From the Executive Director
Team,
Greetings and best wishes to each of you as you navigate deeper into the spring season and the final quarter of the school year! As you take a pause (yes, it is okay to pause every now and then!) to reflect on the amazing work you and your teams have done to enhance student success it is a great time to ask some reflective questions regarding how we collectively assess "how things went this year". Asking questions such as: did we attain the goals we set for ourselves back in August? How are we measuring success both within and outside of the metrics and external measures dictated by our districts and the state? How have we grown as teams and how have we built capacity to meet the changing challenges that present themselves, seemingly shifting from day to day, week to week and month to month? How have we, as leaders and teams, remained true to our core values and kept the focus on doing what is best for our students? These are all great questions to ponder moving forward and can also help set the stage for our work in planning for school improvement in preparation for 2025-2026. Kudos to you and your teams for reflecting in order to establish next steps!
There have been many exciting events of note over the past several weeks that include the naming of our Principals of the Year. Congratulations to Kris Hemstetter, High School Principal of the Year, Kent County High School! We are thrilled to have Kris as our MASSP president elect who will be taking the reins as president later this month. Congratulations as well to Kelly McVey, Middle School Principal of the Year, Southern Middle School. We are so proud of both of these outstanding leaders! Their recognitions not only reflect their leadership but ours as an organization. We are a stronger leadership community because of them and each of you!
In addition, a huge shout out to La Faye Howard, who was named as an NASSP National Finalist for High School Principal of the Year! La Faye and Anna Ory, our Maryland Middle School winner, were honored at the recent National Education Leaders Awards Gala in Washington, DC. They are highly impactful school based leaders who set an amazing example for all of us!
Finally, as we move deeper into the final quarter of the school year, we know that sustaining our energy and momentum can prove daunting. Please be sure to take the time to care for yourselves and to seek to maintain a level of balance (not easy but so necessary). I have the utmost level of admiration and respect for all you do. Each of you are greatly valued and highly appreciated!
As always do not hesitate to reach out to me with any questions or concerns. Take care and have a great month of May and very positive closing to the school year!
Sincerely,
Chris
443-545-9988
We are excited to be launching a new website set to go live on May 9th! Our new information management system, Growth Zone, will allow us to be more effective and efficient with communication, membership management and the handling of event registration. Be on the lookout for future communications regarding the new website and system!
A committee has been formed, under the leadership of Linda Chandler, Principal of Old Mill Middle School South, and Kim Culbertson, Principal of Towson High School to move the awards process forward. An initial committee meeting was held on April 2nd to plan the process, criteria and timeline. More information will be coming to you regarding how you can help support recognizing our principals and assistant principals. We will be recognizing our winners at the fall conference, November 6-8, 2025, at the Ashore in Ocean City, MD!
Our first annual Women's Leadership Conference held on March 20th at the Maritime Conference Center in Linthicum was an overwhelming success. Many thanks to all who worked to make it a reality and to all of those who attended and presented. We are planning to make this a yearly event and have a date set for next year-March 19, 2026 at the Maritime! Please save the date and plan to attend to engage in a day of professional learning, networking and community building!
Our MASSP group, along with our MAESP partners, attended the National School Leaders Advocacy Conference (NSLAC) on March 10-12 in Washington, DC and we had the chance to interact with a number of our legislative offices. I am happy to report that we were very well received and those we spoke with developed a better understanding of your work and the impact of federal funding on your schools and communities. Again, a huge shout out to Melissa Shindel, our National Advocacy Coordinator, for her communication and facilitation of the process. Thank yous as well to Michael Brown, MASSP President, Kris Hemstetter, MASSP President-Elect, James Allrich, NASSP National Board Member and Sheri Murphy, 2024 Assistant Principal of the Year, for attending!
Leadership can feel isolating at times and the power to networking can be rejuvenating! The 2025 UNITED Conference is your chance to do that—join over 4,000 school leaders like you to learn, grow, and find a community of peers who truly understand your challenges.
Co-hosted by NASSP and NAESP, this event will be held July 11–13, 2025, in Seattle. Sessions are tailored to your needs, offering insights on building leadership capacity, school culture, climate and inclusivity, and instructional leadership. You’ll gain practical strategies, engage in discussions on real-world challenges, and leave UNITED with actionable ideas to elevate your role as a school leader.
To register click this link: I’m ready! Let’s do this.
Experience UNITED in 2025!
The UNITED Conference, co-hosted by NASSP and NAESP, brings school leaders together for tailored sessions, networking, and strategies to elevate leadership—making it the must-attend event for principals and assistant principals.
National Association of Secondary School Principals, 1904 Association Drive , Reston, VA 20191
Here is the link for the May MASC Bulletin:
Here is the link for the April MASC Bulletin:
Here is the link for the March MASC Bulletin:
Contact us or visit the MASSP website
