If you are unable to attend the monthly board meeting in person, please submit your statement to communitycomments@qacps.org. In 1996, she took a job as a substitute in the Anne Arundel County Public Schools, a district adjacent to Queen Annes, while she pursued her teaching certificate. Queen Annes County Board of Educationc/o Kari Denis, Executive Secretary202 Chesterfield AvenueCentreville, MD 21617Contact: kari.denis@qacps.org | 410-758-2403 ext. Founded in 1909, the Queen Anne's County Free Library is governed by Maryland statute and the Library's Charter and By Laws. I got feedback from people saying, Its about time somebody started drawing attention to this.. On the groups page, Ms. Schifanelli posted the teachers names and discussions, accusing them of supporting political brainwashing of our children by using race.. The Superintendent of Schools administers the Queen Anne's County Public School System, and serves as executive officer, secretary, and treasurer of the Board of Education (Code Education Article, secs. At her first meeting with the new board, on Jan. 6, Dr. Kane delivered a fiery speech, proclaiming that her resolve to fight racism in Queen Annes County Public Schools is stronger than ever., She announced that she had restored contracts the board had moved to dissolve in her absence, including one with the equity firm the district had hired to help close achievement gaps. The Kent Island Branch, which opened in 1989, is in Stevensville. Saelens moves to a school system in Queen Annes with 15 schools and 7,700 students. I went there because I felt like there was work for me to do.. Self-perpetuating, the Board's twelve members are elected by the Board of Library Trustees to three-year terms (Code Education Article, secs. The Board is composed of seven members. My parents were party members, they were true believers, she said. Board of Education - Queen Anne County Public Schools Recordings of past meetings are also available on the QACPS YouTube channel. The following week, Facebook banned the Kent Island Patriots group, citing its standards on dangerous individuals and organizations.. Maryland Departments In an interview, Kane said she filed the complaint only after exhausting every conventional means of seeking redress. BOARD OF LIBRARY TRUSTEES Superintendent Email Dr. Pepukayi Sharon Pepukayi, Ed.D. The Queen Anne's County Commission on Aging is pleased to announce its upcoming Town Hall Meeting, which will take place on September 21, 2023, from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM. To contact a board member, please write to: Email addresses for each Board Member are also provided below. Immediately after the appearance, hate mail began pouring into Dr. Kanes inbox from near and far. CENTREVILLE, Md. On Maryland's Eastern Shore, a county school superintendent is under We very proudly stood behind her when she said Black Lives Matter, because thats something that we had believed in, Mary Ella Jourdak, a member of the Sunday Supper Committee, said of Dr. Kane. Dr. Pilewski outlined a series of efforts the district was taking to address race and equity issues, including contracting with cultural proficiency experts and hosting a series of conversations on race with the Sunday Supper Committee. The Board also appoints the Administrator. In January, she filed an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission complaint against the Queen Annes County school board detailing incidents dating back to 2018, saying she had been subjected to a hostile and discriminatory work environment. Dr. Kane thought the show of support would drown out the furor until she saw more posts from the Kent Island Patriots Facebook group that summer. I continue to pray that this community find a path toward awareness, understanding and reconciliation for the benefit of everyone.. Mr. Schifanelli would be elected vice president. $(document).ready(function () { Maryland Constitutional Offices & Agencies She majored in economics and did well for herself as a bank manager but wanted to pursue what she loved. Through the rest of the summer, tensions escalated. All schools are accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools. Live streams are available on the QACTV Facebook page, qac.org/live, and ABB Cable Channel 7. Thats when I knew there was a long game, Dr. Kane said, one I didnt want to play and could not win.. Welcome to the Lions' Den, the home on the web of the Pride of the Eastern Shore, Queen Anne's County High School! 1 - Elementary & Middle Half Day. She brings a deep knowledge base and a wealth of experience in Maryland, specifically on the Eastern Shore, that will be vital in the years to come, Richard Smith, board president, said in a statement. By remaining on this website, you indicate your consent. Maryland Manual On-Line 21617, Blackboard Web Community Manager Privacy Policy (Updated). Privacy Policy / Over the next couple of decades, Dr. Kane worked her way through the ranks of the school system, from teacher to principal to assistant superintendent, and earned her doctorate in 2016. BOARD OF COLLEGE TRUSTEES CHESAPEAKE COLLEGE The lawsuit will be filed by the EEOC, or by Dr. Kane if the EEOC does not, he said. Respectfully, Dr. Karen M. Couch. But Ms. Schifanelli took her message to Fox News, representing a point of view that was resonating across the country as a backlash against critical race theory ramped up. Christine Betley, left, and Gina Crook, right, two Queen Annes County teachers, and Mary Ella Jourdak, center, a resident of the county, were targeted for their support of Dr. Kane. Maryland Manual On-Line He looked at me. She said the Kent Island Patriots movement was spreading to neighboring counties. $('span#sw-emailmask-17531').replaceWith('' + encodedEmail + ''); On Feb. 23, the Caroline County school board announced that it had decided not to renew Saelens contract for another four years, but signaled its intent to continue working with Saelens to the end of the fiscal year. Its not fair for little Black girls to see people like us come in and be so powerful, and see them taken away, Ms. Wright said. Email: 8-801 through 8-806). An occasional interview series with Americans who are challenging the status quo. She did not respond to a request for an interview. An all-caps email traced by the sheriffs office to a 64-year-old white man from Kansas used a racist slur against Dr. Kane. Maryland Independent Agencies At the boards Jan. 6 meeting, Kane was in the midst of describing racial equity efforts in other Maryland school systems when Schifanelli objected, arguing that its against the law for her to introduce her political views in that forum. She took the top job in Queen Annes County after spending several years as an associate superintendent in Richmond, Va. She, and the board that hired her, believed her track record overseeing hundreds of schools and raising achievement for students from all backgrounds had prepared her. Dr. Kane, the superintendent, saw him in the faces of Black students in her district and heard him crying out for his mother when she spoke to her own sons. The current superintendent, Andrea M. Kane, will end her often-contentious term on June 30. To take those stances comes at an enormous cost, he added. Several Black natives of the county can describe in vivid terms how racism has touched every generation of their families. It wasin April 2021, not 2020. Dr. Andrea M. Kane, in her fourth year as superintendent in Queen Anne's County, filed the charge of discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission late last month. Eastern Shore superintendent files racial discrimination complaint Search the Manual Budget meetings are open to the public. || Coronavirus. All of which makes for a powerful opponent in what has shaped up as a battle on Marylands Eastern Shore between forces of wokeness in Queen Annes County Public Schools and some concerned parents. I wanted to create a space where whoever wants to speak freely against using kids as social justice warriors could do so, she said. And we thought it was important coming from a Black community leader.. QUEEN ANNE'S COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS - DIVERSITY in Ed Racism is alive in our country, our state, in Queen Annes County, and our schools, she wrote, a comment she still describes as unremarkable. Kane made news again in October when reports emerged that she had not shown up for work at district headquarters for two weeks, leaving many in the community unclear who was running the school system. The Board consists of ten members: two from each supporting county. The same month, Dr. Kane emailed parents in her school district to offer a bit of a reality check about racism. Baltimore Sun Jan 15, 2021 at 4:50 pm The schools superintendent in Queen Anne's County has filed a federal complaint against her school board, accusing the five-member body of. https://mathcomp.math.umd.edu/ Kent Island High School Senior, Anthony Spinelli, was honored at the 43rd University of Maryland High School Math Awards at University of Maryland. Queen Anne's County Public Schools - Frontline Recruitment The schools superintendent in Queen Annes County has filed a federal complaint against her school board, accusing the five-member body of racial discrimination and opening the door for a federal lawsuit. Kane refers to the episode in her complaint, saying the board failed to back her advocacy for racial equity, advocacy she says is now the norm in schools across Maryland and beyond. We just want common sense back, and were taking our country back, she said. Requests should be made to the Superintendent of Schools (patricia.saelens@qacps.org) at least two weeks prior to the scheduled meeting. CogAT - Interactive Profile Interpretation System - Schoolwires Christine Betley was among the first teachers in the district to speak up when she saw the growing discord in the community, sending a letter to the school board in support of Dr. Kanes efforts.