Grace Elementary

"I strongly believe people in a higher grade like fourth and fifth grade should read `Little House in the Big Woods' by Laura Ingalls Wilder, because it has very hard words and the people who are reading won't understand them. Also it's very hard to understand what they did in the olden days."Sochima AtikpohPleasant Plains Elementary"I am writing to inform you about my favorite book that is written by Dr. Seuss. My favorite book is `The Foot Book' because it talks about big and small feet."

"My favorite book is 'The Baby Sitter's Little Sister' by Ann M. Martin. I liked the part where Karen thinks everyone at the party is a witch -- even her grandmother. It was so funny."-- Nikki EshelmanSolley Elementary"My favorite book is 'Hop on Pop' by Dr. Seuss because the kids were trying to get him to wake up and they tried jumping on him and at the end he got mad."-- Marcus McLeanHavre de Grace ElementaryPub Date: 05/02/99

The allegedly forced transfer of a half-dozen veteran teachers from Havre de Grace Elementary School by the principal has unleashed emotions that are not going to be calmed by Harford County school board promises of hiring a mediator to resolve the situation in the fall.Especially when the Harford school board and administration conveniently shield themselves from public discussion behind the hoary excuse, "It's a personnel matter." And when Superintendent Ray Keech gives unquestioned authority to Principal Franklin Tull to make those questionable personnel decisions.

Havre de Grace PTA Must Follow RulesI am writing this so your readers understand that the issues concerning the Havre de Grace Elementary PTA have always been about ethics -- PTA members questioning the actions of an administration; not, as suggested in recent articles, a power play between a board member and a president.The bylaws and charter of the Havre de Grace Elementary PTA have always been publicly displayed in the lobby of the school. Everyone, including children, is able to read the rules governing the PTA.What message do we send our children when our leaders decide not to follow rules?

The PTA president at Havre de Grace Elementary School is calling for the ouster of the principal because of disputes between the school's administration and teachers.Jerry Ashby, president of the school's Parent-Teacher Association, said he wants Principal Franklin Tull and his administrative staff transferred.Five teachers say they are being moved from the school on Revolution Street against their will after disagreements with the principal about curriculum and the teaching process even though they were promised there would be no reprisals -- including transfers -- for speaking out."

Elementary schools such as 64-year-old Churchville Elementary top the list of Harford County school buildings needing upgrades and overhauls.The Level Road school has not been renovated or modernized since it was built in 1931.It has a "fair" health and safety rating, but the building's heating, electrical and plumbing systems are in poor condition, according to school system documents. The condition of the school's roof, replaced recently, is rated as good."If nothing else, our age would certainly justify a renovation," said Principal James H. Lewis III. "The boiler is a major problem."

The Harford County Council will decide Tuesday night whether to allow the county school board to spend an additional $529,000 renovating Havre de Grace Elementary School.In 1993, the school system estimated that Havre de Grace Elementary would need about $2.3 million in renovations.The 45-year-old school, much of which had never been renovated, had numerous problems, including an electrical system so outdated that air conditioners and fans tripped circuit breakers.The school also needed basics, such as new doors and windows, and an elevator so that students with disabilities could reach the second floor.

Rick Daub is about to enter the world of grown-ups.It's not that the 32-year-old isn't one. It's just he's about to become one of them -- The Establishment -- as a member of the Harford County school board.After weeks of waiting, Mr. Daub got the official word last Monday that Gov. William Donald Schaefer has appointed him to fill the Havre de Grace seat vacated by Percy V. Williams, 80, who is retiring.Mr. Daub hopes to follow in the elder statesman's footsteps."I admire the caring, understanding and wisdom showed by Dr. Williams through the years," Mr. Daub says.

Infuriated by what they call the Harford school system's neglect, some 300 parents, teachers and administrators demanded last week that Havre de Grace schools get long-overdue renovations and repairs.Calling themselves HOPE, the Havre de Grace Area Organization of Parents for Education, members of the group took their case to school board members and administrators Monday night.By contrast, a similar meeting last year, before the group formed, drew only about 25 parents."We felt we had to collaborate and be cooperative as one group, rather than separate PTAs, because our schools are smaller and our community is less affluent than some others in the county," said Pat White, a HOPE representative whose children attend Meadowvale Elementary and Havre de Grace Middle School.

For years, parents at older schools in poorer areas hav complained that the Harford school system ignores their pleas for long-overdue repairs and renovations.Now, stung by intense criticism, the school system has made public a 30-point rating system used to decide which schools are renovated when.The rating system evaluates older schools, using a point system to measure the need for repairs of everything from plumbing to the school's parking lot. Necessary repairs to some major parts of a school, like the heating and cooling system, receive more points than others, such as windows or floor tiles.

The playground at Havre de Grace Elementary School wasn't very inviting. It contained metal bars and slides, and it didn't engage the children when they played outside during recess. There were safety concerns, and the play areas were not accessible to the disabled. "The playground was so antiquated, the county executive remembered that the playground was the same one he played on when he attended the school," said Ginny Popiolek, who has been the supervisor of physical education for elementary and middle schools, and health for K-12, for the past six years.

For six weeks, 11 young people will meet every day at 9 a.m. at Havre de Grace Elementary School. Some of them will go to work on an outdoor garden project, while others will be working with children at the school. Then at 2 p.m., the young people will head to the Boys and Girls Club of Havre de Grace, where they will play games and act as mentors for the children there. Although their roles are different, they have a common goal: to make a difference in the world. "There aren't many projects like this; it's very unique," said Danielle Ludwick, 24, who was born in Portland, Maine, but calls Toronto, Canada, home.

Mary Sampson Family liaison, Havre de Grace Elementary School Harford County public schools Salary -- $25,000 Age: -- 65 Years on the job -- 25 How she got started -- Sampson didn't start working outside her home until she turned 40. By that time, the youngest of her five children was attending middle school. With experience as both a Girl Scout leader and as children's director at her church, she decided she wanted work with young children and applied to the local elementary school.

Some fifth-graders at Havre de Grace Elementary School lacked equipment for a four-day overnight school trip, such as sleeping bags, hiking boots and rain gear. When Mary Sampson heard about pupils' problem, she approached local businesses and persuaded them to donate the needed items. Sampson, an instructional assistant at the school, has started two book clubs and a mentoring program for pupils. She also is the family liaison, a role in which she works to get parents involved with their children's education.

One in a series of occasional stories highlighting people in the Baltimore area who exemplify the "Spirit of Sharing," The Sun's annual holiday campaign. At Havre de Grace Elementary School, 8-year-old Carol wants a baby doll that giggles. Jacob, 6, hopes for books about sharks and dinosaurs. Asia, 5, wants a toy ATM and kitchen play set. And while 7-year-old Albert and his sister Tomasina, 13, would like toys, they would really love a dresser for their room. In this waterfront town in Harford County, hundreds of holiday requests like these have been answered over the years not by Santa, but by someone mightier.

Bethany Duke's first-grade class sits around five octagonal-shaped tables with neat stacks of books and baskets of crayons on them in her brightly colored Havre de Grace Elementary School classroom. Duke, a first-year teacher, is one of three Harford County public school teachers and one of 189 teachers in the Mid-Atlantic-area designated Meritorious New Teacher Candidates. "I can't really say that this award has changed anything in my teaching," Duke said. "I'm honored to be recognized at the beginning of my career, and I appreciate the recognition."

A Havre de Grace Elementary School teacher has won a prestigious award for state math educators, making her the third Harford County teacher to do so in as many years. Virginia Hinckley, 52, a 31-year veteran of the Harford school system, was named Elementary Teacher of the Year by the Maryland Council of Teachers of Mathematics, a professional organization for arithmetic educators. She was one of 10 teachers of the year chosen from a statewide pool of applicants. "It's really about the prestige of sort of being endorsed by other teachers," said Gail Kaplan, the council's awards chairwoman.

In an effort to boost test scores that have been stagnant countywide, Harford schools are placing more emphasis on early literacy programs to help some of their youngest pupils, especially those in the county's poorest schools. County elementary schools are giving children in pre-kindergarten through third grade additional reading help through one-on-one tutorials, intense language-arts classes, mentoring and other programs. Some of these efforts are showing promise. At Havre de Grace Elementary -- one of six county schools with a large number of students receiving free or reduced-price lunches -- pupils made great strides in the recent Maryland School Performance Assessment Program tests.

"I strongly believe people in a higher grade like fourth and fifth grade should read `Little House in the Big Woods' by Laura Ingalls Wilder, because it has very hard words and the people who are reading won't understand them. Also it's very hard to understand what they did in the olden days."Sochima AtikpohPleasant Plains Elementary"I am writing to inform you about my favorite book that is written by Dr. Seuss. My favorite book is `The Foot Book' because it talks about big and small feet."

"My favorite book is 'The Baby Sitter's Little Sister' by Ann M. Martin. I liked the part where Karen thinks everyone at the party is a witch -- even her grandmother. It was so funny."-- Nikki EshelmanSolley Elementary"My favorite book is 'Hop on Pop' by Dr. Seuss because the kids were trying to get him to wake up and they tried jumping on him and at the end he got mad."-- Marcus McLeanHavre de Grace ElementaryPub Date: 05/02/99