From the Maine School Superintendents Association

Maine’s Assistant Superintendent of the Year is a visionary systems thinker and a thoughtful leader. She is creative in her approach to problem-solving and has the unique ability to think big while simultaneously working out structures for successfully putting programs in place to meet the needs of the students in her district. She is incredibly hard-working and naturally models effective leadership. People gravitate to her for direction and for support because she is approachable and open-minded. Administrators view her as a mentor in addition to a supervisor because she advocates and supports growth.

Her primary focus is to support the children in her district through their mission and to provide educational opportunities that inspire students and adults to grow every day. Her goal is to ensure that all students experience personalized and relationship-based opportunities that accelerate learning and foster achievement. Academic excellence, rigor and acceleration for all students is her north star, her plan and purposeful focus.  Known for being relentless about addressing student growth, guiding staff on the use of data to inform instruction has been her foundation to improving student achievement through focused conversations among teachers and administrators.

Understanding the need to address Bangor’s School Department’s youngest learners, Dr. Kathy Harris-Smedberg, Maine’s 2024 Assistant Superintendent of the Year took the lead on ensuring the district would provide full day PreK by 2025 with her eye on laying a foundation of learning and support the district’s youngest learners.

Involving community stakeholders, Kathy led the opening of the health clinic at Bangor Area High School by working directly with an area hospital which resulted in providing much-needed health services and emotional support to students.

In the fall of 2020, Kathy stepped in as the Interim Superintendent, while continuing in her role as Assistant Superintendent. She reached out to the Administrative Team and asked for assistance, delegating tasks, asking questions, and relying on the team to make sure she was able to keep the drive and focus of the district while bringing more of her personal leadership and management style to the position. The staff consistently said that Kathy was “the best of both worlds” meaning that she held true to the expectations of the Superintendency, but she also brought a humility and inter-personal approach that welcomed teachers and staff.

Kathy exemplifies the qualities of school leadership that we all value. She is a role model for what a leader should be: intelligent, humble, thoughtful, and caring. She is explicit in her expectations, but understandable in their achievement. She cares deeply about the mission and vision of the Bangor school department, and holds true to that in every conversation, interaction, and decision. She cares deeply about kids, and it guides every decision she makes.

Kathy getting the award from Pat Hopkins (president of MSSA) and Maria Libby (President-Elect of MSSA

Dr. Kathy Harris-Smedberg and Jonathan Moody

From the Maine School Superintendents Association

Maine’s 2024 Superintendent of the Year is a quiet, humble yet incredibly effective educational leader.  The bedrock strategy of his leadership has been to foster a deep understanding of the district’s mission, vision, and core beliefs that are the cornerstone of every decision that is made in his district.

Known as a transformational change agent, he facilitates change by bringing together stakeholders around a common shared vision. Whether he is addressing the school mascot or the pandemic, working with staff to develop the district-wide tenants to combat poverty to using his students’ voices to understand the impact of trauma, this superintendent’s decisions are principled and built on a strong district vision.

Successful leaders communicate well, and Maine’s 2024 Superintendent of the Year, Jonathan Moody has a simple yet effective approach to communicating: He listens, he is involved, and he shares. He listens to school board members, community members, parents, students, and staff. He seeks ways to get feedback and requires others in his organization to do the same. He involves others, encourages engagement, and seeks representation from everyone in the room, making sure to bring in those groups not otherwise represented. He shares what is learned, he shares feedback, and he shares decisions.

Through the district’s partnership with KV-CAP, a local community action program, the district developed a vision of how early childhood education could move from the sidelines to become fully integrated into a public school. Jon’s leadership was paramount in bringing this vision to reality, as he led the design, development, and funding of a new 76-million-dollar school that will serve children starting at 6 weeks old. This school, which is being called the “First of its kind in Maine”, will provide early childhood programming for children ages 6 weeks old to three years old and will provide comprehensive programming to students who are 3 years old through grade 12.

Nicole Chapman from KVCAP who oversees the Early Childhood Collaborative in Somerset County defines Jon as a transformative partner and leader and states that he has been pivotal in the evolution of a model of education and wraparound support to children and families to increase student success.

Jon embraces parent and community voice, engagement, and involvement as a vehicle to nourish and create a school community and culture that embodies a multi-generational approach of inclusivity, continuity, education, and support to break the cycle of poverty and set children on the path to lifelong success.

Letters from town select board members, school board members, union presidents, and teachers overwhelmingly supported Jon’s nomination to become Maine’s 2024 Superintendent of the Year.

When asked about their Superintendent, staff members at MSAD 54 say that Jon is always available to talk with his employees even through the busiest of times. He is an active listener and a calm problem solver and treats everyone with dignity, empathy, fairness, and respect and genuinely cares about every employee and every student.

When Jon stepped in as Superintendent, he was faced with the tense debate about the school mascot. Jon listened and saw that the district didn’t just need a new mascot but needed a culture shift. Again, Jon led the way. He steered and empowered the school communities to become more trauma informed, and to explicitly state and reinforce that the District’s vision, “everyone comes to school feeling safe, welcome and respected for who they are,” was not just in ink, but also in action. Jon sought evidence-based solutions, brought speakers, trainers, and programs, and in some cases even infrastructure changes to help all schools become that vision of a safer and more inclusive space. His leadership helped the culture of the district to grow.

One Board member wrote: “I don’t know that Jon is even aware of it, but Jon inspires connection to projects, he instills purpose in actions, and keeps us all tethered to the driving force of every aspect that is vital to education. From the structures we build, to the policies we enact, to the day-to-day connections we make with kids; Jon embodies what it means to be ‘in it for the kids’ every single day”.

But it is what he does during and after listening that matters most – the actions that speak louder than words. Jon is a go-getter, change-agent, and is the solid, unwavering foundation of MSAD #54.

It is for these reasons and many more that the Maine School Superintendents Association is honored to name Jonathan Moody, MSAD 54, as Maine’s 2024 Superintendent of the Year.

Jon, named the 1999 Teacher of the Year for Dirigo High School, currently serves on the Board of Directors of Redington-Fairview Hospital and the United Way of Mid Maine; he is on the Early Childhood Advisory committee with Educate Maine and serves as an Adjunct Instructor at University of Maine at Farmington.  Jon serves on MSSA’s funding committee and is also a member of the MSSA’s Ethic’s Committee.  Jon holds a master’s degree in educational leadership from the University of Maine and a bachelor’s degree in Secondary Education from the University of Maine in Farmington.

Jon is married to his wife Shelly of 23 years, and is the proud father of Jacob, Grace and Olivia.

Ethan Brownell, at teacher at the Maine Central Institute (MCI), has been named the 2023 Maine History Teacher of the Year, an award presented annually by the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, the nation’s leading organization dedicated to K-12 American history education.

Brownell has been teaching for 12 years – 10 of which have been at MCI where he currently teaches AP US History, AP US Government and Politics, Model UN, Sociology, and 11th grade American History & Government. Additionally, he advises the Model UN and Youth & Government and co-advises the tabletop gaming club.

Inaugurated in 2004 and now celebrating its twentieth anniversary, the History Teacher of the Year Award highlights the crucial importance of history education by honoring exceptional American history teachers from elementary school through high school. The award honors one K–12 teacher from each state, the District of Columbia, Department of Defense schools, and US Territories.

In addition to a $1,000 honorarium, Brownell receives a core archive of American history books and Gilder Lehrman educational materials, recognition at a local ceremony in their honor, and becomes one of 53 finalists for the 2023 National History Teacher of the Year Award. In fall 2023, ten finalists for the National History Teacher of the Year will be announced.

Brownell believes that teaching social studies “helps us examine the human experience in all its beauty and ugliness. History, geography, and civics help us to understand the world we live in and those we share it with. We learn critical skills to help us contextualize events and communicate with each other in a hyper-connected world. Also, it’s just fun to study the past and it’s stories. The more we know about human experience, the more interesting we, the world, and each other will be – it’s a beautiful feedback loop.”

“I love to talk about things that I care and that my students care about,” Brownell shared. “I have the privilege to teach a wonderfully diverse set of students, and it’s amazing to see them sharing their own experiences across time and space. Model UN and Youth & Government are amazing vehicles for this: seeing my students engage with others from around the state on vital issues past, present, and future makes me hopeful.”

Brownell is honored to be recognized through this award. “My first experience with the Gilder Lehrman Institute was at their Reconstruction summer institute with Eric Foner and Martha S. Jones. It was an amazing week doing one of my favorite things: being a student and learning in a collaborative atmosphere. It means a lot to be recognized by an organization that helped me so much in my own practice.”

In order to be considered for the History Teacher of the Year award, eligible teachers must first be nominated by a colleague, parent, or student. After receiving a nomination, teachers must submit a resume, teaching materials, and a letter of recommendation to be considered for the state award. History Teacher of the Year winners are selected by a committee of educators and education professionals in their state. For more information on the award process, visit the Gilder Lehrman Institute website.