Ida Polcari, principal of Benjamin Banneker Middle School in Burtonsville, has been named Service-Learning Principal of the Year by the Maryland Student Service Alliance of the Maryland State Department of Education. The Alliance will honor Polcari and other principals who have exhibited outstanding leadership in promoting high quality service-learning experiences for students at the Sixth Annual Convening of Service-Learning Leaders on Wednesday, October 3rd.

More than 200 service-learning leaders from around the state including principals and other administrators, students, teachers, parents, community-based organization representatives and higher education institution staff, will attend the ceremony at the Maritime Institute in Baltimore from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. State Superintendent of Schools Nancy S. Grasmick will begin the program at 8:00 a.m. as she shares the importance of service-learning to Maryland students.

The award commends Polcari for her active involvement with the service-learning projects in her school, ensuring that the projects benefit the community and meet curricular objectives. She reviews written descriptions of service-learning projects from her teachers so that she can give feedback on how to enhance the quality of the activities. She also communicates the benefits of service-learning to her colleagues and places a high value on this kind of student and staff involvement.

As the Service-Learning Principal of the Year, Polcari will receive a $1000 award to be used to support service-learning in her school. Nine principals from Carroll, Calvert, Frederick, Anne Arundel, Baltimore, St. Mary’s, Cecil, and Howard counties and Baltimore City will each receive a $200 honorable mention award for their school.

The Convening of Service-Learning Leaders is held each year so leaders from around the state can share effective practices and strategies for program improvement.