From Anne Arundel County Public Schools 

Students in Early Childhood Education and prekindergarten through fifth grade whose families selected for them to return to school buildings in a hybrid environment will do so on March 1 under a reopening plan presented by Superintendent George Arlotto to the Board of Education at its February 3, 2021, meeting.

Under the plan, students in grades 6, 9, and 12 who are taking part in hybrid learning would return on March 8, followed by students in grades 7, 8, 10, and 11 on March 22. Students at all three levels would attend class in school buildings on either Monday and Tuesday or Thursday and Friday each week. All learning would take place virtually on Wednesday, when schools would undergo a thorough cleaning.

Approximately 39 percent of elementary school students will return in a hybrid format. That number is 36 percent in middle school and 34 percent at the high school level.

On January 14, 2021, the Board of Education directed Dr. Arlotto to begin the hybrid reopening of schools for as many students as possible by March 1. That is the same timeline that has been publicly urged by Governor Larry Hogan and Maryland State School Superintendent Dr. Karen Salmon.

Dr. Arlotto also provided the Board with the following timeline that will see smaller groups of students come back to buildings beginning next week:

• February 11, 2021: Center of Applied Technology – North; Developmental Centers (Phase I elementary)
• February 16, 2021: Developmental Centers (Phase II elementary)
• February 18, 2021: Center of Applied Technology – South; Developmental Centers (secondary)
• February 22, 2021: Elementary ED Regional Centers (Glendale ES, Odenton ES, Rolling Knolls ES); J. Albert Adams @ Mary Moss Academy (all grade levels); Phoenix Academy (ED elementary students)
• February 25, 2021: Secondary ED Regional Centers (Bates MS, Chesapeake Bay MS, Chesapeake HS); Secondary Autism Classrooms (Old Mill MS South and Old Mill HS); and Phoenix Academy (alternative education programs and ED secondary students)

School-based staff would return to buildings no later than February 17, 2021, with school system central and satellite office staff returning on a similar timeline. Teachers and others involved with instructing small groups of students will return earlier.

More information on the reopening of schools, including safety protocols and other mitigation measures, can be found at www.aacps.org/spring2021.

TranZed Apprenticeships, a nonprofit registered apprenticeship provider, has placed a new information technology apprentice with Morefield Communications (link to https://www.morefield.com, a business technology company based in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania. This is the first time TranZed Apprenticeships has placed a graduate of its pre-apprenticeship partner NuPaths (link to https://www.nupaths.org/), a technology training organization co-founded with Harrisburg University of Science and Technology.

“Through our partnerships in Pennsylvania, we’re building an apprenticeship pipeline, benefiting those looking to build their skills and careers as well as companies looking for skilled employees, and we’re excited to welcome Morefield Communications into the TranZed Apprenticeships family,” said Paul Champion, president of TranZed Apprenticeships. “Apprenticeships are a crucial component to closing the skills gap and are rapidly becoming key additions to the modern workforce.”

The apprentice Ryan McFalls graduated last year from the six-month network technician program at NuPaths, where he learned computer networking skills and earned industry-recognized certifications. NuPaths is an approved pre-apprenticeship training provider in Pennsylvania and prepared McFalls for his IT apprenticeship at Morefield Communications, which started this month.

TranZed Apprenticeships has placed an increasing number of apprentices in the technology industry. The pre-apprenticeship program provides apprentices with the skills necessary to meet the requirements of technology employers on day one. The apprenticeship program supports and trains apprentices on the skills requested by their employers throughout their first year of employment.

“We are very excited for Ryan and happy that NuPaths is playing a role in the creation of new technology training and hiring pathways,” said Andy Petroski, chief learning officer at NuPaths. “Apprenticeships are a great way for NuPaths graduates to put their certifications and skills into practice in the field, while still being mentored by industry professionals. For students entering the IT field without any prior experience, apprenticeships serve as a bridge between the learning and practice in pre-apprenticeship classes, the confirmation of knowledge and skills through IT certifications and the start of a career as an IT professional.”

“The contribution and collaboration of everyone involved in putting the Morefield Communications apprenticeship in place is proof that education, government and business can work together to solve today’s workforce development challenges,” Petroski said.

Morefield Communications installs and maintains workplace technology for businesses, hospitals, schools and nonprofit organizations throughout Pennsylvania and northern Maryland.

“I am thrilled that TranZed and NuPaths helped connect us with Ryan McFalls,” said Chris Howard, manager of advanced technology services at Morefield Communications. “Ryan has an impressive mix of technical and social skills that will delight our clients with prompt and courteous service. The apprenticeship program is an excellent way to find motivated individuals.”

TranZed Apprenticeships works to advance modern apprenticeships throughout the United States and offers apprenticeship programs developed to address the need for alternative career paths.

Apprenticeships combine on-the-job, competency and project-based training with job-related classroom instruction. They offer an earn-and-learn model where apprentices earn money starting their first day and receive pay increases as they gain additional skills and master their occupations.

Monarch Academy Annapolis, a public contract school with Anne Arundel County Public Schools, is using $51,135 in federal CARES Act funds to support tutoring for students. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act was passed by Congress last year to provide economic relief to Americans.

Monarch Academy Annapolis is partnering with Huntington Learning Center, a tutoring and test prep organization, to provide virtual or in-person one-on-one tutoring for students in kindergarten through fifth grades and small-group tutoring for students in second through fifth grades. Tutoring is helping students who show the most need in reading and math.

“While the pandemic has presented numerous challenges to schools and families, we are thankful for the grant funding that has been provided to support student learning in this time,” said Rachel Amstutz, principal of Monarch Academy Annapolis. “Our partnership with Huntington Learning Center has been such a gift to our school and our identified students. The flexibility of HLC in offering in-person or virtual tutoring at all times of the day and on school days and the weekend has proven to work well for all of our identified students.”

Monarch Academy Annapolis, a public contract school with Anne Arundel County Public Schools, is hosting a free, virtual family EdCamp conference on Saturday, Feb. 6, from 12:30 to 3:30 p.m. for school families and the community to help them support their children’s education.

The conference will provide opportunity for families to collaborate with Monarch Academy Annapolis educators and other families as well as attend virtual workshops covering topics including academics, social-emotional needs, technology, and general school topics.

Families can register for the Family EdCamp conference online .

The Children’s Guild Alliance, a nonprofit organization serving children, families and child-serving organizations, promoted Jillian Szczepaniak-Gillece to director of behavioral health services. Previously, Szczepaniak-Gillece served as clinical social work supervisor.

As director of behavioral health services, Szczepaniak-Gillece will manage The Children’s Guild Alliance’s Outpatient Mental Health Center and the delivery of mental health services and support to children and families. Szczepaniak-Gillece is a licensed clinical social worker and brings more than 13 years of experience providing clinical services as well as supervising clinicians, conducting individual and group supervisions, and working with interdisciplinary teams to improve outreach to schools.

Szczepaniak-Gillece has managed the medical billing for The Children’s Guild Alliance’s Outpatient Mental Health Center for the past eight years and implemented electronic health records and the use of communication and collaboration software. She joined The Children’s Guild Alliance in 2010 as a clinician. Previously, she worked at Sheppard Pratt and before that, at Martin De Porres School in New York.

 Szczepaniak-Gillece is also a volunteer health provider with Give an Hour. She holds a master’s degree in social work with a focus on children and families from Fordham University and a bachelor’s degree from La Salle University.