2019 Teacher of the Year Finalists

The 2019 Teacher of the Year finalists, collectively known as the Fab Five, led the efforts for inspiring educators throughout Harford County Public Schools during the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 school years. Through presentations to new teachers, HCPS leadership, students, parents/guardians, and more, the Fab Five used their platform to stress the importance of collaboration among our peers to lead and guide our work. Individual success can be heightened through peer-to-peer support, and without that connection student learning and professional development would not be as successful as it is. This work was even more important when the COVID-19 pandemic caused an overnight shift to virtual learning, but the Fab Five navigated this shift with grace and strong leadership. Over the course of two years, the Fab Five created many helpful and insightful resources for others. A summary of their efforts are outlined below.

In August 2019, the Fab Five participated in the HCPS Summer Leadership Academy and presented to their colleagues on "The Power of Collaboration." Collaborating with your peers is an invaluable way to learn and grow professionally. The Fab Five presented the benefits and importance of a professional support system both inside and outside of the classroom.

The Fab Five presented at the 2019-2020 New Teacher Orientation at C. Milton Wright High School in August 2019. Teaching is a profession that is born from a passion for learning, and using that passion to lift others was one of the main focuses of the Fab Five's work.

As a follow-up to their New Teacher Orientation presentation, the Fab Five collaborated once again in February and March of 2020 to revisit their time spent with new teachers. This served as a "temperature check" opportunity for new teachers to ask questions, share insight, and give recommendations for navigating the second half of the school year.

On February 18, 2020, the Fab Five presented to HCPS Senior Staff on the importance of collaboration and the power of being a ‘yes’ leader. Using leadership traits, what it means to be 'on an island,' and The Power of Moments: Why Certain Experiences Have Extraordinary Impact by Chip and Dan Heath, the group emphasized the benefits of working together to better support ourselves and others.

In the summer of 2020, the Fab Five participated in professional development geared towards new teachers and their feelings on distance/virtual learning. The 2020-2021 school year began with a heavy focus on distance learning, and teachers were faced with the challenge of navigating different learning levels amongst their students. The group discussed and shared strategies for how to engage students, address virtual classroom struggles, and more.

Following a shift to virtual learning in the spring of 2020, the Fab Five were an integral part of Teacher Recovery Focus Group meetings in June of 2020. The virtual learning experience was new for most teachers and proved to be a very challenging way to provide a high quality learning experience to students. The feedback that the Fab Five was able to provide gave insight into how teachers were feeling, knowing that this virtual environment may continue.

The Fab Five worked together, using their past experiences, to create a parent/teacher conference bookmark with helpful questions for parents to ask their child's teacher in a conference setting. The questions were also translated to Spanish to aid our Spanish speaking families.

During their New Teacher Orientation presentation, the Fab Five provided printed copies of their flipbook, Empowering Teachers to Support Students. These flipbooks included curated information intended to support new and returning teachers as they navigated a new school year. Topics included helpful resources, building relationships, classroom challenges, and communication.

In the Fall of 2019, we highlighted the 2019 Teacher of the Year finalists, collectively known as the Fab Five!

This campaign was also used to encourage nominations for the 2020 Teacher of the Year!

As a parent, helping your child with homework can be a challenge. Our goal is to support you every step of the way. Our highly-skilled educators have joined together to provide videos of their lessons, directly from their classrooms, to provide parents with the same firsthand learning experience that their children receive every day. These videos and corresponding academic resources are geared towards parents/guardians to act as an at-home support toward your child's success.

Using their experiences from the COVID-19 pandemic and how it effected both students and teaching staff, the Fab Five worked as collaborators for the Digital Learning Survey conducted by the HCPS Office of Research and Program Evaluation. The purpose of the Digital Learning Survey was to collect perspectives of students, staff, parents/guardians, and members of the greater Harford County community during the initial transition to virtual learning environments following the systemwide closure in March of 2020 for the COVID-19 pandemic.

Virtual learning made it more challenging for teachers and students to find ways to connect and engage. This new form of learning pushed us to find new ways to engage students, and that can be difficult. Many teachers expressed how much it would help to be able to see students; to read their body language, see their faces, and any possible distractions. We realize that turning cameras on is not an option for all students and would like to help you to find ways to engage your students in a variety of ways.

Watch a presentation highlighting, in their own words, the year-long journey of our 2019 Teacher of the Year finalists, collectively known as the Fab Five. Paige Milanoski, Rebecca Martinek, Kristie Smith, Kathy Thompson, and Dawn Zipay each share what the experience meant to them.

Rebecca Martinek, Science Teacher

Paige Milanoksi, English Teacher

Kathy Thompson, Gifted and Talented Teacher

Kristie Smith, Science Teacher

Dawn Zipay, Music Teacher