In honoring an outstanding educator each year, Baltimore County Public Schools celebrates all 8,850 teachers who make a positive difference in the lives of our students.

Teacher of the Year Ralene Jacobson with two of her students, Julia Connor and Kyle Alperstein

When Baltimore County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Joe A. Hairston announced her name today as the new 2010-2011 Baltimore County Teacher of the Year, Ralene Jacobson did what comes naturally to her.

The veteran vocal music teacher at Franklin Elementary School turned to her students.
Moments after receiving a hug and a plaque from Dr. Hairston, amid a thicket of TV cameras, flashbulbs, and well-wishers, Jacobson gave a short address and called two of her students at Franklin Elementary School, Julia Connor and Kyle Alperstein, to sing a song with her that fit perfectly with the day’s festivities.

“In the study of music, students learn to express themselves creatively through improvisation and composition,” said the teacher of 29 years, all of them teaching in Baltimore County.  “They learn to express feelings and emotions through music. They learn to work cooperatively with others.  They learn to be tolerant and understanding of differences. . . . In the process, students become sensitive, compassionate, and caring human beings.  What more could we want for our students?

Teacher of the Year Ralene Jacobson reacts to the announcement of her new role.

“And now,” she said, “we’d like to make some music for you.” With that, the two children and Jacobson together sang a moving rendition of a tune identified by Jacobson as an old Quaker song, “How Can I Keep from Singing?”
As Baltimore County's newest Teacher of the Year, Jacobson becomes the most visible school-based teacher in the county and among the most prominent in Maryland. Representing more than 8,850 educators for the next year, she will compete for the honor of Maryland State Teacher of the Year and appear in dozens of venues to champion teaching and her school system.

“I am proud to represent the teachers of Baltimore County, all of whom impact the lives of their students, as I accept this amazing honor,” the Reisterstown resident said. 

During Friday’s ceremony, Jacobson was congratulated by Superintendent Dr. Joe A. Hairston, members of the Board of Education of Baltimore County, administrators, friends, family, and colleagues, including several former Baltimore County Teachers of the Year.

"In her Teacher of the Year application, Ralene wrote of the joy of being able to combine her love of music and her love of children into a meaningful career,” said Dr. Hairston. “In all of her work, Ralene is truly an exceptional teacher-leader, and one who lives and breathes the philosophy of our Blueprint for Progress,” he added, referring to the school system’s guiding document.

Jacobson, who has taught at Franklin Elementary since 1996, thanked her principal, Joyce Albert, as well as her colleagues and her family. Most of all, she thanked her students, “past and present, all of whom have so impacted my life.”

Dr. Hairston and the newly announced Teacher of the Year Ralene Jacobson

In addition to her tenure at Franklin, Jacobson has taught at Randallstown, Fort Garrison, Winfield, and Chadwick elementary schools. A graduate of the University of Maryland College Park, Towson University, and the Peabody Institute of Music, Jacobson comes from a family who valued education; her paternal grandmother and her mother were both teachers.

In her classroom, Jacobson uses music as a vehicle for discovery as well as an avenue for children to develop their own musicianship and appreciation of music. “I want to widen the horizons of my students so that they can become familiar with music of other cultures as well,” she said. “By approaching music as a tool as well as a goal in itself, I feel that I am making the most of my short time with my students.”

Her students, noted Dr. Hairston, have learned multiplication facts through songs and the Bill of Rights through rhythmic chants. They have studied American westward expansion, 19th century Irish immigration, Dutch customs at Christmas, and African-American spirituals. And they have used literature to study musical concepts and skills.

Also honored during Friday's ceremony were finalists McKinley Broome, a grade 4 teacher at Woodholme Elementary School in Owings Mills; Vicki Charikofsky, a grade 5 teacher at Summit Park Elementary School in Pikesville; Anne Groth, a library media specialist at Cromwell Valley Elementary School in Towson; and Jillian Lewis-Darden, a reading and math inclusion teacher at Edmondson Heights Elementary School in Woodlawn.

The Teacher of the Year ceremony – Former Teachers of the Year (left) and 2010-2011 finalists (right) flank Dr. Hairston as he offers remarks.

"The five teachers we honor today as finalists represent the strength of our teaching force countrywide,” said Dr. Hairston. “These are educators who are committed to their own professional development, who serve as mentors and leaders in their schools and subject areas, who forge lasting bonds with their students, their students’ families, and the larger community. These are educators who do more than teach outside the box. They recognize that there is no box. These are educators whose lessons cross disciplines and whose teaching styles reach every student.”

In addition to the title and a plaque, the county's Teacher of the Year is awarded an array of prizes.  Jacobson receives from the school system:

• State-of-the-art educational technology for her classroom
• Music books dedicated for the Franklin Elementary School library in her name
• The opportunity to participate in a national professional development conference of her choice during the next year
• A specially designated parking space at her school

Baltimore County’s business community also strongly supported the Teacher of the Year program this year, contributing a variety of awards and gifts to demonstrate its commitment to teaching and to the county’s Teacher of the Year. Those gifts included:

• Relaxing, getaway accommodations at the Crowne Plaza Baltimore Hotel in Timonium
• Tickets to a Baltimore Symphony Orchestra concert
• A yearlong family membership to Brick Bodies / Lynne Brick’s health and fitness centers
• Tickets to an upcoming production at Centerstage
• A new laptop computer from DataNetworks
• A family membership and prize package to the Irvine Nature Center in Owings Mills
• A gift bag and tickets to the National Aquarium in Baltimore

For more information on the BCPS and Maryland State Department of Education Teacher of the Year programs, please visit: www.marylandpublicschools.org/MSDE/programs/recognition-partnerships.

<< For a list of BCPS Teachers of the Year since 1988, please click here >>