The 2009 Middle States Regional Forum in Baltimore, Feb. 10-12

Attendees gathered for a pep rally that featured a spirited performance from the Morgan State University Pep Band playing funky versions of today’s popular tunes.

Jason Langdon, director of admissions at Montclair State University in New Jersey; Peggy Pendergrass, principal of Friendship Edison Collegiate Academy in Washington, D.C.; and Charlene Dukes, president of Prince George’s Community College in Maryland, were presenters at Tuesday’s afternoon session on serving students from low-income backgrounds.

The Renaissance Harborplace in Baltimore was the gathering spot for the 2009 Middle States Regional Forum, held Feb. 10-12. Sessions began on Tuesday afternoon and included a presentation from College Board Vice President Ron Williams on serving students from low-income backgrounds, and another on recent reports from the Commission on Access, Admissions and Success in Higher Education and the Task Force on Admissions in the 21st Century.

The first general gathering for attendees was the Joint Assembly Meeting and breakfast on Wednesday morning, where discussions for each of the three assemblies — Academic, Guidance and Admission, and College Scholarship Service — were led respectively by presenters Agnes Armao, professor of English at Atlantic Cape Community College in Mays Landing, N.J.; Christine Scott, senior associate director of academics, admissions and college counseling at The Masters School in Dobbs Ferry, N.Y.; and Dwight Horsey, director of financial aid at Millersville University of Pennsylvania.

Thursday’s luncheon provided a final opportunity to convene and present awards. The 2009 Bob Costas Grant for the Teaching of Writing was awarded to Shannon Handley and Joanne Dineen, both English teachers at Bay Shore High School in Bay Shore, N.Y., for their work with the Ethnic Pen Student Writer’s Conference. The 2009 AP Recognition Award recipients from the Middle States Region included Shannon Martin, an AP Calculus teacher at William Tennent High School in Warminster, Pa.; John P. McTigue, a social studies teacher at the City Honors School at Fosdick-Masten Park in Buffalo, N.Y.; Alvaro Diaz, AP Spanish Literature teacher at Karl C. Parrish in Barranquilla, Colombia; Dennis Fare, English teacher at Hackensack High School in Hackensack, N.J.; and Amy Gibson, AP English Literature and Composition teacher at Huntingtown High School in Huntingtown, Md. The 2009 Bernard P. Ireland Recognition Award recipient was Frederick A. Wille, the interim superintendent of schools for the Lackawanna City School District in Lackawanna, N.Y. Finally, the region’s highest award, the William U. Harris Award of Excellence, is given annually to individuals who have demonstrated extraordinary leadership skills in the field of education. This year’s recipients were Jose Adames, provost and associate vice president for academic affairs at Union County College in Plainfield, N.J., and Michael Antonio Wiltshire, principal of Medgar Evers College Preparatory School in Brooklyn, N.Y.

 

 

 

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