Five Questions With ...

Q&A: Richard Henry Lee Elementary Teacher Kelli Higgins

Kelli Higgins, who teaches second grade at Richard Henry Lee, is in her third year at the elementary school.

Patch caught up with second-grade teacher Kelli Higgins last week at Richard Henry Lee. I stopped her to ask Five Questions. Glen Burnie Patch: How long have you been in education? Kelli Higgins: This is my fifth year teaching. My first two years, I was at Seven Oaks Elementary in Odenton. And this is my third year here at RH Lee. Glen Burnie Patch: How did you decide to teach at the elementary school level. Higgins: In college when I did my internship, I got placed in second grade. I just loved it. Glen Burnie Patch: What made you decide to become a teacher? Higgins: I always loved working with kids. I just think they're honest and just fun to be around. I think it probably started in high school when I was doing volunteer work and one of…

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GBHS Teacher Released From Jail

After a judge reduced his bond from $3 million to $150,000, Jeffrey Sears Jr. was released from jail Friday, according to the Maryland Gazette.

Glen Burnie High School English teacher Jeffrey Sears Jr., 29—who was arrested Thursday after being accused of having sexual relationships with three students—was released from jail on $150,000 bond Friday, the Maryland Gazette reports. The court initially imposed a $3 million bond, but reduced the amount, according to the Gazette. Sears is accused of having sexual relationships with three girls ranging in age from 15 to 16 while they were students at Glen Burnie High. Police said the incidents reportedly took place both on and off campus, during and after school hours, between November 2009 and October 2011. He is charged with multiple counts of sexual abuse of a minor, multiple counts of fourth-degree sex offense, third-degree sex …

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Back to School

Back-to-School Teacher Tips for Students

Anne Arundel County Public School students head back to class Aug. 23. But before they go, some of their teachers have a few words of advice for the youngsters. Patch talked with local educators to get tips for student success.

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Old Mill Teacher Spends Summers Saving Lives on the Beach

Mat Postell works as the a Sergeant of the Ocean City Beach Patrol in addition to teaching and coaching tennis and soccer at Old Mill.

For the last 14 summers, Old Mill High School (OMHS) teacher Mat Postell has spent his days protecting vacationers on the beaches of Ocean City, MD. During the school year, Postell teaches calculus and algebra and serves as head coach of both the junior varsity soccer team and varsity tennis. When summer break begins, Postell moves to Ocean City along with his wife and young daughters, where he serves as a member of the Ocean City Beach Patrol (OCBP). Postell said that, having grown up in Ocean City, joining the Beach Patrol was something he looked forward to throughout his childhood.   "I graduated from high school in 1997," Postell said. “And the very next day I started out with Beach Patrol.” Postell spent his college days in Alabama, …

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'She's Really Like a Superwoman'

55 north county educators were recognized at the 14th annual Educational Excellence awards banquet.

Deborah Pease-Martinez was doing what Adrienne Taylor, principal of Belle Grove Elementary School, called something no one at the school wants to do—bus duty—when Taylor announced to the school that Pease-Martinez was the school's representative in the Northern Anne Arundel County Chamber of Commerce's Educational Excellence Awards banquet. The announcement caught Pease-Martinez, Belle Grove's reading teacher, off guard. At least one bus was late that day. "It's an honor," she said of the recognition. "It was a surprise." Taylor called Pease-Martinez an essential part of helping Belle Grove run, especially since the school doesn't have an assistant principal. It's even more of a necessity this year as the school community is being housed …

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