Next Steps: The Best is Yet To Come

For the past eight years Ms. Corinne Knight has been working at Fallston High School as a STRIVE teacher and forming unbreakable connections with both her students and their families. Next year, she will be leaving Fallston and accepting a new teaching assignment at Harford Academy, a position that has always been a dream of hers. Though she will surely be missed by faculty and students alike, all of Fallston will be wishing her good luck in her future endeavors.  

“I was one of the educators to help launch the program and I have been here since its creation,” she said. The program, Supported Training and Rehabilitative Instruction in Vocational Education (STRIVE), has been a new addition to Fallston High within the last few years, and it couldn’t have succeeded as it did without Ms. Corinne. “I greatly enjoy being a special educator and could not imagine doing anything else,” she remarks. 

Ms. Heather DiSciorio, a speech-language pathologist, mentioned how Ms. Corinne is “one of the most compassionate teachers [she has] ever known.” Most recently, Ms. Corinne planned an entire graduation for the three STRIVE students that moved up to the C. Milton Wright program. “She created an event that was individualized, special, and fun,” said Ms. DiSciorio. “It was so special to see her create a unique ceremony to celebrate these students that we will all remember forever.” 

Ms. Heather Aljets, another special educator, described how Ms. Corinne “is one of the most caring and supportive people [she has] ever known” and how “when [her] days are rough, [Ms. Corinne] is there with a hug, a funny story, or just a listening ear.” 

 “This school is unique in the way that the staff are incredibly supportive and have a strong sense of community,” Ms. Corinne said. “I am very excited to start a new adventure at Harford Academy. However, I will miss the relationship that I have here at FHS.” On behalf of all of FHS and the wonderful students that Ms. Corinne has impacted so deeply, we are all wishing her an easy transition and a wonderful time on this new adventure. 

As the school year comes to an end, the students and faculty at Fallston High School prepare to say goodbye to our beloved science department head Ms. Victoria Saxon. Ms. Saxon has been teaching in our county for 19 years, 11 of them at Fallston. While she is leaving the classroom, she is not leaving HCPS altogether as she will still be “working out of the office for curriculum, instruction, and assessment on teacher preparation and professional development,” according to Ms. Saxon. “I will be working to develop new teachers to become the best possible versions of themselves and working to retain the teachers we currently employ.” 

When it comes to making others the best possible versions of themselves, Ms. Saxon is an expert. Throughout her career at Fallston, she has taught Honors Biology, Biology, CC Biology, Zoology, Anatomy, and Integrated Physics and Chemistry, and in all of these classes, she has helped students achieve amazing things. “Ms. Saxon has not only helped me grow and succeed in science, but she has helped me grow as a person,” says Anatomy student, Sara Drzik. “She is always supportive, encouraging, and understanding.”

Ms. Saxon is known for making her science classes a fun place to be with her electric sense of humor. Student Campbell Wheeler says that Ms. Saxon is “very energetic and can always put a smile on your face.” Students also note that Ms. Saxon is always willing to go to great lengths to make sure that everyone can be successful in all of her science classes. No wonder students love to take Ms. Saxon’s classes; she is the best! 

Ms. Saxon notes that in addition to her students, she will miss her fellow teachers whom she describes as “unique and spectacular.” She has something personal and thoughtful to say about every one of her coworkers, like when she first came to Fallston and Ms. J Canatella was the first person to welcome her, and “Mr. Grant was the first person to make [her] feel like [she] belonged.”  

She also has some hilarious stories about her and Ms. Cummings’ endless laughter, especially when she “severely injured [herself] and spilled soup all down [her] back.” Ms. Cummings shared her own thoughts on Ms. Saxon, stating, “Ms. Saxon is dedicated. She is a fearless leader. She was always willing to help with anything for anyone.” She continues to pay homage to her time as the science department chair, saying, “We are a hard group to wrangle, but she stuck it out and got the job done.”  

Ms. Saxon has countless stories of her time with her coworkers, and they will all miss her dearly. She wanted to give special shoutouts to the “leadership tribe of fierce ladies who are department chairs, consisting of Ms. Gilson, Ms. A Canatella, and Ms. Majewski,” as well as the entire science department. 

While this new position will help her achieve her ultimate goal of “working exclusively with science teachers and on science-specific professional development,” she did “spend the entire weekend sobbing because [she] knows what [she] will be missing out on by leaving.” Ms. Saxon leaves with some of the fondest memories and she says, “My cup runneth over with the love I have experienced here, and I am heartbroken leaving this beautiful cheese grater place.” Fallston will miss Ms. Saxon just as much as she will miss us.  

We wish Ms. Saxon the best of luck in her future endeavors, and we are counting down the days for her first visit back!

           Ms. Emily Snow, one of the current Assistant Principals, is moving on to Edgewood Middle School.  

She “always knew [she] would be a teacher,” but after 21 years as a German teacher at Bel Air High School, she decided to move up to an administration position, which brought her here to FHS. She says, “In the last few years of teaching, I decided that I wanted a change and decided to apply to become an AP.”  

With her many years in the classroom so fresh in her mind, she moved up to the AP position with an invaluable perspective. Fellow Assistant Principal, Mr. Adam Milanoski, says Ms. Snow “has had a tremendous impact on the school this year.” He continues, “Her freshness from the classroom has been able to provide meaningful discussions with teachers about instruction, the use of technology in class, and how to improve what they are doing with students.” 

Principal Joseph Collins says that Ms. Snow “brought with her a wealth of skill and talent” and adds that she “was instrumental in developing our professional development plan for using Canvas in the classroom [which allowed for Fallston to be] one of the best schools in HCPS in making sure that teachers could use it effectively.” 

  As our Assistant Principal, Ms. Snow says her essential goal was to “make sure students were safe and [able to learn] while they were here” but that her favorite part was that she was still able to “work with students and teachers” – just “in a new role.” As a fellow AP, Mr. Milanoski recognizes that she is “good at her job because she takes the time to build the relationships with people that need to be established [in order] to make them trust you.” 

  Ms. Snow has learned a lot while she’s been here. She says, “I’ve learned you never know what to expect! From summer closures due to extreme wind to lockdowns for bear sightings, this job has kept me on my toes!”  She adds, “I don’t know what will come next as I am still learning the AP job and that’s my focus right now!” But she wants to give “a giant ‘Thank You’ to the teachers, students, staff, and administration here for all of the support, help, and kindness.” 

 “Ms. Snow made strong connections with staff and students in her short time here and we will miss her,” says Mr. Collins. “We wish her the best of luck at EDMS and know she will add a lot to that school as she did here!” 

We’ll certainly miss her now that she is leaving because she has definitely made a difference here, but beyond that, she will miss us. She says, “Fallston High School is an amazing place filled with amazing people and I’m so lucky to have worked with such dedicated and caring people.”