Katherine grew up in New York and came to Howard County in 2007 to begin her teaching career at Wilde Lake High School. She has spent her entire teaching career focused on social studies. She has taught US history, American Government, law, citizen, psychology, women’s studies, and AP economics. Katherine has been an integral part of the Innovative Pathways Programs, teaching summer school for social studies and supporting students who are completing Bridge Projects for American Government.

In 2012, upon completion of her master’s degree in curriculum, instruction and assessment, and administration certification, she was promoted to 9th grade Instructional Team Leader. She quickly gained a more global perspective of the school and enrolled in numerous leaderships development classes, including Cultural Proficiency, Teaching with Poverty in Mind, Restorative Justice, and Anti-racist Teaching. She has applied this learning to Wilde Lake, developing focus groups to review data to aid in improving lives for all students at the school through addressing the retention of 9th graders. Her goal is to bring a safe learning environment to all students, while also creating student leaders who find their place in the world. She believes the future of America is in her classroom.

Kate has developed the Greene and Gold Mentor program into a leadership development program, in which several students who were mentees in the program have become mentors in their junior and senior years. She has valued student voice and inspires students through ‘Voices of Color’ to have a safe place to talk about challenges, barriers, and successes. This year, she has helped create the ‘Wilde Lake Corner Café’, to remove one more barrier for so many of our students. In addition, this summer, Kate is developing a Teaching with Poverty in Mind II CPD class, after spending several semesters teaching the very class that inspired some of her own work.