Principal's Message
Principal's MessageAs I reflect on my first year as principal of Mt. Airy Elementary, I have a real sense of belonging to a wonderful community and an excitement for the possibilities ahead for our students, staff, and parents. We have made several changes this past year and continue to seek ways to improve learning for our students. This year we placed our focus on building relationsihps with our students, taking time to strengthen a sense of community in classrooms and leading our children to an understanding about taking responsibility for their personal behavior and learning. These are the building blocks for a strong academic program. We have looked closely at the resources we use in math and reading and continue to develop lessons that are engaging and relevant. Towards that end, this year we are changing our class structure by pairing teachers in the content areas. This means that students will have two teachers who will be paired in Math/Science and ILA/Social Studies. We envision that this will help children feel more connected and will improve parent communication. This will also allow for teachers to integrate learning, making it more motivating and meaningful. We have also strengthened our ties with the schools in our region. We have built a strong relationship with the administration and staff at Parr's Ridge and will continue to work to improve communication and make instruction fluid.
As I reflect back on the experiences that I have had during my 14 years as a school administrator in four different schools, I realize that I have been a part of the many curriculum and assessment changes that have taken place in Carroll County Public Schools and have supported teachers and students as we have strived to provide quality learning for all our students. Mt. Airy Elementary will continue the tradition of pursuing a strong academic program as we work together to build students of character who are responsible and caring.
I wanted to let you know something of my background. I am proud of the fact that I come from a military family! I was fortunate enough to live in a variety of places during my "growing up years". Home is probably still California, with Arizona a close second. Even after 35 years in Maryland, I long for a warmer and drier climate where the sun shines all the time! My entire teaching career, as a special education resource teacher, has been in Maryland schools. I absolutely love my job as a school principal and consider myself blessed that I can come to Mt. Airy every day! I am the proud parent of two young men! They both attended CCPS and are now out on their own. My personal life is much quieter than it used to be, so I enjoy reading, gardening, and taking walks. I'm slowly learning to weave and love the sense of accomplishment that comes with a completed project. Mt. Airy has the good fortune of having a terrific group of volunteer parents and an incredible P.T.A. The support provided by our parent volunteers has made a significant difference in the quality of our students' learning and the excellent variety of school activities. We look forward to continuing activities, such as after-school clubs, with the help of caring parents! The parents at Mt. Airy Elementary continue to demonstrate our vision, "Success with a joy for learning and pride in a caring community." I look forward to providing leadership at Mt. Airy Elementary. Please do not hesitate to contact me if I can be of service to you in any way. Thank you for visiting our website. Sincerely, Mrs. Debbie Bunker |
