Story Category: Local Schools »

It’s time to hit the books. Tuesday was the first day of school for students in the St. Mary’s County Public Schools (SMCPS)> Actually the lead sentence could be obsolete in a couple of years what with the trend toward electronic learning with tablets and whatever devices may be in the future. But for now students were busy getting reacquainted and stuffing their books into their lockers.

The first day of school traditionally features school visits from Superintendent Michael Martirano, administrators and staff, school board members and community leaders. Dr. Martirano visited Spring Ridge Middle School, Great Mills High School, Fairlead Academy and Lexington Park Elementary. His entourage included School Board President Dr. Sal Raspa, Del. John Bohanan and Patuxent River Naval Air Station Executive Officer Captain Ben Shevchuk.

At Spring Ridge, Principal Angela Fulp spoke to a student assembly. She reminded students to keep their cell phones on vibrate and their tablets in their lockers. She emphasized she wanted the school to be green. She also warned about Facebook and Twitter. “If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say it,” she said/

In a STEM class taught by Herb Smoot, Dr. Martirano and his entourage heard a discussion about bullying. Dr. Martirano emphasized to the students to talk to an adult if they witness bullying or are being bullied.

At Great Mills High School, Principal Jake Heibel said his school has 1650 students on opening day and everything was going smoothly. He said teacher turnover had been minimal, a point acknowledged by Dr. Martirano as being system-wide/.