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April 30, 2012
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| MSDE Home | Newsroom | MDReportcard.org | School Improvement | | |
First, a word of congratulations to Maryland’s next State Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Lillian Lowery, who will take over this important position in less than three months. As the State Chief in Delaware, Dr. Lowery has been a national leader in the school reform movement. She’s been a teacher, principal, area superintendent, and system superintendent, and knows how education works at every level. Dr. Lowery also understands and admires Maryland, having met with former State Superintendent Nancy Grasmick and other members of the MSDE staff when building her agenda in Delaware. She’s the right leader to continue Maryland’s march to education excellence. * * * Just last month I mentioned that four schools had been nominated by MSDE to receive the U.S. Department of Education’s inaugural Green Ribbon Schools (GRS) Award for 2012. Schools were recognized for saving energy, reducing costs, featuring environmentally sustainable learning spaces, protecting health, fostering wellness, and offering environmental education to boost academic achievement and community engagement. Congratulations to all four winners. I suspect they are the first of many Maryland schools to be so honored. * * * The Governor last week discussed the importance of Career and Technology Education, and we couldn’t agree more: a strong CTE program is critical to Maryland’s future. The good news is that we have many outstanding CTE programs and supporters, and they were honored last week at the CTE Awards of Excellence Banquet. This year's award winners are: • Outstanding Business Partnerships – Secondary – National Rehabilitation Hospital, Partnership with Montgomery County Public Schools • Outstanding Business Partnerships – Postsecondary – Fitzgerald Automotive Family, Partnership with Montgomery College • Outstanding Career and Technology Education Program – Secondary – Teacher Academy of Maryland Program, Eastern Technical High School, Baltimore County Public Schools • Outstanding Career and Technology Education Program – Postsecondary – Medical Assistant Program, Frederick Community College • Outstanding Change Agent – Secondary – Barbara Palko, Coordinator of Career and Technology Education, Charles County Public Schools • Outstanding Change Agent – Postsecondary – Dr. Thomas Proffitt, Associate Dean, College of Education, Towson University • Outstanding Career Technology Student Organization – FBLA, River Hill High School, Howard County Public Schools • Distinguished Service – Secondary – Aaron Geiman, Agriculture Teacher, North Carroll High School, Carroll County Public Schools • Distinguished Service – Postsecondary – Rebecca Cool, Assistant to the Vice President of Instructional Affairs, Allegany College of Maryland Congratulations to all the winners! * * * Follow MSDE on Facebook! Calendar May 10 – 100th Anniversary Celebration of the Nancy S. Grasmick State Education Building, Baltimore May 18 – Fifth Annual Parent Involvement Matters Award Program, Eastern Technical High School, Baltimore County
In the News A Promising Sign for Maryland School Reform Governor Welcomes New State Schools Chief Maryland’s New School Superintendent Gets an Early Start Having trouble viewing this email? Click here for a PDF version of the MSDE April 30, 2012 Education Bulletin. If you would prefer not to receive future Newsletters from us, simply click here, and insert in the subject line, Unsubscribe. |
DELAWARE SCHOOLS CHIEF LILLIAN LOWERY NAMED NEXT MARYLAND SUPERINTENDENT Dr. Lillian M. Lowery, Secretary of Education for the Delaware Department of Education, last week signed her contract as Maryland’s next State Superintendent of Schools.
The State Board announced her selection on April 20. Dr. Lowery will take the helm of the nation’s number one-ranked State school system on July 1. Dr. Lowery will succeed Interim State Superintendent Bernard J. Sadusky. She joined Dr. Sadusky at last week’s State Board meeting, which also featured a visit from Gov. Martin O’Malley. “Maryland will lead the nation in closing the achievement gap,” Dr. Lowery told State Board members. “We are going to do it.” Governor O’Malley said that Maryland is well-positioned to continue the educational improvement that has been a hallmark of the State for the past two decades. “Today is a very hope-filled occasion,” he said. “We have a great leader in Dr. Lowery. We are ready to move forward to reach common goals.” Dr. Lowery has worked in various educational institutions and programs since 1976. She has been Secretary of Education in the State of Delaware since 2009, where she distinguished herself by facilitating a broad-based statewide strategic planning and grant application process which resulted in Delaware being selected as the “First State” to be awarded the federal Race to the Top grant. She has led the efforts to establish Teacher and Leaders Effectiveness Units as well as Turnaround Units within the State Department, which have assisted in the implementation of the grant and the improvement of instructional opportunities for students. Additionally, she has helped to differentiate the support for local school districts in an effort to assist them in their improvement efforts, as well as hold them accountable for student success. Prior to serving as the Secretary of Education, Dr. Lowery was the Superintendent in Christina School District in New Castle County, Delaware for three years. She has served as an Assistant Superintendent in Fairfax County, Virginia and an Area Administrator in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Other administrative experiences have included serving as both an assistant principal and principal at the high school level, and as the Minority Student Achievement Monitor. In addition, she taught English at the middle and high school levels in Virginia. Dr. Lowery holds a Doctorate of Education in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies from Virginia Polytechnic and State University, as well as a Masters of Education in Curriculum and Instruction from University of North Carolina, and a Bachelor of Arts in English and Secondary Education from North Carolina Central University. She is also a nationally known speaker and recognized as a leader among chief state school officials. Board President DeGraffenreidt said the Maryland State Board of Education would like to thank the citizens of Maryland for enthusiastically participating and providing invaluable insights throughout the selection process. Community members shared with the Board their perspectives, opinions, concerns and ideas through various meetings, focus groups and surveys. The Board found this input invaluable in evaluating each candidate and reaching a final decision, he noted. Dr. Sadusky has served as Interim State Superintendent since July 1, 2011. He replaced Dr. Nancy S. Grasmick, who retired in 2011 after 20 years as State Superintendent of Schools.
Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley says that Maryland public schools have a lot to be proud of. But in remarks before the State Board last week, he urged educators – and officials – to continue their efforts to strengthen education.
“The progress we have made was not inevitable progress,” the Governor said. “We need to continue to make the right choices.” Gov. O’Malley counted down the list of good news for Maryland education, from the top rankings by Education Week and the College Board through continued funding support embodied in Bridge to Excellence and school construction budgets. Maryland’s success at winning the Race to the Top grant, and the implementation of the reforms packaged with it, are more signs of the State’s ongoing improvement. The Governor pointed to two issues that he believes merit further attention. State and local officials need to redouble efforts to bring in more qualified principals into the profession, he said, and additional attention should be paid to increasing enrollment in Career and Technology Education (CTE) programs. More CTE graduates will help fill the needs of Maryland’s tech-heavy industries, Gov. O’Malley said, and have the added benefit of reducing high school dropouts. “We have a skills shortage more than we have a jobs shortage in our State,” said the Governor. “CTE is dropout prevention.” |
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