bonnie Downing, Principal Rhonda Richetta, Tavon McGee and Wyatt Oroke.

City Springs and BCP would like to thank CareFirst for this outstanding partnership.
City Schools Recognizes "All-Star" Volunteers from Frederick Elementary and Govans Elementary
Baltimore City Public Schools recognized outstanding volunteers from Frederick Elementary, Govans Elementary and other City schools at the first annual "ALL-STAR Volunteer Recognition Event" on May 31, 2018. The Office of Engagement organized this invitation-only event to celebrate the contributions of parent, family, and community ALL-STAR volunteers.

The Frederick Elementary honorees included Sylvia Houser, Ellen Shears, Micheal Shuman, Thelma Terrel, and LaTonya Warren.

"Our volunteers are totally awesome!" said Sabrina Wiggins, the Bon Secours Community Works Community School Coordinator at Frederick Elementary. "They are dedicated hard working individuals that continuously give their time to meet the needs of our school community. They manage the food pantry, assist in the cafeteria, make copies, attend field trips, and much more. Our volunteers are the heartbeat of our school and we are so grateful to have them."

The Govans Elementary honorees were Tim and Lee Pierce, who have been tutoring Govans students twice a week for six years.

"We do it because it is fun; we really see the kids progress; the teachers are grateful for the help; the office staff is supportive; we have built an emotional connection to the school; and we are given both guidance about what is needed and freedom to use our own approaches when we feel they are appropriate - like my abacus," said Ms. Pierce.

Attendees enjoyed the comedy stylings of Meshelle, the Indie-Mom of Comedy, and her powerful message about service, self-care and self-discovery.

BCP, Frederick Elementary, and Govans Elementary would like to thank these "All-Star" volunteers for supporting our students!
Govans Elementary Begins Design Process for New Facility
Govans Elementary kicked off the Design Phase for the new school facility with a community meeting on June 6, 2018. The new building, which will be designed by USA Architects, is scheduled to open in January 2021. USA Architects also designed the new facility for Frederick Elementary, which became a BCP charter school in July 2017.

Construction is scheduled to begin during the summer of 2019, after Govans Elementary moves into swing space at the former Chinquapin Middle School building. The Design Phase timeline is as follows:

  • Concept Submission – June 2018
  • Schematic Design Submission – August 2018
  • Detailed Design Submission – November 2018
  • Construction Documents Submission – May 2019

T he 21st Century School Buildings Program and USA architects will host the following community meetings in June and July:

In-School Design Progress Meeting with USA Architects
June 21, 2018 at 1:00pm at Govans Elementary

Community Space Meeting
July 18, 2018 at 5:30pm at Govans Elementary
EY Volunteers Make a Difference in HHA's Leaders Go Places Program
Three EY volunteers - Katie Fisher, Jillian Ruskey, and Ally Yawman - have been serving as student mentors through Hampstead Hill Academy's Leaders Go Places (LGP) program since September 2017.

LGP is a middle grades leadership program that inspires students to achieve excellence in academics, leadership and community service.

Katie, Jillian, and Ally each worked with a group of 7-10 middle grades students one Friday a month throughout the school year.

"Being a mentor at Hampstead Hill this year has been such a wonderful experience. It was a pleasure to work with a small group of driven and motivated eighth graders."

"It was apparent that these students were well educated in the importance of team work, community service, understanding learning styles and the significance of a good education. They were well mannered and easy to lead. I enjoyed getting to know each of their individual personalities and what motivated them and used each of their assets to help guide group discussions about important topics."

"It was nice to see some of my more reserved students open up as we got to know each other better. I will greatly miss working with this group as they all head off to separate high schools but I am looking forward to the opportunity to take on another small group of students next year and guide them in the same way. I hope that I was able to make an impact on the students in my group because they certainly made an impact on me!"

- Katie Fisher

"Going into this I have to admit I was a little nervous about what a group of seven sixth graders and I would have in common and what we would talk about! However, I had such a great group of tomorrow’s leaders, my nerves were quickly soothed when I met their smiling faces and we talked about our favorite snacks and after school activities. We had a lot more in common than I expected.

As sixth graders, this was their first time going through LGP and they all truly embraced it! No one seemed to be worried that it wasn’t ‘cool’ to be on level, and in fact the one commonality the kids found with each other was that everyone truly wanted to get on level and, more importantly, reach the next level.

I look forward to sharing donuts with them on our last meeting of the school year, but I certainly hope this isn’t the last time we get to talk about their ongoing journey to becoming the best leaders they can be! And not to be forgotten – Mr. Lucas’ command of a gym full of middle schoolers’ attention and their respect and dedication to this program is unmeasurable and invaluable! HHA is very lucky!"

- Jillian Ruskey

Katie, Jillian, and Ally first learned about LGP during an EY Connect Day at Hampstead Hill Academy on October 6, 2017. During the day, eight EY volunteers visited classrooms to talk about their work at EY. Then they helped teachers with a variety activities from reading with students to accompanying a class on a nature exploration experience in Patterson Park.

HHA and BCP would like to thank Katie, Jillian and Ally for supporting our students. Special thanks to EY employee and BCP Board Member Jenn Blois Vitelkites for connecting HHA with these wonderful volunteers.
Wolfe Street Academy Braves the Storm for Wolfest 2018
The rain didn't stop Wolfe Street Academy (WSA) from hosting another successful Wolfest community festival on Saturday May 19, 2018.

Families and community members packed into the school for an afternoon of student performances, games, arts and crafts, and food. The Parent Teacher Organization ran a 50/50 raffle and an iPad raffle.

Attendees enjoyed a violin concert presented by students from the Bridges Music Program and a dance performance in which students used beach balls as percussion instruments. The dance routine was choreographed by Physical Education teacher Mike Mavias.

Always a good sport, Principal Mark Gaither endured the annual "Pie the Principal" game.
At the Upper Fells Point Improvement Association (UFPIA) table, Mollie Fein and Karyn Haasen taught students about the animals and amphibians you can find in Patterson Park. Barbara Moore, another UFPIA member, received Wolfe Street Academy's "20 Years of Awesomeness" award for her 20 years of volunteering at WSA.

WSA would like to thank Mollie Fein, Karyn Haasen, Barbara Moore, and all of the volunteers who made Wolfest a success.

Special thanks to Leah Beachley, WSA's SWCOS Community School Coordinator, and the rest of the Wolfest crew for planning the event.
Baltimore Curriculum Project | 410.675.7000 | bcpinfo@baltimorecp.org | www.baltimorecp.org