HCPS Blueprint

HCPS is required to submit a Blueprint for Maryland's Future Implementation Plan each year to the Accountability and Implementation Board (AIB), which is the governing board overseeing the implementation of this legislation. For 2024, this plan is required in two parts, with part one (Systemwide) due March 15, 2024. Review Part 1 of the 2024 HCPS Blueprint Implementation Plan.

Bookmark these pages!

Advancing the Strategic Plan . 2022-2023 Annual Report

HCPS Blueprint Website . HCPS State of the District

"When Maryland’s public school leaders submitted their first Blueprint for Maryland’s Future documents to state officials last year, part of the requirements were to identify any challenges they’d face meeting the mission of the education reform plan. These included hiring and retaining qualified teachers, expansion of prekindergarten to include 3- and 4-year-old children and incorporating college and career readiness programs..." Read Full Maryland Matters Article Here

HCPS is required to submit a Blueprint for Maryland's Future Implementation Plan each year to the Accountability and Implementation Board (AIB), which is the governing board overseeing the implementation of this legislation. For 2024, this plan is required in two parts, with part two (Pillars 1-5) due May 1, 2024. Review Part 2 of the 2024 HCPS Blueprint Implementation Plan.

The HCPS Office of Strategic Initiative collaborated with the Office of Research and Program Evaluation and administered a multi-stakeholder survey in February and March of 2023. This survey was designed to gather feedback on the 2023 Blueprint Initial Implementation Plan from several stakeholder groups to include as part of committee goals and improvements for the 2024 Implementation Plan. Comprehensive Review of HCPS Initial Blueprint Implementation Plan Survey Analysis – March 2023

If you were unable to tune into the March Momentum Live Event, click below to view the informational updates about the Blueprint from Katie Ridgway and an inspirational message shared by Dr. Eric Davis.

The Harford County Local Behavioral Health Authority, the Klein Family Center, and Harford County Public Schools are hosting the third Your Mind Matters: A Family Wellness Night, on Friday, May 31, from 5:00-9:00 p.m. at Leidos Field at Ripken Stadium. This event will promote mental health and wellness during Mental Health Awareness Month. Families will have an opportunity to engage in a community conversation about mental wellbeing. Join us for crafts, bounce houses, a petting zoo, games on the field, a rock-climbing wall, fireworks and much more for the entire family to enjoy! Last year, more than 5,000 people were in attendance with your support we are looking forward to a more successful event. Register HERE.

Hear the story of Monica Graham, Community Schools Specialist, talk about how she has her dream job supporting the Bakerfield Elementary School community.

During the week of May 27, Dr. Roclande’ White, Grant Specialist, Cheryl Franz, Community School Specialist at Edgewood Middle School, Niesha Franklin, Community School Specialist at Joppatowne High School, along with FourPoint Education Partners, will take the stage at the 2024 National Community Schools and Family Engagement Conference. Their session, titled "Theory to Practice: A District and its CS Specialists Tell Their Story," will delve into the intricacies of HCPS’ Community Schools Needs Assessment. Attendees can expect insights into the stages of the assessment process, the collaborative efforts involved, the necessary support systems, and how this comprehensive assessment has shaped the individualized initiatives at each school.

The Blueprint provides funding directly to behavioral health agencies and we are excited to introduce our planned partners and services through the "Consortium on Coordinated Community Supports":

• FreshStart Therapeutic Services: This program will provide therapeutic mentoring and peer and family/community group support on topics such as depression, anxiety, coping skills, social skills, independent living skills, suicide and substance use prevention. Programming will include Unified Protocols for Transdiagnostic Treatment of Emotional Disorders in Children and Adolescents (UP‐C/UP‐A), Botvin Life Skills, Youth Aware of Mental Health (YAM). The grantee proposes to serve a total of 105 students/families from eight elementary, middle, and high schools.
• Thrive Behavioral Health: This program will provide substance abuse prevention and early childhood intervention services; parent support groups; school professional development; translation services; and wraparound services. Programming will include Unified Protocols for Transdiagnostic Treatment of Emotional Disorders in Children and Adolescents (UPC/UP‐A). The grantee proposes to serve a total of 2,480 students/families from 10 elementary, middle, and high schools.
• Achieving True Self: This program will provide social‐emotional learning through social skills groups, parent training, behavior consultation and support. Programming will include The Chicago Parenting Program. The grantee proposes to serve a total of 223 students/families from 54 pre‐k, elementary, middle, and high schools.
• Nature Worx, Inc.: This program will provide mindfulness‐based nature immersion sessions for students and their families to help participants learn skills to support their mental/emotional health and increase their resiliency/coping abilities. Programming will include mental health first aid and nature therapy. The grantee proposes to serve a total of 550 students/families from one middle and one high school.
• Harford County Boys & Girls Club: This program will focus on providing social‐emotional skill building and character development through after-school activities. It will also work to address social determinants of health (SDOH). Programming will include Positive Action. The grantee proposes to serve a total of 1,500 students/families from 23 schools, including elementary, middle, and high schools.
• Cook Center for Human Connection: This program will provide parent coaching, school staff training, and promote positive classroom environments. Programming will include Cognitive Behavioral Intervention for Trauma in Schools (CBITS). The grantee proposes to serve a total of 42,655 students/families from 55 schools, including pre‐k, elementary, middle, and high schools.
• Pivot Point Counseling, LLC: This program will provide outpatient psychiatric services, care coordination, case management, family support groups, collaboration with other providers, and wraparound services. Programming will include Safety Planning Intervention and Motivational Interviewing. The grantee proposes to serve a total of 60 students/families from 10 high schools.

The HCPS Board of Education Grati-Tour visited several Special Education locations throughout the county, including classrooms at Patterson Mill Middle/High School, Church Creek Elementary School, Meadowvale Elementary School, and Harford Academy. While on the tour, members of Central Office and the Board of Education of Harford County were shown several different aspects of Special Education and got to see what our amazing educators do each day to support some truly special students!

The Clubhouse by Ashley has brought their Roots Project to Aberdeen Middle School. The Roots Project gives at risk students the opportunity to connect with Peer Support Specialists who may have the same lived-in experiences that the students have. Peer Support Specialists help students with homework when needed, give them a safe place to talk, or even just a needed break throughout the day.

The College and Career Readiness (CCR) Standard has been updated by MSDE and is an important benchmark in the district's plans to support all students for success after high school. The CCR standard impacts funding, high school course decisions, and districtwide initiatives. See the full MSDE presentation about the CCR standard HERE.

The HCPS Apprenticeship Maryland Program (AMP) is an opportunity for students to earn and learn while in high school in a career area of their interest. This statewide program allows students to gain valuable industry experience by partnering students and employers together to create skilled labor through education, mentorship, and on-the-job training.

On May 8, 2024, Harford Business Roundtable and HCPS are hosting an Apprenticeship Summit. Local companies are invited to learn about HCPS AMP and HCC apprenticeships and workforce development. This event will be at TUNE and will showcase success stories from our partner business and participating students.

On Wednesday, April 3, 2024, students were treated to an amazing Career/Trade Day Event at Bel Air High School. Students in 11th and 12th grades got the chance to explore exhibits, meet with employers/trade representatives, and dive deep into various career-cluster opportunities! There were approximately 25 employers there, including Benfield Electric, Harford County Government, HCPS, Great Wolf Lodge, Bel Air Police Department, The Heating and Air Conditioning Contractors of Maryland, Allan Myers Construction, the Military, and many more!

The Maryland Longitudinal Data System (MLDS) Center submitted its annual report on dual enrollment, which shows the number of students who were dually enrolled in academic year 2020-2021. Dual enrollment refers to any broad array of programs and opportunities that allow high school students to enroll in and take college courses. This includes programs in which students are enrolled in a dual enrollment course through a partnership agreement with their local school system and thereby receive both high school and college credit (also known as dual credit). Dual enrollment also occurs when high school students independently enroll in courses at a college and only earn college credits. The report is available here on the MLDS Center website.

Take some time to hear about our 12 new career coaches, funded by the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future and offered by the Susquehanna Workforce Network, assigned to middle and high schools, who are helping our students explore and discover skills and information they need to be successful in their future career choice.

As we seek to implement the Blueprint, Pillar 2's goals align with our own values of recognizing and lifting up all of our employees. Take a look at all the honorees at this year's Celebration of Excellence event, ending with the big announcement about the 2024 HCPS Teacher of the Year!

On Tuesday, March 12, 24 HCPS TAM students attended the MSDE Teach MD Conference. Four of our students sat on a panel to answer questions about their experiences with our program. Alyssa Geddie, a 2023 TAM HCPS graduate, is currently pursuing an education degree at Towson University. She plans to return to HCPS to teach and attended the event at the request of her professors. She also sat on a panel where she discussed how TAM HCPS has set her up for success in her education courses at Towson. Teach MD made a promo video and one of our seniors, Kailani Hernandez, was selected to be part of that opportunity.

This spring launched a pilot for the model school program with a groups mentor teacher and a cohort of interns. We focus on Relationship and Trust-Building and Core Pedagogical issues that challenge pre-service teachers. Mentor teachers are prepared through a series of training sessions on classroom management, parent communication, establishing norms for relationships, etc.

The Talent Pathways teams are hard at work developing innovative strategies that focus on growing our own students and staff as educators and expanding the educator talent pool to be more representative of the Harford community. There are a lot of people who are making this magic happen as introduced below. Thank you to all for your work, as this is a critical initiative for elevating educators, stabilizing our workforce and improving student achievement.

Did you know that HCPS has a dedicated professional who helps HCPS staff who want to advance in the system? Contact Maranda Scott for more details: maranda.scott@hcps.org

"I started with HCPS as a long-term sub in 2020 during the COVID pandemic. The following year I became the school counselor at North Bend Elementary School. I was eager to advance my career with HCPS therefore, I began to network both inside and outside of my building making connections with different leaders throughout the county. Some of these connections and networks include serving on the county’s curriculum writing committee, attending Future U Academies, and my school’s SPA Team and Health and Wellness team. I have had the opportunity to work closely with Maranda Scott for career counseling services provided by the county. HCPS has been great at providing support to promote from within the system. The county fosters growth and provides many opportunities for advancement. Due to all the training, networking, and support I have been able to access, I was able to advance in my career. I'm proud to say that I will be the new Community Schools Specialist for Edgewood High School for the 2024-2025 school year. I'm thankful that I chose to shine with HCPS!"

Are you a Paraeducator or Inclusion Helper interested in a teaching career? If you currently hold an associate’s degree and have an interest in teaching, please see this flier for information about our new partnership with Towson University. This is a part-time pathway for individuals interested in earning their bachelor's degree in elementary education/special education

The Professional Learning Office, in collaboration with the Office of Organizational Development, has been instrumental in empowering HCPS educators on their path to professional growth through the Future U Teacher Leadership Academy. This initiative is dedicated to fostering the development of individual strengths and cultivating essential skills in adult learning and teacher leadership. We extend our sincere gratitude to all HCPS members who contributed to the success of the academy, particularly during the evening of mock interviews. Your support has been invaluable in shaping the experiences of our teacher leaders. We eagerly anticipate celebrating the continued growth and achievements of these dedicated professionals as they embark on their personal teacher leadership journeys.

Let’s celebrate an achievement – Abingdon Elementary School, Bel Air Elementary School, Church Creek Elementary School, Edgewood Elementary School, North Bend Elementary School, and Prospect Mill Elementary School have been awarded MSDE Accreditation and achieved Level 5 EXELS during the 24-25 school year! The Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) has affirmed their adherence to rigorous standards and their steadfast dedication to the holistic development of each student. Let’s celebrate the, educators, paraeducators, students, and Early Childhood Office whose collective efforts have helped achieve these milestones! HCPS Early Childhood Pre-K programs remain committed to preparing our youngest learners for a lifetime of success. Congratulations!

The HCPS Office of Special Education, Birth to 5, facilitated Pyramid Model training on March 6th, 13th, and 20th, to support the social emotional behavioral development of young children with 18 community providers from our local daycares and private preschool programs. We partnered with Abilities Network to provide stipends for our participants. In addition to the training, community providers also received many resources to implement the Pyramid model framework in their centers to support the social emotional behavior development of their children.

Additionally, the HCPS Office of Early Childhood conducted a series of Essential Practices workshops for providers. These workshops included "Visual Supports for Early Learners" on April 3, "Potty Training Techniques" on April 10, and "Phonemic Awareness Birth-5" on April 17, drawing a total of 45 providers.

Kindergarten readiness events have also been taking place throughout the county, hosted in elementary school buildings and community daycares. These events aim to share school readiness tips, facilitate connections with public schools, and assist families with the registration process. Participants at each event were provided with one of the following: school readiness bags, social-emotional materials, or Bedtime in a Box kit.

• Director of Strategic Initiatives: Katie.Ridgway@hcps.org
• Elevating Educators Sub-committee HCPS Co-chair: Rebecca.Gault@hcps.org
• Student Supports Sub-committee HCPS Co-chair: Bernard.Hennigan@hcps.org
• North Star Sub-committee HCPS Co-chair: Mike.OBrien@hcps.org
• Early Childhood Sub-committee HCPS Co-chair: Heather.Kutcher@hcps.org

April 30, 2024