Elizabeth Morgan

The 2006-07 public school year in Washington County got off to a smooth start Wednesday, Superintendent Dr. Elizabeth Morgan said. She visited several of the county's schools Wednesday and said the schools' facilities, which underwent improvements over the summer, looked wonderful. Spokeswoman Carol Mowen said there were some minor facilities-related issues, but nothing that detracted from instruction for students and teachers. "I'm looking forward to this being our best year yet in Washington County Public Schools," Morgan said.

The Washington County Board of Education on Thursday will announce the names of three finalists for schools superintendent, Board President Wayne Ridenour said Monday. Ridenour said a new superintendent could be named as early as the middle of next week. The three candidates will be in Washington County to meet with constituent groups, including students, teachers, support personnel, community groups and business groups, Ridenour said. Elizabeth Morgan retired as schools superintendent Feb. 28 to become executive director of the national nonprofit Promise Alliance’s dropout-prevention initiative.

An announcement naming the next Washington County Public Schools superintendent will not be made this week, school board President Wayne Ridenour said Thursday. Ridenour had said Wednesday that the board could make a decision as early as this week. But he said Thursday that it won’t be this week, but it could happen by the end of next week. The school system has three finalists — Craig Fiegel, Boyd J. Michael III and Clayton M. Wilcox — for the position. Elizabeth Morgan retired from the superintendency on Feb. 28 to take a job leading a national nonprofit group’s dropout prevention initiative.

Editor's note: Due to a source's error, the print version of this story and earlier online versions incorrectly stated how Elizabeth Morgan's trip to Phoenix would be paid for. The story has been corrected. HAGERSTOWN -- Washington County Public Schools Superintendent Elizabeth Morgan has been named one of four finalists in the 2010 National Superintendent of the Year program. The American Association of School Administrators announced Thursday the four finalists were chosen from 48 superintendents who were named earlier this year as the best in their respective states.

School board should appoint Michael as superintendent To the editor: I am writing to encourage the members of the Washington County Board of Education to appoint and promote Boyd Michael III as our next superintendent of schools. I have read the resumes of the three candidates, all with impeccable professional and ethical qualifications. However, one applicant possesses several inherent qualities that put him ahead of the class; his 301 area code and 21713 ZIP code.

By ANDREA BROWN-HURLEY / Staff Writer Seated in the media center at South Hagerstown High School on Monday, David Teays carefully lifted Briana Paige Gossard's homecoming picture from the front page of the "memory book" he was compiling for her parents. [cont. from front page ] "She was everybody's friend," said Teays, 14. "I guess you don't know exactly what you have until you lose it. " Gossard died Sunday evening of injuries she sustained when the car in which she was a passenger collided with another car at the intersection of Md. 66 and Mount Aetna Road, police said.

dank@herald-mail.com Elizabeth Morgan drops the interim from her title on Monday, officially becoming the superintendent of Washington County Public Schools. It's a transition a year in the making. Morgan came to the county as interim superintendent in July 2001, two months after former Superintendent Herman Bartlett resigned. At that time, Morgan saw her Washington County post as a temporary position. She was the chief academic officer and second in command at the Baltimore City school system, on loan for a year to Washington County.

Coining themselves "The Education Twins," Guy Altieri and Elizabeth Morgan were guest panelists, talking to more than 50 business and community leaders Wednesday. The "Eggs and Issues" event was organized by the Hagerstown-Washington County Chamber of Commerce's Business and Community Development Committee. Tackling work force development issues, Hagerstown Community College President Altieri and county Public Schools Superintendent Morgan said resources are available not only for students, but also for the business community.

WASHINGTON COUNTY - After occasional periods of dormancy, Washington County's NAACP chapter is working to strengthen itself again. Samuel Key, the chapter's president, said it had fewer than 30 members when he took over about a year ago, but now it has more than 100. Membership hit about 140, but youth members were split into a separate group, he said. "We're going in the right direction," Key said. Today, the chapter is holding its annual Freedom Fund banquet - a main fundraiser for many chapters of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

With 2011 drawing to a close, The Herald-Mail this week took a look back at some of the stories the newspaper published during the year and followed up on some of those stories to provide a glimpse of what happened next. Ex-supe 'devoted' to new job The story: Elizabeth Morgan retired as superintendent of Washington County Public Schools in February and took a job as head of a national dropout prevention initiative. The update: Morgan does a lot of traveling and gives speeches as executive director of the America's Promise Alliance's Grad Nation initiative.

With 2011 drawing to a close, The Herald-Mail this week took a look back at some of the stories the newspaper published during the year and followed up on some of those stories to provide a glimpse of what happened next. Ex-supe 'devoted' to new job The story: Elizabeth Morgan retired as superintendent of Washington County Public Schools in February and took a job as head of a national dropout prevention initiative. The update: Morgan does a lot of traveling and gives speeches as executive director of the America's Promise Alliance's Grad Nation initiative.

School board should appoint Michael as superintendent To the editor: I am writing to encourage the members of the Washington County Board of Education to appoint and promote Boyd Michael III as our next superintendent of schools. I have read the resumes of the three candidates, all with impeccable professional and ethical qualifications. However, one applicant possesses several inherent qualities that put him ahead of the class; his 301 area code and 21713 ZIP code.

An announcement naming the next Washington County Public Schools superintendent will not be made this week, school board President Wayne Ridenour said Thursday. Ridenour had said Wednesday that the board could make a decision as early as this week. But he said Thursday that it won’t be this week, but it could happen by the end of next week. The school system has three finalists — Craig Fiegel, Boyd J. Michael III and Clayton M. Wilcox — for the position. Elizabeth Morgan retired from the superintendency on Feb. 28 to take a job leading a national nonprofit group’s dropout prevention initiative.

The Washington County Board of Education on Thursday will announce the names of three finalists for schools superintendent, Board President Wayne Ridenour said Monday. Ridenour said a new superintendent could be named as early as the middle of next week. The three candidates will be in Washington County to meet with constituent groups, including students, teachers, support personnel, community groups and business groups, Ridenour said. Elizabeth Morgan retired as schools superintendent Feb. 28 to become executive director of the national nonprofit Promise Alliance’s dropout-prevention initiative.

As we did back in 1985, The Herald-Mail recently asked community leaders to predict what Washington County will be like  25 years from now. The following are their visions for 2035: Elizabeth Morgan Superintendent Washington County Public Schools  Morgan provided perhaps the most startling prediction, suggesting a major change in education would take place over the next 25 years. "We're going to return to one-room schoolhouses," Morgan said. She said that by 2035, schools will be in the form of telecommuting centers across the county, where students will learn virtually.

Washington County has been blessed with some great educators over the years, men and women who were not only assets in their own right, but who were matched perfectly to their time.   Through two or three decades they moved education forward, mostly at a calculated pace with which Washington County was comfortable.   Comfort will never be a word associated with Superintendent Elizabeth Morgan, who is leaving the system early next year to join a national association.

In a ceremony Wednesday morning, the Washington County Retired School Administrators unveiled a portrait of Schools Superintendent Elizabeth Morgan that will hang in the lobby of the school system's central office in honor of Morgan's selection as the 2010 National Superintendent of the Year. "She has truly been a wonderful leader, so this is our small way of saying, 'Thank you, Dr. Morgan, for a wonderful job,'" said Bob Wantz, a member of the Washington County Retired School Administrators steering committee.

Editor's note: Due to a source's error, the print version of this story and earlier online versions incorrectly stated how Elizabeth Morgan's trip to Phoenix would be paid for. The story has been corrected. HAGERSTOWN -- Washington County Public Schools Superintendent Elizabeth Morgan has been named one of four finalists in the 2010 National Superintendent of the Year program. The American Association of School Administrators announced Thursday the four finalists were chosen from 48 superintendents who were named earlier this year as the best in their respective states.

The 2006-07 public school year in Washington County got off to a smooth start Wednesday, Superintendent Dr. Elizabeth Morgan said. She visited several of the county's schools Wednesday and said the schools' facilities, which underwent improvements over the summer, looked wonderful. Spokeswoman Carol Mowen said there were some minor facilities-related issues, but nothing that detracted from instruction for students and teachers. "I'm looking forward to this being our best year yet in Washington County Public Schools," Morgan said.

WASHINGTON COUNTY - After occasional periods of dormancy, Washington County's NAACP chapter is working to strengthen itself again. Samuel Key, the chapter's president, said it had fewer than 30 members when he took over about a year ago, but now it has more than 100. Membership hit about 140, but youth members were split into a separate group, he said. "We're going in the right direction," Key said. Today, the chapter is holding its annual Freedom Fund banquet - a main fundraiser for many chapters of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.