Category Archives: Education

AK performing arts teacher Kelly Rentz named her state’s 2025 Teacher of the Year

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High school performing arts teacher Kelly Rentz has been named Alaska’s 2025 State Teacher of the Year. Photo credit: Stetson University

There are many stellar teachers in our nation’s public schools, and every year, one from each state earns Teacher of the Year honors. One of these is Kelly Rentz, a performing arts teacher in Alaska. She has been named her state’s 2025 Teacher of the Year.

Kelly teaches choir, drama, and Advanced Placement Music Theory at Colony High School (CHS) in Palmer, Alaska. She also serves as the Director of her school’s Drama Department; in fact, she has been the Director of Choirs and Drama at the campus since 2018. Furthermore, she founded a chapter of Tri-M, the National Honor Music Society and is the advisor for the National Thespian Society on her campus. She also serves as President of the Board of Directors for Valley Performing Arts in Wasilla, Alaska,.

As if all that were not enough, Kelly has coached color guard for the CHS Marching Band, The Northern Sound. The group has performed in the prestigious Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, the 75th Anniversary D-Day Memorial Parade in France, and the 2015 Bands of America Grand Nationals, where the group was awarded the Albert J. Castronova Esprit de Corps Award for “pride, spirit, enthusiasm, friendliness, camaraderie and unity of purpose.”

The honored educator says she encourages her students to involve themselves with the arts in their community. Her students take lead roles in large–scale community productions that she has directed, including Phantom of the Opera, Beauty and the Beast, and Les Misérables. She says her students often volunteer to perform for charitable events.

Kelly confesses that her goal of becoming a teacher started back when she was still a child. “I loved playing teacher in my mom’s class after school with my friends,” she reveals. “I always knew I would become a teacher, and I always knew it would be music that I taught,” she continued.

Kelly earned her Bachelor’s degree in Music with an emphasis in Vocal Performance from Stetson University in DeLand, Florida, in 1989.
 

Maryland teacher Mary Carter Smith earned fame as a folklorist, radio personality

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Maryland public school teacher Mary Carter Smith earned accolades as a radio personality, folklorist, and griot. Photo Credit: National Association of Black Storytellers

Many talented educators are also known for their artistic pursuits. One of these was Mary Carter Smith, a public school teacher in Maryland who earned fame as a radio personality, folklorist, and griot—a storyteller in African oral tradition. She has earned a reputation nationwide for reviving and promoting storytelling as an art form, as a teaching method, and as a form of communication.

Mary was committed to the power of storytelling in assisting understanding between people and in improving race relations. “Misunderstanding abounds. It has no special resting place. Rich and poor, majority and minority, young and old, Black and White – all feel the sting of being misunderstood,” she asserted. “And there are many people, using many ways, trying to lead us to a better understanding of each other. I am among those who fight misunderstanding,” she continued. “The weapons I use are stories, drama, songs, poetry, and laughter. I bring entertainment with a purpose,” she concluded.

Mary was born in Feb. 10, 1919, in Birmingham, Alabama. She earned her Bachelor’s degree at Coppin State University in 1942. In 1943, she accepted a position in the Baltimore City Public School system, where she taught for 31 years. In addition to her work in the classroom, Mary hosted a Saturday morning radio program entitled Griot for the Young and the Young at Heart.

As if this were not enough, Mary was a co-founder of the Arena Players Theatre Company and the Griots’ Circle of Maryland. In 1982, she co-founded the National Association of Black Storytellers. She was also instrumental in the founding of Big Brothers and Big Sisters of America in her city.

For her work as an educator and folklorist, Mary earned many accolades. In 1998, she was inducted into the Maryland Women’s Hall of Fame. In 1996, she earned the Lifetime Achievement Award and the Circle of Excellence Award, both from the National Storytelling Association. Also, Mary was named the official Griot of Baltimore City, and in 1991, she was named the official Griot of the state of Maryland. In 1985, Mary garnered the Zora Neale Hurston Award. In 1982, she co-founded the National Association of Black Storytellers. She was also instrumental in the founding of Big Brothers and Big Sisters of America in her city. But the most amazing of all, I think, is that her image has been featured in the National Great Blacks in Wax Museum located in Baltimore!

Sadly, Mary Carter Smith passed away on April 24, 2007. To read more about her, see this article published by the Maryland Women’s Hall of Fame.

Marzell’s book Unleashed! makes great summer reading

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Summer vacation is a terrific time to relax and leisure read a pleasant book. I suggest my most recent book, Unleashed! The Dog Park Chronicles, which is now available in both paperback and ebook versions from amazon.comand barnesandnoble.com. This is my first novel for young people. But the volume has also garnered praise from adults who have read it and loved it!Marzell’s most recent book makes great summer reading

In the book, I have created a charming cast of animal characters and their human companions who live in or visit the local dog park. Each event which takes place holds an essential message about kindness, community, inclusion, and personal responsibility. There are also messages of anti-bullying and anti-prejudice.

In addition, the narrative includes commentary about how young people can appreciate nature, even if they live in a suburban environment. I explore themes related to the migratory patterns of Canada geese, the natural instincts of the animal characters, and the progression of the seasons.

The dog park described in the novel, Vila Borba, really exists! It is located not far from my home in Chino Hills, California. And depicted on the cover of the book are two of my very own pets! The little white terrier mix on the front cover is Kurby, whose rescue story is described in Chapter 4. (In the book the Kurby character is named Bowser.) The elegant black and white tuxedo pictured on the back cover is my own ladycat, Licorice.

This 156-page book would make a terrific book for you and your students to read. If you have already purchased the book, thank you so much! I hope you would consider writing a review of the story on amazon. I am also asking for support to offer an AR (Accelerated Reading) quiz for the book. You could make a request for this at the AR website.

Former science teacher Alberto Carvalho now serves as Supt. of LAUSD

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Former science teacher Alberto Carvalho immigrated to the US with his family in search of a better life. He now serves as the Superintendent of Los Angeles Public Schools. Photo credit: The New York Times

Many excellent classroom teachers go on to positions of leadership and influence in their school districts. Alberto Carvalho is a fine example of this. Alberto inaugurated his career in education as a classroom teacher in Miami, Florida, rising to the position of Superintendent there. Currently, he works as the Superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District in California.

The former classroom teacher immigrated to the United States from Portugal with his family in search of a better life in about 1983. He was 17 years old at the time. At first, the family landed in New York, but later they relocated to Miami. Alberto was the first in his family to graduate from high school. 

Because of his determination and hard work, Alberto was able to put himself through college. He enrolled in courses first at Broward Community College, and later he earned a scholarship to Barry University, where he completed the requirements for his Bachelor’s degree.

Alberto inaugurated his career in education as a science teacher at Miami Jackson Senior High School in Miami-Dade County. He taught physics, chemistry, and calculus there. After four years in the classroom, Alberto served the District in several leadership positions, including Assistant Principal and Chief Communications Officer, before his selection as the Superintendent. For 13 years, Alberto served in that role for Miami-Dade County Public Schools.

During his tenure as Superintendent, Alberto garnered local, state, national, and international recognition. He was named Florida’s 2014 Superintendent of the Year; the 2014 National Superintendent of the Year; the 2016 winner of the Harold W. McGraw Prize in Education; the 2018 National Urban Superintendent of the Year; the 2019 National Association for Bilingual Education (NABE) Superintendent of the Year. In addition, he garnered recognition by Scholastic Administrator as one of “The Fantastic Five” educators making a difference in America.

Alberto currently serves on the National Assessment Governing Board, to which he was appointed by the US Secretary of Education. He also serves as a committee member for the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine, and as an Advisory Committee Member to the Harvard Program on Education Policy and Governance.

On Dec. 14, 2021, this Chalkboard Champion was hired to be the Superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District in Los Angeles, California. He continues to serve in this role today.