ANNAPOLIS – December 5, 2019 – Queen Anne’s County Public Schools amassed nine record-breaking awards—the most the district has ever seen, including several 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd Place and Honorable Mentions, in observance of National Conflict Resolution Day! View the inspiring video of QACPS Award-winning students here: https://youtu.be/C51PCwyf2Wk

The Maryland Judiciary’s Mediation and Conflict Resolution Office (MACRO) founded the 14th annual Conflict Resolution Day Bookmark Art Contest, which kicks off annually in October. The contest is open to all Maryland students in kindergarten through eighth grade and a record number of more than 2,700 entries from across the state were submitted this year!

Queen Anne’s County Public Schools was publicly recognized for having the most entries and the most award winners in the State of Maryland!

Winners were chosen based on their creative and imaginative interpretation of the theme and the inclusion of a strong conflict resolution message.

The top 1,000 entries are on display at the new Maryland Judicial Center (MJC) in Annapolis, and on December 5^th, winning teachers, students and their families were invited to the awards ceremony and reception at the MJC, where Maryland Court of Appeals Chief Judge Mary Ellen Barbera proudly presented the awards. Hundreds of dignitaries, teachers, student award winners and their families applauded these students’ artistic accomplishments.

 

Michael Bell, Supervisor of Visual and Performing Arts, World Languages and Media for QACPS was so impressed with the level of participation from his Media Specialists, and the contests’ strong message of anti-bullying in schools.

 

“I was so impressed with the powerful message in last years’ contest that I promoted it widely to our outstanding Media Specialists and they ran with it,” Bell said. “Social-emotional learning is so important, and schools need to be safe havens for kids. They also need to be creative places where inspiring stories are born. I give our Media Specialists all the credit for QACPS sweeping the state in record-breaking fashion. They work so hard to inspire reading, and this year—visual journaling in our new maker spaces within school libraries. They do a fabulous job day in and day out, and their role is so important to our children and our schools.”

 

Cheryl Jackson, Coordinator of Media Resources for Mediation and Conflict Resolution congratulated Mr. Bell on the tremendous increase in Queen Anne’s County’s participation. “We surely appreciate the word-of-mouth publicity…It worked!”

 

Bell says to be on the lookout for more creative endeavors for the School Library Media Specialists in Queen Anne’s County, as they play an important role in educating the whole child and to help increase verbal and visual language proficiency.

Queen Anne’s County Public Schools State Bookmark Art Contest Winners:

1^st Place
Category: K – 2^nd Grade
Harlynn Crew, 2^nd Grade
Sudlersville Elementary
Media Specialist: Pamela Renfrow

3^rd Place
Category: K – 2^nd Grade
Rachel Wishart, 1^st Grade
Matapeake Elementary
Media Specialist: Christine Clow

Honorable Mention
Category: K – 2^nd Grade
Kendyll Ross Meise, 1^st Grade
Grasonville Elementary
Media Specialist: Jamie Gettings-Welch

Honorable Mention
Category: K – 2^nd Grade
Hazel Ann Peachey, 2^nd Grade
Grasonville Elementary
Media Specialist: Jamie Gettings-Welch

1^st Place
Category: 3^rd – 5^th Grade
Skye Lizmi, 5^th Grade
Grasonville Elementary
Media Specialist: Jamie Gettings-Welch

2^nd Place
Category: 3^rd – 5^th Grade
Lauryn Hill, 4^th Grade
Bayside Elementary
Media Specialist: Sharon Murdoch

Honorable Mention
Category: 3^rd – 5^th Grade
Baily McMahon, 4^th Grade
Bayside Elementary
Media Specialist: Sharon Murdoch

Honorable Mention
Category: 3^rd – 5^th Grade
Aubrey Kline, 5^th Grade
Bayside Elementary
Media Specialist: Sharon Murdoch