Bethesda Magazine: September/October 2021 Digital Edition by MoCo360

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WOMEN WHO INSPIRE Meet eight risk-takers, visionaries and achievers who are changing Montgomery County—and beyond

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contents September/October 2021 | Volume 18 Issue 5

ON THE COVER 148

They are trailblazers, leaders, doers and achievers. They’ve worked hard to get to where they are, and they aren’t stopping. Here are eight local women who are accomplished, fierce—and inspiring. Tatiana Murillo, director of finance at Identity Inc.

BY AMY HALPERN

COVER: Photo by Joseph Tran

PHOTO BY JOSEPH TRAN

Women Who Inspire

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

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contents

FEATURES 162 Neighborhood Favorites Eight restaurants where the good food and friendly vibes keep bringing locals back BY DAVID HAGEDORN

172 ‘It Still Seems Unbelievable’ At 36, Simon Maloy was a successful political writer with a wife and two young sons. Then he found out he had colon cancer, a disease striking more and more young people. BY MIKE UNGER

180 Bright Spot

P. 96

Dee Lozupone, a second grade teacher at St. Jane de Chantal School in Bethesda

Escaping to Brookside Gardens BY CARALEE ADAMS

meant the end of the structure and routine they so desperately needed. Virtual learning and therapies on Zoom could only do so much. As the school year begins, their families are facing complex challenges and trying to forge a path forward.

Meet five local teachers who are connecting with students in tough times—from dancing with second graders every morning to talking openly with teens about mental health BY CARALEE ADAMS

BY DINA ELBOGHDADY

104 Bethesda Interview

112 college Bound

Monifa McKnight, the interim superintendent of MCPS, talks about why she became an educator, being the first woman to lead the state’s largest school system, and how she’s never too tired to garden

Where Bethesda-area high school graduates applied to college and where they were accepted

BY JULIE RASICOT

COMPILED BY ELIA GRIFFIN PHOTO BY SKIP BROWN

Education & Parenting 86 96 Lost time Extraordinary For many students with Educators special needs, the pandemic

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

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contents

P. 236

A breakfast sandwich at the new Spanish Diner in Bethesda

DEPARTMENTS 195

20 | CONTRIBUTORS

25 good

235

196 | HOUSE APPROPRIATIONS

life

28 | BEST BETS Can’t-miss arts events

home

236 | REVIEW

Linger at the kitchen island in comfort with a wide range of stools to suit any style

Our critic checks out the newly opened Spanish Diner in Bethesda

198 | COOL AND CONNECTED

What’s happening on the local food scene

240 | TABLE TALK

Kitchen life gets an upgrade with the latest high-tech appliances

banter

206 | HOME SALES BY THE NUMBERS

46 | HOMETOWN For Montgomery College student Sasa Aakil, the county’s first youth poet laureate, writing is a way to express hurt and hope BY STEVE ROBERTS

223

245

etc.

246 | WEDDINGS A North Bethesda couple tied the knot in a 40-guest wedding that featured a onewoman light show

42 | BOOK REPORT New books by local authors, and more

dine

health

252 | GET AWAY

224 | BE WELL A nutrition and wellness coach talks about the link between the food we eat and the way we feel

226 | THE UNEXPECTED Everyone who joins a bereavement group at Hope Connections for Cancer Support has lost a loved one. One couple found each other.

Your cheat sheet for a weekend away

254 | FLASHBACK The stringing of phone lines in the Bethesda area rang in a new era

256 | OUTTAKES

AD SECTIONS PROFILES: WOMEN IN BUSINESS 51

PRIVATE SCHOOL GUIDE 123

COMPASS AD SECTION 192

LONG & FOSTER AD SECTION 204

PROFILES: ASK THE HOME EXPERTS 213

STYLEBOOK: SALONS & SPAS 232

PHOTO BY LAURA CHASE DE FORMIGNY

18 | TO OUR READERS

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

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CONSIDER THESE ISSUES BEFORE FORMING A 501(c)(3)

What’s online @

BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

❱❱ ONLINE ARCHIVES

Explore past issues and stories using our searchable archives.

MARK W. SCHWEIGHOFER & REBECCA A. O’NEILL Tax Attorneys

Operating a charitable 501(c)(3) organization can be a great option for philanthropic individuals looking to further their charitable endeavors while also creating a meaningful legacy that can span generations. Before forming a 501(c)(3), is it is important for a founder to understand the different types of 501(c)(3) organizations and the impact of their tax and operational differences. For federal income tax purposes, 501(c)(3)s fall into two principal categories: the “public charity” and the “private foundation.” Broadly, private foundations typically engage in passive grantmaking and are not required to receive significant public funding under IRS rules, whereas public charities usually engage directly in their own charitable activities and must be substantially publicly-funded. The distinction between public charity and private foundation status affects the 501(c)(3)’s ability to raise money from donors and also dictates the operational rules that must be followed in order to maintain tax-exempt status. Organizations apply to the IRS for 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status. If granted, the IRS classifies the 501(c)(3) as a private foundation (the default) or as a public charity (if the IRS is satisfied that the 501(c)(3) will have sufficient public funding to meet one of the IRS’ public support tests). Even if a 501(c)(3) is granted public charity status initially, the 501(c)(3) must continue to meet one of the public support tests or it risks being reclassified as a private foundation, which can lead to unexpected and unwelcome tax and operational consequences. While many 501(c)(3)s expect to satisfy one of the public support tests, the rules are nuanced and require careful analysis and planning. Given the impact of a 501(c)(3)’s tax classification, it is crucial that those considering establishing a 501(c)(3) work with knowledgeable tax and business advisors to ensure their objectives are achieved. Learn more about what Stein Sperling can do for your organization at steinsperling.com/taxexempt.

301-340-2020 • www.steinsperling.com 16

Bethesda Beat is Bethesda Magazine’s daily online news briefing. Read news stories about local politics and government, development, restaurants and more at BethesdaMagazine.com.

❱❱ DAILY NEWSLETTER Get local news delivered right to your inbox by signing up for the free newsletter. Sign up for the newsletter at BethesdaMagazine.com.

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SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

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to our readers

THE HONOR OF MY LIFETIME WHEN I WAS EDITOR of the daily newspaper at the University of Connecticut, I had to write an editorial five days a week. With our 11 p.m. deadline approaching, I would too often grab the copy of The New York Times in our office in an effort to find something—anything—in the news that I could have an opinion on. To say the least, I was relieved when I wrote my last editorial. (The paper’s readers probably were as well!) I have a very different feeling as I write this, my last column for Bethesda Magazine. My wife, Susan, and I decided late last year that it was time to turn the business over to people with new energy and ideas. We sold the magazine and Bethesda Beat in April to Scott and Jillian Copeland, a local couple who are deeply committed to Montgomery County and to making our journalism even more informative and useful. Susan and I are staying on full time through September to help with the transition. Our replacements have been promoted or hired, including Associate Publisher Jennifer Farkas and new Editor Anne Tallent, who will take over this column in our November/December issue. (I’ll continue to work part time through March 2022, focusing on business development and strategy.) I have more lines and gray hair than I did 17 years ago when I wrote my column for the first issue of the magazine. But the years—and writing 104 of these columns—haven’t diminished my affection for the community we serve and the work we do. In our fifth anniversary issue in 2009, our cover story made the case that Montgomery County is the best place to live in the country. In my column in the issue, I acknowledged that such a claim is entirely subjective. And that places like Boulder, with mountains and nearly 250 days of sunshine, and Santa Barbara, with the ocean, mountains and a temperate climate, might scoff at our conceit. Montgomery County has little water (with all due respect to the Potomac River), no mountains (sorry Sugarloaf, at 1,283 feet you’re a large hill), and we all know the climate is less than ideal (as I write this in July, the temperature is 92 degrees). 18

For me, it’s the people, not the terrain or weather, that make Montgomery County such a wonderful place to live. As editor and publisher, I’ve had the good fortune of getting to know hundreds of county residents. Most are living large lives, doing important jobs, giving back, helping to make the world a better place. They are part of a community that, to a remarkable degree, is vibrant, informed, engaged and caring. In a nation where racism and prejudice are all too commonplace, Montgomery County also stands out because we embrace and celebrate the diversity of our residents. The face of the county is changing fast. Currently, more than 50% of our residents are people of color. By 2045, 75% of the residents will be nonwhite. There are students from 157 countries in the public school system. The county is an example to the rest of the country of what can be and what should be, and I’m proud to live here. Montgomery County is far from perfect. The income gap is wide and growing, affordable housing is scarce, the economy is stagnant and, yes, there is prejudice here. But there is also popular support and the political will to address the challenges (although not always agreement on how to do so). This is our 104th issue of the magazine. By my calculation, we’ve published more than 14,000 editorial pages and 6 million words over the last 17 years. In those pages and with those words, it’s been the honor of my lifetime to tell stories about the extraordinary place we call home and the extraordinary people who live here. It is my hope that our reporting in Bethesda Magazine and Bethesda Beat has helped you to get more out of your life here and to feel a greater sense of community, and has inspired you to get involved to address the challenges and needs our community faces. Thank you for letting us be a part of your life.

STEVE HULL Editor & Publisher

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

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McEnearney Associates, the Trusted Real Estate Resource for Bethesda and the DC Metro Area

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6 Burning Tree Court, Bethesda* Kelly Basheer Garrett 202.258.7362 KellyGarrettHomes.com

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3412 Rittenhouse Street NW, Chevy Chase* Gerry Gretschel 202.494.7918 GerryGretschel.com

SOLD | $1,550,000

936 S Street NW, Shaw Joan Caton Cromwell 202.441.8912 JoanCromwell.com

SOLD | $1,325,000

4602 Harrison Street, Chevy Chase Chip & Craley Davis 202.540.7291 ChipandCraley.com

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5304 Sunset Lane, Chevy Chase The Stokes Group 202.270.1081 TheStokesGroup.com

SOLD | $1,650,000

3609 Spring Street, Chevy Chase* Mark Hudson 301.641.6266 MarkHudsonGroup.com

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5305 Falmouth Road, Bethesda Jean Beatty 301.641.4149 JeanBeatty.com

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4339 Alton Place NW, AU Park Chip & Craley Davis 202.540.7291 Santiago Testa 703.608.9268*

SOLD | $2,050,000

7309 Broxburn Court, Bethesda* Nora Burke 202.494.1906 NoraBurke.com

PENDING | $1,550,000

1308-1310 27th Street NW, Georgetown James T. Kim 202.798.1781 JamesyDC.com

PENDING | $1,425,000

1649 Harvard Street NW, Mount Pleasant Phillip Allen 301.807.5045 PhillipSAllen.com

SOLD | $1,011,000

4400 Rosedale Avenue, Bethesda Karl Operle 703.220.4663 capitalhouseandhome.com

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CARALEE ADAMS

OLIVIA SADKA

LIVES IN: Bethesda

LIVES IN: Edgewater, Maryland

IN THIS ISSUE: Wrote about extraordinary teachers in Montgomery County, teenage climate activists, a wellness coach, a book on the history of racial protests at Duke University, other new books by local authors, and Brookside Gardens (the above photo of her was taken while she was reporting there).

IN THIS ISSUE: Designed the restaurant review of Spanish Diner, arranging the photos taken by Laura Chase de Formigny with other graphic elements. “I always love designing layouts with colorful photos because there’s so much more to work with on the spreads. And with these photos, there’s no shortage of that.” She also designed layouts for several other stories in this issue.

WHAT SHE DOES: She’s been a freelance writer for 25 years. ON REPORTING: “After doing only phone and Zoom interviews during the pandemic, it was great to be able to grab a fresh reporter’s notebook and meet sources again in person.”

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LESSONS LEARNED: “I admire the dedication of the teachers I’ve interviewed over the years. One common thread: The best ones truly want to get to know each student as an individual and, in turn, allow the kids to get to know them as a person.” END OF AN ERA: “For the first time in more than 20 years, I will not be sending someone off to school this fall—I’ll be an empty nester. I’m grateful for all the teachers who taught my three children in Montgomery County Public Schools and have given them a solid start.”

WHAT SHE DOES: She joined Bethesda Magazine as a graphic designer in April after earning her bachelor’s degree in media arts and design from James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia. HER WANDERLUST: “I love traveling and have visited 12 different countries around the world since I was 11 years old. Italy is my favorite place to visit, I’ve been twice, and you can’t beat the scenic views and the amazing food. My goal is to reach a total of 30 countries by the time I’m 30.” FAVORITE DECADES: “I’m greatly inspired by the music and art scene from the ’60s and ’70s. You can often find me listening to classic rock and searching for vintage clothing to wear.”

ADAMS PHOTO BY LAURA CHASE DE FORMIGNY; SADKA COURTESY PHOTO

contributors

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

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Voted Best Financial Advisor

by the Readers of Bethesda Magazine 6 Consecutive Times

EDITORIAL

EDITOR

Steve Hull SENIOR EDITOR

Cindy Rich ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Kathleen Seiler Neary ART DIRECTOR

Jenny Fischer DEPUTY ART DIRECTOR

Laura F. Goode DESIGNER

Olivia Sadka BETHESDA BEAT MANAGING EDITOR

Andrew Schotz BETHESDA BEAT REPORTERS

Steve Bohnel, Caitlynn Peetz, Dan Schere BETHESDA BEAT INTERN

Elia Griffin WEB PRODUCER

Erin Roby RESTAURANT CRITIC

David Hagedorn CONTRIBUTING EDITORS

Eugene L. Meyer, Louis Peck, Julie Rasicot, Carole Sugarman COPY EDITORS

Elisabeth Herschbach, Steve Wilder CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Caralee Adams, Jennifer Barger, Stephanie Siegel Burke, Amanda Cherrin, Dina ElBoghdady, Margaret Engel, Dana Gerber, Michael S. Gerber, Amy Halpern, Melanie D.G. Kaplan, Christine Koubek, Amy Reinink, Steve Roberts, Mike Unger, Mark Walston, Carolyn Weber PHOTOGRAPHERS & ILLUSTRATORS

David B. Hurwitz

CFP®, CRPC®, CRPS®, RICP®, APMA®, BFA®

Direct: (301) 263-8509 Email: david.b.hurwitz@ampf.com davidbhurwitz.com

Edgar Artiga, Skip Brown, Goodloe Byron, Laura Chase de Formigny, Erick Gibson, Stacy Zarin Goldberg, Lisa Helfert, Alice Kresse, Deb Lindsey, Liz Lynch, Lindsey Max, Evan Robinson-Johnson, Mary Ann Smith, Louis Tinsley, Joseph Tran, Michael Ventura

Bethesda Magazine is published six times a year by Z-Pop Media, LLC © 2021 Letters to the editor: Please send letters (with your name, the town you live in and your daytime phone number) to letters@bethesdamagazine.com. Story ideas: Please send ideas for stories to editorial@bethesdamagazine.com. Bethesda Magazine 7768 Woodmont Ave., #204, Bethesda, MD 20814 Phone: 301-718-7787/ Fax: 301-718-1875 BethesdaMagazine.com

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

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PUBLISHING

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Arlis Dellapa, Shelley Golinsky, Penny Skarupa, LuAnne Spurrell AD PRODUCTION COORDINATOR

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John Ferris, Lisa Helfert, Darren S. Higgins, Tony J. Lewis, Hilary Schwab, Joseph Tran, Michael Ventura, Stephanie Williams Subscription price: $19.95 To subscribe: Go to BethesdaMagazine.com. For customer service: Call 301-718-7787, ext. 205, or send an email to customerservice@bethesdamagazine.com. For advertising information: Call 301-718-7787, ext. 220; send an email to advertising@bethesdamagazine.com; or go to BethesdaMagazine.com. For information on events and reprints: Call 301-718-7787, ext. 207; or send an email to marketing@bethesdamagazine.com.

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art. festivals. culture. day trips. hidden gems.

good life

PHOTO BY SKIP BROWN

THE GREAT OUTDOORS YOU’LL FIND PLENTY OF space for a quiet walk, a good place for the kids to play, and the chance to see more than 160 species of birds at Rockville’s RedGate Park, a former 131-acre golf course that is now a public park. It’s easy to spot vestiges of the golf course that closed in late 2018—from the former clubhouse to the concrete signs marking the holes and the rough outlines of fairways now sprouting grasses that sway in the breeze. But where golfers once roamed, the gentle hills now provide new options for fun. Kids can dig away in the sand traps. Paved paths that golf carts used to traverse are perfect for rambling walks or even for younger cyclists to improve their skills on the

flatter stretches. And the broad mowed lawns are ideal for picnicking. Birders describe the park as “heaven” for spotting species that range from great blue herons and wood ducks, which enjoy the large pond, to yellow-billed cuckoos and great horned owls. Climb the stairs to the wooden deck of the former clubhouse to watch as birds of prey, including a variety of hawks and even bald eagles, swoop by overhead. RedGate Park, 14500 Avery Road, Rockville, open from sunrise to sunset daily, redgatepark.org. —Julie Rasicot BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021

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good life

FUN ON THE FARM KIDS CAN INTERACT WITH kids—the goat kind—in the petting zoo area of Clark’s Elioak Farm in Ellicott City. They’ll also see pigs, cows, horses, chickens, rabbits, sheep and even an emu. Other creatures, including the Three Little Pigs, the Three Bears and a green lute-playing dragon, show up as painted sculptures around the farm, which is home to nearly 100 fairy tale and nursery rhyme attractions originally from the old Enchanted Forest. That amusement park operated in Ellicott City from 1955 until the early 1990s. At Clark’s, kids can shoot down a slide inside the Old Woman in the Shoe’s house, and wander through the Enchanted Pine Tree Forest’s shady grove of trees, where they can spot Little Red Riding Hood and Little Boy Blue, among others. There’s also a Fairy Forest, where a path lined with diminutive model dwellings made of logs, stones, leaves, pinecones and other bits and pieces leads through a wooded glen.

Little ones can ride a pony or hop aboard the Cow Train, a tractor pulling cars painted in a black and white Holstein pattern through a bumpy field. The Enchanted Express miniature train takes passengers around the property. A pick-your-own pumpkin patch with hayrides and costume parades is planned from mid-September through October. The season ends with a pumpkin chucking weekend Nov. 6-7, when participants can launch pumpkins into the field with a wooden catapult. Clark’s Elioak Farm is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Saturday-Sunday through Nov. 7. Admission is $8, free for infants younger than 1 year; additional fees for some attractions. 10500 Clarksville Pike, Ellicott City, 410-730-4049, clarklandfarm.com. n —Stephanie Siegel Burke

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

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PHOTO BY MICHAEL VENTURA

BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021

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good life

BEST BETS

Our picks for things to see and do in September and October BY STEPHANIE SIEGEL BURKE

Sept. 2 - 4

FAMILY MATTERS

National Players, an ensemble based at Olney Theatre, presents A Raisin in the Sun. The play, which debuted in 1959, tells the story of a Black family on Chicago’s South Side and the clash among family members over how to improve their financial situation and achieve their dreams. In addition to nightly shows, the group will perform a matinee of the production on Sept. 4 during SummerFest, an event marking the end of Olney’s outdoor season. SummerFest is a free, all-day open house featuring performances, tours, workshops, a used costume sale and food trucks. 7:30 p.m. Thursday-Friday, 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, pay what you can, Olney Theatre Center, olneytheatre.org

Sept. 10

BACK TO THE FUTURE Latin American folk music meets futuristic electronica in Sofia Rei’s songs. A trip to Chile’s Elqui Valley inspired the latest album by the songwriter, who is originally from Buenos Aires, Argentina, but now based in New York City, where she is also a professor at New York University. The beauty of the valley’s landscape, the words of poet Gabriela Mistral (who was born there) and the traditions of the people and musicians Rei met on her journey all contributed to the jazz-infused world music she creates using vocal loops and ambient and soul music influences.

Sept. 8 through Oct. 2

CREATIVE COMPETITION

Now in its 19th year, The Trawick Prize: Bethesda Contemporary Art Awards perennially brings exciting and thought-provoking works of art to Bethesda’s Gallery B for the Trawick Prize Exhibition. Past finalists have created mixed media pieces, video art, large-scale sculptures, and site-specific installations that have incorporated the gallery’s walls and windows. The juried contest is open to artists in Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C., and the grand prize is $10,000. Artwork by this year’s finalists will be on display. Noon-5 p.m. Thursday-Saturday, free, Gallery B, Bethesda, bethesda.org

Oct. 2

A MOVABLE FEAST Whether it’s pizza, sushi, tacos or dumplings you crave, chances are you can get it at Taste of Bethesda. The long-running food festival returns this year after a COVID-19 hiatus. During the event, streets in Bethesda’s Woodmont Triangle are closed to traffic and lined with tents where dozens of downtown Bethesda eateries offer selections from their menus. Along with the bites, the festival presents five stages of live entertainment, including cultural dance performances and music by local bands. 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Woodmont Triangle, free admission, food/drink tickets are four for $5, bethesda.org

PHOTO COURTESY OF STRATHMORE; PHOTO BY SONNY ODOM

6:30 and 8:30 p.m., $144 or $176 per table, seats up to four, Patio Stage, Strathmore, strathmore.org

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

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BEATBOX AND BEYOND Christylez Bacon takes beatboxing to the next level. Using just his mouth, lips, tongue and voice, the Grammy-nominated rapper and musician mimics drums, drum machines, turntables and other percussive sounds to create complex rhythms. A former teacher, Bacon is also an engaging storyteller and has performed for school groups around the D.C. region. During this free, family-friendly performance, expect to hear dazzling beatboxing demonstrations, rhymes about growing up in Southeast D.C., and freestyle improvisations using crowd participation. The concert is part of Strathmore’s Bloom community events series, an outreach effort to increase access to the arts in the eastern part of Montgomery County. 5 p.m., free, RSVP required, Good Hope Neighborhood Recreation Center, Silver Spring, strathmore.org

ART MART Casual browsers and serious buyers flock to the Bethesda Row Arts Festival. The event—typically one of the largest outdoor art shows in the area—will bring together nearly 130 artists and artisans from around the country to show and sell their creations. The festival is juried, and prizes are awarded. But with so much art on display in so many artistic disciplines, including painting, ceramics, metal, glass, wood, fiber, jewelry, digital art and sculpture, the real winners are the crowds of art lovers who get to experience it all. 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, free, Bethesda Row, bethesdarowarts.org

Oct. 10

IT’S A FALL WORLD AFTER ALL Is your idea of an October festival more beer and bratwurst, or apple cider and pumpkins? Gaithersburg’s family-friendly Oktoberfest has it all. The event features Bavarian music and dancers, traditional festival fare and a beer garden offering drinks from local microbreweries and Maryland wineries. It also celebrates all things fall with professional pumpkin carvers, apple cider pressing demonstrations and horse-drawn wagon rides. Kids can paint pumpkins and make crafts, while live bands and community groups perform on four stages. Noon to 5 p.m., Kentlands Mansion, Kentlands Village Green, Main Street and Market Square, free admission, small fees for some activities, gaithersburgmd.gov n

PHOTO COURTESY OF BETHESDA ROW ARTS FESTIVAL; PHOTO COURTESY OF STRATHMORE

Oct. 9 - 10

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Rosie (left) and Eleanor Clemans-Cope, who are passionate about climate action, have participated in protests and spoken out on the need for change.

THE ACTIVISTS Two sisters from Rockville are fighting to save the planet PHOTO BY LIZ LYNCH

BY CARALEE ADAMS

THIRTEEN-YEAR-OLD Rosie ClemansCope is scared that climate change will destroy homes, wreck the land and kill billions around the world. “People in power right now are just not doing enough,” she says. “I don’t understand how you can ignore such a huge and devastating problem that is threatening so many people.” That’s why Rosie and her 17-year-old sister, Eleanor, both of Rockville, joined hundreds of young environmentalists on a sunny June afternoon in Lafayette

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Square in Washington, D.C., to march, wave signs and chant: “What do we want? Climate action! When do we want it? Now!” The protesters were urging the Biden administration not to compromise on climate provisions in a federal infrastructure bill. Dividing into groups, they blocked entrances to the White House. At one gate, the sisters, slathered in sunscreen and sitting on jackets to protect themselves from the hot pavement, joined others prepared to risk arrest for nearly three hours in the 90-degree heat. The mood that afternoon was a mix of “righteous anger” and “joy as a collective” as the protesters sang about choosing sides in the climate war, says Eleanor, a senior at Richard Montgomery High School in Rockville. “We gave [President Joe Biden] a climate mandate, and we need him to follow through,” she says. “He should be working with the people who elected him—young people who made so, so many calls for him, the climate activists who got out the vote.” Last year, Eleanor was arrested during a climate protest at the U.S. Capitol, and Rosie, an eighth grader at Thomas W. Pyle Middle School in Bethesda, says she is not afraid of having the same thing happen to her. “I’m ready to put my body on the line for the future of this world,” she says. “If we can get a critical mass of people to stop injustices around this issue, we can do anything.” Rosie was inspired to get involved after watching a PBS NewsHour story three years ago about teenage activist Greta Thunberg holding a solo climate strike in Sweden. “I thought how powerful it would be if kids all around the world did the same thing and acted in solidarity,” she says. Eleanor says Rosie convinced her to get on the “climate train” by explaining that the environment affected other issues that she cares about, such as achieving racial, gender 32

and economic justice. The sisters have participated in local protests to pressure Montgomery County to strengthen its Climate Action Plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by including timelines and projected costs. In 2019, the teens spoke at the U.S. Capitol during an international youth climate strike day. Rosie and Eleanor also are involved in Sunrise Movement, a national group of young climate activists, and have protested with others outside the homes of County Executive Marc Elrich and Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan. “We are committed to the theory of change that we must disrupt the system in order to change the system,” says Eleanor, who spent hours reviewing and summarizing the shortcomings of the county’s Climate Action Plan. The sisters’ activism takes up much of their spare time, though both also are involved in debate clubs, spend a few hours daily playing the violin, and enjoy hanging out with friends. Their family has long been involved in activism, and the sisters say some of their earliest memories are of joining their parents at protests for women’s rights or against gun violence. Together, the family has learned about the science behind climate change, but the girls have taken the lead on the issue, says their mother, Lisa Clemans-Cope, an economist at the Urban Institute. Their father, Keary Cope, is a scientist at the National Institutes of Health. The sisters believe they can leverage their youthfulness when making the

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

case to protect the environment. “Young people have the moral authority. The younger you are, the more drastically you will be affected by climate change,” Eleanor says. Rosie has organized weekly climate “strikes”—events during breaks in the school day—since fifth grade as part of a movement called Fridays for Future. The gatherings at Pyle were moved online after schools closed in March 2020 because of the pandemic. Pyle teacher Zach Tilkens, the faculty sponsor of the Friday strikes, says he was impressed with Rosie’s organization of the sessions. “I was in awe,” he says. “She brought in information from poets, social media and news stories—making it relevant.” In pushing for the county to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and adopt a local version of the proposed national Green New Deal, the girls have worked with leaders of local environmental organizations such as Bethesda resident Jim Driscoll, 76, co-founder of Extinction Rebellion DC, which is part of a global environmental movement. He also coordinates a group associated with the movement in Montgomery County. “Young people get it…old people are sending emails and having meetings,” Driscoll says. “[Young people] raise the issue and they get publicity. If the council and the [county] executive paid as much attention to Rosie and Eleanor as the whole world has paid to Greta Thunberg in Sweden, then Montgomery County would be a model for the rest of the world.” n

PHOTO COURTESY OF CRAIG W. CARLSON

Eleanor (left) and Rosie at the Montgomery County Executive Office Building in Rockville in April

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DIAPER DUTY A Bullis alum and his mom are making life easier for on-the-go parents BY DANA GERBER

BRETT GUTERMAN IS 21, a senior at George Washington University, and childless—probably not the person parents would expect to see representing a company that sells stylish diaper bags that unzip into padded changing stations. “The best way to sort of get around that is simply just for me to get out and talk to people,” says Guterman, a finance major from Potomac. Once customers “understand that I’m not as concerned about selling the product as I am with their issues, they open up to me a little more.” Guterman and some classmates came 34

up with the idea for the diaper bag when they were tasked in their senior year with developing a marketable product for their capstone program in entrepreneurship at Potomac’s Bullis School. Several were babysitters who had noticed a troubling trend when it came to changing

diapers. “Parents had to use dirty changing pads, they had to use towels that they would put on tables and they’d have to put it back into the [diaper] bag—it just got totally disgusting,” Guterman says. The team decided to focus on developing a prototype for a diaper bag that transformed into a changing station. In 2018, near the end of their senior year, the teammates pitched their product in Bullis’ mock Shark Tank competition, based on the popular reality TV show. They won $10,000 from XML Financial Group, a wealth management firm in Rockville. The team formed a company, Rockabye Backpack Inc., and used the money to pay for initial legal fees and manufacturing costs for the first

PHOTOS BY LIZ LYNCH

Brett Guterman and his mother, Barbara

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50 backpacks. After the students headed off to different colleges, Guterman bought out his teammates, rebranded the company to OTGbaby (OTG stands for “on the go”) and relaunched in early 2020. His mother, Barbara—who has a background in entrepreneurship and served as one of two mentors in Guterman’s capstone program—became OTGbaby’s president and chief operating officer. Barbara Guterman says their close relationship makes them stronger business partners. “The other day we had words, and then, like, three minutes later I’m like, ‘OK, honey, how are you doing?’ ” Barbara says. “If you would be upset with a co-worker, it would be something that might linger or stay with you—we just get past it.” The company—now a six-person team with a four-person advisory board—earned a utility patent for the

product in July 2020 amid conducting “hundreds” of phone interviews with moms about what they wanted in a diaper bag. Later that year, the company raised about $17,000 from a Kickstarter campaign, taking advance orders along with donations. The first batch of the bags, which are made by a California company, was delivered to customers in February. “We’re selling a bag for active moms on their day trips, running their errands, going to Starbucks, meeting with friends,” Brett says of “The Go Bag,” which is made of vegan leather, unzips into a 36-inch-long changing pad with a 2-inch thick cushion, and has seven pockets. “We just really want to make products for parents that are going to allow them to have worry-free outings caption goes here ” with their babies. The $149 bags are available on the company’s website (otgbaby.com) and

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in about 20 stores nationwide, including On Cloud 9 in Potomac and Occasions Gift Store in Potomac and Gaithersburg. Barbara says the company has sold several hundred bags to date. Taking virtual classes during the pandemic allowed Brett to travel for trade shows, and the company has a permanent space in The Studio at KidsWorld showroom in Dallas. “I consider OTGbaby very much so my full-time job and school my parttime job,” he says. He wants to expand OTGbaby, eventually adding accessory products such as bags with different compartments for wet and dry items or a technology pouch. Brett credits his mother for helping him develop his entrepreneurial zeal. “One thing my mom’s done a great job of instilling in me is that learning is so important,” he says. “You really don’t know what you don’t know.” n

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Local residents tap their talents and technology to solve problems BY DANA GERBER

DIAGNOSED LAST SEPTEMBER WITH Type 1 diabetes, then-eighth-grader Drew Mendelow wasted no time in developing an app to help him manage his illness. Kevin Xu, who graduated from Montgomery Blair High School this June, took the same approach when he was looking for a way to improve his participation in online classes. The teens and a Kensington couple are among the Montgomery County residents who are using their talents to develop apps that solve problems and improve the lives of others. Here’s what they have created. 36

Gaithersburg teen Drew Mendelow developed an app to help people manage Type 1 diabetes.

T1D1

When Drew Mendelow was diagnosed at Children’s National Hospital in Washington, D.C., he was overwhelmed by the “math class” involved in treating his illness. “There was a lot of stuff to think about, like calculating insulin and carb counting,” says Drew, now 14, who lives in Gaithersburg. “[The nutritionist] kept mentioning that there wasn’t one app that would do everything.” The day he arrived home from the hospital, Drew used his modest coding background to begin work on T1D1, a free app designed to help people manage Type 1 diabetes. The app, which Drew designed using the online app builder Thunkable, calculates the correct dose of insulin based on personal specifications, and is able to log the figures so they can be sent to medical providers. It also has a food library where users can list the amount of carbs in frequently used recipes.

Drew coordinated with the doctors at Children’s to provide guidance and suggestions on the app, which is available in the App Store and on Google Play. It has been downloaded more than 24,000 times in more than 50 countries since it was launched on Oct. 31. Dr. Brynn Marks, the endocrinologist who diagnosed Drew, says her team recommends the app to patients. Drew used it until he got an insulin pump in December that calculates doses and administers medication, but he still uses the food library. A ninth grader at Quince Orchard High School, Drew is working on translating the app into Spanish and Chinese, and he has added a measurement unit for blood sugar that’s commonly used outside the U.S. “I’m really just hoping this app reaches as many people that need it as possible from anywhere—give them one less thing to worry about,” he says.

PHOTO BY LIZ LYNCH

THERE’S AN APP FOR THAT

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

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Tabulo

After the pandemic forced classrooms to shift online in the spring of 2020, Kevin Xu, then a junior in Blair’s science, mathematics and computer science magnet program, noticed some logistical problems in his organic chemistry class. “For classes like math or chemistry, you really need to draw stuff,” says the 18-year-old Bethesda resident. “Unless you have a drawing pad, your mouse drawings— they’re not the most legible.” Kevin and Leon Si, a fellow teenage computer coder in Canada, developed Tabulo—a free online whiteboard app that allows users to create drawings on their mobile devices that can be synchronized in real time to a computer. Users can find the app on the website tabulo.app and then create a “room” that can be joined from a smartphone through a link or a QR code, a twodimensional barcode. Teachers and students can view or edit the virtual whiteboard and annotate PowerPoint

slides, zoom in to make more detailed drawings, or download what’s on the board as images. Kevin created a prototype in about a week in April 2020, inspired by drawing pads he used in a digital art class at Blair. He later turned to Amazon Web Services for help in developing the app while Leon focused on coding. The app became available in early August 2020 and was used by students and teachers in some of Kevin’s classes during his senior year. As of late April, it had almost 100 registered users. In December, Kevin and Leon won U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin’s 2020 Congressional App Challenge, which encourages middle and high school students to develop coding and computer science skills. Winning apps are displayed on the U.S. House of Representatives website and in a U.S. Capitol exhibit. “Winning the app [contest] is great, but I also want to actually help teachers around the world,” Kevin says.

Virtues Cards

When Dara Feldman learned in 2005 about The Virtues Project, an initiative to encourage people to incorporate virtues into their lives, she started carrying its packs of “virtue cards.” The cards include a description of a quality such as courage or tolerance, an applicable quote from a well-known person such as Mother Teresa, and ways to practice the trait. Feldman, a former teacher and instructional technology specialist for Montgomery County Public Schools, often ended up with incomplete decks after giving away cards. So in 2008 she helped develop the first generation of Virtues Cards, an app that digitized the cards. Feldman and her husband, Dave, who live in North Bethesda, launched a redesigned version of the app in February 2020 under their new nonprofit, Virtues Matter, which they founded in 2019. BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021

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After opening the free app, users shake their phones to receive a randomly chosen virtue card or scroll to find a specific virtue card in one of its decks, which include reflection, resilience, family, education and character. The app, available on Google Play and in the App Store, comes with a starter deck; additional decks cost up to $4.99. Users can share the cards through texts, email or social media. The app also includes a journal, and it allows users to set up daily reminders to pick a card. “Our whole reason for creating this app was to have virtues go viral,” says Dara Feldman, 58, a former director of education for The Virtues Project. “[For people] to be able to live their highest version of themselves and to see that and recognize it in others.” n

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UNFINISHED BUSINESS A Bethesda attorney finds the past becomes the present in his book on 1960s racial strife BY CARALEE ADAMS

TED SEGAL HAD A sense of nostalgia five years ago when he opened a dustcovered box containing his unfinished master’s thesis on Black student activism at Duke University. “It was a time capsule of this moment in my life,” says Segal, 66, of the typewritten pages and cassette tapes in the bankers box for nearly 40 years. “Thinking about the path my life had taken, other paths my life had not taken, was just potent.” In 1979, Segal decided against becoming a historian and left graduate school at Duke. He intended to finish his thesis, but “life unfolded,” he says. He earned his law degree from Georgetown University and eventually became a partner at DLA Piper in Washington, D.C.

He retrieved the box containing his oral history project from the basement of his Bethesda home, planning to donate the contents to Duke as it prepared for the 50th anniversary of campus protests following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. Reading through the material, Segal, who grew up in Bethesda, was drawn back into the story of the students’ activism and didn’t want to let it go. He got in touch with his former history professor, Bill Chafe, who shared Segal’s enthusiasm for revisiting the topic and offered to help. Eager to dive back in, Segal, then 60, decided to retire. He poured himself into his research, and five years later his dormant thesis had morphed into a book: Point of Reckoning:

PHOTO BY LOUIS TINSLEY

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The Fight for Racial Justice at Duke University, published in February by Duke University Press. To complete the narrative, Segal drove to Durham, North Carolina, more than a dozen times to dig through the Duke University Archives and reinterview some of the former students who live in the area. He had access to documents that had been restricted decades earlier, allowing him to gain new insights into administrators’ actions. In his book, Segal chronicles the struggles of the first Black undergraduate students who enrolled in 1963 after the historically white university was forced to desegregate. They organized after confronting racist symbols, intimidation, and exclusionary policies that included the university’s use of a nearby country club that refused to admit Black members. In the book’s final chapters, Segal writes about the 1969 takeover of a campus administration building by the university’s Afro-American Society and a subsequent riot with police. With two grown children of his own, Segal came to realize how young the student protesters were and the trepidation their parents must have felt during such a volatile time. “That insight allowed me to approach their stories in a much more human and empathetic way,” he says. Segal reports on how the white men in power at Duke made little effort to understand the lived experience of Black students and believed they should essentially “come and be white” to fit in. He recalls that a similar attitude was pervasive later in the legal profession. Although Segal thought he was “checking all the boxes” as a progressive person by serving on diversity committees at his firm and the board of a pro bono law center during his career, he says he came to reevaluate his own thinking on racial issues during his research. “It became a journey of discovery for

me,” says Segal, who worked full time on the project in his home study. “I was able—for the first time—to begin to understand and unpack my privilege and my blind spots. That was an extremely personal and powerful experience.” Chafe edited each chapter of the book, as did Segal’s wife, Joyce Wasserstein, 66, a retired psychologist. “His book became part of our family,” she says. Segal made the digital version of his book available to download for free through the Duke University Press and says he is eager to share lessons that can be learned from the university’s failures. “The problem was not overt racists,” Segal says. “What stalled progress was everyone else who considered themselves supportive of these issues but [who] were not willing to sacrifice any capital to achieve these goals.” He says that ongoing calls for racial understanding and the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement demonstrate how much work remains to achieve racial justice. “What it will take for institutions to change is to view diversity and inclusion as a core value—not just in words, but in deeds,” he says. University archivist Valerie Gillispie says Segal’s book is well timed as Duke recently embarked on a new commitment to anti-racism following the May 2020 death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police. “I’m so impressed by what he did,” she says. “The book is a fabulous teaching tool. It tells a part of Duke history that has not been examined in a scholarly way in a monograph.” With his project complete, Segal is processing what he learned and considering more direct involvement in racial equity issues. “Whatever I end up doing, I now understand that nonprofit board service and donations to nonprofit entities are not sufficient if you want to claim that you’re seriously committed…to racial justice,” he says. n

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BOOK REPORT

Daniel de Visé briefly considered a career in music but instead became a journalist, author and obsessive music buff. The Garrett Park resident traveled from Memphis to Las Vegas, interviewing dozens of people in B.B. King’s inner circle to chronicle the musician’s improbable journey from humble beginnings to global fame in King of the Blues: The Rise and Reign of B.B. King (Atlantic Monthly Press, October 2021). De Visé says King deserves credit for being a pioneer in creating a musical voice through his beloved guitars, all of which he named Lucille: “[King] actually codified this language of solo guitar that dominated pop music for a couple of successive generations. I want people to know that, and for that to be his claim to history. ”

Potomac chef Jenn Segal is out with her second cookbook, Once Upon a Chef: Weeknight/ Weekend: 70 Quick-Fix Weeknight Dinners + 30 Luscious Weekend Recipes (Clarkson Potter, September 2021). “It includes weeknight recipes that are helping us get through the week, survive the rush and anchor our families at the table every night,” Segal says. “But it also has weekend recipes, where you can really enjoy cooking and putter around the kitchen.” Among the speedy meals: Eastern Shore crab soup, and pecorino and rosemary crusted chicken. For weekend cooking, the most popular recipe on Segal’s website is her five-star beef stew, which is also in the book along with the strawberries and cream layer cake she makes for her husband’s birthday.

Working on the young adult novel Fade into the Bright (Delacorte Press, April 2021) was emotional for Bethesda resident Alyssa Embree Schwartz and her writing partner and best friend, Jessica Koosed Etting, who lives in Los Angeles. “We laughed. We cried. We became incredibly attached,” Schwartz says of the story they crafted about two sisters who struggle with a decision to be tested for Huntington’s disease, a rare inherited disorder that leads to the degeneration of nerve cells in the brain. For readers ages 12 and older, the book “raises questions about life, how you live it and if you’d live it differently if you knew something about the future,” Schwartz says.

After years of writing about retirement for magazines and newspapers, Bethesda journalist Harriet Edleson pulled together the advice she’s learned in 12 Ways to Retire on Less: Planning an Affordable Future (Rowman & Littlefield, May 2021). She encourages readers to create a budget, consider the best time to claim Social Security, and carefully review housing options— which will likely be their biggest expense. “People are fearful of running out of money in retirement,” says Edleson, who is a regular contributor to Marketwatch.com and The Washington Post. “If you plan, then you will be more likely to know what you have coming in, how much you are spending, how much you are earning, what is your guaranteed income, and you can sleep better.”

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READING LIST

DATA PROVIDED BY

The top-selling books in our area. Data is based on books sold at Politics and Prose’s Connecticut Avenue location in Upper Northwest D.C. and online from July 2 to 15, 2021.

HARDCOVER FICTION 1. Love, Roddy Doyle

PAPERBACK

2. The Vanishing Half, Brit Bennett

1. White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism, Robin DiAngelo

3. A Burning, Megha Majumdar

2. The Nickel Boys, Colson Whitehead

4. Friends and Strangers, J. Courtney Sullivan 5. Mexican Gothic, Silvia Moreno-Garcia

3. Stamped From the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America, Ibram X. Kendi

6. Death in Her Hands, Ottessa Moshfegh

4. So You Want to Talk About Race, Ijeoma Oluo

7. Make Russia Great Again, Christopher Buckley

5. The Fire Next Time, James Baldwin

8. Rodham, Curtis Sittenfeld

6. The Overstory, Richard Powers

9. All Adults Here, Emma Straub

7. New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness, Michelle Alexander

10. Sex and Vanity, Kevin Kwan

HARDCOVER NONFICTION 1. How to Be an Antiracist, Ibram X. Kendi

8. Normal People, Sally Rooney 9. The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration, Isabel Wilkerson 10. The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America, Richard Rothstein

2. Protocol: The Power of Diplomacy and How to Make It Work for You, Capricia Penavic Marshall 3. Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World’s Most Dangerous Man, Mary L. Trump

CHILDREN & YOUNG ADULT

4. The Room Where It Happened: A White House Memoir, John Bolton

1. Kamala and Maya’s Big Idea, Meena Harris

5. Begin Again: James Baldwin’s America and Its Urgent Lessons for Our Own, Eddie S. Glaude Jr.

3. Joey: The Story of Joe Biden, Jill Biden, Kathleen Krull 4. Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You: A Remix of the National Book Award-winning Stamped from the Beginning, Jason Reynolds, Ibram X. Kendi

7. The Splendid and the Vile: A Saga of Churchill, Family, and Defiance During the Blitz, Erik Larson

5. Tortall: A Spy’s Guide, Tamora Pierce

8. Say It Louder! Black Voters, White Narratives, and Saving Our Democracy, Tiffany Cross

7. Starsight (The Skyward Series, No. 2), Brandon Sanderson

9. Surviving Autocracy, Masha Gessen

8. Grandma’s Gardens, Hillary Clinton, Chelsea Clinton

10. Between the World and Me, Ta-Nehisi Coates

9. The Damned (The Beautiful Series, No. 2), Renée Ahdieh

6. Antiracist Baby, Ibram X. Kendi

10. Agnes at the End of the World, Kelly McWilliams 44

ALL BOOK COVERS FILE PHOTOS

6. America in the World: A History of U.S. Diplomacy and Foreign Policy, Robert B. Zoellick

2. Black Brother, Black Brother, Jewell Parker Rhodes

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BY STEVE ROBERTS

THE POWER OF WORDS For Montgomery College student Sasa Aakil, the county’s first youth poet laureate, writing is a way to express hurt and hope 46

SASA AAKIL DESCRIBES VISITING her grandmother, a potter then living in New Mexico: “I was 5 or 6, but I remember being captivated by the clay and the wheel and just the nature and the rhythm of ceramics. I think that was my first time when I fell in love with an art form.” Now 18, Sasa loves the “nature and the rhythm” of many art forms—pottery and music, print-making and hairstyling. Above all, she is entranced by words and what they can convey. She writes in her poem “This I Can Do”: The wind told me stories and taught me to dream,

I never learned to sing on tune, but this, this I can do Earlier this year, Sasa was named Montgomery County’s first youth poet laureate by Words, Beats & Life, an educational nonprofit devoted to advancing hip-hop culture. The Wheaton resident won the title by submitting samples of her work and then outperforming three other finalists in a live online competition, and as a young Black Muslim woman she understands her responsibility as a role model. “After surprise, I felt pride that I got to be one of the first, that I got to be someone who made the next

PHOTO BY LOUIS TINSLEY

Sasa Aakil at home in Wheaton

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

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banter | HOMETOWN Muslim girl know that her story was worth hearing,” she wrote in a blog post. While most of Sasa’s ancestors were sharecroppers from the Deep South who migrated northward, one grandfather was a Panamanian who converted to Islam. Her mother, Latifa Barnett, was raised in that faith, came to Washington for college at Howard University, and met her husband here. Their daughter, now in her second year at Montgomery College, hopes to combine her interests in writing and art history at Howard next year. Sasa was born in Tennessee, where her father was stationed with the Army, and that experience left a deep scar. “I know living there was very traumatic for my mom because the way she was treated there, while my father was out on deployment,” Sasa tells me over lemonade at Busboys and Poets cafe in Takoma

in D.C. “We had people throw rocks at our cars and break our windows. We had people saying things about us. It was very stressful for her in that environment and it directly influenced and informed the way she raised us.” That experience helped convince Sasa’s mother to homeschool her children once the family moved back to this area, and her daughter adds another reason: “Oftentimes Black children aren’t treated well and supported in public school systems. And Black Muslim children would have had even a harder time. So I think a lot of it was trying to protect us from that.” Sasa showed an interest in words at a very young age, she explains with a laugh: “People are always like, ‘Oh my God, you’re so crazy’ when I tell this story. But I think one of the first ways I noticed that I have an inclination

towards words is that I was really good at insulting my siblings. That was one way I could defend myself.” Her mother noticed, too, so she added poetry to her lesson plan. “I really, really, really loved it,” Sasa recalls. “My mother kept encouraging me to write and I started getting journals and filling them up. When I was frustrated, I would write things out and that helped me understand my world and also build my own world.” Sasa’s world has many dimensions. She learned to play the bass guitar and to style hair, and she considers hair “part of my artistic practice.” She’s an expert in “sisterlocks,” a process that involves braiding a Black woman’s hair into hundreds of tiny knots, and her work sends a political message as well as an artistic one. “History matters, how natural hair in America is looked down upon, considered dirty,” she says. “Historically,

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banter | HOMETOWN

you couldn’t get a job if your hair was the way it grows naturally out of your head. You weren’t allowed to wear it that way to school. It’s something that’s been very, very, very deeply stigmatized, in the same way that Black women have been told in this country that their features are ugly. A lot of people over the generations have internalized that, so I think there’s something very deep and important about actively working against that.” Working in a hair salon, she adds, also feeds her writing life: “I love being with the clients because when you’re taking care of someone, when you’re making them feel beautiful, they feel like they can trust you. And so you get to hear these stories that they tell you and listen to their lives.” Sasa describes herself on her website as “a frequent maker of mistakes,”

and when I ask about the reference, she answers: “I would not be this Sasa if I didn’t fumble my way through life, and I wouldn’t have all the fun and ridiculous stories that become a part of my art. So I’m a maker of mistakes and that’s something I cherish.” Much of her art these days is fueled by darker themes, however, mainly the police killings of young Black people. Last year she converted her bedroom into a workshop and started printing postcards and T-shirts with “A Man Was Lynched Yesterday,” a rallying cry adopted by civil rights activists almost 100 years ago. Some of her writing reflects similar emotions, like this verse from a poem titled “Flag”: I am golden door sealed with lock and key, symbol of the free. You know the ones with blue eyes,

white skin, and red blood stained hands. When I ask if her writing expresses anger, she replies: “I would describe my poetry as hurt, because I myself am hurt. What comes through in my poetry, sometimes it’s anger, but sometimes it’s healing and sometimes it’s joy and sometimes it’s conviction. So I think it has all of these things in it because I have all of these things in me.” If her work expresses hurt, it also expresses hope. Hope that other young Black women will be encouraged to tell their own stories, to feel their own power, to say to themselves, “This I can do.” n Steve Roberts teaches journalism and politics at George Washington University. Send ideas for future columns to sroberts@gwu.edu.

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SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

women in business PROFILES

TONY LEWIS

McKeon Law Firm, See Profile page 67

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PROFILES

Women in business SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

JDKatz, P.C.'s team of experienced lawyers achieves excellent results in the areas of civil and commercial litigation, business law, trusts and estates, and elder law. The firm's well-versed attorneys are fully prepared to take on your case and resolve your respective legal matters in the best way possible. 3 Bethesda Metro Center, Suite 500 Bethesda, MD 20814 301-913-2948 www.jdkatz.com

CAILIN J. TALBERT, SENIOR ASSOCIATE KATELYN E. HOLBROOK, ASSOCIATE ISABELLA C. DEMOUGEOT, SENIOR LITIGATION ASSOCIATE ELIZABETH J. MCINTURFF, PARTNER CLAIRE E. KRETSCHMER, LAW CLERK

Q: What woman inspires you and

why? A: We are incredibly inspired by the female legal pioneers who have played a significant role in shaping Maryland’s legal landscape. These notable women include Justices DuFour, Davidson, Raker and Barbera, as well as our mentors who have supported us throughout our careers. Judge DuFour overcame rampant skepticism to become the first woman circuit court judge in Maryland. She went on to become the first female Chief Judge to the Sixth Judicial Circuit and was instrumental in framing the judiciary as we know it today. Since then, Maryland has led the way in appointing women to the Bench, including to the highest courts of the State. Justice Davidson was appointed to the Court of Special Appeals in 1972 and elevated to the Court of Appeals in 1979. She was the first female judge to sit on either of these courts. Justice Raker served as the second woman to ever sit on that Court, after having already shattered glass ceilings as the first woman prosecutor in Montgomery County. Presently, the Hon. Mary Ellen Barbera serves as Chief Judge on the Maryland Court of Appeals, the highest court in the State. These and the other women of the Maryland judiciary have been strong advocates for the women climbing behind them and are our inspirations in our choice to study law and in our shaping of our own careers.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

HILLARY SCHWAB

JDKatz, PC

PROFILES

Women in business

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 53

PROFILES

Women in business SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

TAMMY BEGUN, ESQ., CHAIRWOMAN, FAMILY LAW PRACTICE GROUP

Tammy leads the family attorney division at the firm and is a former law clerk for the Circuit Court for Montgomery County. She is a trained mediator, certified best interest attorney, and is collaboratively trained. PRICE BENOWITZ LLP Serious Injury Family Law Criminal Defense Trust and Estates Washington, DC | Maryland | Virginia 202-594-8993 info@pricebenowitz.com www.pricebenowitz.com

Q: What woman inspires you and

why? A: Ruth Bader Ginsburg has been an inspiration throughout my life. She was a trailblazer who never sacrificed family for her career. Justice Ginsburg also fought for gender equality and justice, issues we still fight for today. Q: What advice would you offer for

women just getting started? A: Own your struggles and learn from them. Forgive yourself for mistakes, and don't listen to negativity. Everyone has their own image of success and pathway to achieving it. Your view of success may also change over time—and it's okay to change with it. Q: What brings you the most

satisfaction in your work? A: I love giving clients a voice during an extremely challenging time in their lives. By guiding people through family law disputes, I'm helping them become stronger and more independent. Working

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

with my clients through each step of the legal process and advocating for them in mediation or litigation helps build trusted relationships and positive outcomes. This usually leads to successful, familycentered solutions. Q: Why choose Price Benowitz? A: We pride ourselves on being a staple

of both the Bethesda and greater Washington, D.C. communities, offering a wide range of legal services, including family law, personal injury, workers' compensation, medical malpractice, trust and estates, criminal and white collar defense, and more. Our founders, attorneys Seth Price and David Benowitz, are leaders in the legal industry and have imparted their advice and knowledge to the entire team at Price Benowitz. Because of this, we are committed to a client-centered approach that values streamlined communication, addressing every concern, and using our strong work ethic to level the playing field when we fight for our clients' freedom and rights.

MICHAEL VENTURA

Price Benowitz LLP

PROFILES

Women in business

MICHAEL VENTURA

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

Tammy Begun, Esq.

BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 55

PROFILES

Women in business SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

BARB MACKIN, SVP, CRE RELATIONSHIP MGR. KATHY HARBOLD, SVP, CRE RELATIONSHIP MGR. TERI THOMPSON, SVP, CRE RELATIONSHIP MGR.

In March 2021, EagleBank ranked eighth in the Washington Business Journal’s Corporate Diversity Index for midsize companies as a result of its strong policy on diversity, equity and inclusion, as well as the bank’s outstanding employee culture. 7830 Old Georgetown Road Bethesda, MD 20814 301-986-1800 ContactMe@EagleBankCorp.com www.EagleBankCorp.com

Q: What changes or innovations are on the horizon in your industry? How are you preparing for them? A: Kathy Harbold: The changes are becoming less of a bricks-and-mortar business and more virtual. Our bank has invested in technology to keep pace with changing demands. Still, we remain committed to being “front and center” and present in our customer relationships. Picking up the phone is easy but taking the time to meet with and talk to customers is more important. You can achieve a greater appreciation for and understanding of clients and their companies through social interactions Q: What professional advice would you give your younger self? A: Barb Mackin: Don’t expect your career or personal life to be linear, and don’t be so afraid to make mistakes. There are lots of twists and turns along the way, and that’s how you learn.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

Teri Thompson: Stay open-minded and don’t be afraid to try new things. Know your plan, but don’t be afraid to pivot. And network authentically. Relationships are important, and the quality of those relationships depends on what you put into them. Q: What do you look forward to most when you go to work every day? A: Barb Mackin: I look forward to working with my clients and colleagues and the problem-solving aspect of Commercial Real Estate; every transaction presents a new challenge. Teri Thompson: Each day is a new opportunity to learn, grow and challenge myself, all of which make me a better person and a better banker.

TONY J. LEWIS

EagleBank

PROFILES

Women in business

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

The Women of Ain & Bank, P.C. (PICTURED LEFT-RIGHT) NATALIA C. WILSON, ESQ., PRINCIPAL & MANAGING PARTNER SARAH E. MANCINELLI, ESQ., PRINCIPAL (NOT PICTURED) LAUREN E. SHEA, ESQ., PRINCIPAL MANSITAN SOW, ESQ., ASSOCIATE AMY W. SPAIN, ESQ., ASSOCIATE CATHERINE A. THOMPSON, ESQ., ASSOCIATE TANYA S. THOMPSON, ESQ., ASSOCIATE

A preeminent boutique family law firm, Ain & Bank attorneys represent clients with an acute understanding of challenges that arise in family law matters. We strive to resolve cases amicably but are also sophisticated litigators. We pride ourselves on discretion, representing a wide range of clients, including those with substantial assets and complex business interests. 1900 M St. NW, Suite 600 Washington, DC 20036 202-530-3300 www.ainbanklaw.com

Q: What is your top priority? A: Our clients. One of the many benefits of working

in the DMV is the vast and diverse client base it offers our firm. Our clients are leaders in their varying fields of work, and we learn as much from them as they do from us. They are why we do this job and it’s an honor to help them. We strive to avoid exacerbating problems and minimize negative impact on family relationships. Our clients will be a family long after their engagement ends with us and we want to ensure they move ahead in the healthiest way possible.

HILLARY SCHWAB

Q: What do you look forward to when you go to

work every day?

A: Working together. We have an incredible group of

people at our growing firm. They make going to work and solving the sometimes complex problems in our cases enriching and innovative.

BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 57

PROFILES

Women in business SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

HEATHER MEHIGAN, ESQ. AKINYI ORINDA, ESQ. TRACY PHILLIPS, ESQ. Shulman Rogers is a full-service law firm providing corporate, real estate, litigation and personal legal services to national, regional and local clients. "I was honored when a client recently told me, 'Your empathy and understanding were comforting, your cool head and steady counsel were reassuring and your skill and expertise were winning,'" says attorney Heather Mehigan.

Q: How do you measure success? A: We measure success one client at

a time. Each client comes to us with a unique situation, expectations and experience. We listen to their concerns and desires, discuss the myriad of viable options, and then work efficiently and effectively to resolve the issues, whether through litigation, alternative dispute resolution or negotiation. Perhaps the greatest reward in our work comes from receiving a referral from a prior client. It is gratifying to know that we impacted their lives in such a meaningful way, they felt we could help their friend, family member or co-worker as well.

12505 Park Potomac Ave. Potomac, MD 20854 301-230-5200 www.ShulmanRogers.com

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

Q: What do you look forward to when you go to work every day? A: Clients often come to us at a very low point in their lives and entrust us to guide them through some of the most challenging decisions they’ll ever face involving their families. They turn to us when they need an experienced lawyer who not only understands the legal process, but who will also listen to their specific concerns and create strategies to successfully meet their individual and family goals. We work hard to maintain the propriety of their relationships and, after working side by side with them to tackle and resolve their legal issues, it is rewarding to watch families move forward in a positive way. We can truly say that we make a difference in our clients’ lives each and every day we go to work. JOHN FERRIS

Shulman Rogers

PROFILES

Women in business

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

Sandy Spring Builders, LLC MIMI BRODSKY KRESS, COO

Sandy Spring Builders is the premier custom homebuilder in the area. An integrated, full-service team with 40 years of experience in bringing our client’s vision to life. Our vast portfolio of well-built homes makes a lasting impression, proven by myriad awards including Best of Bethesda every year since its inception. 4705 West Virginia Ave. Bethesda, MD 20814 301-913-5995 www.sandyspringbuilders.com

Q: What advice would you offer for women just starting out? A: Do what you love. Building was something I grew up around but never intended as my career path, especially in the ‘80’s when there were few women in the field. I did an apprenticeship for a builder and discovered that I loved construction and building homes. If you’re not happy in your chosen field, make a change. Why settle for liking what you do every day? You should absolutely love what you’re doing since most of our waking hours are spent working.

MICHAEL KRESS PHOTOGRAPHY

Q: What qualities do you think a successful builder should have? A: My business partner Phil Leibovitz and I have always believed that our reputation is everything. That means doing the right thing, not necessarily the easy or cheapest solution, and that’s what sets us apart. The qualities of a successful builder are no different from any other field – honesty, integrity, knowledge. If you’re a custom builder, you need to be a people person. We build for family and friends, and many clients become our friends. Q: What do you look forward to when you go to work every day? A: I enjoy working with a variety of people – clients, engineers and architects, subcontractors, real estate agents, lenders and our talented team at SSB. While the work can be very stressful when building custom homes in our area, the challenge gives me energy, and I love the collaborative process. I also get great satisfaction from the non-profit work I do for NAMI Montgomery County and Habitat for Humanity Metro Maryland. BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 59

PROFILES

Women in business SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

JENNIFER PARKER PORTER, MD, FACS FOUNDER & OWNER Honors & Awards Double-board Certified; American Board of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery & American Board of Otolaryngology — Head and Neck Surgery VP of Diversity and Inclusion, American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Bethesda Magazine, Winner, Best Cosmetic Surgeon, Best of Bethesda Readers’ Poll, 2020; Top Doctor, 2019 & 2021 7201 Wisconsin Ave., Suite 515 Bethesda, MD 20814 301-652-8191 www.chevychaseface.com 60

Q: What woman inspires you and why? A: Former First Lady of the United

States Michelle Obama, and the Vice President of the United States Kamala Harris are women who inspire me. I admire their confidence and drive and their commitment to giving back to the community. Plastic surgery is a challenging industry for women to break into, let alone African American women. Though there are more females in plastic surgery now than ever, women still only account for about 25-30 percent of this specialty, if that. The accomplishments of Michelle Obama and Vice President Harris inspired me to brush aside any of my trepidations and push myself into more leadership roles. I was honored to be elected this year as a Director for the American Board of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery. It is a big commitment and something I have been working toward for the past

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

23 years. I am excited to bring a different perspective to this position and, just as my role models have done for me, I hope to encourage the next generation of women, especially women of color, to tackle the obstacles set in their path and pursue their dreams of becoming a surgeon. Q: What is one thing prospective patients should know about you? A: I will always listen to their wants and needs and offer my honest opinions. I know what works and what does not work, and if I don’t recommend something, I will tell you. I will never perform surgery if it is not in the patient’s best interest. STEPHANIE WILLIAMS

Chevy Chase Facial Plastic Surgery

PROFILES

Women in business

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

Chevy Chase Trust “With women comprising more than 50 percent of both the staff and executive team, Chevy Chase Trust is a firm that values women as clients, employees and leaders.”

HILLARY SCHWAB

7501 Wisconsin Ave., Suite 1500W Bethesda, MD 20814 240-497-5000 smurchison@ChevyChaseTrust.com www.ChevyChaseTrust.com Standing From Left: Christine Wallace, Lynn Panagos, Amy Raskin, Deb Gandy Seated From Left: Blake Doyle, Laly Kassa, Stacy Murchison, Christine Nicolaides Kearns

Q: What roles do women play at Chevy Chase Trust? A: At Chevy Chase Trust, the Chief Investment Officer, General Counsel and Vice Chair of the Board, Chief Operating, Marketing, and Fiduciary Officers, and the Co-Heads of Planning are all women. With women comprising more than 50 percent of both the staff and executive team, Chevy Chase Trust is a firm that values women as clients, employees and leaders. Chevy Chase Trust has female portfolio managers, financial planners, trust officers, fiduciary officers, tax advisors, and attorneys who meet face to face with clients to learn about what’s important to them and create customized plans to help them reach their goals. With more women in the workforce than ever before, many seek advice from professionals who are able to understand first-hand their investment needs and broader goals.

Q: What sets Chevy Chase Trust apart from the competition? A: Our global thematic approach to investing is our greatest differentiator. Thematic Investing involves capitalizing on powerful secular trends, disruptive ideas, innovations and economic forces that are constantly reshaping our world. We build portfolios of individual companies positioned to exploit these transformational changes. Additionally, all new client relationships start with a financial plan that informs the investment strategy and asset allocation recommendations for each unique relationship. There is no one-size fits all offering; every step of the process is personalized.

BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 61

PROFILES

Women in business SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

CARA PEARLMAN GROUP, COMPASS

Named one of Washingtonian’s Best Agents from 2016-20, Cara draws upon extensive knowledge of the local real estate market and nearly 20 years of industry experience to counsel clients through buying or selling a home. She is a skilled negotiator, powerful advocate and always prioritizes her clients’ best interests. 5471 Wisconsin Ave., Suite 300 Chevy Chase, MD 20815 202-641-3008 Office: 301-298-1001 cara@compass.com www.dcsuburbhomes.com 62

Q: What has been an unexpected

surprise in your work? A: I started my real estate career in 2003 as an assistant to a successful team. Though I had ambitions for growing my career, taking on more responsibilities and becoming the best Realtor I could be, I never envisioned running my own team. However, instead of slowing my career, having children helped me become more comfortable in my skin and gave me the confidence to build my own business. Becoming a parent — I have a 10-year-old daughter and a sevenyear-old son — allowed me to see better the value I bring to the table and lit a spark within me. It's easy to let major life events deter us and pull us away from our professional goals. But if anything, I'm a better mom because I work, and I'm very proud of what my team and I have accomplished over the past six years.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

Q: Why do you do what you do? What

motivates and inspires you? A: I often hear people say that getting referrals is the highest compliment. For me, however, it's when clients update me on their lives. I love getting baby announcements and invitations to birthday parties, pictures of kitchen renovations or reorganized closets. I cherish the intimacy of real estate; I have the unique opportunity to help people choose the four walls within which their lives will unfold. Seeing the joy and excitement on my clients' faces when they have found their home base is pretty amazing.

JOHN FERRIS

Cara Pearlman, Senior Vice President

PROFILES

Women in business

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

Stein Sperling Bennett De Jong Driscoll PC

MICHAEL VENTURA

1101 Wootton Parkway, Suite 700 Rockville, MD 20852 www.steinsperling.com

STEIN SPERLING PARTNERS, SENIOR COUNSEL AND OF COUNSEL (SEATED FROM LEFT): DARLA J. MCCLURE JUDITH G. CORNWELL SONDRA M. DOUGLAS (STANDING FROM LEFT): CAROLINE FORD BONAVIRI KATHRYN E. DECKERT KAREN N. SHAPIRO IVONNE CORSINO LINDLEY MONICA GARCIA HARMS BETH MCINTOSH IRVING (NOT PICTURED) JULIE B. CHRISTOPHER JOLIE S. DEUTSCHMAN ALEXIA KENT MCCLURE DEANNA L. PETERS NINDIYA G. RAMCHANDANI

Q: What's changed for women in business, if anything, over your career? A: Over the course of our careers, we’ve seen a dramatic increase in the number of female attorneys, including within our firm where nearly half of our attorneys and partners are now women. The eight Stein Sperling female principals have each worked their way up within the firm starting as associates. As such, we take the professional development of our associates and senior counsel seriously. Our achievements within the firm and the legal community have paved the way for other female attorneys. This is a shift we’ve seen at other firms and in other industries, as well.

Q: What changes or innovations are on the horizon in your industry? How are you preparing for them? A: The past year and a half has brought unique challenges for the firm and many of our clients, giving way to adaptations and improvements that are likely to remain once the current crisis has passed. Starting long before March 2020, our firm embraced the digital world putting us in a position of leadership to help guide our clients as well as the legal industry forward. Now is the time that our clients need us most – as they deal with unanticipated problems, issues and crises. Because we are constantly innovating, we are uniquely positioned to answer our client’s needs now and into the future.

BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 63

PROFILES

Women in business SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

Sandra Guzman, Esq. In practice for 17 years, Sandra focuses on divorce and child custody. She was nominated to the Super Lawyers 2022 list that recognizes a small number of attorneys for excellence. She is a court certified mediator, child best interest attorney and trained Parent Coordinator, and has also been trained in Collaborative Law. Law Offices of Sandra Guzman-Salvado 11 North Washington St., Suite 500 Rockville, MD 20850 301-340-1911 Sandra@GuzmanSalvadoLaw.com www.GuzmanSalvadoLaw.com

Q: What advice would you give women just

starting out in business?

A: I would advise not to think too much about how

things will come together in the future. Just do your best from the beginning, and everything will be just fine. Do not be afraid to work with others that may have a skill set that you do not. Everyone cannot possibly be good at everything. Think about what you do best and make it a goal to do more of it every day. If you find yourself overwhelmed, take a step back and think about what you may have available that can help. Sometimes it is time, and other times it is resources. Also, take care of your body and mind. It is easy to fall into an unhealthy lifestyle when work gets stressful or family life becomes hectic. Try and get good sleep, eat as healthfully as you can, and get in some exercise. Those things make a big difference.

Q: How do I make divorce as easy as possible for

my family?

possibly the pain, as well. We offer sensitivity, focused attention and honest counsel in this very difficult and stressful time. Our attorneys help you realize what to expect each step of the way. Our resources include court experts, evaluations and alternative dispute resolution including mediation and facilitation to help with tough custody decisions. We do everything possible so that issues involving alimony or property are settled in fairly and equitably.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

HILLARY SCHWAB

A: There are many ways to ease the process and

PROFILES

Women in business

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

Carolyn Homes RE/MAX REALTY SERVICES

COURTESY PHOTO

Carolyn has been a top-producing agent in the Washington, DC region for more than 17 years. She and her team are dedicated to delivering a first-rate client experience. Their track record of success stems from decades of local experience, superior negotiation and problem-solving abilities, and, most importantly, the lifelong client relationships they have developed. 4825 Bethesda Ave., Suite 200 Bethesda, MD 20814 240-353-7601 carolyn@carolynhomes.com www.CarolynHomes.com

Q: What makes your client experience

unique? A: As native Washingtonians, we offer homebuyers and sellers unmatched market knowledge and resources, providing deep insight into local market dynamics to help them evaluate and achieve their real estate goals. Transactions are tailored to each client's particular needs, whether that client is a first-time buyer or experienced real estate investor. We are dedicated to providing professional and personal real estate guidance you can trust at every stage of the home buying and selling process. Our marketing team develops comprehensive and custom listing strategies for sellers, including the highest-quality professional photography, digital advertising, virtual tours and print marketing. We also work hand-in-hand with buyers to understand their unique needs and preferences, bringing decades of experience in handling real estate negotiations to get

deals to the closing table. In this fastpaced market, our vast network and relationships with fellow Realtors is an invaluable resource. Above all, our goal is to make every transaction as seamless and efficient as possible. Q: What advice would you offer for women just starting out? A: My advice for women new to the field of real estate is to develop a strong business model and value proposition that will fuel your career progression. Seek out mentors early in your career and surround yourself with strong, trusted advisors and accountability partners. Embrace a growth mindset — be prepared to continue learning throughout your career. Don’t get set in your ways, and be open to change as new technologies emerge and the market evolves. From Left: Jacqui Quila, Saydee Schnider, Carolyn Sappenfield, Laura Gill, Jacqueline Febles, Isabella Schnider

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PROFILES

Women in business SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

MONTGOMERY WOMEN'S FERTILITY CENTER Honors & Awards Castle Connolly Top Doctor, 2012-2014 and 2016-2021. Castle Connolly Exceptional Women In Medicine, 2017-2021. Top Reproductive Endocrinologist, 20192021. Bethesda Magazine Top Doctor, 2019-2021. Numerous articles in peer review journals Clinician and co-author, Oncofertility Consortium. 3202 Tower Oaks Blvd. Rockville, MD 20852 301-946-6962 montgomeryfertility@gmail.com montgomeryfertilitycenter.com 66

Q: What woman inspires you and why? A: My biggest inspiration in my life has

been my mother. Though she worked at a top architectural firm in Nigeria, she was able to relate closely to every single person up and down the organizational ladder. She was extremely compassionate and brought out the best in every single person she met. She was always a caring leader. I strive to be the same with everyone I meet and work with, too.

Q: How have you mentored or inspired others who are following in your footsteps? A: I love learning and love to share that passion. I like to mentor young minority women from middle school to graduate school who are going into STEM fields. I feel especially proud when they climb their career ladders. One of my mentees is now a Harvard professor. I’m a people person. My patients come from all over the world, and they are

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

some of the most fantastic people you could ever meet. Every single day is an adventure. I'm also extremely blessed to have wonderful staff members. We work as a family, and we enfold our patients into our family. I strive to bring awareness to the field of fertility and lecture at medical conferences and participate in research affecting women’s health. Besides my practice, I am an Associate Clinical Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at George Washington University School of Medicine and an attending physician at Holy Cross Hospital in the department of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

LISA HELFERT

Oluyemisi Famuyiwa, MD, FACOG, Medical Director

PROFILES

Women in business

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

The McKeon Law Firm SHELLY D. MCKEON, ESQ., FOUNDER JESSICA S. KERN, ESQ.

The McKeon Law Firm offers a personal approach and customized solutions for all family law matters. Shelly D. McKeon has been recognized as a top lawyer by Washingtonian and has been included in Washington, DC and Maryland Super Lawyers. The McKeon Law Firm also holds the highest Martindale-Hubbell rating.

COURTESY PHOTO

3 Bethesda Metro Center, Suite 700-71 Bethesda, MD 20814 17B Firstfield Road, Suite 101 Gaithersburg, MD 20878 301-417-9222 www.mckeonlawfirm.com

Q: Why choose The McKeon Law Firm? A: Shelly D. McKeon: I believe the continuity and camaraderie among our staff help clients feel more comfortable, which has contributed to my firm's success, both at the settlement table and in court. Jessica Kern and I have worked together for more than a decade, and our support staff has also been with us for years. We deal exclusively with family law matters and handle all aspects of divorce, including child custody, child support, alimony, asset division, pensions and other divorce-related issues. We uniquely provide our clients the customized care expected from a boutique law firm — a tailored, hands-on approach to each case, prompt communication and attention to detail — while also offering the experience, expertise, skills, and resources more often associated with a larger practice. We understand that our clients are typically navigating one of the

most challenging times of their lives. With The McKeon Law Firm, they will have our entire team working on their behalf to see them through the passing storm. Q: How do you measure success? A: Jessica S. Kern: Many of our clients are referrals from prior clients and other professionals, which I consider an outstanding achievement. I think it reflects the trusted relationships we have built with our clients by truly listening to their needs and helping them achieve their goals as best we can. We know that dealing with family law issues can be stressful. By drawing upon our extensive experience in the courtroom and as parents and spouses, we strive to make the process as smooth as possible.

BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 67

PROFILES

Women in business

Burt Wealth Advisors SOPHIE LEAHY, CFP®; BETH VENIT, CFP®; MARIA CORNELIUS, CFP®; DEANNE TOMASETTI, CFP®; JENNIFER MACLENNAN, CFP®, CPA Burt Wealth is a North Bethesda-based boutique wealth management firm. "We become an ongoing resource to each client, helping them navigate their financial life to best achieve their financial goals," says Maria Cornelius. A Bethesda Magazine Best of Bethesda Top Vote Getter in 2021, Burt Wealth's team has earned many honors, including 12 Best Financial Advisors in D.C., Maryland and Virginia by Advisory HQ (June 2021).

Q: Why Choose Burt Wealth Advisors? A: Our boutique firm has served the

Washington metro area for more than 30 years, ensuring that our personalized care is backed by extensive knowledge and experience. As fiduciaries, we’re committed to putting our client’s interests first, always. We become a partner and ongoing resource to each client, helping them navigate their financial life to best achieve their financial goals. Our “Growth Through Life” process enables us to answer any questions that may arise, from how best to save for retirement and prioritize goals, to finding the best options for maximizing retirement distributions and strategies for maximizing social security benefits. We make sure our clients understand our investment strategy and keep them updated as we make changes.

6116 Executive Blvd., Suite 500 N. Bethesda, MD 20852 http://www.burtwealth.com/files/Awards_ List_Metrics_and_Reprint_Matrix_Detailed_ versionJan2021.pdf 68

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

Q: How has the increase in women advisors changed your firm? A: We see many women who are amid a life transition and handling finances, or serving as their own advocate, for the first time. It’s rewarding to help women who have never before fully understood their investments. We encourage questions— there are never too many! Our goal is to engage all clients in the planning and investment process, empowering them when it comes to their finances. Q: How do you measure success? A: We are successful when we help clients find solutions to their financial needs. The underlying goal with everything we do is creating peace of mind. We listen carefully to our clients' goals and explain our philosophy and investment strategies in a way they’ll understand. We want our clients to feel confident that we’re closely monitoring their investments, so they can enjoy their retirement.

HILLARY SCHWAB

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

PROFILES

Women in business

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

Selzer Gurvitch Rabin Wertheimer & Polott, P.C.

JOHN FERRIS

Selzer Gurvitch focuses primarily on transactional business and real estate, tax, estate planning and administration and litigation/dispute resolution-related matters for a wide range of local and regional entrepreneurs and their businesses, along with banks, credit unions and individuals. The firm’s team of lawyers applies its deep knowledge base along with a prosperous combination of creativity, efficiency and practicality. 4416 East West Highway, Fourth Floor Bethesda, MD 20814 301-986-9600 www.selzergurvitch.com

Q: What woman inspires you and why? A: Christine Sorge: Harriet Tubman, a

Marylander who bravely dedicated her life to the service of people who needed her help. From being a "conductor" of the Underground Railroad and serving for the Union Army during the Civil War, to opening a rest home for indigent elderly people and being a strong advocate for women's suffrage in her later years, every stage of Harriet Tubman's life is an inspiration. Kiana Taylor: My mother is my biggest inspiration. As a single mother of four, she ran her own business, managed employees and cared for our family. She taught me the value of hard work and commitment and showed me that being a single mom doesn't mean I can't accomplish my goals.

Q: What advice would you offer

women just starting out in the legal profession? A: Lauren Lamb: Don’t be afraid to admit if you don’t know something; ask questions, stay curious, communicate and never stop learning. Kristin Hall: Expect obstacles, but don’t let them deter you. Find a way to work around them. Q: What’s the most important lesson

you’ve learned during your career?

A: Jessica Lieberman: I have learned how

important the rules of civility and ethics are in my practice. As a litigator, it’s easy to forget that kindness and decorum can go a long way in moving a case forward and achieving the best possible outcomes for my clients.

From Left: Lauren Lamb, Kiana Taylor, Christine Sorge, Jessica Lieberman, Kristin Hall BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 69

PROFILES

Women in business SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

Rachel Cohn Optometrist, Wink Eyewear Boutique

Glasses should reflect the way you want to be viewed by the world, flattering your face but also matching your personality. The right eyewear is important. After all, when people converse, they look at each others' faces, not their designer bags or pricey shoes. And just as we change up our bags and shoes, we can do the same by having more than one pair of glasses at a time. My staff has both a sense of style and optical knowledge that will ensure that you find the perfect frame or frames for your face and your prescription. Experts suggest a variety of guidelines to consider when buying glasses, but we encourage people to have fun trying on lots of pairs, even things that don't have immediate appeal. Try tortoise or sophisticated black. Don’t be afraid of color as it can add life to your face. Something different might be a good surprise.

TAMZIN B. SMITH PORTRAIT PHOTOGRAPHY

1095 Seven Locks Road Potomac, MD 20854 301-545-1111 www.wink.net

Elyse L. Strickland, Esq. MCMILLAN METRO, P.C.

Serving the DC metropolitan area, Elyse is a skilled litigator and mediator, handling family law and commercial litigation matters. 7811 Montrose Road, Suite 400 Potomac, MD 20854 301-251-1180 estrickland@mcmillanmetro.com www.mcmillanmetro.com

successful litigator in a top Philadelphia firm. He had made money and won multiple cases. But the way my father's colleagues, partners and opponents alike spoke about him as he retired redefined for me the true meaning of success. "Your father is a fierce advocate, but you can trust him," or, "It is a pleasure to work against him," and "I learn so much just by being in the courtroom with him." These words have been my guiding force over 25 years of practice. It is not about how much money you make or how many cases you win, but how you have treated yourself, your clients and colleagues in the process.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

HILLARY SCHWAB

Q: How do you measure success? A: I had long admired my father's career as a

PROFILES

Women in business

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

PNC Private Bank CELANDRA DEANE-BESS, CFP®, SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, CAPITAL AREA MARKET LEADER

HILLARY SCHWAB

Celandra graduated from the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Business and earned her MBA from the University of Chicago. She has more than 25 years of experience in the wealth management industry. At PNC, Celandra oversees a team committed to delivering a full complement of investment, trust, financial planning and private banking services. 488 Montgomery Lane, Suite 350 Bethesda, MD 20814 celandra.deane-bess@pnc.com www.pnc.com

Q: What do you look forward to when you go to work every day? A: It is so rewarding to know that the work we do plays a part in helping our clients fulfill the purpose for their wealth. Each client’s situation is unique. I look forward to providing individualized solutions that meet each client’s goals and objectives. Q: What are your top priorities? A: Inspiring my team to consistently exceed our clients’ expectations as we help successful business owners, generational families, and other high net worth individuals learn about PNC Private Bank and the tremendous value our team can bring to their family’s lives. Q: What was a major turning point in your life and/or career? A: Motherhood! My husband and I have three sons – a 13-year-old and 11-yearold twins. Before children, I was highly ambitious, travelled extensively and was very focused on my career trajectory.

After children, I really had to redirect my priorities because I also wanted to be the best mom I could be, which impacted how I approached my career. I will forever be grateful to PNC because as one of the top firms for working mothers, the company provided me the flexibility to be a mother, while still pursuing my greatest career ambitions. Q: What advice would you offer for women just starting out? A: Don’t be afraid to take risks. Try a position or project or company or city that you never thought you would ever consider. The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (“PNC”) uses the marketing names PNC Private BankSM to provide investment consulting and wealth management, fiduciary services, FDIC-insured banking products and services, and lending of funds to individual clients through PNC Bank, National Association (“PNC Bank”), which is a Member FDIC, and to provide specific fiduciary and agency services through PNC Delaware Trust Company or PNC Ohio Trust Company. PNC does not provide legal, tax, or accounting advice unless, with respect to tax advice, PNC Bank has entered into a written tax services agreement. PNC Bank is not registered as a municipal advisor under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. “PNC Private Bank” is a service mark of The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. Investments: Not FDIC Insured. No Bank Guarantee. May Lose Value. ©2021 The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. All rights reserved.

BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 71

PROFILES

Women in business SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

LINDA RAVDIN, PARTNER VICKI VIRAMONTES-LAFREE, PARTNER ANNE (JAN) WHITE, PARTNER

The law firm of Pasternak & Fidis has provided unparalleled service for more than 40 years to individuals, couples, and families in Maryland, DC and Virginia. Our Domestic and Family Law Group works closely with the Estate Planning and Administration group to meet and surpass client expectations. 7101 Wisconsin Ave., Suite 1025 (as of October 1, 2021) Bethesda, MD 20814 301-656-8850 | info@pasternakfidis.com www.pasternakfidis.com

Q: What do you look forward to when you go to work every day? A: Linda Ravdin: I look forward to working with our lawyers and staff, our clients and even opposing counsel. I enjoy solving problems together, which is what Family Law is all about. I like working on premarital agreements, guiding clients through decisions about economic aspects of a relationship, which most people are uncomfortable discussing going into marriage. I appreciate collaborating with fellow attorneys on agreements that both clients can live with; and in divorce, I value resolving marriage dissolution issues out of court and minimizing damage to families. Q: Why do you do what you do? What motivates and inspires you? A: Vicki Viramontes-LaFree: I enjoy getting to know my clients and working with them to resolve their family matters. We determine the best course of action,

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

keeping in mind their goals and objectives. I will go to court, but I prefer guiding clients toward a peaceful resolution – through negotiations, mediation or Collaborative Law. I'm motivated by my client's relief when their case is settled and by their gratitude for my support during a difficult time. Q: How do you measure success? A: Jan White: It's how well I distill and meet

my clients’ needs. I listen closely for their unique interests and needs, although some goals seem universal—namely, the children’s well-being and financial security. The collaborative process helps each party flesh out their most heartfelt goals. Once I understand what truly motivates my client, I can assemble complementary professionals, perhaps financial and mental health, to support them and the goals we set together.

COURTESY PHOTO AND MICHAEL VENTURA

Pasternak & Fidis, P.C.

PROFILES

Women in business

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

Despina M. Markogiannakis, DDS SMILES OF CHEVY CHASE

Affiliations & Awards Bethesda Magazine, Top Dentist, 2021 Washingtonian, Top Dentist, 2021 American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry American Dental Association American Dental Education Association District of Columbia Dental Society 5454 Wisconsin Ave., Suite 835 Chevy Chase, MD 20815 301-652-0656 smilesofchevychase.com @smilesofchevychase

COURTESY PHOTO

Q: What is unique about your practice? A: My extended training in advanced general, cosmetic

and implant dentistry allows me to create healthy, beautiful smiles that reflect the complex relationship between oral and systemic health. Our sterile air system and chairside aerosol evacuator units that break down any viruses or bacteria to the 0.3 micron ensure that we treat patients in the safest possible environment. Staying at the forefront of digital dentistry with intra-oral scanning, 3D-CBCT, digital X-rays, painless anesthetic and Invisalign, enables me to complete smile makeovers and full mouth reconstructions seamlessly while guiding patients through the process toward an optimal result. The personal and individualized care extended to each patient, combined with our relaxing office environment, fosters a warm, welcoming atmosphere for even the most anxious patient. Q: What is one thing your patients should know about you? A: My vision is Inspiring Smiles through a unique, patient-centered experience, providing the highest quality of comprehensive dental care individualized to meet each patient's needs. I am a perfectionist who is caring, compassionate and always motivated to be better. I value clear communication with patients to explain diagnoses and treatment plans, both short- and long-term, to promote oral health. I also love giving back to the community. With our "One for One for One" initiative, patients, simply by tending to their oral health, are giving back, too. For each patient who comes in, we donate a complete oral health kit to a person in need and 1% of their visit to charity, starting in 2021 with the Leukemia Lymphoma Society. BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 73

PROFILES

Women in business SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

HEATHER SHOLANDER, DMD, MS MADELEINE GOODMAN, DMD

Dr. Goodman is an orthodontist and president-elect of the Middle Atlantic Society of Orthodontists. Dr. Heather is a pediatric dentist and a Diplomat of the American Board of Pediatric Dentistry. They are both board-certified specialists and have been practicing together in the area for over 10 years. 4818 Del Ray Ave. Bethesda, MD 20814 301-664-4220 www.harmonybethesda.com 74

Q: How have you mentored or inspired others who are following in your footsteps? A: Our partnership started through the mentorship of Dr. Amy Light and we wanted to provide the same opportunity to others. Team Harmony includes members of our internship program for those interested in a career in dentistry. Also, the process of starting up a new business as mothers during COVID was taxing but watching our daughters participate with us was both exciting and fun. Our patients can thank them for the Ms. Pacman machine and the cool prizes. Q: How do you measure success? A: At Harmony, we measure success

by how much we can give back to our patients and our community. This is why we have partnered with a local nonprofit called City Blossoms that develops kid-focused green spaces. At these green spaces, toddlers to teens can learn about pollination, composting, plant cycles and

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

growing edible gardens. For every new patient we donate plants to help these gardens grow because we believe that health starts from the ground up! Q: What changes or innovations are on the horizon in your industry? How are you preparing for them? A: One innovation that we are passionate about is a shift towards a more teambased approach to care. Research has continued to confirm the strong link between oral and full-body health. Understanding that many factors influence how a child grows allows us to tailor treatment and help them reach their full potential. We have partnered with other local healthcare providers to create a study club that focuses on this treatment philosophy. JOHN FERRIS

Harmony Pediatric Dentistry & Orthodontics

PROFILES

Women in business

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

Paley Rothman, Attorneys at Law Paley Rothman is a full-service law firm that provides a wide range of high-caliber legal counsel to businesses and individuals. Next year the firm, the first in Montgomery County to hire a female tax attorney, will celebrate 50 years in business, offering personalized and attentive service and sophisticated solutions to its loyal base of clients.

LISA HELFERT

4800 Hampden Lane, 6th Floor Bethesda, MD 20814 301-656-7603 info@paleyrothman.com www.paleyrothman.com TOP ROW: HUNTER GROLMAN, JENNIFER POPE, TRACEY COATES, MICHELLE CHAPIN, LYNETTE KLEIZA, TRISH WEAVER, DEBORAH COHN BOTTOM ROW (SEATED): CRISTEN ROSE, HOPE EASTMAN NOT PICTURED: PAULA CALIMAFDE, EVA JUNCKER, AMANDA MCGRATH, KATHY PALUMBO & JESSICA SUMMERS

Q: What strengths do women bring to the legal industry? A: Jessica Summers: Having more women and attorneys who bring varying backgrounds and perspectives makes us better poised to identify creative solutions and challenge assumptions. I believe our clients benefit from a diverse team of practitioners. Q: What advice would you give to women just starting out? A: Deborah Cohn: Know that your work is important and meaningful. See difficult problems as challenges and take joy from your creativity in devising solutions. And remember, there’s always room for another talented lawyer with integrity and commitment to clients. Michelle Chapin: Youth doesn't have to be seen as a mark of inexperience. Look at it as a way of you being there for your clients and their families, long-term.

Q: What do you consider your biggest achievement? A: Paula Calimafde: Knowing I’ve helped so many clients with their estate and tax planning and building retirement security, as well as improving the federal tax law for privately owned businesses, are achievements of which I’m proud. As the first woman attorney hired by Paley Rothman in 1976, I'm also proud to have helped pave the way for so many additional outstanding women to join the firm. Many of my fellow women colleagues are now legal, business and community leaders. Q: What qualities do you think a successful attorney should have? A: Trish Weaver: The best attorneys are not only hardworking and well versed in the law but have the foresight to see how a given strategy will unfold. Empathy, integrity and the genuine desire to help people also separate the top lawyers.

BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 75

PROFILES

Women in business SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

HEATHER MCCABE, ESQ., COMANAGING PARTNER EMILY RUSSELL, ESQ., COMANAGING PARTNER

McCabe Russell, P.A. provides thoughtful, competent counsel to clients seeking divorce and family law-related services in Maryland. The firm’s diverse team of attorneys offers uniquely varying perspectives and has garnered a reputation as fierce litigators and negotiators on behalf of clients with a wide array of needs. Offices in Bethesda, Rockville and Maple Lawn 443-812-1435 www.mccaberussell.com

Q: What makes McCabe Russell

unique? A: We are a 100 percent women-owned business. As such, we empower our team members to grow within the firm and in their own lives, striking the right worklife balance that remains elusive to so many others in the male-dominated legal profession. While our work as attorneys is laser-focused on protecting the best interests of our clients, our goal as a company is to help our female members reach new professional heights while pursuing their own paths to success. We do this by remaining selective about the cases we take, offering mentorship opportunities to less experienced team members, and promoting from within to ensure our clients — many of whom are men — receive the best possible representation.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

Q: Why choose McCabe Russell? A: Our award-winning team of attorneys

offers 65 years of family law experience and is committed to working at the highest ethical levels. Treating our clients and their cases with dignity and discretion allows us to provide a safe and comfortable environment for families and individuals alike. We understand that telling a stranger the intimate details of your life can be a challenge but know first-hand that those details are crucial to building a successful strategy. That is why we give our clients unshakeable legal and emotional support. A successful case relies on mutual trust and respect, and we owe it to our clients to be as honest with them as they are with us. COURTESY PHOTO

McCabe Russell, PA

PROFILES

Women in business

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

Wendy Weinberger, President & Co-Founder ILLUMINOS ACADEMIC COACHING & TUTORING

Wendy Weinberger is president and co-founder of Illuminos, an academic, executive function coaching program that’s laser-focused on individual student needs. Her company's sophisticated curriculum, whole-child approach, caring coaches and in-home customized sessions have resulted in Illuminos being hailed as one of the premier academic coaching companies in our region. 571-313-5163 | HeyWendy@illuminos.co | www.illuminos.co

Q: What guiding principle helps lead your company’s

success?

A: I’ve always believed that a business is only as good as

its people. I take great care to inspire and encourage each member of our accomplished team to voice their opinions, recommendations and constructive suggestions. Our team is heard and empowered to improve our business. Q: What do you look forward to every day? A: I relish speaking with our client families about how

we can help their child become independent and more successful in school and life. Many parents begin our consultation calls desperate to find help for their child. Some are struggling with motivation, others with organization and time management, others are frustrated with less-than-stellar grades despite their perceived best effort. Many lack self-confidence or suffer from low selfesteem. Others are simply overwhelmed. It is imperative that each family and student understands that we work diligently to support their child’s needs by providing them with our best and most compatible coaches, curriculum and resources.

STEPHANIE BRAGG

Q: What qualities do you think a successful executive

function, academic coaching professional should possess? A: Empathy, compassion and the ability to listen to families in need. Matching students and families with the coach that best suits their child is a key ingredient to our success. We want students to feel encouraged, empowered and motivated to learn executive function skills and strategies, then use those tools to become independent learners who earn better grades and well-deserved accolades. This is the constructive, supportive cycle that we promote while concurrently enhancing their academic success and socialemotional well-being. BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 77

PROFILES

Women in business SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

Page A. Morris, LCSW-C FIRST STEPS PSYCHOLOGICAL SERVICES

”With 31 years of experience, I am passionate about helping adolescents, adults and families heal from stressful situations by working with them to build healthy self-images.”

Q: What have been the repercussions of COVID on your field? A: Mental health conditions can be triggered by loss or a frightening event. Many have lost loved ones or jobs to COVID; most of us have lived isolated from family and friends. Following these unprecedented conditions, we’re now seeing symptoms of COVID trauma – anxiety, depression, substance use and eating disorders. Having suffered from COVID myself, I am uniquely positioned to understand and support my clients’ recovery.

HEATHER FUENTUES

Located in Chevy Chase, MD 301-653-4597 www.firststepspsych.com

Z Family Law CHRISTY A. ZLATKUS, ESQ. 51 Monroe St., Suite 1501 Rockville, MD 20850 | 301-388-5528 hello@zfamilylaw.com | www.zfamilylaw.com

an entire legal team, complete with client care coordination. All staff members are committed to the firm’s value statements, including showing compassion; providing strategic, creative and intelligent solutions; and going above and beyond to deliver the world-class service our clients deserve. Q: What is the significance behind the tree in your logo? A: I started this firm to help families restructure themselves in pursuit of a positive outcome. The tree represents family; both sides must continue to support the other for it to prosper. Divorce does not define you or your family. We believe our clients have been afforded a rare opportunity to reinvent themselves. Our goal is to empower and assist them in achieving the best version of themselves and their desired future. From Left: Courtnie L. Gore, Esquire, Amanda R. Townsend, Esquire, Christy A. Zlatkus, Esquire, Inna Loring, Esquire 78

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

JENNIFER LUST OF JENNIFER LUST PORTRAIT DESIGNS

Q: What makes Z Family Law unique? A: Our team-oriented approach — you’re hiring

PROFILES

Women in business

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

Kendall Capital Management

STEPHANIE WILLIAMS

CAROL PETROV, CFP®, VP & SENIOR RELATIONSHIP MANAGER KATELYN MURRAY, CFP®, FINANCIAL PLANNER & RELATIONSHIP MANAGER Kendall Capital is a wealth management firm providing fee-only fiduciary financial planning and investment management services in the Washington, D.C. area. It does not receive commissions from anyone for recommending specific investments. Look for the company’s latest books, Middle-Class Millionaire and Middle-Class Millionaire Women. 600 Jefferson Plaza, Suite 410 Rockville, MD 20852 301-838-9110 www.kendalcapital.com

Q: What will be the biggest challenge for the generation of women behind you? A: Carol Petrov: Finding firms that accept their multifaceted roles as they pertain to work and family. Despite modest advances, there is not yet a general acceptance that working mothers bear the brunt of job loss when they’re needed to care for children or aging parents. Most career-oriented women would prefer a part-time or flexible schedule, enabling them to both take care of family and be productive in their workplace. The firms that understand this will benefit greatly in the long run. Katelyn Murray: I second this wholeheartedly! Women wear many hats in the family, and the firms that get that will benefit from the resourcefulness and ingenuity women bring to the table. Q: What motivates and inspires you? A: Katelyn Murray: My mother was a

Registered Nurse in Labor and Delivery

for over 30 years. As a child, I witnessed many women come up to her in public and thank her profusely for “being there” on one of the toughest days of their lives. That made a big impression on me and I thought about those moments a lot when I began considering what career I wanted to pursue. I knew I wanted to have a similar impact on people. I have found that sense of purpose in financial planning, building relationships with my clients, helping them define their goals by which to measure success and then guiding them toward achieving those goals. Q: What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned during your career? A: Carol Petrov: To never get too comfortable with the status quo. Keep pushing myself to continue learning and improving my skills. Standing: Carol Petrov, Katelyn Murray Seated: Katie Taylor, Nina Smith

BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 79

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Women in business SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

MALINI IYER, DMD, MD MOSA’s award-winning doctors offer the full scope of Oral and Maxillofacial surgery. With eight locations serving six separate counties in Maryland and D.C., patients can schedule appointments at their convenience. Among its many accolades, MOSA, which has successfully performed more than 1 million surgical procedures, is consistently recognized as a “Top Dentist”/“Top Doctor” by Washingtonian. Bethesda Office— Drs. Iyer & Verma 10401 Old Georgetown Road, Suite 206 Bethesda, MD 20814 1-844-459-MOSA | bethesda@mosa4os.com Additional offices in Annapolis, College Park, Crofton, Frederick, Laurel, Rockville and Silver Spring. www.mosa4os.com 80

Q: What is one thing patients should

know about MOSA? A: We are the state’s oldest and largest Oral and Maxillofacial Facial Surgery practice. Over 52 years, MOSA has expanded from two full-time surgeons to 13. All have trained at the highest-rated surgical programs in the world. MOSA is proud to have five— Malini Iyer, Lisa Cohen, Mary Carter Robinson, Sarah Naghibi and Payal Verma— on our surgical team. MOSA is at the forefront of technology, using CT scans to perform computer-generated guided implant placements and “Teeth-in-a-Day.” We will soon introduce “Robotic Surgery.” Q: What woman inspires you and why? A: Ruth Bader Ginsberg was a true

trailblazer who broke the glass ceiling in a meaningful way. Her capacity to visualize complex situations, perseverance in achieving her goals and commitment to enduring excellence in her chosen field have been a guiding light.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

Q: What motivates and inspires you? A: The whole process of meeting

patients, understanding their concerns and addressing them is rewarding. At MOSA, we strive to connect with patients on a personal level, helping us achieve an overall holistic experience and better outcomes. Each day is successful when I see patients bringing their family and friends back to MOSA Bethesda for treatment. The trust in our practice is priceless.

Top Left: MALINI B. IYER, DMD, MD Top Right: LISA S. COHEN, DDS Bottom Left: MARY CARTER ROBINSON, DDS Bottom Right: SARAH Z. NAGHIBI, DMD, MD (Not Pictured: PAYAL VERMA, DMD)

COURTESY PHOTOS AND HILARY SCHWAB

Maryland Oral Surgery Associates

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Gresham Cahn LLC

JOHN FERRIS

Gresham Cahn is a boutique commercial real estate law firm providing legal representation to national, regional and local owners, developers, investors, operators and other real estate professionals. The Gresham Cahn team provides high-impact results for its clients through intelligence, experience, compassion, trust, creative thinking and hard work. 506 Main St., Second Floor Gaithersburg, MD 20878 301-926-9656 contactus@greshamcahn.com www.greshamcahn.com

Q: What advice would you offer

women getting started in the legal profession? A: If you stay focused on your goals, push your limits, and allow yourself to step outside of your comfort zone, there’s nothing you can’t accomplish. You can become a successful lawyer without having to sacrifice other aspects of your life, despite the universal notion to the contrary. You can be a full-time professional, spouse, partner, mother, daughter, classroom parent, youth sports team manager and volunteer — being successful in each role and balancing life is what empowers us to be our best. The key is to surround yourself with likeminded people who are supportive and driven by the same goals. As a law firm of all women, we take great pride in the many hats we wear while producing topquality work and remaining competitive with the country's best law firms.

Q: What does being a successful

attorney mean to you? A: Success does not bring happiness; happiness and loving what you do brings success. The best lawyers are those that listen, adapt, empathize, think creatively and explore new strategies. They negotiate with mindfulness, listening to the rationale of opposing counsel and understanding the “why” behind the ask, working together to create a solution that works for everyone. Skills and legal knowledge aside, the most successful lawyers understand the practical side of a transaction and collaborate with their clients to strategically assess the business and legal risks without over-lawyering. Standing From Left: Christine Gresham, Lisa Cahn Seated From Left: Marisa Kish, Lisa Yee, Meghan Inwood, Meghan Nelson, Keely Haley

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Andrea Hirsch LAW OFFICES OF ANDREA HIRSCH

Serving D.C. and Montgomery County, Hirsch is a skilled litigator, mediator and leader in collaborative law, handling divorce, child custody/support, preand post-nuptial agreements. 5425 Wisconsin Ave., Suite 600 Chevy Chase, MD 20815 301-968-2410

envisioned a practice that was personal and client-focused, with relationships based on trust. Clients know that I have their best interests at heart. Divorce can be painful. I listen closely to my clients, and together we achieve resolutions to the most contentious disputes. It’s rewarding to know that I’ve helped them through a difficult time in their lives.

LISA HELFERT

Q: What do I look forward to at work? A: When I decided to focus on family law, I

Webb Soypher McGrath, LLC RHIAN MCGRATH, DEBORAH L. WEBB, MALORIE LETCAVAGE, LISA FISHBERG 4340 East West Highway, Suite 401 Bethesda MD 20814 301-298-8401 www.WSMFamily.com

favorable outcomes we receive for our clients, and our reputation for providing outstanding legal services. Family law requires the ability to expertly guide clients through a challenging period, helping them make informed and goal-oriented decisions, and enabling our clients to achieve the best results for themselves and their families, whether with respect to custody of children, or financial stability and the preservation of assets. We succeed because our clients consistently achieve positive long-term resolutions of their critical family transitions. When someone is in need of family law services, our colleagues, the judges in the courts where we practice, and our former clients trust and recommend the attorneys at our firm time and time again.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

JOHN FERRIS

Q: How do you measure success? A: We measure success by two factors: The

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Carolynn M. Young, MD ROCKVILLE GYNECOLOGY

HILLARY SCHWAB

Dr. Young is respected as a leader in modern women’s health solutions and a highly esteemed gynecologic surgeon. She graduated from University of Michigan, received her Doctor of Medicine from Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, including being part of the Alpha Omega Alpha honor society, and completed her gynecology residency through Eastern Virginia Medical School. 15204 Omega Drive, Suite 200 Rockville, MD 20850 301-330-7007 www.rockvillegynecology.com

Q: What do you look forward to when you go to work every day? A: I genuinely enjoy working with everyone on my staff—we have an amazing team! I also look forward to spending time with patients I have known for years, and meeting new patients and helping them with their medical issues. My favorite part of being a physician is the smiles on women's faces after we have solved GYN issues, and their quality of life has skyrocketed. My patients' happiness brings me incredible joy and drives me to keep bettering myself as a physician, both in knowledge base and incorporating new skills and treatment options. I’m honored to have received “Top Doctor” recognition by Washingtonian magazine every year since 2012.

Q: What was a major turning point in your life and/or career? A: Making the leap to start my GYNonly practice 11 years ago. I knew exactly how I wanted the office to look and run; patients are welcomed into a spa-like atmosphere, helping them relax and enjoy their visit. Last fall, we expanded our office to include an operating room, ultrasound suite and additional exam rooms and provider offices. Patients benefit from the convenience of having their labs drawn and ultrasound performed in our office. If they need a procedure under intravenous sedation, we do it right in our office. Q: What advice would you give your younger self? A: There will be bumps along the road but using your gifts to serve the women in your practice, and helping those suffering from severe gynecological issues, will be immensely gratifying.

BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 83

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KELLY A. GOODMAN, ACNP, CEO & FOUNDER Kelly Goodman received her Master of Science (Adult & Acute Care Nurse Practitioner) from Georgetown University. Determined to offer comprehensive, accessible and insurance-based primary care, she opened her first independent practice in 2009. The Kelly Goodman Group now has three locations committed to enhancing patients' primary health through collaborative, individualized, patient-centered care. 4701 Sangamore Road, Suite S207 Bethesda, MD 20816 202-684-7167 officemanager@kellygoodmannp.com www.kellygoodmangroup.com

Q: What woman inspires you and why? A: My mom, at 78, she still works part-

time as a registered nurse. She is the most loving, giving woman I know and the reason I went into healthcare. From a business standpoint, Barbara Corcoran from Shark Tank. She turned $1,000 into a massive, million-dollar real estate company through commitment and relentless hard work. I admire her confidence and business sense.

Q: What advice would you offer for

women just starting out? A: Starting your own small business is a constant grind, but if you believe in your vision and live it daily, you can make it happen. Be tough and don’t take “no” for an answer. There will be many ups and downs, so be prepared to fall flat on your face and then pick yourself back up to keep going.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

Q: What do you look forward to when you go to work every day? A: Getting to know my patients. Primary Care, at its core, is about cultivating trusting, long-lasting relationships. I strive to make each of my patients feel like they are part of a family. I love helping people and want my patients to know I am here for them, even if I am just lending an ear to someone in need. Q: How have you mentored or inspired others who are following in your footsteps? A: I love mentoring young women and have had several come shadow me. We are preceptors for Nurse Practitioner students. It’s quite rewarding to know I have been able to offer them a peek into the world of practicing medicine. TONY J. LEWIS

Kelly Goodman Group

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Paula B. Gibson, Esq., Founder GIBSON MEDIATION GROUP, LLC Chevy Chase, MD 301-768-7060 www.gibsonmediationgroup.com

Q: Why do you do what you do? A: As an attorney, I experienced the contentious

and expensive nature of legal disputes and realized litigation is not always the best way for parties to resolve their disputes. I opened a mediation practice to offer parties other options in finding solutions to their family law concerns. I enjoy the challenges of getting people from varying perspectives to listen to and communicate with each other, enabling them to work through their differences and, ultimately, reach mutually beneficial agreements.

STEPHANIE WILLIAMS

Q: What qualities do you think a successful mediator should have? A: Parties seeking my divorce and eldercare mediation services are often at a stressful time in their lives. I am here to listen without passing judgment and to create a supportive environment that allows all parties to be equally heard.

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Above: Bayla, now 6, pictured at home in Potomac during class in January. Her parents installed a trapeze bar in their basement to help her get some energy out.

COURTESY PHOTOS

Right: Bayla’s brother, Tyler, now 10, in the family’s makeshift classroom during the first week of fourth grade last school year

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Lost Time

For many students with special needs, the pandemic meant the end of the structure, routine and socializing they so desperately needed. Virtual learning and therapies on Zoom could only do so much. As the new school year begins, their families are facing complex challenges and trying to forge a path forward. BY DINA ELBOGHDADY

KATE EIG HURWITZ USES air quotes

when she mentions school. The sarcastic gesture sums up her take on that long stretch of remote learning when her son Tyler, who has anxiety and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), would run around the living room in circles during class or hang upside down on the couch. Often he’d fall asleep suddenly at the computer, a coping mechanism he uses when he’s overwhelmed. Her daughter, Bayla, wouldn’t engage with her online kindergarten class unless Eig Hurwitz was by her side—getting her supplies, repeating directions and helping with letters and numbers. Even though Bayla hadn’t been formally diagnosed, her parents suspected that she was dyslexic. Soon after Montgomery County Public Schools closed for in-person instruction in March 2020, Eig Hurwitz cut back her work hours at a historic preservation firm to concentrate on her children. Her goal was to have them stay put in front of their screens so they could pay attention in their classes. If they needed a “movement break,” they could jump on the minitrampoline or use the punching bag and trapeze in the basement. Every-

thing was within reach—scissors, markers, fidget spinners, squeeze balls. Despite all her efforts, it was mayhem. “You can’t replicate school,” she says, “especially when your kids have special needs.” Tyler threw a screaming fit when it came time to take a standardized reading test. “Would he have done that if he were at school? Not a chance,” Eig Hurwitz says. (Her son, now 10, also has learning disabilities that affect his reading and writing.) In normal times, Tyler excelled in school and had plenty of friends. His parents often mused that he’d grow up to be an engineer or an architect because he’s an expert at building just about anything with Legos. But during virtual learning, he refused to turn on the camera except for brief moments during art class, when he had to show the teacher his work. Any negative feedback set him off. “He’d listen politely while she spoke, and then he’d turn off the screen and scream at me,” Eig Hurwitz says. By January 2021, she gave up on art class and told Tyler he didn’t have to take it that quarter. “I couldn’t deal with the constant freak-outs anymore.” The time she spent dealing with Tyler’s meltdowns pulled Eig Hurwitz

away from Bayla, now 6, whose behavior deteriorated as the pandemic dragged on. She began to wonder if her daughter also had ADHD, which might explain the increase in her angry outbursts. During class, Bayla would sit at the computer only if she could play with her toys. Taking them away triggered a tantrum. Once, during music class, Bayla got so upset by her mom leaving her side that the family’s part-time babysitter had to intervene. “Together we could not get her to calm down,” Eig Hurwitz wrote in a journal she was keeping. Bayla growled, stomped on their feet and headbutted them, settling down only after the babysitter suggested going to the park. The stress and lack of structure threw the Potomac family’s dynamic out of whack. Tyler and his older brother, Noah, now 12, started filling their downtime with video games. “They’d get off their screens and pick a fight with the first person that walked by,” Eig Hurwitz says. Meanwhile, she was physically and emotionally drained. Her husband, a lawyer, tried to pitch in with the kids when he could, but was usually tied up with work. It’s not as if teachers and administrators at Cold Spring Elementary School

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in Potomac didn’t rise to the occasion, Eig Hurwitz says. Tyler got a lot of extra attention from the teacher, counselor and principal. They spoke to him in private “breakout rooms” on Zoom, called him on the phone, even visited him at home. His 504 plan—a formal plan that provides accommodations to allow students to access the general education curriculum—was altered slightly for virtual learning to provide modified homework, breakout rooms for testing, and other tweaks. All of that helped ease Tyler’s anxiety, but it didn’t help with his schoolwork. As for Bayla, “They kept saying: ‘What can we do?’ ” Eig Hurwitz recalls. “But there was really not much of anything to do until she was in the building.” Bayla met two or three times a week with a private tutor online to work on her reading. She’s since been diagnosed with dyslexia and ADHD. Tyler saw his psychotherapist online every other week, and resumed in-person occupational therapy in December 2020. Tyler, a fifth grader, is eligible for special education services this year. “We did everything possible, yet it was still a nightmare,” Eig Hurwitz says. “We worked so hard to get to normal, but we couldn’t get there.”

lenges, structure and routine give them stability in a world that often feels unstable to them, says Dr. Dan Shapiro, a developmental-behavioral pediatrician in Rockville. The pandemic upended the daily rituals they relied on by stripping away their usual access to everything familiar—teachers, sporting events, friends, physical therapists. “It left families without their teams and exhausted their emotional bandwidth,” Shapiro says. He uses the bucket analogy to explain the impact. When people have the luxury of a nice big bucket, he says, they can carry emotions with plenty of room to spare. “But the pandemic shrunk all our buckets,” he says. “The amount of emotion and stress was already at the rim. Add one little thing and everything spills out all over the place.” Jennifer Berzok says her 17-year-old son, Ben, who is on the autism spectrum, was angry, heartbroken and really scared when the pandemic hit. He developed an aggressive edge she’d never seen before. “It was as if all his defense mechanisms broke down,” says Berzok, who lives in Bethesda. “None of us had time to process what was happening, and none of us had answers to the questions like: When is ABOUT ONE IN SIX U.S. children ages it going to be over? Am I going to get sick? 3 to 17 were diagnosed with a develop- It was terrifying for him as well as us.” mental disability between 2015 and Ben had been attending the Ivymount 2018, according to the Centers for Dis- School in Rockville, a nonpublic school ease Control and Prevention. Their chal- for children with special needs, but it lenges during the height of the pandemic closed for COVID-19. He was skating were wide-ranging and emotionally com- on Saturday mornings with an adaptive plex, with some experiencing devastating ice hockey team called the Cheetahs. But social and academic setbacks, and oth- the ice rinks weren’t open. After hockey, ers falling into the “too happy at home” he had been attending a three-hour procategory, says Dr. Lisa Shulman, a devel- gram at school that involved cooking, opmental pediatrician in New York music and social opportunities. But that City. One of Shulman’s clients, a boy went virtual and lost its appeal. Withwith autism, got up every day at 5 a.m., out his usual social outlets, Ben was at dressed himself, got his backpack, and loose ends. He’d blast music on YouTube, stood by the door to go to school, even mostly the Wiggles and Baby Einstein, though his parents told him it was closed. while his sister Lexi, 14, was trying to As the new school year unfolds, fam- study. He’d sometimes roam the neighilies of students with special needs are borhood, with his parents’ blessing, to scrambling, along with educators, to knock on doors and wave “hi” to friends. figure out how to forge a path forward. He’d also nap a lot. “All it takes is one For many kids with developmental chal- nap, literally, to dysregulate things,” Ber88

zok says. “It would lead to one night of not sleeping, which would lead to a nap the next day, and so on.” If Ben woke up at 3 a.m., he’d eat breakfast, in keeping with the pattern he was accustomed to instead of the time of day. When his school fully reopened this July, Ben seamlessly transitioned back, says Berzok, who serves on Ivymount’s board of directors. Before the first day, he slept through the night for the first time in more than a year, aided by medication and his sheer will to be compliant so he could get back to his school routine. He’d already mastered putting on his mask without much of a fuss, and “this is a kid who wouldn’t wear sandals the first five years of his life” due to sensory issues, Berzok says. His parents began rewarding him if he stayed in bed five nights in a row, and it’s been working. Marianne Noble of Chevy Chase says she’s seen a different trajectory with her son, Geoff, 16, who attends The Katherine Thomas School in Rockville, which serves children with special needs. Since the day Geoff was told he would have to transition to online learning, he’s been happy and thriving, Noble says. When he was given the chance to return to the building last year, he opted to stay home. Geoff has severe ADHD and other learning challenges. He’s an outgoing boy who is highly distractible and impulsive, often blurting out answers in class or veering off topic in conversation, his mother says. He got good grades when school was virtual. He woke up on his own, made himself breakfast and logged into classes on time. He signed up for virtual office hours with his teachers and solicited their help with homework— his mom would hear him laughing in his room while he was talking to them. And although Geoff used to shun school dances, he went to three of them online, with activities led by guest DJs. As the days passed, Noble watched her son’s anxiety fade, and eventually weaned him off his anti-anxiety medications. Noble attributes some of Geoff’s successes to reduced distractions during the pandemic, the lack of demands placed

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PHOTO BY LINDSEY MAX

Ben Berzok dances to a Wiggles video on his computer.

on him by his parents, and the limited interaction with peers, which was often a point of stress for him. Geoff would prefer to stay home this year. “I’m sort of 60/40 in favor of him returning to school,” Noble says during an interview in July. “It would be so easy if he stayed home because he’s happy. But I know he needs more human contact, more practice at social interactions.” David Black, a pediatric neuropsychologist in Chevy Chase, says some of his clients have grown comfortable with lowered expectations, more screen time, and fewer social complexities. One of them does not want to take off his mask because he likes the anonymity it provides. “For some children with special needs, the challenges of reconnecting with the world are higher because their motivation is lower and the social skills they have to rely on are not intuitive,” Black says. Virtual learning was the initial source of angst for many of Emily Stano’s clients, but now the return to fully reopened

schools is their top worry. “As scary as it was to stay at home, it’s now equally difficult to reengage, to drop the mask or imagine eating inside of a cafeteria with other students,” says Stano, a clinical psychologist in Gaithersburg who works with students who have special needs. “It’s anxiety in the complete opposite direction.”

WHEN IT COMES TO educating chil-

dren with special needs, federal law recognizes that a one-size-fits-all approach won’t do. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, or IDEA, requires that school districts identify and evaluate children who need specialized instruction and provide them with a “free appropriate public education” in the least restrictive setting possible. Each qualified student’s specific needs and goals are detailed— with input from families and educators— in a legal contract known as an Individualized Education Program (IEP). “The majority of kids with an IEP end up in general education classrooms at

their local school with a co-teacher or instructional assistant who is supporting them individually or as part of a small group,” says Rich Weinfeld, executive director of the Weinfeld Education Group, a special education advocacy firm in Bethesda. Some students may be placed in a special program within the public school system or in a private school paid for by the local school district. In extreme cases, students are placed in a residential treatment facility where they live and study away from their parents, Weinfeld says. During the 2019-2020 school year, about 12% of MCPS students ages 3 through 21 (about 20,500 in total) qualified for specialized instruction and services through IDEA, according to an MCPS official. When the pandemic hit, the federal government and the state of Maryland made it clear that school districts must make every effort to honor a student’s IEP, with the understanding that exceptional circumstances could affect how a particular service is pro-

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From left: Tom, Madeline, Sam-Henry and Amanda Kornfield at home in Rockville

gripped with the will-he-or-won’t-he-doit dread around 8:30 a.m., when their son—who has ADHD and other challenges—had to log into class. “You start fearing the longer term repercussions,” Wilcox says. “Is this something he can bounce back from? If he does, how long will it take?” But when school reopened in March, the boy got up on time, greeted the bus driver and went to class without complaint. He’s qualified for 50 hours of compensatory services through MCPS— to be implemented within two years— for math, reading, writing, social emotional learning, and speech-language and occupational therapy. “I’m feeling positive about the future,” Wilcox says. For the school system, the challenges go beyond providing compensatory services for students with special needs— some kids had been waiting to receive inperson assessments to determine if they qualified for an IEP. MCPS temporarily opened regional centers at three middle schools in December 2020 to help handle the backlog of students. “The backlog is shrinking, and we were able to return

to our normal process for completing assessments,” Lynch says. It’s critical that schools move quickly to assess as many students as possible, says Vincent Culotta, a neuropsychologist in Columbia, Maryland. “Delay of services means children can miss important developmental windows as they wait,” he says. “That could have ripple effects for years.” Michael Eig, a special education attorney in Chevy Chase, says there’s an enormous need to reevaluate students this year in light of the pandemic. Some students who were at risk before schools shut down in March 2020 may have developed issues in the interim, he says. Other kids who had previously received specialized instruction may have developed more severe problems. “We need to figure out where the child is now and what he or she needs,” says Eig, who is the father of Kate Eig Hurwitz. “Some kids may have lost three months and they can make it up in a week. Some may have developed a different profile of needs.”

PHOTO BY LINDSEY MAX

vided, says Nicole Joseph, a special education attorney who works with families in Montgomery County and other districts. “But many kids [with IEPs] got a small percentage of what they should have gotten,” Joseph says. “I have a client who missed hundreds of hours of specialized instruction, and they were being offered 24 hours of makeup services over one summer. …How do we bring those children to where they should have been had they gotten the services they should have gotten? That’s the question we’re supposed to ask by law.” Some students with IEPs or 504 plans are entitled to receive “compensatory recovery services” to make up for what was lost, though there’s no requirement to compensate for every moment of lost services. The process of determining who is eligible for those services started in January and will continue throughout the current school year, says Phil Lynch, the school system’s director of special education services. In the spring, schools began providing compensatory services, such as reading intervention, to their qualified students outside of normal school hours, and they’ll do that again this year. MCPS also paid some of its employees—teachers, speech therapists, and other providers—to reach out to parents of students who had regressed or lost services during the pandemic and set up a time to work with them. In addition, the school system directed services toward some students who were already taking part in extended school year services, a summer program that helps students with special needs maintain the skills they’ve gained, Lynch says. “In order to get these specialized recovery services, parents need to be very vocal,” Weinfeld says. Francis Wilcox worried about his son’s lack of attendance during virtual learning, and wondered if the fifth grader would ever catch up on what he missed. The teacher was engaging, and the paraeducators worked one on one with students as needed, but it wasn’t enough. Every morning, Wilcox and his wife were

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IN FEBRUARY 2021, SOME parents

were so desperate to get their kids back to in-person learning that they made their case in a video that aired at a virtual special education town hall hosted by the Montgomery County Council of ParentTeacher Associations. The mother of a first grader with Down syndrome spoke about how her son used the speech output device that helps him with his language delays to write the words lonely, angry, and school, and then the names of his classmates. The video captures him cross-legged on the floor, not far from his laptop, wailing. His mom said virtual learning had taken an emotional and financial toll on her and her husband—they both worked and had to hire an outside tutor and someone to oversee their son during the day. Another woman talked about how her son, a “goodnatured guy” who has Down syndrome, developed a bald spot on the top of his head after picking at his hair. “It’s really hard for him to cope,” she said. Joette James, a pediatric neuropsychologist in Chevy Chase, says she’s seen many adolescents develop serious depression during the pandemic, often an exacerbation of existing issues. She’s also had older patients bring blankets, stuffed animals or other “transitional objects” to her office for comfort. “I usually see that happen with 3-year-olds, but to have an 11-year-old bringing a stuffed animal is unusual, especially in this super savvy Internet age,” James says. A Montgomery County mom says the pandemic forced her to rethink what’s best for her 10-year-old son, who was born with spina bifida. The boy is paralyzed from the waist down and uses a manual wheelchair. He struggles with several learning challenges, including ADHD and a math learning disability. In the past, his IEP allowed for an occupational therapist, a speech pathologist, a social skills “lunch bunch” with the school counselor, and a full-time aide to help him ride the elevator and keep him on task. Because his handwriting was weak, he was allowed to dictate to his aide the written responses to his graded work. He received many of

those services virtually when his public school went remote, and for the most part he enjoyed learning from home. His mom sat by his side and pushed him to type more and stop using his aide as a crutch—and he did. “But I also had a front-row seat to how much learning wasn’t happening,” she says. “It was tough to see that there was math being taught and he’s 100% not getting it.” Halfway through the boy’s fourth grade year, when there was no guarantee that county schools would reopen in the fall of 2021, his parents made the decision to put him in a private school that offers smaller classes for kids with learning disabilities. “We were planning on looking at private schools for middle school,” his mother says, “but [the pandemic] accelerated the process.” Jenna Goldblatt says she’ll consider homeschooling her son Bryce if the pandemic takes a turn for the worse and schools revert to virtual learning again. “We would be able to make a schedule for Bryce that’s more adaptive to our lifestyle,” says Goldblatt, who runs an online candy cake business and was “up all hours” trying to fill orders with her husband and her older son, Bennett, after spending her days dealing with Bryce’s remote learning needs. A seventh grader at Lakelands Park Middle School in Gaithersburg, Bryce has a rare chromosomal disorder called Phelan-McDermid syndrome. He is nonverbal and physically challenged. His mom describes him as a kid “who wakes up smiling and goes to bed smiling.” He’s gesture oriented, offering his shoes when he wants to go outside or the pool pass when he wants to swim. He makes sounds and words that his parents understand. “Bryce makes himself known,” Goldblatt says. His family tried to spend as much time outside the house as possible to keep him entertained. They walked the neighborhood, went shopping, visited his grandmother a block away, took drives to nowhere. Still, Bryce got depressed, confused and frustrated, acting out in ways his family had never seen before. “He’d throw things and push,” Goldblatt says.

“The thing that was the worst for all of us was the moaning.” Whitney Ellenby of Bethesda says her son, Zack, 20, who is on the more severe end of the autism spectrum, started “raging and screaming” when she told him that school had shut down. But when she had the chance to send him back to Walt Whitman High School for in-person learning, she considered it only briefly. She wanted to know if he would be able to tolerate a mask and abide by the distancing rules, but then she heard about the changes to the cafeteria routine, and that was a deal breaker. The hot lunches would be gone, the usual crowd of kids would be missing. “If he’s angry, he can be a risk on a regular day,” Ellenby says. “With COVID, he could get angry and rip off his mask, rip off someone else’s mask, pinch or bite somebody.” In normal times, Zack loves being a part of Whitman’s Learning for Independence (LFI) program, which offers academic classes, teaches him self-care skills, and takes him on community outings. He rotates through different internships, like the one he had at Petco. But once school went remote, Zack refused to participate in virtual classes. Ellenby wasn’t concerned about academics—the way she saw it, she had bigger problems. “I was more worried about his real-life skills,” she says. Her son is not headed for college, and likely will receive a certificate when he graduates. “We’ve lost a critical year in which he might be trying out car washing or landscaping or other potential jobs for the future. Now I have less time to figure out what this kid is capable of doing,” says Ellenby, the founder of Autism Ambassadors, which hosts recreational events for children and adults with autism. “As the saying goes, you fall off the cliff at 21. Nobody is holding your hand or guiding your child.” In May, Ellenby hosted a gathering at her home for a group of 10 moms who have children on the autism spectrum. Several of the women said they’d started taking antidepressants at the height of the pandemic. “There’s still a fair amount of post-traumatic stress disorder out

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lost time there for kids and mothers in particular,” she says. Remote learning has been tough on educators, too. Brooke Supinski coteaches an LFI class at Whitman with about two dozen students ages 14 to 21. Some can type; others need hand-overhand guidance when writing. Some need manipulatives, such as hand counters for math, special writing utensils, or slant boards that position paper at an angle. “Virtually, we had to give the same lesson to all those students,” says Supinski, who teaches English and science, “and they don’t have all of the things at home that we have in the classroom, or [they] don’t have someone sitting next to them to do those things with them.” When schools reopened last year, 19 of the students in her class came back to the building. Most had made progress on the goals set in their IEPs. But a few never showed up, online or in person. “It

was those few cases that ate away at me,” Supinski says. “I had to keep reminding myself that the situation was out of my control. But as a teacher, it was a hard concept to grasp because my entire purpose is to reach kids, support them, and help them make progress.” Supinski managed some of her students’ IEPs, so she kept in closer touch with their families. She learned that one student initially wasn’t coming to class in part because his mother was an essential worker and couldn’t help him track his online schedule. Another didn’t come back to school because he was distraught by the disruptions in his routine. “I don’t think I’ve ever doubted myself as a teacher more than I have this past year, even though I was doing everything I could possibly do,” says Supinski, who has been teaching for four years. “We’re starting this year with a fresh slate, with open eyes and an open mind.”

LAURIE REYES, A Montgomery

County police officer who runs a unit that fosters police relations with the special needs community, says she’s noticed that many parents are stretched thin in patience and resources. Her unit has seen an “uptick” in calls since the pandemic started, she says, with most involving children and teens who have autism. One mother called police four different times and asked them to track down her 17-year-old son, who is on the autism spectrum, after he left the house upset, Reyes says. One time, an officer found him about 4 miles from home, walking along a busy road. “He was a young man who was trying to navigate his independence at a time when his life had no structure,” Reyes says. “But he didn’t have the coping skills of a neurotypical teenager.” Another mom and dad contacted Reyes because they were worried that they might lose their temporary housing

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if the neighbors complained about their son. “He was a very large and loud young man, and he had lost a lot of outlets to release his energy, so they were worried about excessive noise,” Reyes says. It gave the parents peace of mind to know that the police would support them, she says, maybe with a letter to the landlord or a talk with a neighbor. It was an incident with a neighbor that led Amanda Kornfield to put her son, Sam-Henry, in a residential facility last November. She’d resisted the move for years, convinced that he was too young, that he would hate her if she did it. SamHenry is “severely autistic” and has an explosive temper when he’s agitated, says Kornfield, a Rockville resident. Last school year, he was unable to participate in online classes for more than 20 minutes at a time at Marcia D. Smith School in Gaithersburg, which he used to attend year-round. His outbursts escalated from

about once a month to several times a week. “For me, it was a lot of hitting, kicking and punching,” Kornfield says. Sam-Henry, now 18, is 5 feet, 3 inches tall, but with his adrenaline pumping, he’s powerful. His father, Tom, can contain him. But without Tom as a buffer, Amanda would sometimes lock herself in her bedroom during Sam-Henry’s rampages. “He punched holes in the wall. He broke windows. He broke our front door and almost ripped it off the hinges,” Amanda says. “Every time an incident would happen, my husband would say, ‘Look, we can’t keep living this way.’ But I kept saying: ‘We’ll make this work. I can’t let him go. ’ I felt immense guilt.” If Tom went for a run, he’d worry about going too far from the house. “When [Sam-Henry] was upset, when things weren’t going in a predictable fashion for him, there was no telling what he would do,” says Tom, who works for a

health care consulting firm. He worried about his wife’s mental health. Sometimes, after a particularly bad encounter with her son, she’d cry hysterically and tell her husband that she couldn’t handle it anymore. Sometimes Sam-Henry would say, “Mommy sad.” To try to keep the peace, Amanda and Tom did anything and everything SamHenry wanted, exactly the way he wanted it done. They parked their cars in a certain spot in the driveway, and one car had to be touching the gate of the fenced-in backyard. For four months, they got him McDonald’s for dinner. They bought the same items every time they went grocery shopping, including large packs of trash bags. And they kept the trash cans out on the street all week. A neighbor complained to Rockville officials, but the city gave the family a pass when the parents explained the situation. Sam-Henry’s younger sister, Madeline,

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lost time steered clear of the chaos by holing up in her room. “I didn’t mind it. I didn’t actually listen to Sam-Henry half the time,” Madeline, 14, says. “Fun fact: He never gets violent with me. He’s very overprotective of me for some reason.” Madeline is a smart and creative teen with a passion for Dungeons & Dragons and for causes affecting the LGBTQ community, her parents say. She, too, is on the autism spectrum, which affects her ability to navigate relationships and read body language. But unlike the Kornfields’ son, she thrived in the virtual learning environment. “It was kind of easy,” says Madeline, who attended The Auburn School in Silver Spring, which serves kids with social and communication challenges. “I knew what to do. Sometimes I would just mute myself and play video games or watch YouTube. No one would know.” But she often heard her mom crying. “That

scared me,” she says. Amanda says she reached her breaking point when Sam-Henry had a serious run-in with an annoyed neighbor. “I realized that not only am I not safe, but he, too, is in danger in the community,” Amanda says. “That’s when I decided he needed to leave.” Kiana Walcott, a homebased therapist who has been working with Sam-Henry for three years, advised the Kornfields to frame the move as a transition into college and throw him a graduation party. Walcott put together a “social story,” a visual and written presentation of what he could expect. In it, she included photos of the townhouse he’d be living in with a roommate and the school he’d be attending in Brookeville. In November 2020, Sam-Henry moved into his new home. The transition was rocky because the program went into lockdown the day

after the move, which the Kornfields weren’t expecting, so the family couldn’t see Sam-Henry until four months later, on his 18th birthday. Now they take him on outings every week and chat with him regularly on Zoom. Madeline says the house is much quieter without her brother, and she likes it that way. She figures it’s tough for outsiders to grasp the complexities of their relationship. “I barely interacted with him, but I very much still love him. He doesn’t understand that,” she says. “It’s complicated. It’s kind of a struggle. You’ve got to live with a brother like him to understand.” Tom says he and his wife are confident that they made the right decision. “People reading this article might think we’re horrible people for sending him off,” he says. “But the reality is he’s in a place where he’s pretty happy, and that makes me happy.” n

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EXTRAORDINARY

Educators Meet five local teachers who are connecting with students in tough times—from dancing with second graders every morning to talking openly with teens about mental health BY CARALEE ADAMS | PHOTOS BY SKIP BROWN

UNSIL KIM Thomas S. Wootton High School Rockville TO TEACH ART VIRTUALLY during the pandemic last school year, Unsil Kim assembled 300 packets of supplies—sketchbooks, paint sets and drawing pencils—for a drive-thru pickup at Wootton High School. Students in her ceramics class made salt dough at home to create sculptures of alligators and braided bread baskets. It wasn’t quite the same to watch them work remotely, so Kim had students submit process videos of their projects, which provided a glimpse of their personalities. “I’m very blessed because my students keep me young. They help me not to take things so seriously…to laugh and look at things from their point,” says Kim, 52. “One of the funniest things is when they show me dance moves on TikTok and get me to try it.” A graduate of Rockville High School and the University of Maryland, Kim lives in Gaithersburg and has taught for 17 years, including four at Wootton. One of Kim’s students, Sharon Oh, co-founded

the Korean American Student Association at the school, and Kim is the club’s sponsor. Oh, who graduated in June, says she appreciates that Kim paints alongside her students, sharing her progress and shortcomings. “She’s not just there to teach us. She’s actually learning with us, which is comforting.” Kim says being genuine with kids enables her to develop a rapport with them. She tells students that the class is like a family, and says that getting to know them—and helping them through a rough patch, if needed—is one of the most important parts of her job. “Works of art, they can break the next day or be ripped apart. …What remains is the student,” Kim says. “I really hope my students, when they leave my class, don’t think ‘Mrs. Kim liked me because my art was exceptional,’ but I hope they say, ‘She liked me for who I am.’ ” Kim had always thought that later in life she’d teach college students online, but no longer aspires to after a year of distance learning. “I still want to be in the classroom. I just realized how much I loved it,” Kim says. “Students really need a warm person, physically. The idea that in the future all our kids are going to be taught by robots—that’s not going to work, not if you’re going to do it the right way.”

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EXTRAORDINARY

Educators

ALEX HAIGHT St. Andrew’s Episcopal School Potomac ALEX HAIGHT USED TO fill his blackboard with notes for his students to copy as he lectured—sometimes coming in on weekends to get it all done. These days, students are expected to think critically about history for Advanced Placement exams, rather than just memorize dates, so Haight has changed his approach to be more interactive and focus on bigger-picture themes. “I feel like the best classes I teach are when I do a minimal amount of talking,” says Haight, who likes students to learn about subjects, such as the New Deal, by debating the conservative and liberal viewpoints. He started coaching boys soccer at St. Andrew’s Episcopal School in 1996 and became a high school history teacher the following year. “It would be hard to do one without the other. I love doing both,” he says. The 51-year-old Rockville resident, whose father was a history teacher, is also big on making sure his 11th and 12th grade students become competent writers. In a capstone history class that he developed five years ago, students collaboratively write

a book—most recently comparing the COVID-19 crisis with the 1918 pandemic. Known for providing extensive edits, Haight has recently used research on effective techniques to adjust the way he provides feedback. Instead of rewriting an awkward sentence, he might insert a squiggly underline or offer a clue. “It either leads to the student having to rethink it or talking to me,” he says. “I’ve evolved to let them have some ownership.” Hanaah Junaideen chose Haight to review her senior research paper last spring because she knew he wouldn’t just write “good job” and hand it back. She counted 100 comments. “I was very happy going through [the edits] because I knew writing them and taking the time was because he cares,” she says. Author Christina McDowell of Washington, D.C., a 2003 graduate of St. Andrew’s, has stayed in touch with Haight and says she values his friendship and mentoring: “I credit him as the teacher who taught me how to write. And he taught me how to think independently of others, and to form my own opinion, my own argument. He was so instrumental in my career as a writer.”

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ROSIE JUSTILIEN Quince Orchard High School Gaithersburg AT QUINCE ORCHARD High School, Rosie Justilien is almost as busy outside the classroom as she is in it. The 36-year-old teaches honors English to freshmen and seniors but spends much of her time helping mentor students through extracurricular activities. “I always tell students, even if you have a roadblock, don’t let that deter you from reaching your goal,” says Justilien, whose parents are from Haiti. She grew up in Miami and was a firstgeneration college student. “I knew that I was going to become a teacher, no matter what. I was going to go to college and finish.” Justilien, who moved to Gaithersburg in 2018, looks for opportunities to encourage students one-on-one to prepare for life beyond high school. Before COVID-19, she worked as a ticket manager at games and as a student monitor for afterschool events, where she chatted with teens on the sidelines. “She really cares about students and our higher education, and is always looking for scholarship opportunities for us,” says senior Amina Cedeno, who is a member of Quince Orchard’s Chick-fil-A Leader Academy and president of the Minority Scholars Program. Justilien serves as the faculty sponsor for both programs, which met on Zoom this past school year. “She’s always listening and makes us feel welcome and accepted as we are— showing us that even if we are high schoolers, we can do a lot of things.” Cedeno, who lives in Gaithersburg, says she appreciated how Justilien, through the scholars program’s meetings, provided a safe space to support minority students during the difficult year confronting racial injustices. Justilien admires the resilience she’s seen in students and is uplifted working with young leaders who are passionate about being change agents in their community. She says a quote she’s lived by is from Mahatma Gandhi: “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” Justilien says she’s open about the challenges she has faced, which can help foster class discussions on difficult subjects. After tennis player Naomi Osaka withdrew from the French Open last spring for mental health reasons, Justilien used the news to talk to students about what made them anxious. She also told them about her fear of public speaking, and how, a few years ago, she joined a Toastmasters club, which helps people improve their communication skills. “I think just being vulnerable at times with your students and being relatable helps build connection—and just being you,” Justilien says.

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EXTRAORDINARY

Educators

SHIRA HILL Ritchie Park Elementary School Rockville IN KINDERGARTEN TEACHER Shira Hill’s classroom, she’s ready for whatever her students might need. She provides a wobbly stool, squishy seat or standing desk for students who have a hard time focusing. She has a jar with glitter and liquid that students can hold and tilt to calm down when they get stressed, and fidget tools for others to release excess energy. In the back of her room, stuffed animals are available when students need something to hug. Hill, 45, grew up in Potomac, graduated from Winston Churchill High School and got her education degree at the University of Maryland. She knew from an early age that she wanted to be a teacher. In her 23 years at Ritchie Park, she’s taught first, second and third grades and conducted staff development, and this fall will be her

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fourth year as kindergarten team leader. Hill says academic expectations have intensified for kindergarteners in recent years, and while she wants her students to learn, she also wants them to develop social skills, and she works to build a relationship with each student and their parents. As Hill got ready to teach in person again this past spring, she looked for ways to make sure the transition was smooth. During remote learning, she had noticed one of her students had a T-shirt and toy of Blippi, who makes videos for kids on YouTube. Hill bought a large wall decal of the character to put up in her classroom. “I wanted him to feel comfortable,” Hill says. “He went right over and did a thumbs-up—because that’s what Blippi does. He was very excited.” “The way she differentiates and connects to all the children is amazing. … She can connect to remedial students with behavioral needs and extends learning for higher achieving students,” says Samantha Ross, a special education teacher at the school whose son was in Hill’s class last school year. “Every student in her class feels like they are the most important person.”

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DEE LOZUPONE St. Jane de Chantal School Bethesda

AT BACK TO SCHOOL NIGHT meetings, Dee Lozupone sometimes gets emotional while conveying to parents at St. Jane de Chantal School how quickly kids grow up, the importance of just loving them—and that she loves them, too. “I want to make that parent feel I’m just as invested and care just as much about their child,” says Lozupone, 62, of Gaithersburg, who has taught at the private Catholic school for nearly three decades. She took 10 years off to raise her three children and tries to share with parents—who, she says, are increasingly anxious—the wisdom she’s gained over the years. “Kids just need love, reassurance—and fun,” Lozupone says. She kicks off the school day with her second grade class singing her favorite song, “I Saw the Light” by Todd Rundgren, and dancing to “Let’s Groove” by Earth, Wind & Fire after morning prayers. “They’ve got to laugh, and they have to learn to laugh at themselves. I tell them that I make a mistake every day. No one’s perfect.” At de Chantal, Lozupone, who has taught kindergarten, second and sixth grades over the years, started long-lasting school traditions, including the Valentine’s Day Ball and leprechaun trap making. She’s also mentored several educators, including Catie Skibo, a kindergarten teacher whose daughter loved Lozupone so much as a teacher that she dressed up like her for Halloween. The costume included Lozupone’s signature hairdo, black pants, striped top, fancy shoes and mug that reads “Wake up and smell the coffee”—one of her “Lozisms” or catchphrases. Others include “Save the drama for your mama” and “I love you, go sit down.” Tracia Debnam of Rockville credits Lozupone with boosting her daughter Sydney’s reading skills and empowering her to believe in herself. Sydney no longer shies away from public speaking and was elected to student council. On the last day of eighth grade in the spring, Lozupone was among the teachers Sydney ran to and hugged. “When they embraced, it was a beautiful moment of genuine love for one another,” Debnam says. n

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A CONVERSATION WITH

MONIFA MCKNIGHT The interim superintendent of Montgomery County Public Schools talks about why she became an educator, being the first woman to lead the state’s largest school system, and how she’s never too tired to garden BY JULIE RASICOT | PHOTO BY MICHAEL VENTURA

IN 2000, MONIFA MCKNIGHT was in her second year of teaching and working at an elementary school in Newport News, Virginia, when a student wrote her a letter she’s never forgotten. “She said, ‘You are my first African American teacher. I’m so happy to have you. I want to be like you when I grow up,’ and I cried,” says McKnight, who is serving as the interim superintendent of Montgomery County Public Schools while the district seeks a replacement for Jack Smith, who retired in June. Soon after she started teaching at Newsome Park Elementary School, McKnight says she became aware of what she considered the inequity created by the magnet school’s structure. She says she was one of the few teachers of color in the “traditional” program at Newsome that mostly served students of color who lived in the nearby apartment complexes, while its math/science magnet program mostly served students bused in from throughout Newport News. McKnight says she showed the student’s letter to her principal and suggested ways the school could recruit more teachers of color to help inspire kids in the traditional program. The conversation “motivated me to become a principal,” McKnight says, because she realized leaders had the power to initiate change. Today, McKnight, 45, holds the distinction of being the first woman and the second person of color—Paul Vance was the first, from 1991 to 1999—to lead Maryland’s largest school system. She’s in an acting role but plans to apply for the permanent position. McKnight first came to MCPS in 2001 to teach at Parkland Magnet Middle School for Aerospace 104

Technology in Rockville. She taught at Parkland for five years and then served there as an assistant principal for four years before becoming a principal intern at Tilden Middle School in Rockville for a year. In 2011, she became principal of Ridgeview Middle School in Gaithersburg. During her fifth year there, she was named the 2015 Maryland Middle School Principal of the Year by the Maryland Association of Secondary School Principals and the 2015 Maryland State Principal of the Year by the National Association of Secondary School Principals, according to MCPS. After serving from 2016 to 2018 as the MCPS director of secondary leadership development programs, she left the district for a top-level position with the Howard County Public School System. She returned to MCPS in August 2019 as the deputy superintendent of schools. Seven months later, she helped lead the district’s efforts to pivot to online learning when the pandemic closed schools in March 2020. McKnight, who has a 9-year-old son, says that early experience at Newsome Park has resonated throughout her career, reminding her to always “protect the interests of the children you have the responsibility to serve.” A native of South Carolina, McKnight holds a Master of Science degree in educational leadership from Bowie State University and a doctorate of education in educational leadership and policy from the University of Maryland in College Park. She lives in Bowie with her son and her husband, Burnus McKnight, a social worker. Bethesda Magazine spoke virtually with her in late June and then again in mid-July.

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Monifa McKnight, interim superintendent for MCPS, at her office in Rockville

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interview Why did you become an educator? The first year of college [at South Carolina State University] I was completely convinced I wanted to be an entrepreneur and I wanted to focus on marketing. I was so excited about my classes. After I had taken my first business class, and my first exposure to econ, I said uh, no. This is not what I enjoy doing. Not what I want to do. At the time, my sister was in a sorority, and many of her sorority sisters would spend time at our home and they just happened to be education majors. I would see them enjoying downtime relaxing, talking about assignments that they were doing, and I would look at them, like, they’re really enjoying what they’re doing. One sorority sister said, ‘Hey, I want you to help me with this project I’m doing.’ It was a project about making an elementary book about teaching a child how to tell time, and so I helped her make this book for a class. After that, I said I think I want to take an education class. From there it stole my heart. Do you remember experiences from your own teaching years and as a principal that have informed the way you are running things now? The principalship, that role teaches you so many lessons. And to this day I always say that Ridgeview Middle School will always have a very special place in my heart because it taught me things about leadership, it taught me things about myself, it taught me things about the community that I use every day. As that school was being renovated, I had read a number of letters and emails and I just spent time getting perspective before walking into that leadership role, and so I recognized that students very much felt like the school is a place that they came to, but it maybe didn’t feel as connected as it should for them in some way. I read notes from parents about how they felt in their interactions and how they desired to feel. Since we were in modernization, I said, ‘Well, you know what, let’s start with just the basics: how 106

we design this school, how we decorate the school should acknowledge all of these feelings. It’s almost like, how do we do pride? Our colors are black and red. Let’s make our bulletin boards black and red.’ It’s a small detail, but when our students come in and they see the sea of black and red everywhere, it says to them: We want you to walk into a space of pride. I [was] very intentional about the quotes that we selected to put on the wall. A student walked up to me one day and she said, ‘Dr. McKnight, you are the best principal ever.’ So when people say things like that to me, I wanna know, well, what is it? Because, honestly, I think of myself as a pretty humble person. So when she said that, I said, ‘Why do you say that?’ She said, ‘Look at this place.’ And she pointed to a sign that just said, ‘Cafeteria, Ready for Lunch’ or something like that. I remember that it was something that I thought was just so simple and I’m like, that’s not even really one of the big things that I spend time on like the quotes, but it meant so much to her. She said, ‘Look at this sign. You think about everything.’ I will never forget that moment because it just indicated to me again the importance of making sure that the environment is one that makes those who live in that environment feel connected and comfortable. And just working with our staff; I’ll tell you a lesson that I learned: I’m also very, very, very motivated to provide service in the best way possible immediately. Because I’m aware of that, I intentionally pace myself, and my first principalship taught me that. I worked with staff, pulling all the data and saying, ‘Here’s where we are, here’s what we have to do, here’s how we’re gonna get there.’ I would always hold myself accountable by collecting feedback from them in terms of how we were working together. I remember it was in December, and I got one of our Gallup surveys back and I was like, wow, that doesn’t seem like people are feeling too good. And that wasn’t enough for me. I was like, then I gotta get to the why. The survey results tell me that there’s clearly some

discomfort in some places and I need to figure out why. So I scheduled all these smaller staff meetings where I just said, ‘I want to get feedback from you. I want to tell you about why I’m so motivated to get our students where they need to be and to provide the right circumstances for them to be successful. But I also know that I can’t do it alone, and it requires your commitment in your work. How can we do this together to help me understand what I can do to support you in getting this done?’ They were honest, and they shared that ‘there were things we need to learn, there are things that we need to pace, and we are going to get there.’ You had been deputy superintendent for about seven months when the pandemic closed schools. Was there ever a time when you just wanted to give up? For me, it was never a consideration because I felt like maybe this is the purpose for me coming back to Montgomery County. I know this system so well. I know the people. I know what we need to do. So in many ways I felt like being back here was advantageous in some way to get the work done. The day I was with Dr. Smith when we had the press conference in the county when [the state] closed schools, I came back to the building and within the next day or two I brought all of the leaders together, all of our association leaders, all of our district leaders, and I said, ‘You know, we don’t know what’s going to happen, how long this is going to last, but there’s the interest that we have for our children that we all have a responsibility of protecting. So let’s go ahead and talk right now about what that’s going to require.’ That conversation took place on that day and literally every single day after until we were able to put up the virtual learning platform, which was all of about two or three weeks. That’s one example that solidified for me that I am supposed to be here right now because of the relationships I’ve established in this system over time. I learned a lot about myself. By nature,

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I’m just a person who has a lot of energy. I’m a gardener. I can work all day, get home at 6:30, 7 in the evening and trim down rose bushes for an hour or two. That’s the way that I work off energy— physical exertion. During this pandemic, there were times where there was just no break, like meetings every day, every night, all through the weekend, and I want to say probably after a couple of months you realize, wow, I’m going nonstop. You realize, though, I’m really strong, stronger than I ever thought I needed to be to be able to keep up and do this day, night, weekends, 24/7, so I guess, yeah, I’m sure there were times in which I have felt tired. But I couldn’t think about that. Now you are running the state’s largest school system. Did you ever envision yourself in this role? I guess it doesn’t surprise me that I’m sitting here today, but was this ever a dream that I knew long ago that I wanted to be a superintendent? No. I just know that I wanted to serve children. I wanted to serve families. I wanted to serve the community. Along the way, I have been afforded many opportunities to provide that service. Can you talk about your interest in the permanent job? I will apply for the position, and that’s important to say because I love the school system, I value it, it’s a great school system and I want to help it be even better than it is right now. I do believe I have the skills, the knowledge, the education and the experience to serve our students well. I also have the unique experience of starting in the school system in 2001 and remaining here all those years with the exception of one year. No one is a stranger to me because of that, so it just allows me as a leader to be able to make those connections in a way that’s not starting from scratch, and allows me to be able to help move the work along for our students.

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interview Fairly or unfairly, you’re going to be judged as a candidate on the success of this fall’s reopening of schools. What are some of the challenges this school year? For example, the youngest students may have forgotten what it’s like to go to school. I think particularly about our first and second graders who may have had some months or maybe a year of schooling prior to the pandemic, and so we know much of that is about association with your peers, building that base of relationships, learning a lot of basic skills and groundwork to build on your education. And that will be a challenge that we have to really [meet] for those students—some of who may not have even decided to return in the spring, their first time back is in the fall. That will be a significant time for them to come back and connect with their peers, and some may have to start from scratch.

I know this to be true because I visited some schools virtually prior to us opening up on [March 15, 2021] for a majority of our students. I went to a town hall meeting at one of our elementary schools. I went into some classrooms after they were done. I said to the students, ‘Are you excited about coming back into the classroom on March 15? ’ And I remember [one] said, ‘I’m nervous.’ I knew it, but to hear him say, ‘I’m nervous,’ and then another student said, ‘Yeah, I’m a little scared.’ It really said to me, while we’re excited and we all have been having this conversation about students coming back into the building, for some of them that’s not easy. We have been able to identify what some of the challenges are over this past spring with our students coming back into school and us connecting to families. We’ve started a number of different outreach opportunities to connect with

our families to meet them [where they are], like door knocking, particularly in communities where you know our parents may not respond to traditional ways of engaging, like [completing] surveys. We have these pop-up shops across the county and we say to families, ‘We’re not expecting you to come to us. We’re coming to you and we’re coming to you in spaces in which you come to shop, eat, learn, whatever it may be.’ We’ve done that to try to get a sense of how are they feeling about their child coming back into the building and what do they feel like some of the challenges are. We will not know until we actually get all of our students back into the building and have some very consistent structures in place what has been the impact on the disruption of learning. Providing assessments in the virtual environment is just not the same. And we know there are a number of other factors that may not

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allow that to be the most reliable data. So when we are able to get our students back into the building, we’re going to have to really spend some time formally and informally assessing their learning, and we’re going to have to be very inventive, very creative, very thoughtful about how we are building instruction for students in classroom experiences that will allow them to not feel like they’re behind, but to really recognize where there are learning gaps and [make] sure that we’re being mindful in how we address the needs of the individual student. We may find that some of them, many of them maybe, might not have had the disruption that we would have thought. We still have to challenge them. It’s about meeting every single student where they are. So [for] those who thrive [in] the virtual environment, we still want to be able to present a challenging education to them.

The pandemic changed childhood in a way that probably will take years to comprehend. What steps will MCPS take to make sure that kids are OK? We have four priority areas that we’ve established as a result of the pandemic. [The first is] mitigating learning disruption. Secondly, really looking at our high-need schools and how do we continue to provide some differentiating supports to them; third, the socialemotional realm for students and staff; and the fourth is utilizing the virtual platform, and that’s our virtual academy. The social-emotional area will be really important. Our counselors actually will be critical because they’re revamping their work—and how they will work with their caseloads and families post this pandemic will be key. They are heroes in their own right in our buildings because they are the heartbeats and they take care of all of the kids in our family. Thinking

about how do we plan for a comprehensive counseling program in our schools will be a really important part. But we’re also working with other partners like the [county] Department of Health and Human Services to help us implement a model like the social work model in our schools to identify the needs of families who have been heavily impacted by COVID-19, [so] that they can get the resources to be successful [and] so that the student can then be successful in our schools. We are definitely going to have our social-emotional lessons for our students. It’s a great way to let them know that we are here and making sure that your wellness is front and center as we get ready for the [school] day. And the same for our staff. Our staff members [were] deeply impacted during this pandemic. No one has been sheltered in any way from this, and so we have to make sure we’re taking care of them as well.

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2020 was a year of racial reckoning and political strife that continued into the last school year. How did that impact you as an educator and more importantly as a mother? When all of this started to happen—on the day that George Floyd was killed, on the day that things happened [at] the Capitol, the insurrection—all of those incidents happened, [and] the first thought I have as an educational leader is: How are the children? Because they’re seeing what I’m seeing. That’s always my first thought. So after any of those things happen, I get on the phone to contact somebody in my office: Can we get [the] communications [department] or can we get [in touch with] some of our student leaders and figure out how are they, who’s in place to help them process what’s happening, and who’s in place to make sure that they have the support that they need, and that they are safe mentally as well as safe physically? My feelings go directly to my responsibility. I can’t ever take for granted that, [just] as I have to sit down with my 9-year-old, my husband and I, and have conversations with him about what’s happening, some of our families…may not have the supports in place to be able to do it. As a school system, how can we make sure we have procedures in place to provide those students what they need, whether it is a mentor or whether [it] is a staff leader that facilitates student groups, whether it is our principals who can be the immediate connectors to their students within their schools, but deciding who those key people are to get to the students immediately. And then of course, I immediately think about my son. I also know that it doesn’t matter [about] my experience, my knowledge, my role; I may not be able to protect him from his experiences when we see situations occur, around race and all that comes along with that. As a mother, I go through certain iterations. I have feelings as an educator, and then I have those same feelings as a mother. It’s almost like I lived through it in cycles, and what I do is I have those conversations

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with my son and we talk through it. Where do you find the time to sleep or have any kind of personal life? I’m not one who requires a lot of sleep. But I do try to be more intentional about it because I have learned the lesson from being mentored [that] sometimes when you’re making really tough decisions, you should just take the time to sleep on it and you wake up with clarity, and I have actually found that to be helpful. Family is very important to me. We were always taught, my sisters and I, that when you have a role and a responsibility, one, it’s a responsibility so you handle it with great care, and it’s in service to someone. So I never see the work that I do—although yes it is a lot and it requires a lot of time and attention—it doesn’t feel as if it’s in conflict with my life because I am providing a service for others. I just balance that with my family, spending time with them. I’m deeply appreciative of their support in thinking about the challenge of time and knowing that it comes with responsibility. As the first woman and the first woman of color in charge of MCPS, do you feel like all eyes will be upon you this year? I’m honored to be in the position, and all eyes are always on you when you’re leading, so it’s something that I must say I’m used to. The other part of this is that I’ve been an educator I feel like all my life. As a teacher, you know all eyes were on you in your classroom, as it should be, then as a principal, from your community, and so it’s just another level of that. Representation is important because we also have to model for our students what they can do. If there is someone— a student, a parent, anyone, a woman of color—who takes inspiration from where I’m sitting right now and doing the work that I’m doing, I am happy to be able to contribute to that inspiration because we all need it, we all want it. n

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COLLEGE BOUND

Where Bethesda-area high school graduates applied to college and where they were accepted COMPILED BY ELIA GRIFFIN

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Bethesda- Montgomery Richard Chevy Chase Blair Montgomery 1 0 1 0 N/A N/A 2 1 2 0 N/A N/A 6 5 3 2 N/A N/A 43 23 41 21 35 16 5 2 1 1 N/A N/A 15 1 13 3 7 1 4 4 4 3 N/A N/A 3 3 1 1 N/A N/A 18 12 10 5 11 6 7 3 4 3 N/A N/A 2 0 1 0 N/A N/A 5 3 6 3 N/A N/A 15 1 17 2 14 1 13 3 4 0 N/A N/A 5 2 0 0 N/A N/A 1 0 1 1 N/A N/A 1 0 5 1 N/A N/A 1 1 1 1 N/A N/A 41 7 11 3 16 2 77 23 44 12 42 16 15 1 6 1 6 0 7 3 18 6 4 1 9 5 3 2 N/A N/A 58 3 65 5 50 7 9 6 11 6 N/A N/A 33 9 7 2 N/A N/A 6 6 3 2 N/A N/A 5 1 26 3 11 1

Walt Whitman 2 2 0 0 2 2 28 19 0 0 9 0 5 4 0 0 7 4 15 8 1 1 4 4 8 2 10 3 4 4 5 2 3 2 0 0 39 5 57 29 7 1 0 0 9 3 47 3 2 2 23 11 5 4 12 3

Walter Johnson 0 0 3 1 1 0 66 36 2 1 3 0 5 3 3 2 14 10 10 5 1 0 3 1 1 0 1 0 2 0 1 0 1 1 2 2 13 2 45 9 2 0 5 3 4 2 26 0 3 2 15 4 3 2 8 2

Winston Churchill 5 3 N/A N/A N/A N/A 34 18 N/A N/A 7 1 N/A N/A N/A N/A 15 9 N/A N/A 5 1 N/A N/A 4 0 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 4 4 27 7 64 24 N/A N/A 4 0 N/A N/A 51 4 N/A N/A 12 4 N/A N/A 13 0

AC CE PT ED

AC CE PT ED AP PL IE D

D IE PL AP

Adelphi University Albright College Allegheny College American University The American University of Paris Amherst College Appalachian State University Arcadia University Arizona State University, Tempe Auburn University Babson College Bard College Barnard College Bates College Baylor University Belmont University Berklee College of Music Binghamton University Boston College Boston University Bowdoin College Bowie State University Brandeis University Brown University Bryn Mawr College Bucknell University Butler University California Institute of Technology California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo Capitol Technology University

AC CE PT ED AP PL IE D

THE FOLLOWING IS a chart of the colleges and universities where 2021 graduates from six Bethesdaarea high schools applied and were accepted, based on data provided by the schools. The schools are: BethesdaChevy Chase, Walt Whitman and Walter Johnson in Bethesda; Richard Montgomery in Rockville; Winston Churchill in Potomac; and Montgomery Blair in Silver Spring. The acceptance information that the schools sent is self-reported by students, so school officials could not guarantee its accuracy—and this school year, the coronavirus pandemic might have affected students reporting details to their high school. Richard Montgomery and Churchill provided only data from schools that had at least four applicants so we have designated some of their numbers as not applicable (N/A). For brevity’s sake, we have limited the list to colleges and universities with at least six applicants from the combined high schools.

TOTAL 9 7 12 247 8 54 18 7 75 36 10 18 59 28 11 8 10 8 147 329 36 38 25 297 25 90 17 75

5 2 9 133 4 6 14 6 46 19 2 11 6 6 6 3 4 8 26 113 3 13 12 22 16 30 14 10

N/A

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Walt Whitman 8 3 38 6 19 11

Walter Johnson 3 3 31 5 13 5

Winston Churchill N/A N/A 58 7 31 22

AC CE PT ED

AC CE PT ED AP PL IE D

IE PL AP

Bethesda- Montgomery Richard Chevy Chase Blair Montgomery Carleton College 8 7 11 2 N/A N/A Carnegie Mellon University 24 0 64 9 33 3 Case Western Reserve University 11 4 24 9 11 4 The Catholic University of 11 8 10 8 8 2 America Champlain College 2 1 1 0 N/A N/A Chapman University 7 3 4 0 N/A N/A Christopher Newport University 2 2 2 2 N/A N/A Claremont McKenna College 6 2 1 0 N/A N/A Clark Atlanta University 3 2 3 1 N/A N/A Clark University 5 4 6 3 N/A N/A Clemson University 32 17 19 8 14 5 Coastal Carolina University 1 1 4 2 N/A N/A Colby College 20 3 5 1 N/A N/A Colgate University 22 7 8 2 N/A N/A College of Charleston 29 15 5 2 6 4 College of the Holy Cross 4 2 4 2 N/A N/A College of William & Mary 37 8 18 6 16 3 The College of Wooster 1 0 7 5 N/A N/A Colorado College 7 1 1 0 N/A N/A Colorado School of Mines 1 1 2 2 N/A N/A Colorado State University, Fort 6 5 5 4 N/A N/A Collins Columbia University 39 1 57 2 70 3 Connecticut College 9 7 1 0 N/A N/A Cooper Union for the 3 0 2 0 N/A N/A Advancement of Science and Art Coppin State University 3 1 7 1 N/A N/A Cornell University 57 10 84 6 55 5 Dartmouth College 30 2 16 0 17 3 1 4 2 Davidson College 8 3 5 Delaware State University 1 1 4 0 N/A N/A Denison University 6 2 2 1 5 1 DePaul University 13 9 17 11 4 2 Dickinson College 13 6 7 3 5 2 Drexel University 27 18 19 10 15 8 Duke University 39 1 46 3 51 0 Duquesne University 1 0 1 1 N/A N/A East Carolina University 0 0 3 1 N/A N/A Eckerd College 6 3 4 2 N/A N/A Elon University 32 21 10 8 4 3 Emerson College 10 6 11 4 N/A N/A Emory University 40 7 25 8 24 6 Fairfield University 3 2 1 0 N/A N/A Florida Atlantic University 4 2 2 0 N/A N/A Florida International University 2 2 2 0 N/A N/A Florida State University 19 8 9 2 15 5 Fordham University 34 24 15 11 18 11 Franklin & Marshall College 5 1 4 1 N/A N/A Frostburg State University 16 11 29 18 10 6 Furman University 2 1 1 0 N/A N/A George Mason University 20 12 28 22 23 12 The George Washington 42 12 38 13 47 26 University Georgetown University 51 14 15 7 42 9 Georgia Institute of Technology 16 2 45 15 21 8

TOTAL 30 248 109

15 30 55

1 5 0 5 0 5 37 6 15 16 29 3 38 10 7 3

0 2 0 0 0 3 18 4 4 7 20 3 17 8 3 2

4 0 1 1 0 3 25 10 8 6 14 2 35 8 6 2

3 0 1 0 0 1 5 4 0 2 9 1 9 7 2 2

N/A N/A 4 N/A 4 N/A 17 N/A 4 5 12 N/A 34 N/A N/A N/A

N/A N/A 4 N/A 0 N/A 10 N/A 0 1 7 N/A 8 N/A N/A N/A

8 16 9 13 10 19 144 21 52 57 95 13 178 26 21 8

4 5 9 2 3 11 63 11 8 19 57 8 51 20 6 7

N/A

43 3

2 3

26 3

0 1

45 N/A

3 N/A

280 16

11 11

N/A

0 78 31 6 0 15 5 11 15 53 3 2 2 33 5 34 3 2 1 11 16 5 2 2 18

0 9 3 3 0 7 3 8 12 1 3 1 1 22 4 6 3 1 0 7 9 5 2 2 12

0 52 14 4 1 6 7 5 28 44 1 15 1 26 3 21 1 1 4 18 13 8 26 2 45

0 7 0 1 1 3 7 4 19 2 1 5 0 20 3 7 0 0 1 7 8 6 19 2 23

N/A 71 26 N/A N/A N/A N/A 4 20 48 N/A N/A N/A 20 N/A 32 N/A N/A N/A 16 23 N/A 8 N/A 34

N/A 12 0 N/A N/A N/A N/A 1 12 2 N/A N/A N/A 19 N/A 7 N/A N/A N/A 11 19 N/A 8 N/A 24

10 397 134 27 6 34 46 45 124 281 6 20 13 125 29 176 8 9 9 88 119 22 91 7 168

2 49 8 10 2 14 32 24 79 9 5 7 6 93 17 41 5 3 3 40 82 13 64 5 105

277

111

39 37

6 10

30 26

3 10

41 29

8 5

218 174

47 50

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Bethesda- Montgomery Richard Chevy Chase Blair Montgomery Georgia State University Gettysburg College Goucher College Grinnell College Guilford College Hamilton College Hampton University Harvard University Harvey Mudd College Haverford College High Point University Hobart William Smith Colleges Hofstra University Hood College Howard University Indiana University at Bloomington Ithaca College James Madison University Johns Hopkins University Johnson and Wales University, Providence Juniata College Kenyon College Lafayette College Lawrence University Lebanon Valley College Lehigh University Lewis & Clark College Louisiana State University Loyola Marymount University Loyola University Chicago Loyola University Maryland Loyola University New Orleans Lynn University Macalester College Marist College Maryland Institute College of Art Marymount Manhattan College Marymount University Massachusetts Institute of Technology McDaniel College McGill University McMaster University Miami University, Oxford Michigan State University Middlebury College Montgomery College Montgomery County Community College Morehouse College Morgan State University Mount Holyoke College Mount St. Mary’s University Muhlenberg College 114

3 4 19 10 2 12 6 34 2 16 9 3 9 11 25

2 3 14 2 2 4 4 1 1 5 7 1 3 5 9

10 5 16 5 4 3 18 54 12 12 3 2 6 14 70

6 2 10 0 2 1 8 2 0 2 2 1 4 7 25

N/A N/A 4 N/A N/A 4 N/A 45 N/A N/A 4 N/A 7 N/A 22

N/A N/A 3 N/A N/A 0 N/A 1 N/A N/A 4 N/A 6 N/A 8

Winston Churchill

AC CE PT ED

AC CE PT ED AP PL IE D

D IE PL AP

AC CE PT ED AP PL IE D

college bound

Walt Whitman

Walter Johnson

0 7 2 1 3 6 2 43 5 8 7 2 3 0 4

0 6 2 1 1 3 0 2 1 4 4 2 2 0 1

1 8 12 3 0 3 1 35 1 2 9 4 8 13 18

1 5 8 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 4 1 7 6 4

N/A N/A 5 N/A N/A N/A N/A 35 4 4 7 N/A N/A 8 13

N/A N/A 3 N/A N/A N/A N/A 1 1 1 7 N/A N/A 2 5

14 24 58 19 9 28 27 246 24 42 39 11 33 46 152

9 16 40 3 5 9 14 7 3 12 28 5 22 20 52

TOTAL

215

158

17 16 40

11 9 6

13 14 79

9 12 6

7 6 60

3 4 3

14 19 47

12 12 3

4 36 53

3 26 6

6 14 73

3 13 3

61 105 352

41 76 27

N/A

2 7 13 1 3 21 7 9 13 10 15 4 1 16 5 9 2 4

1 2 5 1 1 6 4 6 9 7 9 3 1 10 2 2 1 2

3 3 5 1 5 10 2 4 7 5 33 2 1 10 2 5 1 6

2 1 2 0 1 2 1 2 2 3 19 2 0 3 1 2 1 5

N/A N/A 4 N/A N/A 4 N/A 11 N/A N/A 15 N/A N/A N/A N/A 6 N/A N/A

N/A N/A 3 N/A N/A 2 N/A 9 N/A N/A 9 N/A N/A N/A N/A 3 N/A N/A

1 8 7 3 0 26 5 0 4 1 7 3 0 13 3 1 4 1

0 5 5 1 0 10 5 0 3 0 4 3 0 9 3 1 3 1

2 6 7 1 1 15 2 10 4 1 23 2 6 2 5 13 0 5

1 5 2 1 2 8 1 5 2 1 9 1 3 2 1 6 0 4

N/A N/A 5 N/A N/A 9 N/A N/A 6 N/A 20 N/A 4 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A

N/A N/A 1 N/A N/A 5 N/A N/A 3 N/A 12 N/A 2 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A

8 24 41 6 9 85 16 34 34 17 113 11 12 41 15 34 7 16

4 13 18 3 4 33 11 22 19 11 62 9 6 24 7 14 5 12

170

25 13 5 17 14 17 101

20 5 2 13 7 1 58

16 10 1 5 10 8 85

6 3 0 4 8 0 63

12 11 N/A 5 10 N/A 139

8 5 N/A 3 8 N/A 144

5 15 0 22 13 19 2

4 9 0 17 10 4 1

17 10 0 7 16 4 124

13 7 0 6 12 1 120

11 15 N/A 27 19 4 40

7 5 N/A 18 15 1 18

86 74 6 83 82 52 491

58 34 2 61 60 7 404

N/A

3 21 2 15 5

2 9 1 10 3

7 26 3 22 2

2 14 1 18 1

N/A 4 N/A 16 N/A

N/A 2 N/A 9 N/A

1 1 0 4 4

0 0 0 1 2

3 11 2 23 6

3 5 2 17 4

N/A 4 N/A 12 N/A

N/A 2 N/A 9 N/A

14 67 7 92 17

7 32 4 64 10

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Bethesda- Montgomery Richard Chevy Chase Blair Montgomery New Jersey Institute of Technology The New School New York University North Carolina A&T State University North Carolina State University at Raleigh Northeastern University Northwestern University Notre Dame of Maryland University Oberlin College Occidental College The Ohio State University Ohio University Ohio Wesleyan University Old Dominion University Oregon State University Pace University, New York City Pennsylvania State University, Main Campus Pepperdine University Pitzer College Pomona College

Walt Whitman

Walter Johnson

Winston Churchill

AC CE PT ED

AC CE PT ED AP PL IE D

IE D PL AP

AC CE PT ED AP PL IE D

college bound

TOTAL

N/A

9 61

6 6

2 46

0 5

N/A 54

N/A 10

3 50

3 14

4 48

2 10

6 78

4 22

24 337

15 67

59 44

23 3

37 51

14 7

32 33

11 4

59 57

31 5

47 33

22 3

58 50

32 5

292 268

133 27

N/A

12 16 26 3 3 2 3 9

8 8 14 1 2 2 2 5

13 5 17 2 0 7 1 14

4 2 11 1 0 5 1 11

N/A N/A 24 N/A N/A N/A N/A 4

N/A N/A 16 N/A N/A N/A N/A 4

9 5 30 2 2 1 1 5

8 3 18 2 1 1 1 4

5 4 44 5 1 6 6 4

2 2 22 3 1 2 4 3

N/A 4 65 4 N/A N/A N/A 5

N/A 3 44 3 N/A N/A N/A 2

39 34 206 16 6 16 11 41

22 18 125 10 4 10 8 29

135

126

107

578

389

4 6 11

0 1 1

1 4 12

0 1 0

N/A N/A 13

N/A N/A 2

3 2 7

N/A

11 12 53

2 3 4

And 1 we 0 have 0 that N/Atoo! N/A

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Pratt Institute 5 2 5 1 Princeton University 32 0 53 2 Providence College 8 5 3 2 Purdue University 21 9 10 5 Quinnipiac University 5 2 1 1 Radford University 1 1 2 2 Reed College 6 2 2 2 Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute 5 2 6 4 Rhode Island School of Design 6 0 1 0 Rhodes College 5 4 5 2 Rice University 13 2 30 6 Rochester Institute of Technology 15 11 10 7 Rollins College 8 5 1 1 Rutgers University—New 9 7 15 9 Brunswick Rutgers University—Newark 0 0 4 3 Saint Joseph’s University 2 2 0 0 Salisbury University 46 32 55 36 San Diego State University 7 6 3 1 Santa Clara University 11 5 1 0 Sarah Lawrence College 7 4 5 4 Savannah College of Art and 7 6 2 0 Design Scripps College 6 4 4 2 SU_BethesdaMag_PUB-4987_2021.qxp_Layout 1 7/9/21 4:17 PM Seton Hall University 4 3 5 3

Walt Whitman

Walter Johnson

Winston Churchill

AC CE PT ED

AC CE PT ED AP PL IE D

IE D PL AP

Bethesda- Montgomery Richard Chevy Chase Blair Montgomery

TOTAL

N/A 40 N/A 21 N/A N/A N/A 6 N/A N/A 17 8 N/A

N/A 2 N/A 13 N/A N/A N/A 4 N/A N/A 3 6 N/A

5 37 2 30 2 1 5 10 3 3 27 14 2

4 3 2 21 1 1 5 5 1 2 5 12 0

4 31 1 22 1 8 3 6 6 0 11 10 2

0 0 1 9 1 5 2 3 0 0 1 5 1

N/A 48 N/A 24 N/A 6 N/A 8 4 N/A 27 16 N/A

N/A 2 N/A 15 N/A 4 N/A 4 0 N/A 2 10 N/A

19 241 14 128 9 18 16 41 20 13 125 73 13

7 9 10 72 5 13 11 22 1 8 19 51 7

4 N/A 22 N/A N/A N/A

1 N/A 14 N/A N/A N/A

0 5 17 4 2 8

0 4 9 2 1 6

0 2 61 6 1 1

0 2 36 3 0 1

N/A 5 29 N/A 5 N/A

N/A 5 19 N/A 1 N/A

8 14 230 20 20 21

4 13 146 12 7 15

N/A

4 4 Page 1 N/A N/A

2 1

1 1

3 2

0 1

N/A N/A

19 12

11 8

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Bethesda- Montgomery Richard Chevy Chase Blair Montgomery 0 0 2 1 N/A N/A 14 5 6 2 N/A N/A 8 3 11 6 5 1 4 2 0 0 N/A N/A 4 3 9 8 6 3 7 3 3 2 4 2 7 4 7 4 N/A N/A 3 2 2 1 N/A N/A 49 31 51 30 26 19 3 3 3 1 N/A N/A 33 1 65 2 48 3 4 2 2 2 N/A N/A 17 6 26 14 7 6 7 5 10 6 4 3 3 3 3 1 N/A N/A 3 1 2 1 N/A N/A 10 1 25 2 8 0 63 37 24 10 22 8 33 23 51 40 21 17 2 0 0 0 N/A N/A 2 0 2 0 N/A N/A 63 42 130 92 78 41 1 0 2 1 N/A N/A 0 0 10 6 N/A N/A

Walt Whitman 0 0 16 9 4 2 4 2 0 0 2 2 0 0 2 1 18 11 0 0 43 3 4 3 3 2 3 2 2 1 1 1 7 1 44 20 13 9 3 4 1 0 22 16 2 2 0 0

Walter Johnson 4 2 2 1 4 1 1 1 2 2 4 2 4 1 1 1 44 36 0 0 19 0 4 3 10 6 1 0 1 1 1 1 11 1 25 13 21 11 4 1 1 0 133 99 2 1 1 0

Winston Churchill N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 26 19 N/A N/A 47 0 N/A N/A N/A N/A 5 4 N/A N/A N/A N/A 5 0 39 23 25 18 N/A N/A N/A N/A 62 39 N/A N/A N/A N/A

AC CE PT ED

AC CE PT ED AP PL IE D

IE D PL AP

Shenandoah University Skidmore College Smith College Southern Methodist University Spelman College St. John’s College St. John’s University, New York St. Lawrence University St. Mary’s College of Maryland St. Olaf College Stanford University Stevens Institute of Technology Stevenson University Stony Brook University SUNY at Purchase College Susquehanna University Swarthmore College Syracuse University Temple University Texas A&M University Texas Tech University Towson University Trinity College Dublin Trinity Washington University

AC CE PT ED AP PL IE D

college bound TOTAL 6 38 32 9 21 20 18 8 214 6 255 14 63 30 9 7 66 217 164 9 6 488 7 11

3 17 13 5 16 11 9 5 146 4 9 10 34 20 6 4 5 111 118 5 0 329 4 6

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Walt Whitman 49 8 53 18 2 0 1 1 9 6

Walter Johnson 24 7 29 4 4 1 3 1 7 2

Winston Churchill 30 5 40 11 N/A N/A N/A N/A 8 7

AC CE PT ED

AC CE PT ED AP PL IE D

IE D PL AP

Tufts University Tulane University United States Naval Academy University at Buffalo University of Alabama University of Alabama at Birmingham The University of Arizona The University of Baltimore University of British Columbia University of California, Berkeley University of California, Davis University of California, Irvine University of California, Los Angeles University of California, San Diego University of California, Santa Barbara University of California, Santa Cruz University of Central Florida University of Chicago University of Cincinnati University of Colorado, Boulder University of Connecticut

Bethesda- Montgomery Richard Chevy Chase Blair Montgomery 60 7 31 2 15 2 50 10 11 2 22 2 1 1 0 0 5 0 3 0 4 2 N/A N/A 0 0 2 1 N/A N/A

TOTAL 209 205 12 11 26

31 47 2 4 16

N/A

28 3 4 42 5 12

19 0 2 3 3 6

7 4 2 59 3 6

6 1 0 10 0 3

11 N/A 4 39 5 6

6 N/A 1 6 4 3

9 0 3 63 12 14

5 0 1 5 11 14

16 2 7 20 7 7

9 0 1 3 4 5

12 N/A N/A 56 9 11

4 N/A N/A 12 5 7

83 9 20 279 41 56

49 1 5 39 27 38

268

149

154

N/A

7 17 2 61 15

1 5 1 41 9

1 31 0 32 7

0 1 0 23 5

7 31 N/A 19 10

2 3 N/A 9 5

2 17 2 42 9

1 4 1 32 5

6 18 1 34 12

1 1 1 17 7

5 41 5 34 10

2 1 2 21 4

28 155 10 222 63

7 15 5 143 35

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University of Dayton University of Delaware University of Denver University of Florida University of Georgia University of Hartford University of Hawaii at Manoa University of Houston University of Illinois at Chicago University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign University of Iowa University of Kansas University of Kentucky University of Louisville University of Maine University of Mary Washington University of Maryland, Baltimore University of Maryland, Baltimore County University of Maryland, College Park University of Maryland, Eastern Shore University of Massachusetts, Amherst

Bethesda- Montgomery Richard Chevy Chase Blair Montgomery 2 1 0 0 N/A N/A 24 13 29 18 23 13 13 9 10 6 N/A N/A 21 5 11 4 28 7 17 11 7 2 16 9 2 0 1 0 N/A N/A 0 0 6 5 N/A N/A 1 0 0 0 4 0 2 0 2 0 N/A N/A

Walt Whitman 0 0 25 17 15 13 26 14 26 8 1 0 3 3 1 0 0 0

Walter Johnson 4 3 45 28 4 4 23 9 24 5 2 1 2 2 2 0 1 1

AC CE PT ED

AC CE PT ED AP PL IE D

IE D

college bound Winston Churchill N/A N/A 48 28 6 2 44 21 27 10 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 4 1

6 194 48 153 117 6 11 8 9

4 117 34 60 45 1 10 0 2

TOTAL

1 3 2 2 7 4 1

1 3 1 0 5 2 0

3 0 1 1 5 1 5

2 0 1 0 3 1 2

N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A

3 1 1 0 2 2 0

3 1 1 0 1 2 0

2 2 8 4 5 3 0

1 1 4 1 5 2 0

N/A N/A 4 N/A 4 N/A N/A

N/A N/A 4 N/A 2 N/A N/A

9 6 16 7 23 10 6

7 5 11 1 16 7 2

163

122

134

101

609

420

293

163

392

204

306

170

285

185

362

179

340

203

1,978

1,104

N/A

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University of Massachusetts, Boston University of Miami University of Michigan, Ann Arbor University of Minnesota, Twin Cities University of Mississippi University of Missouri, Columbia University of New Hampshire at Durham University of North Carolina at Asheville University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University of North Carolina at Charlotte University of North Carolina at Greensboro University of North Carolina at Wilmington University of North Texas University of Notre Dame University of Oklahoma University of Oregon University of Pennsylvania University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh Campus

Walt Whitman

Walter Johnson

Winston Churchill

AC CE PT ED

AC CE PT ED AP PL IE D

IE D

AC CE PT ED AP PL IE D

PL AP

Bethesda- Montgomery Richard Chevy Chase Blair Montgomery

TOTAL

N/A

39 68

17 13

25 70

7 11

22 49

10 10

36 117

16 26

19 70

5 7

46 111

16 15

187 485

71 82

0 4

0 3

1 4

0 4

N/A N/A

2 1

7 3

5 2

N/A N/A

10 12

7 10

N/A

354

N/A

2 11 2 14 52

0 1 1 7 0

0 9 1 14 90

0 0 1 8 4

N/A 10 4 6 76

N/A 2 1 5 7

0 12 1 8 56

0 2 1 7 3

4 12 2 10 44

3 1 0 5 2

N/A 9 N/A N/A 75

N/A 0 N/A N/A 7

6 63 10 52 393

3 6 4 32 23

425

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Bethesda- Montgomery Richard Chevy Chase Blair Montgomery 9 3 3 2 N/A N/A 26 4 4 0 N/A N/A 20 8 25 10 6 4 7 3 5 2 N/A N/A 7 5 4 2 4 1 4 2 7 5 N/A N/A

Walt Whitman 6 4 17 8 17 13 1 0 3 1 2 1

Walter Johnson 4 3 18 7 12 5 6 2 2 2 0 0

Winston Churchill N/A N/A 16 4 18 9 6 0 N/A N/A N/A N/A

AC CE PT ED

AC CE PT ED AP PL IE D

D IE PL AP

University of Rhode Island University of Richmond University of Rochester University of San Diego University of San Francisco The University of the South University of South Carolina, Columbia University of South Florida University of South Florida, St. Petersburg University of Southern California University of St. Andrews University of Tampa University of Tennessee, Knoxville The University of Texas, Austin The University of Texas, Dallas University of Toronto University of Utah University of Vermont University of Virginia, Main Campus University of Washington, Seattle Campus University of Waterloo University of Wisconsin, Madison Ursinus College Vanderbilt University Vassar College Villanova University Virginia Commonwealth University Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Virginia Wesleyan University Wake Forest University Washington Adventist University Washington and Lee University Washington College Washington University in St. Louis Wellesley College Wesleyan University West Virginia University Wheaton College Whitman College Wilkes University Williams College Worcester Polytechnic Institute Xavier University Xavier University of Louisiana Yale University York College of Pennsylvania

AC CE PT ED AP PL IE D

college bound

TOTAL 22 81 98 25 20 13

12 23 49 7 11 8

161

N/A

30 3 4

5 1 3

56 1 7

9 1 3

33 N/A 13

11 N/A 7

56 6 6

14 4 4

29 2 16

1 2 6

47 N/A 14

9 N/A 7

251 12 60

49 8 30

N/A

35 2 10 7 62

5 1 3 4 44

15 3 8 4 24

1 2 2 2 15

18 6 4 N/A 15

4 3 4 N/A 10

47 0 16 5 43

5 0 13 5 33

22 4 4 0 26

3 2 3 0 19

45 4 11 N/A 18

11 1 8 N/A 11

182 19 53 16 188

29 9 33 11 132

448

105

1 70 2 44 18 45

0 39 2 2 3 13

2 26 6 33 10 3

1 17 5 6 2 2

N/A 28 N/A 29 4 8

N/A 15 N/A 4 1 2

0 91 2 55 10 21

0 66 2 5 3 7

0 33 1 22 5 17

0 14 0 1 1 1

5 60 N/A 45 4 24

1 26 N/A 6 0 3

8 308 11 228 51 118

2 177 9 24 10 28

362

229

0 31 1 5 9

0 3 0 1 5

5 7 12 4 6

5 1 7 2 5

N/A 4 N/A N/A N/A

N/A 1 N/A N/A N/A

0 30 0 3 5

0 12 0 2 2

3 16 0 6 6

2 4 0 1 5

N/A 11 N/A N/A 5

N/A 2 N/A N/A 3

8 99 13 18 31

7 23 7 6 20

180

7 28 15 3 4 1 18 2 1 1 39 1

2 6 8 0 2 1 1 2 1 1 1 1

5 14 12 1 0 7 13 4 3 7 65 4

1 3 9 1 0 2 4 1 2 5 3 1

4 4 7 N/A N/A N/A 10 N/A 4 N/A 53 N/A

1 1 6 N/A N/A N/A 2 N/A 2 N/A 2 N/A

7 20 2 0 2 0 10 5 0 0 36 0

1 8 2 0 2 0 3 3 0 0 1 0

2 9 18 2 0 0 3 6 2 0 31 4

0 2 12 1 0 0 0 4 2 0 3 2

4 5 9 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 35 N/A

0 1 6 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 2 N/A

29 80 63 6 6 8 54 17 10 8 259 9

5 21 43 2 4 3 10 10 7 6 12 4

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SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

PRIVATE SCHOOL

Guide PRIVATE SCHOOL GUIDE In these uncertain times, many parents are considering private school for their children. But choosing the right school isn't easy. There are scores of good schools to chose from and a countless number of factors that you need to consider. Co-ed or single gender? A school with a religious affiliation or not? What’s the educational philosophy and approach? Bethesda Magazine’s PRIVATE SCHOOL GUIDE will help you to find the school that’s the best fit. In the following pages, we provide essential information on 30 schools. You’ll find the information you need to narrow your search and to start your exploration in a targeted and effective way.

The Academy of the Holy Cross

4920 Strathmore Ave. Kensington, MD 20895 301-942-2100 www.ahctartans.org Grades: 9-12 Gender: Girls Total number of students: 400 Average class size: 15 Student/teacher ratio: 9:1 Religious affiliation Catholic Grade foreign language first offered 9 Languages offered: Spanish, French, Latin Lowest tuition for 5-day students: $27,800 Annual tuition for grade 12: $27,800 Uniform: Yes Bus transportation: Ride-on Bus stop at school entrance; Metro 5-minute walk Number of AP courses offered: 17, Additionally we have a dual credit/dual enrollment program with Marymount University Varsity sports: Basketball, bocce, crew, cross country, equestrian, field hockey, golf, ice hockey, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming/diving, tennis, track, volleyball Number of art studios: 3 Theater productions per year: 8 (musical, dance, vocal, instrumental, dramatic) Music ensembles: 1 instrumental, 4 vocal Accreditations/Affiliations National

Catholic Education Association, Middle States, Independent Education, International Baccalaureate Organization, Maryland State Department of Education Founded: 1868

The Auburn School, Silver Spring Campus

9115 Georgia Ave. Silver Spring MD 20910 301-588-8048 www.theauburnschool.org Grades: K-8 Gender: Co-ed Total number of students: 65 Average class size: 10 Student/teacher ratio: 10:2 Religious affiliation None Seniors with National Merit recognition: N/A Languages offered: Spanish Lowest tuition for 5-day students: Please inquire Students receiving financial aid 47% Uniform: No Bus transportation: No Teacher retention rate: 98% Theater productions per year: 1 Accreditations/Affiliations AdvancEd/ Mansef Founded: 2011

Barrie School

13500 Layhill Road Silver Spring, MD 20906 301-576-2800 www.barrie.org Grades: 12 months - Grade 12 Gender: Co-ed Total number of students: 350 Average class size: 16 Student/teacher ratio: Lower School, 13:1; Middle-Upper School, 10:1 Religious affiliation N/A Seniors with National Merit recognition: N/A Grade foreign language first offered 6 Languages offered: Spanish, French, Independent Study Lowest tuition for 5-day students: $19,480 Annual tuition for grade 12: $34,210 (includes books) Students receiving financial ai : 47% Uniform: No Bus transportation: Yes Number of AP courses offered: 4 Students scoring 3+ on AP exams: 13 Varsity sports: Soccer, volleyball, cross country, basketball, golf, equestrian, track & field Interscholastic sports (middle): flag football, track & field, soccer, cross country, basketball

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SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

PRIVATE SCHOOL

Guide Number of art studios: 3 Theater productions per year: 2 Music ensembles: 5 Accreditations/Affiliations American Montessori Society, Association of Independent Schools of Greater Washington, Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, National Association of Independent Schools, Association of Independent Maryland & DC Schools Founded: 1932

The Bethesda Montessori School

7611 Clarendon Road Bethesda, MD 20814 301-986-1260 www.bethesdamontessori.com Grades: 3–6-year-olds, Pre-K & Accredited Kindergarten Gender: All Total number of students: 80 Average class size: Offering three, multiage Montessori classrooms

Religious affiliation None Grade foreign language first offered Pre-K Languages offered: French Lowest tuition for 5-day students: $12,300 Annual tuition for grade 12: N/A Uniform: No Bus transportation: No Number of art studios: 1 Theater productions per year: 1 Music ensembles: 1 Accreditations/Affiliations Montessori Schools of Maryland, Accredited Kindergarten, Licensed by State of MD Year Founded: 1983

Bullis School

10601 Falls Road Potomac, MD 20854 301-299-8500 www.bullis.org Grades: K-12 Gender: Co-ed Lower School Enrollment: 146 Middle School Enrollment: 205 Upper School Enrollment: 549

Average class size: 15 Student/teacher ratio: 8:1 Languages offered: French, Spanish, Latin, Mandarin Lowest tuition for 5-day students: $38,065 Annual tuition for grade 12: $50,310 Students receiving financial aid 39% Uniform: Yes Bus transportation: Yes, throughout the metro area Teacher retention rate: 92% AP courses offered: 22 US Varsity sports: Baseball, basketball, cross country, field hockey, football, golf, ice hockey, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, track & field, volleyball, wrestling MS Interscholastic sports: Baseball, basketball, cross country, field hockey, football, lacrosse, soccer, softball, tennis, track & field, wrestling Number of art studios: 4, plus dance studio, 2 makerspaces Music ensembles: Chorus, chamber singers, concert band, concert choir, jazz ensemble, jazz workshop, string ensemble, winter and spring musicals

SCHOOL St. John’s College PROFILE High School Enrollment:

1,240 Grades:

9–12

Average Class Size:

Student/Teacher Ratio:

10:1

Annual Tuition:

$22,100

Year Founded:

1851

124

2607 Military Road NW • Chevy Chase, DC 20015 • 202-363-2316 www.stjohnschs.org

St. John’s College High School is an independent, Catholic, co-educational college preparatory school in the Lasallian tradition. Committed to academic excellence, St. John’s prepares students for lives of leadership, achievement, and service to the community. Our graduates have a 100 percent college acceptance rate, and the class of 2021 collectively earned $34 million in scholarships. Recent capital improvements to our 30-acre campus include the Center for Performance and Leadership (2020), the Cap Mona Family Student Center (2017), and the Donatelli Center for the Visual and Performing Arts (2016). Unique to the St. John’s experience are the Cadet Corps Leadership Program, the Entrepreneurial Center for Innovation and Social Impact, and state-of-the-art athletic training facilities. Throughout the years, St. John’s has become synonymous with excellence, diversity, leadership, and service. Our mission and vision emphasize holistic personal growth and innovative thinking, which strengthens and continually transforms our school and alumni community.

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and ensembles LS Arts: Grade-based theatrical productions, 5th grade musical, visual arts classes & shows, movement classes, general music class and band, string, and choral ensembles. All groups perform several times during the school year. MS Arts: Grade 6 & 7 students participate in visual arts classes and shows and one performing arts class (choices: band, strings, chorus, dance, theater). Grade 8 students choose a major and minor area of the arts in which to delve more deeply. US Arts: Students may pursue an Honors Capstone. Arts students participate in multiple shows and performances during the course of the year. US courses offered in music, audio engineering, theatre, dance, and visual arts. Accreditations/Affiliations Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, Maryland Department of Education, National Association of Independent Schools, Independent Education, Association of Independent Maryland Schools, Secondary School Admission Test Board, The Black Student Fund Founded: 1930

Connelly School of the Holy Child

9029 Bradley Blvd. Potomac, MD 20854 301-365-0955 www.holychild.org Grades: 6-12 Gender: Girls Total number of students: 355 Average class size: 15 Student/teacher ratio: 7:1 Religious affiliation Catholic Grade foreign language first offered 7 Languages offered: Spanish, French Lowest tuition for 5-day students: Upper School $36,690 Middle School $32,960 Annual tuition for grade 12: $36,690 Students receiving financial aid 30% Annual applications per opening: 3 Uniform: Yes Bus transportation: Yes Number of AP courses offered: 13, plus 21 Honors courses Varsity sports: Soccer, field hockey, volleyball, cross country, tennis, basketball, swim & dive, lacrosse, softball, track & field, equestrian, golf, ice hockey

Interscholastic sports (middle): Soccer, field hockey, basketball, swim & dive, lacrosse, softball, equestrian Number of art studios: 2 Theater productions per year: 3 (with additional performing opportunities like Evening of the Arts) Music ensembles: 4-6 Accreditations/Affiliations Middle States Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools, The Maryland Department of Education, National Association for College Admission Counseling, the Potomac and Chesapeake Association for College Admission Counseling, the College Board, AIMS, Independent Education, Archdiocese of Washington, Black Student Fund, Latino Student Fund, Holy Child Network of Schools, National Coalition of Girls’ Schools, One Schoolhouse Founded: 1961

Edmund Burke School

4101 Connecticut Ave. NW Washington, DC 20008 202-362-8882

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PRIVATE SCHOOL

Guide www.burkeschool.org Grades: 6-12 Gender: Co-ed Total number of students: 310 Average class size: 13 Student/teacher ratio: 6:1 Religious affiliation None Grade foreign language first offered 6 Languages offered: Spanish, French Lowest tuition for 5-day students: $42,305 Annual tuition for grade 12: $44,875 Students receiving financial aid 35% Uniform: No Bus transportation: Yes Number of AP courses offered: 9 Varsity sports: 10 Interscholastic sports (middle): 6 Number of art studios: 3 Theater productions per year: 5 Music ensembles: 15 Accreditations/Affiliations: Association of Independent Maryland and DC Schools, Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, Association of Independent

Schools of Greater Washington, National Association of Independent Schools, Potomac Valley Athletic Conference Founded: 1968

Geneva Day School

11931 Seven Locks Road Potomac, MD 20854 301-340-7704 www.genevadayschool.org Grades: 2 years old-Kindergarten Gender: Co-ed Total number of students: 165 Average class size: 15 Student/teacher ratio: 6:1 – varies by age Religious affiliation None Grade foreign language first offered 3 years old Languages offered: Spanish (soon to return), Chinese and Farsi (possibly returning) Lowest tuition for 5-day students: $8,107 Students receiving financial aid 20% Uniform: No Bus transportation: No Teacher retention rate: 98% Accreditations/Affiliations Maryland State Department of Education Office

of Childcare, Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services, Maryland State Department of Education Office of Nonpublic Schools, Maryland Association for Environmental and Outdoor Education Certified Green School, Maryland State Childcare Association, National Association of Education for Young Children Founded: 1965

Georgetown Hill Early School

9905 Counselman Road Potomac, MD 20854 301-527-1377 www.georgetownhill.com Grades: Infants, toddlers, twos, threes, pre-K, transitional Kindergarten Gender: Co-ed Total number of students: 120 Average class size: Infants: 6, toddlers: 9, twos: 12, threes: 20, fours: 20 Student/teacher ratio: Infants & toddlers: 1-3, twos:1-6, threes & fours: 1-10 Religious affiliation None Age or Grade foreign language first offered: 3+ Languages offered: Spanish

SCHOOL Georgetown Preparatory PROFILE School 10900 Rockville Pike • North Bethesda, MD 20852 • 301-493-5000 • www.gprep.org

Enrollment:

498

Grades:

9-12

Average Class Size:

Annual Tuition (Grade 12):

$39,385

Year Founded:

1789

126

Educating young men since 1789 and from all over the world, Georgetown Preparatory School provides a strong, meaningful, and diverse educational experience for all of our boys, preparing them for not only college but also for life in the global community. As a Jesuit institution steeped in a sacred mission of forming men of competence, conscience, commitment, and compassion, Georgetown Prep has an outstanding faculty and staff that understands and educates to all facets of our boys’ development. The teaching and learning at Georgetown Prep immerses our students in challenging academics, with STEM, humanities, visual and performing arts, and global studies offerings. Additionally, Georgetown Prep provides opportunities for physical fitness and teamwork through a wide offering of 33 first-rate athletic teams. In living out our Jesuit mission and Catholic identity, we work to develop men for others who will make a difference–through building relationships and bonds with each other and their teachers; through forming their spiritual self; through developing a social awareness from retreats, service projects, and leadership and outreach opportunities in the Greater DC area. Georgetown Prep offers first-class campus facilities as a day and boarding school, allowing for outdoor exposure, social interactions, program enhancements for academics, athletics, and the arts, and for the continued professional development of our faculty and staff. Located on 93 acres in North Bethesda, the campus is Metro accessible and offers bus transportation. Guests are welcome on campus at the Open House on Sunday, October 17, 12:00-3:00 PM. Visit www.gprep.org/admissions.

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Lowest tuition for 5-day students: Varies by age Uniform: No Bus transportation: N/A Accreditations/Affiliations MSDE, EXCELS, NAEYC Annual applications per opening: varies Founded: 1980 by Ellen Cromwell

Georgetown Preparatory School

10900 Rockville Pike North Bethesda, MD 20852 301-493-5000 www.gprep.org Grades: 9-12 Gender: Boys Total number of students: 498 Average class size: 16 Student/teacher ratio: 8:1 Religious affiliation Jesuit (Catholic) Grade foreign language first offered 9 Languages offered: 5 Lowest tuition for 5-day students: $39,385 Students receiving financial aid 28% Uniform: Sport coat and tie Bus transportation: Bus transportation from the Grosvenor–Strathmore (Red

Line) Metro stop. Students commuting to Georgetown Prep from Virginia can take advantage of a new joint transportation option with Stone Ridge School of the Sacred Heart. Number of AP courses offered: 25 Students scoring 3+ on AP exams: 95% Varsity sports: Football, soccer, cross country, basketball, wrestling, hockey, swimming & diving, winter track, baseball, lacrosse, track, rugby, tennis, golf Number of art studios: 2 Theater productions per year: 3 Music ensembles: 3 Accreditations/Affiliations Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, Maryland State Department of Education, Jesuit Province of Maryland Annual applications per opening: 3.5/1 Founded: 1789

German International School Washington D.C.

8617 Chateau Drive Potomac, MD 20854 301-365-3807 www.giswashington.org

Grades: Age 2 - Grade 12 Gender: Co-ed Total number of students: 520 Average class size: 16 (Elementary and Upper Schools) Student/teacher ratio: 7:1 Religious affiliation None Programs: STEM/MINT School with stateof-the-art science building Grade foreign language first offered German starting in Pre-K Languages offered: German, English, French, Spanish, Latin Lowest tuition for 5-day students: 2-year-old (half day): $17,400 (full day also available); 3 & 4-year-old (half day): $14.285 (full-day also available); Kindergarten (5-year-old program): $21,685; Grade 1-6: $ 22,765; Grades 7-12: $ 23,525 Uniform: No Bus transportation: DC, MD, NOVA Teacher retention rate: 90% Number of AP courses offered: 8 Students scoring 3+ on AP exams: 95% Varsity sports: Soccer, basketball, volleyball, swimming, track & field, tennis Interscholastic sports (middle): Soccer,

GEORGETOWN PREPARATORY SCHOOL

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PRIVATE SCHOOL

Guide basketball, volleyball, swimming, track & field, tennis Number of art studios: 1 Theater/Music productions per year: 4 Music ensembles: Choir and orchestra Accreditations/Affiliations Accredited by the Federal Republic of Germany’s Central Office for Schools Abroad and approved by Maryland State Department of Education, Member of AISGW, Part of Network of 140 German Schools around the globe Founded: 1961

Green Acres School

11701 Danville Drive North Bethesda, MD 20852 301-881-4100 www.greenacres.org Grades: Age 3 – Grade 8 Gender: Gender Inclusive Total number of students: 168 Average class size: 11 Student/teacher ratio: 7:1 Religious affiliation None

Grade foreign language first offered Pre-K Languages offered: Spanish Lowest tuition for 5-day students: $18,000 (Half-day Pre-K) $26,000 (Pre-K) $32,000 (Kindergarten) $36,250 (1st grade) $40,500 (2nd–8th grade) Annual tuition for grade 12: N/A Students receiving financial aid 45% Uniform: No Bus transportation: Yes Teacher retention rate: 85% Interscholastic sports (middle): Soccer, cross country, basketball, softball Number of art studios: 3 Theater productions per year: Multiple Music ensembles: Middle school vocal & instrumental ensemble; 4th grade chorus Founded: 1934

Lowell School

1640 Kalmia Road NW Washington, DC 20012 202-577-2000 www.lowellschool.org

Grades: PK-8 Gender: Co-ed Total number of students: 340 Average class size: 16 Student/teacher ratio: 6:1 Religious affiliation None Grade foreign language first offered Kindergarten Languages offered: Spanish Lowest tuition for 5-day students: $20,425 (Half day, Pre-Primary) Students receiving financial aid 1/3 Uniform: No Bus transportation: Yes Interscholastic sports: Co-ed cross country, boys soccer, girls soccer, boys basketball, girls basketball, co-ed swimming, co-ed jr. track & field, co-ed sr. track, girls lacrosse, co-ed ultimate frisbee, baseball, water polo Number of art studios: 3 Theater productions per year: A variety of music, drama, and dance performances occur throughout the year in the Primary and Middle Schools. Students perform in class and at school-wide assemblies and special events. Music ensembles: 4th-5th grade chorus,

SCHOOL Bullis School PROFILE

10601 Falls Road • Potomac, MD 20854 • 301-299-8500 • www.bullis.org

At Bullis, we believe the best education is achieved by immersing students in academics, arts, and athletics. Signature 900 programs—in STEM, entrepreneurship, visual and performing arts, and Grades: humanities and global studies—give students unlimited opportunities to K-12 discover and develop academic strengths. Robust arts and athletics programs Average Class Size: round out the educational experience for students from Kindergarten through 15 12th grade. Bullis leads the way in 21st century educational approaches. Student/Teacher Ratio: Our unparalleled facilities include a 8:1 new 70,000-sq-ft Discovery Center, home to the makerspace in the Bullis Innovation and Technology Lab, the entrepreneurship center known as the Innovation Lab, the Studio Theater, flexible and collaborative learning spaces, a café, and other gathering spaces. These spaces Annual Tuition (Grade 12): help teachers engage student imagination. Located on 100-acre campus in Potomac, Bullis provides its highly diverse student body an educational environment to learn, grow, discover $50,310 passions, reach potential, and develop tools to succeed in college and beyond. Visit our middle and upper school open house on October 17, lower school open house on Year Founded: November 7, or take a campus tour. Enrollment:

1930

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middle school chorus, middle school band, recorder consort, jazz band, pop bands Accreditations/Affiliations National Association of Independent Schools, The Association of Independent Maryland Schools, The Association of Independent Schools of Greater Washington, National Association for the Education of Young Children, Progressive Educators Network, Capital Area Progressive Schools, Black Student Fund, Latino Student Fund, Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network, Center for Spiritual and Ethical Education, Center for Transformative Teaching and Learning, The Parent Encouragement Program, Secondary School Admission Test, Educational Records Bureau Founded: 1965

The Maddux School

11614 Seven Locks Road Rockville, MD 20854 301-469-0223 www.madduxschool.org Grades: PK-2 Gender: Co-ed Total number of students: 45

Average class size: 8-10 in PK; 10-12 in K-2nd Student/teacher ratio: 4:1 Religious affiliation None Lowest tuition for 5-day students: $32,000 Uniform: No Bus transportation: No Specials: Art, library and technology, music, physical education, yoga, plus integrated speech/OT Teacher retention rate: 96% Accreditations/Affiliations State approved curriculum Annual Applications per opening: Please inquire Founded: 2004

McLean School

8224 Lochinver Lane Potomac, MD 20854 301-299-8277 www.mcleanschool.org Grades: K-12 Gender: Co-ed Total number of students: 480 Average class size: 10+

Student/teacher ratio: 5:1 Religious affiliation None Grade foreign language first offered Grade 5 Languages offered: Spanish, Latin, American Sign Language Lowest tuition for 5-day students: $38,490 Annual tuition for grade 12: $50,990 Students receiving financial aid 40% Uniform: Yes Bus transportation: Yes Teacher retention rate: 90% Number of AP courses offered: 10+ Varsity sports: Volleyball, softball, lacrosse, track & field, cross country, soccer, wrestling, basketball, dance, golf, tennis, swimming Interscholastic sports (middle): Volleyball, softball, volleyball lacrosse, track & field, tennis, golf, cross country, soccer, wrestling, basketball Number of art studios: 4 Theater productions per year: 1 drama/ comedy, 1 musical, 2 musical concerts per division, talent shows Music ensembles: Strings ensemble, jazz band, rock & blues band, pop, chorus

Join us for an open house

Oct. Road 17: Grades 6-12 MD www.bullis.org 10601 Falls Potomac, Nov. 7: K-Grade 5

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PRIVATE SCHOOL

Guide Accreditations/Affiliations Maryland Department of Education, National Association of Independent Schools, Association of Independent Maryland Schools, Association of Independent Schools in Greater Washington, The Black Student Fund, Latino Student Fund, International Dyslexia Association, Learning Disabilities Association, Secondary School Admission Test Board, Association of Independent School Admission Professionals, National Business Officers Association Founded: 1954

Norwood School

8821 River Road Bethesda, MD 20817 301-365-2595 www.norwoodschool.org Grades: PK-8 Gender: Co-ed Total number of students: 440 Average class size: 10-12 Student/teacher ratio: 6:1

Religious affiliation None Grade foreign language first offered pre-Kindergarten Languages offered: Spanish, French, Latin, Mandarin Chinese Lowest tuition for 5-day students: $26,000 Students receiving financial aid 21% Uniform: Dress code Bus transportation: Morning and afternoon routes available Interscholastic sports (middle): Soccer, field hockey, volleyball, basketball, lacrosse, baseball, softball, cross country, track & field Number of art studios: 4 Theater productions per year: 2 (fall play and spring musical) Music ensembles: 4 (choral, strings, band, hand bells) Accreditations/Affiliations AIMS, AISGW Founded: 1952

Oneness-Family Montessori School 6701 Wisconsin Ave.

Chevy Chase, MD 20815 HIGH SCHOOL: 9411 Connecticut Ave. Kensington, MD 20895 301-652-7751 www.onenessfamilymontessorischool.org Grades: Ages 2 – Grade 12 Gender: Co-ed Total number of students: 145 Average class size: 24 Student/teacher ratio: 12:1 Religious affiliation Non-sectarian Grade foreign language first offered PS Languages offered: Spanish, French, Italian Lowest tuition for 5-day students: $23,600 Annual tuition for grade 12: $35,550 Students receiving financial aid 18% Uniform: No Bus transportation: No Number of art studios: 2 Theater productions per year: 1 Music ensembles: 1 Accreditations/Affiliations International

SCHOOL Washington Episcopal PROFILE School Enrollment:

320

Grades:

Nursery (Age 3)-8 Gender

Co-ed Average Class Size:

Student/Teacher Ratio:

6:1

5600 Little Falls Parkway • Bethesda, MD 20816 • 301-652-7878 • admissions@w-e-s.org • www.w-e-s.org

Washington Episcopal School (WES) believes that learning should be joyful, because academic excellence and happy children belong together. WES is committed to helping every child develop his or her fullest potential through a well-rounded, hands-on curriculum and the support of skilled and attentive faculty. Our warm and friendly community —true to the Episcopal tradition— welcomes and celebrates a diversity of faiths and cultures. WES graduates also seamlessly transition to a wide variety of top secondary schools. Here, children stand out without burning out. The best way to learn more about our community is to experience it for yourself. Please join us for one of our Admission events, where you will have the opportunity to meet school leadership, faculty, and current parents and students. Call today to learn more!

Annual Tution (Grade 8):

$38,660

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Montessori Council / American Montessori Society / NAIS Founded: 1988

Award-winning visual, instrumental and choral programs Founded: 1958

Our Lady of Good Counsel High School

17301 Old Vic Boulevard Olney, MD 20832 240-283-3235 www.olgchs.org Grades: 9-12 Gender: Co-ed Total number of students: 1,200+ Average class size: 19 Student/teacher ratio: 13:1 Religious affiliation Roman Catholic Tuition: $26,700 Uniform: Yes Bus transportation: Yes Honors, Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, STEM, Ryken and Global Programs offered Varsity, Junior Varsity and Freshman sports: 54 State of the Art STEM Lab: Opened 2018

The Potomac School

1301 Potomac School Road McLean, VA 22101 703-749-6313 potomacschool.org Grades: K-12 Gender: Co-ed Total number of students: 1,065 Average class size: 16 Student/teacher ratio: 8:1 Teacher retention rate: 92.5% Religious affiliation None Seniors with National Merit recognition: 31 (5 National Merit Scholars; another 26 Commended Students) Grade foreign language first offered 4th grade Spanish (only); other languages 7th Languages offered: Spanish, French, Latin, Mandarin Lowest tuition for 5-day students: $39,150

Annual tuition for grade 12: $45,650 Students receiving financial aid 21% Uniform: Yes, for grades 4-8 Bus transportation: Yes Number of AP courses offered: 18 Students scoring 3+ on AP exams: 93% in 2020 Varsity sports: 25 Interscholastic sports (middle): 17 Number of art studios: 6 Theater productions per year: 4-5 Music ensembles: 17 Accreditations/Affiliations accredited by VAIS, affiliated with NAIS, AISGW Annual applications per opening: 8 applications per open seat Founded: 1904

The Primary Day School

7300 River Road Bethesda, MD 20817 301-365-4355 www.theprimarydayschool.org Grades: PK-2 Gender: Co-ed

WASHINGTON EPISCOPAL SCHOOL KIND. CONFIDENT. PREPARED.

WES students learn how to innovate, create, explore, solve problems, and self-advocate. They have the mindset to ask, “How can I make a positive impact?” and the capacity to find and enact an answer.

Nursery-Grade 8/Co-Ed | www.w-e-s.org | 301-652-7878 | 5600 Little Falls Parkway, Bethesda, MD BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021

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PRIVATE SCHOOL

Guide Total number of students: 140 Average class size: 16 Student/teacher ratio: 8:1 Religious affiliation None Grade foreign language first offered Pre-K Languages offered: Spanish, Chinese, French Lowest tuition for 5-day students: $26,500 Students receiving financial aid 11% Uniform: No Bus transportation: No Number of art studios: 1 Music ensembles: Twice a month Accreditations/Affiliations AISGW/AIMS Founded: 1944

Rochambeau, the French International School 9600 Forest Road Bethesda, MD 20814 301-530-8260 www.rochambeau.org Grades: Age 2-Grade 12

Gender: Co-ed Total number of students: 1,000 Average class size: 20 Student/teacher ratio: 11:1 Religious affiliation None Grade foreign language first offered Bilingual French/English program in all grades. Additional language in 3rd grade. Languages offered: Spanish, German, Arabic, French immersion for French beginners French Baccalaureate, IB Diploma Program, High School Diploma Lowest tuition for 5-day students: $20,890 Annual tuition for grade 12: $7,425 Uniform: No Bus transportation: Yes Interscholastic sports: Soccer, rugby, basketball, volleyball, swimming Music ensembles: 1 vocal, 1 band Theater productions per year: 2 Accreditations/Affiliations French Ministry of Education, State of Maryland Dept. of Education, International Option

Baccalaureate Founded: 1955

Sandy Spring Friends School

16293 Norwood Road Sandy Spring, MD 20860 301-774-7455 www.ssfs.org Grades: Preschool (Age 3) – 12th Grade Gender: Co-ed Total number of students: 685 Average class size: 16 Student/teacher ratio: 8:1 Religious affiliation Quaker Grade foreign language first offered Preschool (Age 4) Languages offered: 2 Lowest tuition for 5-day students: $19,250 Annual tuition for grade 12: $36,500 Students receiving financial aid 40% Uniform: No Bus transportation: Yes Number of AP courses offered: 15

SCHOOL Our Lady of Good Counsel PROFILE High School Enrollment:

1,200+ Grades:

9-12

Average Class Size:

Student/Teacher Ratio:

13:1

Annual Tuition (Grade 8):

$26,700

Year Founded:

1958

132

17301 Old Vic Blvd • Olney, MD 20832 • 240-283-3230 • olgchs.org

Our Lady of Good Counsel High School is a Catholic, co-educational school that inspires students to excel, serve, and love. Rooted in the Xaverian values of compassion and trust, Good Counsel provides a supportive environment in which students grow academically, personally and spiritually. Academics: Advanced Placement courses • Global Programs: exchange trips, classes, clubs • International Baccalaureate • Ryken Program for students with mild learning differences • STEM Program: top 3% of Project Lead the Way schools nationally Community: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Program • Service curriculum, local and international • Spiritual retreats and Mass offerings • Small group advisories Excellence: 89% of faculty hold advanced degrees • 2021 college scholarship offerings > $34.3 million • 12 consecutive DC/MD/VA Speech and Debate Team titles • 71 WCAC titles in the past decade • visual, theatre, instrumental and choral programs Facilities: 51-acre campus in Olney opened 2007 • 650+ seat Performing Arts Center opened 2016 • State-of-the-art STEM lab opened 2018 • New turf field, baseball stadium and track

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Varsity sports: Soccer (girls & boys), volleyball (girls), cross-country (girls & boys), basketball (girls & boys), track and field (girls & boys), lacrosse (girls & boys), baseball (boys), softball (girls), golf (co-ed) Interscholastic sports (middle): Soccer (girls & boys), volleyball (girls), crosscountry (girls & boys), basketball (girls & boys), track and field (girls & boys), lacrosse (girls & boys), baseball (boys), softball (girls) Number of art studios: 2 Theater productions per year: 4 Music ensembles: 4 Accreditations/Affiliations NAIS, AIMS, Friends Council on Education (FCE), TABS, CASE, SSATB, ERB, The College Board, National Association of College Admissions Counselors, Black Student Fund, Potomac and Chesapeake Association of College Admissions Counselors (PCACAC) Founded: 1961

The Siena School

1300 Forest Glen Road Silver Spring, MD 20901 301-244-3600 www.thesienaschool.org Grades: 4-12 Gender: Co-ed Total number of students: 150 Average class size: 10 Student/teacher ratio: 10:1 Religious affiliation None Grade foreign language first offered 9 Languages offered: Spanish Lowest tuition for 5-day students: $43,510 Annual tuition for grade 12: $44,917 Students receiving financial aid 43% Uniform: No Bus transportation: No Teacher retention rate: 97% Varsity sports: Soccer, basketball, volleyball, tennis, softball, Jiu Jitsu Interscholastic sports (middle): Soccer, basketball, flag football, cross county, softball

Number of art studios: 2 Theater productions per year: 2 Music ensembles: 2 Accreditations/Affiliations NAIS, ISM, MSACS, IDA, LDA-MC Annual applications per opening: 8 Founded: 2006

The Siena School

2705 Hunter Mill Road Oakton, VA 22124 Phone 703-745-5900 www.thesienaschool.org Grades: 3-8 Gender: Co-ed Total number of students: 30 Average class size: 10 Student/teacher ratio: 10:1 Religious affiliation None Grade foreign language first offered NA Languages offered: NA Lowest tuition for 5-day students: $43,510 Students receiving financial aid 43% Uniform: No Bus transportation: No

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PRIVATE SCHOOL

Guide Teacher retention rate: NA Interscholastic sports (middle): NA Number of art studios: NA Theater productions per year: 2 Music ensembles: 2 Accreditations/Affiliations NAIS, ISM, MSACS, IDA, LDA-MC Annual applications per opening: NA Founded: 2021

St. Bartholomew School

6900 River Road Bethesda, MD 20817 301-229-5586 www.school.stbartholomew.org Grades: Pre-K 3 through 8th Grade Gender: Co-ed Total number of students: 185 Average class size: 17 Student/teacher ratio: 10:1 Teacher retention rate: 92% Religious affiliation Roman Catholic Seniors with National Merit recognition: N/A Grade foreign language first offered

Kindergarten Languages offered: Spanish Lowest tuition for 5-day students: $13,600 Students receiving financial ai : 60 Uniform: Yes Bus transportation: No Varsity sports: N/A Interscholastic sports (middle): Soccer, basketball, cross country Number of art studios: 1 Theater productions per year: 2 Music ensembles: 1 Accreditations/Affiliations Archdiocese of Washington, NCEA, Cognia Annual applications per opening: 4 Founded: 1963

St. Jane de Chantal

9525 Old Georgetown Road Bethesda, MD 20814 301-530-1221 www.dechantal.org Grades: PK - 8 Gender: Co-ed

Total number of students: 330 Average class size (Pre-K): 14 Average class size (K-8): 18 Student/teacher ratio: 17:1 Teacher retention rate: 85% for three consecutive years Religious affiliation Roman Catholic Grade foreign language first offered Grade 6 Languages offered: Spanish STEM Lab and STEM Curriculum for students K-8 Annual tuition (Pre-K): $9,700 Annual tuition (K-8): $8,835 Students receiving financial aid 15% Uniform: Yes Bus transportation: No On-site after school care available until 6 P.M. daily Interscholastic CYO sports begin in Grade 3 and continue to grade 8: Soccer, basketball, baseball, softball, cross country and track & field Number of art studios: 1 Theater productions per year: 4

SCHOOL Connelly School of the PROFILE Holy Child

9029 Bradley Blvd. • Potomac, MD 20854 • 301-365-0955 • www.holychild.org

Enrollment:

355

Grades:

6 -12

Average Class Size:

Year Founded:

1961

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At Holy Child we believe an individualized, challenging, and joyful approach to education creates the next generation of female leaders. Connelly School of the Holy Child is a Catholic, college preparatory school committed to the intellectual, spiritual, artistic, physical, and social development of young women in grades 6-12. We welcome students and families of different faiths and diverse backgrounds. Holy Child offers a rigorous, innovative, and engaging academic program of studies. The 7:1 student/teacher ratio fosters an enhanced, supportive environment built for optimal learning allowing students to develop as leaders and global citizens. In addition to dynamic classroom learning, students are encouraged to explore interests like athletics, arts, clubs, theater, service, and travel. We believe in providing our students with opportunities to try new things, develop their strengths, and reach their fullest potential. In keeping with the philosophy of our founder, Cornelia Connelly, Holy Child values the uniqueness of each individual and fosters a life of service to others by following our motto of “actions not words.” For more information about Holy Child please call 301-365-0955, email us at admissions@ holychild.org or visit our website holdychild.org.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

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SCHOOL The Primary Day School PROFILE 7300 River Road • Bethesda, MD 20817 • 301-365-4355 • www.theprimarydayschool.org

Enrollment:

140

Grades:

PK-2 Average Class Size:

Student/Teacher Ratio:

8:1

Year Founded:

PK–GRADE 2

1944

The Primary Day School is a nondenominational, diverse, coeducational, independent school for children in pre-kindergarten through grade 2. These are the four most crucial learning years of their lives, a time when they are ready for quantum leaps of development. At Primary Day, everything we do focuses on helping young children flourish both academically and emotionally during this vitally important time of life. The Primary Day curriculum is designed specifically to engage young learners. Children gain essential building blocks in reading, writing, phonovisual, mathematics, science, STEM, world languages, social studies, music, physical education and art, creating a firm foundation for ongoing school success and continued personal growth. Primary Day provides enrichment after-care options for families. Individual tours and parent interviews with our head of school are offered during the school day and open houses are hosted in the fall and winter. We also invite you to join our popular Ultimate STEM event. For updated information please see our website. For additional information about Primary Day, please call 301-365-4355, email us at admission@theprimarydayschool.org or visit our website at www.theprimarydayschool.org.

Pre-kindergarten - Grade 2 Applications open September 10 The Primary Day School educates boys and girls during the four most important learning years of their lives, helping children flourish academically, socially and emotionally. We look forward to meeting you! For information on tours and open house events, contact the Admission Office at 301-365-4355 or consult our website.

DISCOVER PRIMARY DAY www.ThePrimaryDaySchool.org

Bethesda, MD

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PRIVATE SCHOOL

Guide Music ensembles: 5 (beginning band, advanced band, beginning choir, advanced choir, chimes) Accreditations/Affiliations Archdiocese of Washington Founded: 1953

St. John’s College High School

2607 Military Road NW Chevy Chase, DC 20015 202-363-2316 www.stjohnschs.org Grades: 9-12 Gender: Co-ed Total number of students: 1,240 Average class size: 21 Student/teacher ratio: 10:1 Religious affiliation Catholic/Lasallian Tradition Seniors with National Merit recognition: 12 Grade foreign language first offered 9 Languages offered: Spanish, French, Latin Lowest tuition for 5-day students: $22,100 Annual tuition for grade 12: $22,100 Students receiving financial aid 39%

Uniform: Yes Bus transportation: Yes Number of AP courses offered: 24 Students scoring 3+ on AP exams: 77% Varsity sports: Baseball, basketball (boys and girls), crew, cross country/track, equestrian team, field hockey, football, golf, ice hockey (boys and girls), lacrosse (boys and girls), rugby, soccer (boys and girls), softball, swim and dive, tennis (boys and girls), volleyball, wrestling Number of art studios: 2 Theater productions per year: 2-3 Music ensembles: 20 Accreditations/Affiliations Association of Independent Schools of Greater Washington, DENA Brothers of the Christian Schools, Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, National Association of Independent Schools, National Catholic Education Association Annual applications per opening: 4:1 Founded: 1851

St. Timothy’s School

8400 Greenspring Ave. Stevenson, MD 21153 410-486-7401 www.stt.org Grades: 9-12 Gender: Girls Total number of students: 175 Average class size: 9 Student/teacher ratio: 8:1 Religious affiliation Episcopal Seniors with National Merit Recognition: 1 Grade foreign language first offered 9 Languages offered: Spanish, French, Mandarin Lowest tuition for 5-day students: Day students $35,800 Boarding students $62,900 Students receiving financial aid 53% Uniform: Yes Bus transportation: No Number of AP courses offered: St. Timothy’s offers the IB Diploma program Varsity sports: Soccer, indoor soccer, field hockey, volleyball, cross country, tennis,

SCHOOL The Maddux School PROFILE

11614 Seven Locks Road • Rockville, MD, 20854 • 301-469-0223 • www.madduxschool.org

Enrollment:

Grades:

PK-2 Student/Teacher Ratio:

5:1

Lowest Tuition for 5-day students:

$32,000

Year Founded:

2004

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“It wasn’t just about reading, math and science. It was about the whole person.” – Maddux Parent The Maddux School teaches young children to recognize and build on their unique strengths and individual learning styles. The Maddux School is a small, private, general education school that provides strong academics, a distinctive social learning curriculum, and differentiated instruction to children in pre-kindergarten through second grade. Our structured classes with low student/teacher ratios are led by highlyeducated and experienced teachers. A speech language and occupational therapist are also key members of each teaching team to support students with language, social and executive function challenges. In a recent 5-year alumni survey, parents attributed their child’s increased self-esteem, flexibility, self-advocacy, and ability to make friends to their years at The Maddux School. Our safety-focused on-campus instruction plan includes robust academics, plus STEAM activities, an active social learning program, music, physical education, and yoga. At The Maddux School, we give our students wings to soar!

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

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SCHOOL Barrie School PROFILE

13500 Layhill Road • Silver Spring, MD 20906 • 301-576-2800 • www.barrie.org/admission

Barrie School is a progressive independent school that inspires Enrollment: excellence, intrinsic motivation, and 350 responsibility through innovation in learning. Serving a diverse and inclusive Grades: student body, our intentional educational throughline—from Montessori (12 months 12 months to Grade 5) to Project-Based Learning (Grade 6 to Grade 12)—cultivates grade 12 learning that lasts. Our challenging educational experiences unlock intrinsic Average Class Size: motivation and innovation in both students and faculty. And our community 16 fosters a deep sense of belonging and honors student voice and responsibility. All of this comes together to create engaged citizens Annual Tuition (Grade 12): with diverse and inclusive worldviews who are confident to be and advocate for themselves. Located in Silver Spring, Maryland, Barrie School provides an extraordinary learning $34,210 environment integrating local, national and global educational opportunities. Our 45-acre campus is home to the world-renowned Barrie Institute for Advanced Montessori Studies— Year Founded: one of the largest school-based teacher training programs in the country—and Barrie Camp, a 1932 Washington, D.C. area tradition since the 1950s.

We Give Them Wings to Soar!

Inspiring excellence, intrinsic motivation, and responsibility through innovation in learning.

Building Strong Foundations for Learning and Friendship

Lower School Montessori Method 12 months - Grade 5

Middle & Upper School

The Maddux School

Project-Based Learning Grades 6-12

Pre-K through Second Grade

• Small Classes in Nurturing Environment

• Flexible, Differentiated Instruction

• Innovative Curriculum and Teaching Methods - Targets academic success, social skills, and self-esteem

• Integrated Support for Different Learning Styles

11614 Seven Locks Road Rockville, MD

301-469-0223 www.madduxschool.org

admission@barrie.org 301.576.2800

barrie.org

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PRIVATE SCHOOL

Guide swimming, lacrosse, softball, basketball, ice hockey, badminton, golf, equestrian Interscholastic sports (middle): Soccer, indoor soccer, field hockey, tennis, golf, basketball, swimming, lacrosse, softball, badminton, cross country, equestrian Number of art studios: 2 Theater productions per year: 3 Music ensembles: A capella, choir, handbell choir, and opportunity for students to take music classes at the renowned Peabody Conservatory Accreditations/Affiliations Middle States Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools, Association of Independent Maryland Schools, Approved by Maryland State Department of Education, International Baccalaureate World School, National Association of Episcopal Schools, the Association of Boarding Schools, the Council of International Schools, National Coalition of Girls’ Schools Founded: 1832

Stone Ridge School of the Sacred Heart

9101 Rockville Pike Bethesda, MD 20814 301-657-4322 www.stoneridgeschool.org Grades: Preschool-Grade 12 Gender: Co-ed Preschool, Pre-K, K; Allgirls Grades 1-12 Total student population: 733 Avg. class size: 16 Student/teacher ratio: 11:1 Religious affiliation Catholic Grade foreign language first offered Preschool (3 year-olds) Languages offered: Spanish, French, Latin Lowest tuition for 5-day students: $21,950 Annual tuition for Grade 12: $39,900 Uniform: Yes Bus: Yes Number of AP courses offered: 21 Upper School Interscholastic Sports: Basketball, cross country, equestrian, field hockey, golf, ice hockey, lacrosse,

swimming & diving, soccer, softball, squash, tennis, track & field, volleyball, winter indoor track Middle School Interscholastic Sports: Basketball, cross country, equestrian, field hockey, lacrosse, swimming, soccer, softball, tennis, track & field, volleyball Number of art studios: 9 Theater productions per year: 2 in upper school, 2 in middle school Music ensembles: Upper school Heartfelt (a cappella), chorus, handbells, instrumental ensemble, band, orchestra, and strings Accreditations/Affiliations AIMS, Middle States Associations Of Colleges And Schools, Network Of Sacred Heart Schools, National Catholic Education Association, National Association Of Independent Schools, National Coalition Of Girls Schools, National Association Of Principals Of Schools For Girls, Association For Supervision And Curriculum Development, Independent

SCHOOL Georgetown Hill Early PROFILE School 7235 Wisconsin Ave. • Bethesda, MD 20814 • 301-284-8144 • www.georgetownhill.com Enrollment:

120 Ages:

Infants, toddlers, twos, threes, pre-K, transitional Kindergarten Year Founded:

1980

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Love Where They Learn! With over 40 years of experience and 40,000 little footsteps walking through their doors, Georgetown Hill Early School is leading the childcare industry with its play-based, joyful approach to learning through its P.L.A.N® curriculum. Research-based and time-tested, P.L.A.N revolves around a child and family first environment. Georgetown Hill Early School is a nonprofit organization and believes in giving back to the families and communities it serves. Children and families develop lasting relationships with their teachers as the organization leads the country with less than 10% teacher turnover. Their whole-child approach to learning is evident as their happy teachers create happy children, and in return happy parents. Georgetown Hill is opening its newest location in Bethesda-Chevy Chase, fall 2021! Now enrolling Infants – Transitional Kindergarten with enhanced health and safety protocols, and touchless drop-off and pick-up procedures.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

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SCHOOL St. Bartholomew School PROFILE 6900 River Road • Bethesda, MD 20817 • 301-229-5586 • www.school.stbartholomew.org

Enrollment:

185

Average Class Size:

Student/Teacher Ratio:

10:1

Annual Tuition:

$13,600

Year Founded:

1963

Enrolling in a private school involves more than simply selecting an academic program for your child. It’s about investing in a decades-long partnership with a team committed to creating opportunities for each student to succeed. Along this journey you will find a supportive network that shares the same values of advocacy, integrity, and resilience. We meet you where you are and as you are because relationships are at the heart of the St. Bart’s experience. We believe strong relationships with teachers, peers, and with God can dramatically enhance academic achievement, motivation, and stewardship. Because of this our Bobcats are more engaged, have stronger social skills, and are equipped to meet the challenges ahead with confidence, joy, and purpose. Children have a wondrous capacity to seek and to discover and when dedicated adults model a love for learning and a growth mindset, we all thrive. This collaborative approach to individualized instruction results in an empowered child ready to excel in an ever-changing world. Discover the difference a small school can make. Discover St. Bart’s!

photo credit: catholic standard

A small school with a big heart.

Discover the difference, discover St. Bart’s! St. Bartholomew School is a Catholic, co-educational, Pre-K 3 to 8 school, located in Bethesda, MD. We prepare our students to be active global citizens who live the Word of God and who are ready to meet the challenges of the 21st century. Come see the big impact our small class sizes, inclusive values, and innovative teaching methods have each day.

www.school.stbartholomew.org admissions@stbartholomew.org

6900 River Road • Bethesda, MD 20817 • 301-229-5586 BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021

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PRIVATE SCHOOL

Guide Education, National Association For The Education Of Young Children Founded: 1923

Washington Episcopal School

5600 Little Falls Parkway Bethesda, MD 20816 301-652-7878 www.w-e-s.org Grades: Age 3 –Grade 8 Gender: Co-ed Total number of students: 320 Average class size: 14 Student/teacher ratio: 6:1 Religious affiliation Episcopal Grade foreign language first offered Age 4 Languages offered: Spanish, French, Latin Lowest tuition for 5-day students: $13,260 Annual tuition for Grade 8: $38,660

Students receiving financial aid 30% Uniform: Yes Bus transportation: No Teacher retention rate: Average tenure of 15 years Interscholastic Sports: Soccer, cross country, basketball, lacrosse, track & field Number of art studios: 3 Theater productions per year: Every grade performs at least once/year for entire school Accreditations/Affiliations Association of Independent Maryland Schools; Association of Independent Schools of Greater Washington; Mid-Atlantic Episcopal Schools Association; National Association of Episcopal Schools; National Association of Independent Schools; Independent Education; Black and Latino Student Fund Founded: 1986

Westmoreland Children’s Center 5148 Massachusetts Ave. Bethesda, MD 20816 301-229-7161 www.wccbethesda.com Grades: age 2-5 Gender: Co-ed Total number of students: 142 Average class size: 12 to 15 Student/teacher ratio: 12:3 Religious affiliation None Lowest tuition for 5-day students: $18,550 for full day Uniforms: No Bus Transportation: No Teach retention rate: 97% Accreditations/Affiliations NAEYC Accredited Founded: 1970

SCHOOL Norwood School PROFILE

8821 River Road • Bethesda, MD 20817 • 301-841-2130 • www.norwoodschool.org

Enrollment:

440

Grades:

PK-8 Average Class Size:

10-12

Student/Teacher Ratio:

6:1

Annual Tuition (Grade 8):

$26,000

Year Founded:

1952

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At Norwood School, we believe that families shouldn’t have to choose between challenging academics and a joyful community. It begins with a simple promise: your child will be known. When students are known, teachers can design learning experiences that stretch without stress. When students are known, they are best able to learn. This is because they feel comfortable asking big questions, taking on advanced challenges, and, most importantly, becoming their true selves. At Norwood School, education expands beyond academics to tap a full range of intellectual, artistic, athletic, social and emotional potential, allowing our students to develop a deep sense of who they are and who they want to be. We are a warm and welcoming community where the voice of every student is heard, and where caring adults model a love for learning and a responsibility for making positive contributions to our world. The result? A vibrant community of students who love coming to school each day. Life-long learners who are confident, curious and creative. Ethical and compassionate leaders who have the skills and values necessary to actively engage in high school and in the wider world.

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SCHOOL The Auburn School, PROFILE Silver Spring Campus Enrollment:

Grades:

K-8

Average Class Size:

Student/Teacher Ratio:

10:2

Year Founded:

2011

9115 Georgia Ave. • Silver Spring, MD 20910 • 301-588-8048 • info@theauburnschool.org • www.theauburnschool.org

The Auburn School grows the social and academic potential of bright students with social and communication challenges. The Auburn School is an independent day-school with a specialized program that offers a stimulating educational program for intellectually engaged students with challenges in the areas of communication, socialization, language and organization. Auburn’s program simultaneously supports the development of academic skills, social competency and pragmatic language in an engaging educational environment. Our program is appropriate for students who can learn successfully and appropriately in a small classroom setting. The Auburn School integrates social skills and pragmatic language development throughout the curriculum and school day using research-based programs and educational best-practices, and provides a challenging academic curriculum featuring multi-sensory instruction, research-based curriculum and appropriate student accommodations. The Auburn School has campuses in Silver Spring, Fairfax, Virginia and Baltimore.

Celebrate

BE CURIOUS

HAPPINESS

Encourage

CURIOSITY

CHALLENGE

Unique Minds No

En ro

llin

Coed I Grades PK-8 Open House: Sat., Nov. 6, 1-3 PM We believe that an open mind and an appreciation of one another's contributions are the strengths of the Norwood community. Our focus on inclusion and respect creates a culture where students and teachers are genuinely curious in learning about one another and the world beyond our school.

8821 River Road Bethesda, MD 20817 301-841-2130

www.norwoodschool.org

Campuses in Fairfax , Silver Spring & Baltimore

www.TheAuburnSchool.org A school for academic and social success! BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021

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SCHOOL Green Acres School Guide PROFILE Enrollment:

168

Grades:

Age 3-Grade 8 Average Class Size:

Student/Teacher Ratio

7:1

Annual Tution (Grade 12):

$40,500

Year Founded:

1934

11701 Danville Drive • North Bethesda, MD 20852 • 301-881-4100 • info@greenacres.org • www.greenacres.org Entering its 87th year, Green Acres School is among the nation’s foremost—and one of the area’s original—progressive schools. Founder Alice Mendham Powell believed that education was the engine of social change, and so she set out to build a school that would give children a voice, empower them to think critically and inventively about real-world problems, and equip them with the skills they need to participate fully in democracy. This legacy of engaged citizenship and academic excellence continues today at Green Acres and is bolstered by the school’s commitment to inclusion and diversity, social justice, service learning, and environmental stewardship. Green Acres graduates find success in high school, college and beyond, using their solid intellectual foundation, creativity, and strong ethical framework to emerge as leaders in a wide variety of disciplines. Located on 15 wooded acres in North Bethesda, learning at Green Acres extends into an oasis of pristine forest, outdoor pathways, gardens, and streams—particularly advantageous for STEAM learning across all divisions—as well as playgrounds and athletic fields. Green Acres was named a MAEOE Maryland Green School in 2015 and 2019; the campus also features a greenhouse. To learn more, go to www.greenacres.org.

SCHOOL Sandy Spring Friends PROFILE School Enrollment:

16923 Norwood Road • Sandy Spring, MD 20860 • 301-774-7455 • www.ssfs.org

685

Sandy Spring Friends School (SSFS), founded in 1961, is a progressive, coed, college preparatory Quaker school serving Grades: students from Preschool (age 3) through 12th Age 3-12th Grade, with optional 5- and 7-day boarding programs in the Upper School. Situated on Grade 144 acres in the historic Sandy Spring area of Montgomery County, MD, SSFS provides Average Class Size: a safe, supportive environment—in a vibrant, diverse, and inclusive community—for 16 young people to discover their passions and become actively engaged in their education. Annual Tution (Grade 12): A low teacher-to-student ratio and small class sizes allow students to experience a rigorous, inquiry-based curriculum with faculty $36,500 who challenge and encourage them, creating an environment where all voices may be heard and where teachers lead and learn alongside students. Our school’s culture—rooted in the idea Year Founded: that collaboration engenders achievement—can be traced to our Quaker heritage and values of simplicity, equality, integrity, stewardship, and peaceful resolution of conflict. SSFS’s program fosters 1961 independence while cultivating self-confidence, cultural identity, and a sense of belonging, resulting in students who become responsible, successful citizens of the world. 142

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NOW IS THE TIME FOR GIRLS. To lift each other up, speak their minds, stand up for their beliefs, and lead change.

Be Empowered. OPEN HOUSE Sunday, November 7 8

All-Girls, Grades 9-12 4920 Strathmore Ave. Kensington, MD

www.AcademyOfTheHolyCross.org • 301.942.2100

Supported. Challenged. Transformed.

Where goals become reality. OPEN HOUSES

UPPER SCHOOL (Grades 9-12) • Sunday, October 17, 2021 MIDDLE SCHOOL (Grades 5-8) • Tuesday, November 16, 2021 LOWER AND MIDDLE SCHOOL (Preschool-Grade 8) •

Fostering compassionate, critical thinkers who lead exemplary lives.

www.ssfs.org/learn-more 16923 Norwood Road • Sandy Spring, MD 20860 • admissions@ssfs.org

Friday, January 7, 2022

WWW.STONERIDGESCHOOL.ORG/VISIT

Empowering leaders to serve with faith, intellect, and confidence.

Stone Ridge School of the Sacred Heart is an all-girls grades 1-12, Catholic, independent school, with a co-educational Little Hearts program for children age three months through Kindergarten, located in Bethesda, Maryland.

WWW.STONERIDGESCHOOL.ORG BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021

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PRIVATE SCHOOL

Guide OFFERING the best in

MONTESSORI EDUCATION for 32 years

LOWER SCHOOL

HIGH SCHOOL

6701 Wisconsin Ave. Chevy Chase, MD 20815

9411 Connecticut Ave. Chevy Chase, MD 20815

VOTED

“BEST MONTESSORI SCHOOL IN THE DC-AREA” - 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 & 2020 Washington Family Magazine.

301-652-7751 admissions@ onenessfamily.org

Fall 2021:

Limited Enrollment for Students Age 2 Through Kindergarten 11931 Seven Locks Road Potomac, MD 20854 301 340 7704 genevadayschool.org

Truth Without Fear Enriching curriculum. . . Geneva Method

Small classes

New protocols for a safe environment Maryland Green School

stt.org International Baccalaureate Grades 9-12 All-girls boarding and day One hour from D.C. 145 rural acres

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Four-time Readers' Pick, Best Preschool

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

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preparing students for lives of purpose, achievement, and generosity of spirit www.potomacschool.org • (703) 749-6313 1301 Potomac School Road McLean, Virginia 22101 Grades K–12 • Extensive bus service in DC, MD, and VA

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Registration:

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www.giswashington.org/openhouse DE

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ELTOFFEN L. W .

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LANGUAGE MATH ART MUSIC • SCIENCE SPORTS • DAY CARE • CAMP

ELTOFFEN L. W .

Fully Licensed & Accredited •

PENDENT. BIL IN

WWW. BETHESDAMONTESSORI.COM

8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. 301.986.1260

At GISW our student body is truly international, united by a shared interest in German language and culture. Knowledge of German is not required for admission to the Pre-K and K programs. Please contact us to set up your personal tour. admissions@giswashington.org 301.767.3807 G I S W

3 - 6 year olds, Pre-K & Kindergarten

NOV. 5, 2021: Age 2 to Grade 12 JAN. 26, 2022: GRADES 5 to12 JAN. 28, 2022: GRADES K to 4

-2

NOW ENROLLING

OPEN HOUSE

since 1983

The Bethesda Montessori School

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PRIVATE SCHOOL

EDMUND BURKE SCHOOL Guide BE CHALLENGED, INSPIRED, & WELL-KNOWN

GRADES 6-12 | WASHINGTON, DC

GET TO KNOW US TODAY!

burkeschool.org/learn ADMISSIONS@BURKESCHOOL.ORG | @EDMUNDBURKESCHOOL

Multicultural. Inclusive. Bilingual. Rigorous. An education like no other in Washington D.C. AGE 2 – 12TH GRADE Authentic immersion for French beginners

THE FRENCH INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL

We now have a second campus in Northen Virginia!

For bright students with language-based learning differences like dyslexia Silver Spring 1300 Forest Glen Road Silver Spring, MD 20901 301.244.3600

Catholic Education for Children Pre-K through Grade 8

St. Jane de Chantal Catholic School is a Christcentered educational community committed to meeting the individual needs of students through a flexible and innovative curriculum. For more information, visit us at Dechantal.org Virtual Tour available.

Northern Virginia 2705 Hunter Mill Road Oakton, VA 22124 703.745.5900

Learn more at www.thesienaschool.org 146

St. Jane de Chantal School

9525 OLD GEORGETOWN RD

•

BETHESDA, MD 20814

•

301.530.1221

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Open House 9:00 am Saturday, January 12

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

Open House 9:00 am

Thursday, October 14

7:00 pm

Thursday, November 11

9:00 am

Saturday, December 11

McLean Sees Gifts. Help Your Child Discover Their Strengths. McLean School transforms lives. Our small classes and Abilities Model® prepare bright students K-12 including those with dyslexia, anxiety, attention, and organizational issues for college success. Potomac, Maryland 240.395.0698 admission@mcleanschool.org

Two convenient locations in Bethesda

COME GROW WITH US!

SERVING THE COMMUNITY SINCE 1970

Westmoreland Children’s Center believes that play is essential to a child’s overall development. At WCC, we know children learn best by investigating, exploring and playing. Students develop social, physical, and cognitive skills through interactive, hands-on experiences. WCC is licensed by the Division of Early Childhood Development/Office of Child Care of the Maryland State Department of Education as a nursery school and as a child care center. Our preschool programs are accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).

301-229-7161 • wccbethesda.com

Ready to Take on the World We prepare preschool through 8th-grade children to become the compassionate leaders, lifelong learners, and creative problem-solvers our world needs. We’d love to meet your family. 1640 Kalmia Road NW Washington, DC 20012 T 202–577–2000 admissions@lowellschool.org

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WOMEN WHO INSPIRE They’re trailblazers, leaders, doers and achievers. They’ve worked hard to get to where they are, and they aren’t stopping. Here are eight local women who are accomplished, fierce—and inspiring. BY AMY HALPERN

Holly Sears Sullivan TWENTY-FIVE YEARS AGO, when Holly Sears Sullivan told her dad she wasn’t going to law school—that she’d pursue a master’s degree in urban planning instead—his first question was: What in the world are you going to do with that? She had no idea, but she told him she’d figure something out. Today, Sullivan—who lives in Rockville with her husband, 6-year-old daughter and two Labrador retrievers—is the head of worldwide economic development for Amazon. In 2018, she led the team that picked Arlington, Virginia (out of more than 200 other places) to become the site of the tech giant’s second headquarters, known as HQ2. More recently she championed the creation of Amazon’s $2 billion Housing Equity Fund, set up to preserve low- and moderate-income housing in Arlington, Nashville and Seattle, where the company is expanding its presence. “I was always fascinated by what makes cities successful and how they grow into these diverse economies,” says Sullivan, 49, who grew up in the Nashville suburbs. She remembers being consumed by the daily news reports when her hometown’s massive highway project, Interstate 440,

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underwent a major expansion in the early 1980s. At 26, she was working for the state of Tennessee and had to speak at a public hearing about zoning laws that were being established where none had existed before. Hundreds of people showed up, most of them angry. They felt like they were being told “what they can and can’t do with their land,” she says. “I just told my inner self, ‘You are going to be as good as you can, but the most important thing is you’re going to earn their trust and you are going to be honest and transparent.’ ” By her late 20s, Sullivan was leading the economic development efforts in Wilson County, Tennessee, then home to about 100,000 people. When she was hired away a few years later by a neighboring county with more than twice the population, she helped negotiate a deal with Amazon to build a 1-million-squarefoot distribution facility in Murfreesboro, the fifth largest city in Tennessee. A graduate of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville (where she also got her master’s), Sullivan moved to Montgomery County in 2012, when she married Morgan Sullivan, now executive managing director of Jones Lang LaSalle’s brokerage divi-

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Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala NGOZI OKONJO-IWEALA, wearing a brightly colored gele, or traditional Nigerian headscarf, is sitting in front of a simple backdrop: a blue wall adorned with the letters “WTO.” The longtime Potomac resident took over the leadership role of the World Trade Organization this spring—the first woman and first African to helm the organization in its 26-year history. On this day in July, the mother of four (and grandmother to four more) is at WTO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, explaining over Zoom her number one priority: removing trade barriers among all the world’s nations so that COVID-19 vaccines, testing supplies and personal protective equipment can flow more freely into countries still struggling to get the coronavirus under control. “When that doesn’t happen,” she says, “many countries and many people…suffer.” In the early days of the pandemic, there were 109 trade restrictions that kept poor countries from having access to COVID supplies; today there are 53, Okonjo-Iweala says. She recently helped get an export restriction temporarily lifted in the U.S. so that India can access a key ingredient it needs to manufacture its own vaccine. She says her role—and the role of the WTO—is to “make sure that trade happens between countries on fair rules. You know, nobody’s cheating the other.” Nominated more than a year ago to head the WTO, Okonjo-Iweala had the support of 163 of the organization’s 164 member countries. But President Donald Trump had blocked her appointment, instead backing the candidacy of a South Korean official. (WTO rules require unanimous approval.) In February, President Joe Biden officially endorsed Okonjo-Iweala, and she took over the position of director-general on March 1. As busy as she is, the 67-year-old Harvard graduate with a Ph.D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology manages to come home every couple of months. Before building their sprawling house nearly 30 years ago, she and her husband, neurosurgeon Ikemba Iweala, and their growing family lived in Chevy Chase and then Bethesda, “near the Y,” she says, referring to the YMCA on Old Georgetown Road. They moved to Potomac in 1994, after her boys kept kicking the football over the fence and into the

neighbor’s yard. “My husband decided we had to move somewhere that had a lot of room for them to run around.” The family first came to the D.C. area in the early 1980s, when she took a job at the World Bank. Over a 25-year career, she rose through the ranks to become second in command, overseeing the financial institution’s $81 billion portfolio in Africa, Europe, and south and central Asia. Her youngest son, Dr. Uchechi Iweala, 33, a spine surgeon in Bethesda, remembers how “homework” from her job would keep her up late at night but that she still spent her Saturdays and Sundays cooking a week’s worth of family dinners (all Nigerian specialties). “Her chicken is amazing,” he says. Growing up in Nigeria as the oldest of seven children, Okonjo-Iweala lived with her grandmother until she was 9; her parents were in Germany getting their advanced degrees. When she was older, her father became the obi, or king, of their township. When he died, one of her brothers became the obi. But Okonjo-Iweala waves away a mention about being a princess. Instead, she talks about serving briefly as Nigeria’s foreign minister and her two terms as the country’s finance minister. Each time her native country called her into service, she’d take a leave of absence or step down from her position at the World Bank. In her first term as finance minister, she led the negotiations that wiped away $30 billion of Nigeria’s debt. In her second term, her work to end corruption in the government’s payroll system and oil industry led to the 2012 kidnapping of her 82-year-old mother. The kidnappers didn’t want money; they wanted Okonjo-Iweala to resign—and to do so on live television. (Under advice of the government, she didn’t step down; the hostage takers released her mom five days later after hearing on the news that police were nearing an arrest.) In many of her roles, Okonjo-Iweala has been the first woman to hold the post. “My aim is to do the job in such a way that it will not be news…that nobody will question anymore that a woman can do the job,” she says. “When men don’t do so well, nobody says, ‘Oh, it didn’t go so well because it was a man.’ ”

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sion. She became stepmom to his three kids, who are now in college, and the family lives in a century-old clapboard house that’s on the National Register of Historic Places. “Preserving the character and the heritage and the storytelling of cities I think is so important,” she says. For nearly four years, Sullivan headed what was then the Montgomery Business Development Corp., a public-private organization tasked with attracting businesses and a diversity of jobs to the county. “Nobody could have done the job better,” says Bethesda real estate and land-use attorney Robby Brewer, who chaired the organization throughout most of Sullivan’s tenure. The role required her to “come into a county that she didn’t know, that still had a government department of economic development that she was not in charge of, that was not very business friendly… and begin to turn all of that around with a startup organization [that had] a very modest budget,” he says. Sullivan stayed at MBDC until the agency was disbanded in 2016, then got recruited by Amazon. Two years later, with Montgomery County on the short list of sites for HQ2 and Sullivan leading the selection team, “Holly gave everybody a fair shake,” Brewer says. It wasn’t easy, he says—20 jurisdictions had made the first cut and were still vying for Amazon’s investment; her travel schedule was grueling. Sullivan didn’t feel any pressure to pick Montgomery County, she says, but the process was so secretive that she stayed at a hotel when she toured the D.C. region so her husband wouldn’t be privy to any of the details. He didn’t even know what city she was in. “She’s still climbing within the corporate leadership positions at Amazon because she conducted—among other things—that search so well,” Brewer says. She still recalls the time more than two decades ago when she was working in Tennessee and lost out on a bid to lure a particular business to her county. She thought she was going to get it. Looking back, she says she likely would have won the bid if she’d studied the company’s operations and needs more thoroughly. “Take risks— you’re not always going to be successful in everything you do, and it’s OK to make mistakes,” she tells the young people she mentors. “I think I’ve learned more from my failures than my wins.”

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TATIANA MURILLO WAS 11 when her mother handed her over to a smuggler in Nicaragua who led her across the Rio Grande and dropped her off at a U.S. immigration detention center in Laredo, Texas. After eight hours in a women’s holding cell, she was put on a Greyhound bus for a 25-hour ride to D.C. to live with relatives in Gaithersburg she’d never met. They’d used their savings to pay the smuggler’s fee and take her in. Murillo had no money and didn’t speak English. “I remember seeing the Capitol [and] the [Washington] Monument,” she says, “and my eyes were lit up.” It wasn’t until high school—when conversations in class turned to college and 152

careers—that she realized her status as an undocumented immigrant meant she wouldn’t qualify for financial aid or be eligible for in-state tuition. “I didn’t see a future,” says Murillo, now 30. “I didn’t see that I could do anything more than maybe clean houses.” At 17, she started sharing her story— with legislators in Annapolis, at rallies, at public forums in front of then-Gov. Martin O’Malley—and advocating for passage of the Maryland Dream Act, which would allow young people like her to pay in-state tuition at Maryland colleges. “A lot of these politicians didn’t know, you know, what we were going through, and the struggles and the injustices that immigrant students faced and how we

PHOTO BY JOSEPH TRAN

Tatiana Murillo

felt left behind by the educational system.” Every time she spoke out, she’d find herself fighting back fear: “Now they know my name, and they know who I am, and they know where I live,” she says. Even with the passage of the Dream Act in 2012, it took Murillo nearly a decade to get her college degree. For the first three years after high school, she worked as a babysitter and took on part-time jobs. After DACA, the federal Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy, was implemented in 2012, she says, “I was able to get a real job, get benefits, health insurance, all those things.” She took night classes whenever she could afford to, first at Montgomery College and then at the University of Maryland. In May 2018, she earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting with a minor in business administration. Today, Murillo is director of finance at Identity Inc., an organization she learned about in middle school when she became active in its youth advocacy program. The Gaithersburgbased nonprofit’s mission is to empower low-income, at-risk, mostly Latino young people in Montgomery County to reach their potential, academically and economically. Murillo is responsible for the $11 million annual budget. When she joined the group 16 years ago, she led HIV peer education programs, advocated for Spanish-speaking school counselors, and spoke at school board meetings on the importance of offering healthier breakfasts and lunches for students who depend on free meals. Once she got her work permit in 2013, Identity hired her as a program assistant to help young adults who enter the U.S. with only an elementary-level education. In 2015, she made the switch to the finance department, and she became head of finance three years later, shortly after getting her degree. Her work these days keeps her behind the scenes, but she still gets calls and emails from 20-somethings who thank her and tell her they started successful businesses or went back to school because they heard her story years earlier. “I remember one time she spoke in church in front of a very large gathering of folks—it was packed with young people, adults, politicians, people from all walks of life—and it was so moving to listen to her,” recalls Candace Kattar, co-founder of Identity. Even as a teenager, Kattar says, Murillo was always careful to talk about her experiences in a way that also reflected the journey of so many others. “I think the ability to share her story that way is what is so inspiring.”

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Jaime Recht FIVE MILES FROM THE finish line in the 2017 Marine Corps Marathon, Jaime Recht’s running guide was sidelined by a foot injury. Recht, who is deaf and legally blind, was determined to keep going. Without anyone to point out the ruts in the road and the changes in slope, she had to slow down in shady spots, crowded areas, or wherever visibility was poor so she wouldn’t trip. Still, she finished the race in 5 hours and 44 minutes. “She has this go-getter personality. …I don’t think it’s a huge hurdle for her to overcome any challenges that come her way, even with her limited sight,” says Gail Edwards, a longtime friend who’s been running with Recht as her guide for nearly a decade. Born deaf, Recht, now 55, was diagnosed as a child with Usher syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that also causes progressive vision loss and balance issues. Yet over the past five years, the Chevy Chase mom has completed three major marathons—in Chicago, New York and Berlin—and she hopes to tackle marathons in London and Tokyo before her sight gets worse. A program analyst with the Federal Railroad Administration in Washington, D.C., Recht is also a passionate cook who loves to travel. Her son Bruce, who’s 27, recalls a family vacation in Costa Rica five years ago when he and his brother, Jason, now 24, had to mediate a heated discussion between their mom and a zip line instructor who didn’t want her doing the course by herself. Of everyone in their family, Bruce says, “[My mom] has always been the most adventurous.” Recht and her husband, Scott, who is also deaf, raised

their sons in Rockville but moved closer to D.C. once the boys were grown. Neither son inherited their mom’s condition—both can hear—but they were fluent in American Sign Language (ASL) before they learned to talk. Recht communicates with non-ASL users mostly via text, email, and phone and video “relay”—she uses the camera on her phone or computer to sign with an ASL interpreter, who then translates what she’s saying. Raised in New York City, Recht attended schools for the deaf from the time she was a young child. When she was 9, a babysitter took her and her younger sister, who’s also deaf, to a movie theater, and both girls grabbed the sitter’s arms as soon as the lights started to dim—they couldn’t see where they were going. The sitter told Jaime’s parents what happened, and soon both girls were diagnosed with the disorder. Before that, Recht says through an interpreter, all she knew was that she’d fall down a lot when she ran. Her balance issues make it difficult for her to run in a straight line, says Edwards, who is also deaf. Since the pandemic, Recht mostly has run alone, primarily sticking to the Capital Crescent Trail because she knows its twists and turns by heart. Whenever she heads out for a run, she wears a reflective sign with the words deaf and blind on the back so other runners know to give her a wide berth. “It helps to clear out my mind of stress and other things like that,” Recht says of her favorite hobby. “Getting out, smelling the fresh air…being out there close to nature…I’m just excited to keep running as long as I can.”

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THIS PAST APRIL, five days into her new job as president and chief operating officer of Suburban Hospital in Bethesda, Jessica Melton was out to dinner with her husband and 7-year-old twins when her throat suddenly tightened and she couldn’t swallow. She realized she was having an allergic reaction to something she ate. Minutes later, she became a patient at the hospital she’d been hired to lead. It was a Friday evening, the emergency room was packed, and she was so new to the job that no one seemed to know who she was. “I was looking at how [the staff] treated each other, how they communicated. Were they looking at the keyboard and the screen or were they looking at me? Were they asking me what I needed?” Melton recalls. Pandemic rules meant she had to go in alone. A nurse saw her waiting, walked over and took her hand, and told her not to worry—they’d take good care of her. “It’s not often a leader gets that experience…to be able to see it and validate it myself…[and what I saw] made me really proud.” Melton, who lives in Bethesda, has spent more than half her life studying hospitals in action, coordinating disaster preparedness programs and making sure emergency rooms run smoothly. At 38, she’s now heading the county’s only designated trauma center. Growing up in the D.C. area, Melton spent many afternoons at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, where her mother was an Army nurse. She’d often visit her aunt, Dr. Vivian Pinn, at the National Institutes of Health, where Pinn led the Office of Research on Women’s Health. “She was a trailblazer,” Melton says of Pinn, a retired pathologist who was the only woman and only African American in her graduating class at the University of Virginia School of Medicine in 1967. “Many times, when you look at people in positions of power…you can’t see yourself in them,” she says. “Seeing my aunt as a woman and African American… a female leader...it gave me permission to aim high.” At the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Melton majored in biology and planned to become an epidemiologist. “I wanted to be Dustin Hoffman from Outbreak…saving a town from Ebola,” she says. She started doing research on how prepared U.S. hospi154

tals were in the event of a national emergency. One article stood out: a U.S. News & World Report cover story, “Crisis in the ER.” It warned that most hospitals in the country were unprepared to handle the volume of patients in a large-scale disaster. The article was published on Sept. 10, 2001, the day before 9/11. “That really spoke to me,” she says. Melton stayed at UNC to complete a master’s degree in health care administration, and on her first day of classes in 2005, Hurricane Katrina hit. “It was like the calling was there,” she says. “I knew exactly what I wanted to do—I knew what my purpose was.” After graduation, Melton was awarded an administrative fellowship at Duke University Hospital. She ended up staying for 14 years, serving in high-level roles that included vice president of medical, surgical, and critical care services and vice president of emergency services and patient flow. Under her leadership, the percentage of patients leaving the ER without being seen dropped 45%, while the volume of patients grew by almost a quarter. In 2019, she left to become COO at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital in Virginia, and less than two years later she came to Suburban. It was an opportunity to “come home,” she says. Carolyn Carpenter, president of the Johns Hopkins Hospital System’s National Capital Region, knew Melton from her days at Duke, and later recruited her—first to Sentara Norfolk, where Carpenter was president, and then to Suburban. “I felt like I was winning the lottery twice,” she says. Even in a crisis situation when things are becoming chaotic, Carpenter says, “she keeps this wonderful analytical ability… and she’s a people person.” It’s a critical time for hospitals and the communities they serve, Melton says. “A lot of folks [who work in hospitals] are incredibly tired” and there’s a heightened demand for treatments that people put off over the last year and a half. Her job now is to make sure the patient experience—everything from medical care to signage to the comfort of the beds and chairs—is positive. And to plan for what’s next. “It’s not just about delivering care,” she says. “We’re one of the [community’s] largest employers. We have a duty to maintain our resilience.”

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Jessica Melton

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Nadia Hashimi and become refugees in Europe—and decided to volunteer for a medical mission. Another woman told Hashimi that the book brought her and her mom together again; they were on opposite ends of the political spectrum but reconnected after realizing they shared similar views on immigration. Hashimi wasn’t even thinking about writing when she visited Afghanistan for the first time in 2003. The Brandeis University graduate, who double-majored in biology and Middle Eastern studies, was then a medical student at SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University in Brooklyn, New York. (She decided on pediatrics after spending college summers working at a camp for families affected by HIV.) During her two-week trip, she visited a maternity hospital and a tuberculosis hospital, and spent time at an elementary school in Kabul, where little girls told her they wanted to become doctors, too. “Afghanistan has been struggling for basically my entire life,” Hashimi says. “And the Afghan American community is relatively new, still getting its footing. But those challenges mean there have also been opportunities to make a real difference.” These days, Hashimi considers herself a full-time author, though she was still working a few days a month at a local pediatric practice before the pandemic hit and her kids started virtual school. She was also the first Afghan American woman to run for U.S. Congress—in 2018, she competed in the Democratic primary for Maryland’s 6th House District seat, an election won by businessman David Trone. Howard University associate professor Norman Sandridge met Hashimi during her political campaign and says he was struck by the way she took the time to listen to constituents and hear people out, “the way a good physician does.” Now she’s on the advisory board of Kallion, a nonprofit focused on leadership in the humanities; Sandridge is co-executive director. Hashimi, he says, “knows how to tell a story that’s wondrous and engaging and emotionally rich, and [she puts] real issues on your radar—and that’s a special gift to be able to do that.”

PHOTO BY LISA HELFERT

PREGNANT WITH HER SECOND child and exhausted from a 10-hour shift at Children’s National Hospital in D.C., Dr. Nadia Hashimi was sitting alone at a Panera Bread in Gaithersburg. It was the fall of 2010, and Hashimi, an emergency room pediatrician, was using a rare moment of quiet to write. “I do remember my eyes just closing over the keyboard,” she says. After taking a short nap in her car in the parking lot, she went back into the restaurant to keep working on her book. Four years later, that book became Hashimi’s first published novel, The Pearl That Broke Its Shell, which tells the story of a young girl in Afghanistan who is forced to dress like a boy because the family has no sons. The tradition predated the Taliban, Hashimi says, but it became even more common under the terrorist group’s rule because Afghan females were not allowed to be in public without male supervision. Hashimi, 43, credits her husband, Dr. Amin Amimi, with motivating her to start a career as a novelist. Amimi, a neurosurgeon, immigrated to the U.S. from Afghanistan when he was 18. The couple married in 2008, and he saw how much his wife loved to read. When he suggested she try writing, she took his advice, she says, “and the words came tumbling out.” As an Afghan American whose parents immigrated to the U.S. in the 1970s, Hashimi had grown up hearing about preTaliban Afghanistan—and she’d kept abreast of the country’s struggles since. Though her parents’ homeland was in the headlines almost daily, there wasn’t much written about the people. “The portrayal of Afghans was kind of flat,” she says. Today, Hashimi is the author of six novels—including A House Without Windows, released in 2016, and When the Moon Is Low, which O: The Oprah Magazine called “a mustread saga” in 2015. Hashimi’s most recent novel, Sparks Like Stars, was released earlier this year. She’s currently working on another book, this one intended for young adult readers. The Potomac mother of four (her kids are 5, 6, 10 and 11) keeps a file of what she calls “amazing emails,” including a message from two physicians who read When the Moon Is Low—about a woman and her family who flee the Taliban

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IT WAS 2006, BUT Ijeoma Enendu still remembers every detail. A Montgomery County patrol officer in Silver Spring, she was sent to the hospital to take the statements of a young mother and father whose 4-month-old daughter had been shaken by a babysitter. Shortly after Enendu arrived, the baby was declared brain dead. The heartbroken parents were living in the country illegally, each working several jobs to make ends meet—they barely knew the woman they’d hired to watch their infant, but didn’t know where else to turn. As the initial responder, Enendu’s job was to write a short report and hand the case to investigators. But after that she spent weeks helping the couple navigate the legal system, finding them Spanish-language counseling services and connecting them to resources that could assist with the hospital bills. Every time Enendu met with the mother to share new information, she could see her eyes light up. “It started turning things in my head about how I saw myself in my career, and how I could help,” she says. “I realized when you go to these calls as an officer, you don’t just go there and play the role… sometimes you have to put yourself in this person’s shoes and do a little bit more.” Enendu had aspired to work in a crime lab, but decided to shift her focus toward community service. Now a sergeant who has been stationed in the Wheaton district for seven years, she and her 10-year-old daughter live in the community she serves. The divorced mom talks to neighborhood kids and their parents at the bus stop, the grocery store and the library. She reaches out to local property managers and shopkeepers. Wherever she goes—in uniform or not—she 158

asks residents about the issues that worry them most: robberies that always seem to happen on payday, domestic violence incidents that people are too scared to report. The folks in these neighborhoods, she says, “know when an officer is just coming out there because they were assigned to come out… but when they see the same face that’s coming out and is genuinely interested…they start to develop that trust.” Enendu also spearheads a program in which she and the officers she works with host meet and greets and other neighborhood events. They visit elementary schools to read to students and have lunch with them. The first few times she went, the kids kept their distance, she says, but soon they were sitting down with their food telling her about their day. Before Enendu became a catalyst for change, “some of these communities would not call us with information—would not even call us if, say, they were a witness to a crime or a suspicious situation where police would need to come out,” says her supervisor, Montgomery County Police Lt. Kenneth Sanger. Now people do call, he says, and they often ask to speak with her. “I’ve never been that kind of person that’s like, ‘I have to be a millionaire,’ ” says Enendu, who studied microbiology at the University of Maryland before graduating with a degree in independent studies focused on forensic science. (She was inspired to change her major after watching shows like CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.) “I’ve always felt that I can be in a career where I make little money so long as I’m happy doing what I’m doing—and for me, when I look back on my journey, this was a perfect match.”

PHOTO BY JOSEPH TRAN

Ijeoma Enendu

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Montgomery College Foundation Welcomes New Leadership U

nder the leadership of Steve McAuliffe, chair, and Mary Pat Alcus, vice chair, the members of the Montgomery College Foundation Board of Directors renew their commitment to ensuring all students have access to the education and job training opportunities they seek. The Foundation also welcomes Bill Foote as treasurer in addition to three new directors, including two outstanding student representatives, both of whom exemplify the College’s mission. We gratefully acknowledge the outstanding guidance our directors provide in addition to their generous philanthropy.

Steve McAuliffe, Chair

Mary Pat Alcus, Vice Chair

Foundation Officers

Kenneth C. Cook

Erica L. Webber

Anne L. Gunsteens

Cristopher J. White

J. Stephen McAuliffe III, Esq., Chair Principal, Miles & Stockbridge PC

Mary Pat Alcus, Vice Chair

Institutional Investment Consultant

William C. Foote, CPA, Treasurer

Partner, Financial Advisory Services, Aronson LLC

Roberta F. Shulman, General Representative Consultant, Shulman Associates

Executive Vice President President of Commercial Banking, Sandy Spring Bank Retired Executive Director, The J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott Foundation

R. William Hard

Retired Executive Vice President and Principal LCOR Inc.

Dawn T. Harris, RN, BSN

Managing Director and Senior Trust Officer Bank of America Private Bank Managing Director, Investments, Penzance

Linda A. Youngentob

Retired Professor, Business, Montgomery College

Michael Yuen, CPA, CFP®

Business and Financial Consultant

Assistant Nurse Manager, Holy Cross Hospital

Directors Emeriti

Connie Oxford McGuire

Douglas M. Firstenberg

Retired Professor, Business, Montgomery College

Principal, StonebridgeCarras

Director of Foundation Finance, Montgomery College

Michael S. Paukstitus

Catherine F. Scott

Professor Emerita, Montgomery College

Directors

Principal, Global Realty Investors LLC

Steven V. Roberts

Ex-Officio

Joyce M. Matthews, Executive Director Vice President for Development and Alumni Relations, Montgomery College

Donna M. Pina, Financial Director

Principal, Rakusin & Becker Management

Shapiro Professor of Media and Public Affairs at George Washington University

Peter M. Bulcavage

Abigail Seldin

Executive Vice President, Buch Construction

CEO of Seldin/Haring-Smith Foundation

Student Board Members

Ashley Cheng

Jane C. Smith*

Christopher Saca*

Martin P. Colburn

Morgan Sullivan

Kenneth H. Becker

Studio Director, Bethesda Game Studios Chief Information Officer, CFA Institute

Independent Consultant Senior Managing Director, JLL

Dr. Charlene Dukes, Ph.D.

Interim President, Montgomery College

Business, Montgomery College

Jonathan A. Spires, CNA*

Nursing, Montgomery College *New board member

To support the Montgomery College Foundation’s mission, please contact Joyce Matthews at joyce.matthews@montgomerycollege.edu or 240-567-7493.

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CARA LESSER’S DAUGHTERS thrived in their play-based preschool. But then they started kindergarten and had to sit quietly at their desks for much of the school day listening to instruction. Something about that didn’t seem right to her. “For all the talk about the importance of creative problemsolving and 21st century skills, it looked very similar to what I had in kindergarten and first grade…what my parents probably had in kindergarten, first grade,” Lesser says. The Bethesda mom wondered if there might be more exciting ways to inspire kids to think critically and develop the mindset to one day address vital issues like poverty, cultural intolerance and climate change. After graduating from Barnard College and getting a master’s degree in public policy from the University of California, Berkeley, Lesser spent 20 years working in the health care policy field. When her younger daughter started first grade in 2011, Lesser gave up that career to research the latest advances in hands-on learning. She was inspired by the “maker movement,” which encourages people to become real-world creators. Within a year, she and a group of friends began organizing “Maker Faires” and pop-up events in downtown Silver Spring and Washington, D.C. Some of their larger events attracted more than 10,000 visitors—and also caught the attention of county leaders who helped Lesser find a permanent space at Davis Library in Bethesda. Today, Lesser’s daughters are 16 and 18, and she’s the executive director of KID Museum, the pioneering center of experiential learning she founded seven years ago. The 7,500-square-foot space features an electronics lab, 3D printers, laser cutters, and a gazillion gadgets lining the walls. Inside is everything 160

students need to build flying machines, create sustainable textiles and more. The museum partners with schools in Montgomery County and D.C. to create projects that build on students’ classroom learning. In non-pandemic times, thousands of kids and their families visit the center annually. In June, KID Museum announced that it would be opening a second site (four times larger than the one at the library) in downtown Bethesda next year. With two locations, satellite spaces and online offerings, Lesser expects that KID Museum will be able to serve more than 100,000 people annually. Since the museum’s inception, Lesser has been especially focused on bringing hands-on learning to students in underresourced communities. “She was very keen on making sure there was a social impact, a cultural relevance,” says KID Museum board member Antonio Tijerino, president and CEO of the Hispanic Heritage Foundation. While students were learning virtually, Lesser and her team sent boxes of supplies—filled with everything from pipe cleaners to microprocessors—to schools in low-income neighborhoods. Even at home, she says, “Kids were learning to code and design and build their own robots and kinetic sculptures.” A second grader who shared her final project at KID Museum’s virtual “Invent the Future Challenge Summit” in June said she loved having the “wiggling room” to make whatever she wanted. “It was super heartwarming,” Lesser says. But it was another child’s comments that stuck with her. “Sometimes people think we’re little and we don’t know anything,” she recalls a little boy saying as he proudly showed off the robot he’d made. “But with this [kit] we saw that…we have good ideas and we can make them come to life.” n

PHOTO BY JOSEPH TRAN

Cara Lesser

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WINNER

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YOUR BUILDER FOR LIFE • S A N D Y S P R I N G B U I L D E R S . C O M IMAGES: STACY ZARIN GOLDBERG PHOTOGRAPHY, MICHAEL KRESS PHOTOGRAPHY

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NEIGHBORHOOD FAVORITES Eight restaurants where the good food and friendly vibes keep bringing locals back BY DAVID HAGEDORN PHOTOS BY DEB LINDSEY

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A neighborhood restaurant is community. It’s an owner saying hello at the door in one moment, then bussing a table or running food the next. It’s a Tanqueray and tonic hitting the bar as a regular pulls up a stool. It’s a gift card donated to support the high school swim team. The food— solid, but not necessarily revelatory—focuses more on the guests than the chef and doesn’t break the bank. Like a friend who found a hairstyle that suited them long ago and stuck with it, the decor can sometimes use an update, but even so, one thing’s for sure: Whether you enter with a walker or pushing a stroller, go there on a date or eat alone at the bar, you’ll be back next week—perhaps to one of the eight local restaurants we highlight here.

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Bartender Francis Jeffrey (left) with customer Tony Cauterucci at Sal’s Italian Kitchen in Cabin John

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Sal’s Italian Kitchen |

Cabin JOhn IT’S A TUESDAY EVENING in June at Sal’s Italian

Above: Sal’s Italian Kitchen bartender Francis Jeffrey with diner Nancy Magill Opposite top: Sal’s owners Stephanie and Damian Salvatore Opposite bottom: The restaurant’s menu includes cioppino (fresh seafood stew) with crostini.

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Kitchen in Cabin John and a server dropping off food at a table spots two regulars on the restaurant’s MacArthur Plaza patio. Her face lights up. “Hey, guys! Where’ve you been?” she asks. Later, the three engage in animated chitchat, showing each other cellphone pics. Diners around the restaurant seem to know each other, too, many of them waving goodbye or hello and fist-bumping on the way in or out. “That happens at all three of our restaurants,” says Stephanie Salvatore, who, with her husband, Damian (he’s the executive chef), owns Sal’s, Wild Tomato a few doors down, and Persimmon in Chevy Chase. She sees parallels with a certain TV watering hole “where everybody knows your name.” “There are reasons why there are places like Cheers,” she says. “I don’t know what the magical ingredient is. Damian is a regular guy, a really good person, and so are the people who work for us, and people are drawn to that.” They’re also drawn to Damian’s Bolognese sauce, which guests buy by the quart, superlative chicken piccata, and Sicilian-style roasted cauliflower with cherry pepper and garlic chili oil. Sal’s seats 60 inside and 12 outside. Stephanie admits the decor—wood banquettes, cement floors, shelving fashioned with metal pipes—is basic, the result of a cash shortage in 2016, when they replaced Indigo House, their Asian fusion concept that lasted 14 months, with Sal’s. The Salvatores live in Garrett Park, but many of Stephanie’s family members moved from her native New Jersey and have lived in Cabin John for more than 30 years. She loves the neighborhood. “When the pandemic hit, the community said, ‘Not today! You’re not going to close on our watch!’ and they rallied and supported us. It showed such kindness.” Sal’s doesn’t take reservations because, Stephanie says, it keeps things more casual. “We’re a ‘let’s just walk on over, you do you’ kind of place.” Sal’s Italian Kitchen, 7945 MacArthur Blvd., Cabin John, 240-802-2370, salsitaliankitchen.net

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CAVA Mezze |

Rockville

THREE FRIENDS—Ike Grigoropoulos, Ted Xenohristos

and Dimitri Moshovitis—grow up together in Montgomery County and wind up in the restaurant business, the first two as servers, the third as a chef. They decide to strike out on their own and, just before Thanksgiving in 2006, open a Greek small plates restaurant called CAVA Mezze in Rockville’s Traville Village Center. Now, there are three other locations of CAVA Mezze (Olney, D.C. and Clarendon) and 130 outlets nationwide of CAVA, the restaurant’s fast-casual iteration, but the partners know that the heart of their empire beats from its first location. “Not the sexiest spot, but the landlord was willing to take a chance on us,” Moshovitis says. “The neighborhood was really undeveloped back then. But what we didn’t know was that the neighborhood across the street—The Willows [of Potomac]—was huge, and the people there were starving for something new.” The place soon took off, with guests gobbling up tzatziki, kitschy saganaki (kefalograviera cheese set aflame tableside), grilled lamb chops and dishes Moshovitis’ mother, Angeliki, makes to this day for the restaurant: spanakopita and baklava. (Don’t miss the watermelon salad with blackberries and feta cheese.) A mural of the three co-founders adorns one wall of a fairly nondescript interior that hasn’t changed much over the years, except for white paint on some formerly black walls. The restaurant has 55 seats inside, including 10 at the bar, and 40 outside. Moshovitis is the executive chef, but brothers Ramon and Juan Rivas have been the chefs de cuisine since day one. One of CAVA Mezze’s first customers was a widower named Dr. Fred Sanford, a resident of The Willows and a retired Navy physician who is still active at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. “Dr. Fred is like our dad,” Moshovitis says. “He’s been to our weddings, to both of my children’s christenings and to some of our other team members’ life events. At Christmas, he gives the whole staff a bonus.” Sanford regarded CAVA Mezze from the beginning as a sort of neighborhood pub where he could eat alone or with neighbors that would show up. “The food is wonderful, and the quality hasn’t varied over the years. I just turned 80, and I plan on going there for many more years,” he says. CAVA Mezze, 9713 Traville Gateway Drive, Rockville, 301-309-9090, cavamezze.com BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021

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The Daily Dish |

Silver Spring

THE REV. JOHN MUDD, a retired Catholic priest,

is such a fixture at his favorite neighborhood restaurant that owner-chef Jerry Hollinger and staff refer to him as the mayor of The Daily Dish. “I tell everyone it’s my country club. The clubhouse is perfect, but they haven’t built the tennis courts, swimming pool or golf course yet,” jokes Mudd, who lives in Rock Creek Gardens, across Washington Avenue from the Rock Creek Shopping Center where The Daily Dish has operated since 2009. “I live by myself and have made a lot of friends there over the years. I’ve even [performed] weddings of people I met there. It’s just a fun place, almost like family for me.” He notes that the pizzas are good, the hamburgers terrific. “I don’t think I ever had a bad meal there.” When Hollinger, who lives in Silver Spring’s Woodside neighborhood, took over the Red Dog Cafe and turned it into The Daily Dish, he started offering more daily specials, using more Above: The Daily Dish incorporates fresh, local produce in its dishes, such as this peach salad with goat cheese, arugula, shaved red radishes, toasted pecans, chamomile vinaigrette and balsamic reduction. Left: Diners at brunch on the patio

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Pacci’s Trattoria Silver Spring

FOR NORTH POTOMAC RESIDENT Spiro Gioldasis,

fresh produce and improving service. He got a liquor license and put in a 10-seat bar that has become a hub for regulars. It took several years to get established, but now the restaurant is a mainstay. It was named Favorite Gathering Place of the Year at the Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington’s 2018 RAMMY awards. Chef José Rivas has helmed The Daily Dish’s kitchen for eight years. This June, his specials— always a good bet—included ultratender osso buco, and shrimp and salmon pappardelle with asparagus and peas. Hollinger had purchased the veggies on his weekly trip to Amish produce auctions in southeastern Pennsylvania. The menu always includes seasonal fish and seafood, such as soft-shell crabs, rockfish and halibut. The narrow restaurant seats 50 indoors. A glass garage door in the front opens to a patio, where, after the onset of the pandemic, capacity doubled from 25 to 50. The restaurant features local artwork, and you can catch performances by local jazz musicians twice a month on Sundays from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. The Daily Dish, 8301 Grubb Road, Silver Spring, 301-588-6300, thedailydishrestaurant.com

who opened Pacci’s Trattoria in Forest Glen in 2012, the formula for a perfect neighborhood restaurant is pasta, Neapolitan-style pizzas baked in a wood-burning oven, and a loyal, kid-friendly staff. Pacci’s seats 75 in a series of small rooms and 55 on a large patio. When indoor seating was prohibited during the pandemic, Gioldasis spruced up the place by painting the interior and adding lots of pictures from Italy (Sophia Loren figures prominently). For Pacci’s regular Joe Petrucci, having a neighborhood restaurant is personal. He grew up in a small town in southwestern Pennsylvania where all his favorite neighborhood places in his teenage years were replaced by big-box restaurants. Olive Garden’s arrival delighted townspeople but “disgusted” Petrucci, he says, because it replaced a beloved joint called Jimmy’s Lunch. Petrucci had met Gioldasis through friends, and he, his wife, Meghan, and their two children, now 17 and 19, started frequenting the Pacci’s on Georgia Avenue in Silver Spring when it opened in 2011. (It closed in 2018.) “When Spiro said he was going to open the trattoria [in Forest Glen], we were thrilled because we can walk there. We average maybe 80 trips a year there now,” Petrucci says. “Our kids have gotten to grow up having a neighborhood place like [Meghan and I] did. We always see people from the neighborhood there. We go with other neighborhood families on Sunday nights a couple of times a month and call it ‘Family Dinner.’ ” While other diners rave about the Margherita pizza, pappardelle bresaola and chicken marsala, Petrucci is devoted to a grilled pork chop special mounded with cherry tomatoes sauteed in butter with garlic, onions and herbs. “I’ve probably had 300 of those over the years,” he says. Pacci’s Trattoria, 6 Post Office Road, Silver Spring, 301-588-0867, paccistrattoria.com BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021

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Buck’s Fishing & Camping Upper Northwest D.C. “WELL, COME ON IN” is painted on the glass entrance doors

of Buck’s Fishing & Camping, an imperative I’ve been heeding ever since the restaurant opened in Upper Northwest D.C. in 2003. That’s not quite my neighborhood, but the charming 70-seat dining room with red walls, giant white Japanese lanterns, elaborate sprays of flora, and tables bedecked in red-checkered cloths calls me back over and over again. An added lure is the parking lot behind the strip of businesses (which includes the Politics and Prose bookstore, often a post-meal stop), as is the 20-seat patio that fronts Connecticut Avenue. I’ve attended or hosted countless birthday celebrations and dinners with friends at Buck’s, often at the communal table running down its center, but mostly it remains a frequent Friday date night destination for my spouse and me, ensconced at the bar facing artist Lucy Hogg’s enormous painting of cherubs hovering above a naked Venus. Chef James Rexroad helms the kitchen at Buck’s, which relies heavily on seasonal, locally produced ingredients. I love many dishes on the quintessentially American menu— the fish and chips, the roast chicken, the tower of ethereal onion rings—but usually order the wedge salad rife with creamy horseradish dressing and bacon, followed by a 16-ounce, wood-grilled prime New York strip—the best steak in town and, at $39, the biggest bargain, too. Owner James Alefantis is loath to raise the price. “I said all those years ago that we can’t go above $40. Now, people come for it. We make a little on it, but it’s a loss leader,” he says. The restaurant’s sole dessert, a square of buttermilk chocolate cake topped with warm chocolate sauce and unsweetened whipped cream, is divine. General manager Siiri Saloma and server Nour eddine Bouzerda, who’ve worked at Buck’s as long as I can recall, make visits there extra special. “They know everybody,” Alefantis says. “Siiri knows who can sit next to whom and who got the restaurant in the divorce.”

Vasili’s Kitchen Fresh Mediterranean Gaithersburg IN 2001, KENTLANDS RESIDENTS Julie and Vasilis

“Bill” Hristopoulos opened Vasilis Mediterranean Grill on Main Street, a 1,500-square-foot restaurant with 50 seats that served simple Greek fare. In 2016, the mom-and-pop operation moved four blocks away and rebranded as a more upscale version, Vasili’s Kitchen Fresh Mediterranean, a 4,200-square-foot restaurant that accommodates 186, including 20 in the bar area and 80 on the patio. Katiria Morales is the Vasili’s Kitchen serves Greek food, including lamb chops with oven roasted potatoes, tzatziki, chermoula (herb sauce) and Greek coleslaw.

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The patio at Vasili’s Kitchen in the Kentlands in Gaithersburg

restaurant’s chef. D.C. firm HapstakDemetriou+ designed the farmhouse industrial chic space, complete with Edison bulbs, reclaimed wood, a wood-burning oven, and a bar with glass shelves suspended from the ceiling to hold bottles of liquor. Dona Allen, a Kentlands resident for 15 years, goes to Vasili’s Kitchen two or three times a week. “I walk in the neighborhood all the time and had my eye on this place from the moment they moved the first timber. [My husband and I] couldn’t wait to go in. I think we helped open the door on the first day,” she says. Allen loves the beet salad, grilled lamb chops, branzino and the grilled talagani, a Greek sheep’s milk cheese. “It’s all soft and gooey and going right to your waistline, but it’s delicious!” Allen considers the staff and managing partners to be like family, but reserves her highest praise for general manager Angelo Xenakis. “There is not one aspect of management that Angelo does not participate in, from repairs to kitchen duty to developing new menu items that customers often get to sample,” she says. “My husband passed away in April [2020] in the middle of COVID. There were no churches, no way to have a funeral. Angelo said, ‘Why not have it here at the restaurant?’ ” The service was held there on Sept. 1, 2020, when indoor seating capacity was at 50%. “I’d have never thought to have a

funeral in a restaurant,” Allen says. “Angelo has an extraordinary understanding of people.” Vasili’s Kitchen Fresh Mediterranean, 705 Center Point Way, Gaithersburg, 301-977-1011, vasiliskitchen.com

Angelo Xenakis (left), the general manager at Vasili’s Kitchen, and Bill Hristopoulos, the owner, at the bar

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Fontina Grille |

Rockville

IN THE SPAN OF a few minutes on a bustling

Saturday night, Fontina Grille’s majority owner, Ali Abduljabbar, dressed in a black T-shirt like the bussers, greets and seats guests, fixes a party’s

wobbly table leg, delivers food to patio diners and laughs with regulars at the bar. Abduljabbar grew up in Derwood, earned a Bachelor of Science in information systems from the University of Maryland in 2003 and went into IT and finance. “I used to see cornfields in King Farm. When they built the development [in the late 1990s], I knew a restaurant would do very well there,” he says. When Fontina Grille, which had opened a week before 9/11, became available in 2008, he bought it. Five years ago, he made manager Jad Malaeb a managing partner and co-owner. Coming into the restaurant business with so little experience, Abduljabbar, who lives in Rockville, knew that establishing relationships in the neighborhood early on was crucial to the survival of

Above: The bar at Fontina Grille in Rockville’s King Farm neighborhood Right: The Italian fare includes crab and salmon rose—a linguini dish with crabmeat, salmon, spinach and rose cream.

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Gringos & Mariachis |

Potomac

ON HER BROTHER’S RECOMMENDATION in 2015,

Rockville resident Ali Abduljabbar bought Fontina Grille in 2008.

his business. King Farm resident Deann O’Brien, who works in business development for M&T Bank, has been a regular at Fontina Grille since it opened. Recently, she celebrated her mother’s 84th birthday there. “The bartenders, Jad, Ali know my mother. She feels special there. My daughter lives in the neighborhood and brings my 20-month-old granddaughter to my house in her stroller and we walk to the restaurant—no car seat to deal with. It’s fun for my husband to go to the bar alone when I have to be at events at night for my job. He made a lot of friends that way. When I have a client lunch, my first place to take them is to Fontina. It is our Cheers,” O’Brien says. The restaurant’s 180 seats include 50 in the large bar area. “Most of my staff has been with me for more than 10 years, the kitchen staff from day one. Many start as bussers and go into manager positions. I’m very blessed in that sense,” Abduljabbar says. Bestselling dishes, prepared by chef Orbin Rodriguez, include penne a la vodka, eggplant parmigiana, seafood in a tomato cream sauce, and New York-style brick oven pizza. Fontina Grille, 801 Pleasant Drive, Rockville, 301-947-5400, fontinagrille.com

Potomac resident Rachel James, a teacher at St. Raphael School in Rockville, discovered Bethesda’s hip Mexican restaurant Gringos & Mariachis. “He told me I had to have the duck tacos. Even though I don’t eat duck, I tried them anyway and they were amazing. And the margaritas were life-changing,” she says. So when the restaurant opened a location in 2017 in Park Potomac—“walking distance on a nice day” from her Regency Estates home—she was elated. Since then, she and her husband, Brian, a financial analyst, have gone there two or three times a week, whether for a Friday date night or for dinner or noshes between soccer games with their three kids. She especially likes that the restaurant, with space for 100 diners inside and 50 outside, has big windows and garage doors that are opened when weather permits. “Even if you’re indoors, you’re still outdoors with the breeze coming through,” she says. Another plus: low staff turnover. “It’s nice to see the same faces over and over. The owners [Marc Miranian and Roberto and Riccardo Pietrobono] kept so many people working during the pandemic. It makes you think they take care of their staff.” Day of the Dead-themed decor, including many murals by Mexican street artists, and a bustling bar scene contribute to Gringos & Mariachis’ cool vibe. Servers Billy Moore and Javier Melendez put on a show by lining up as many as eight plates of tacos, guacamole, ceviche and other specialties on each arm from hand to neck. And don’t pass up one of the 10 flavors of margaritas, James says. “I feel really lucky to have this in our neighborhood. There’s not a lot going on in the 2-0-8-5-4.” Gringos & Mariachis, 12435 Park Potomac Ave., Potomac, 301-339-8855, gringosandmariachis.com n David Hagedorn is a cookbook author and the restaurant critic for Bethesda Magazine and Arlington Magazine. BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021

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‘It Still Seems Unbelievable’ At 36, Simon Maloy was a successful political writer with a wife and two young sons. Then he found out he had colon cancer, a disease striking more and more young people.

COURTESY PHOTO

BY MIKE UNGER

Leslie and Simon with sons James (left) and Avery in December 2018

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Maloy got. Three days to hop on bikes with his two young sons without thinking it could be their last ride together. Three days to cook pizzas in the backyard oven at the Kensington home he and his wife, Leslie, loved. Three days to focus his razor-sharp mind not on his health, but on the writing that had earned him admiration and notoriety within the progressive political universe and respect beyond it. Maloy was just 36 years old when he was diagnosed with colon cancer in October 2017. After surgery and a grueling six months of chemotherapy, his doctors were optimistic when his CT scan came back clean in May 2018. But three days after that procedure, his oncologist called to tell him that his blood work was back from the lab, and the enzymes that tend to correlate with cancer were elevated. It wasn’t a good sign. “That was crushing to him,” says his father, Chris. “I can remember us sitting in the kitchen. It was the only time I saw him cry about it.” After another year of appointments with doctors, chemotherapy treatments, and an experimental drug trial, all of which brought glimmers of hope followed by cold doses of reality, a surgeon discovered that the cancer had spread. Six weeks later, Maloy was dead at the age of 37. “Sometimes it still seems unbelievable,” Leslie says. “Nineteen months… and gone. Gone.” She’s sitting on the couch in her new home on a sunny day in June, two years after her husband’s death. The house is just a few blocks from the old one, where she and Simon brought their firstborn, Avery, now 7, from the hospital, then two years later introduced him to his brother, James, who is 5. It was there that Hildy, the beautiful tricolor Bernese mountain dog lying comfortably at Leslie’s feet, joined the family as a puppy while Simon was in the throes of chemo, a bright spot during the darkest days. A photograph of the couple and their children, taken just 174

before Simon started losing his hair, sits on the mantel above the fireplace. One of Simon, his parents, and his two brothers is displayed on an end table, and a picture Leslie took of her husband alone in the dining room is propped up on a table in the foyer. “You don’t want to make a shrine to someone. He would probably come and haunt me if I did that,” says Leslie, who moved in last December. “I want him to be present, I want him to be here, but I also need it to not feel like a museum. That was one of the reasons I ended up moving in the first place. This thing that had been a comfort—our house, where all our memories were—started to feel like the set of a life that isn’t anymore, for any of us.” How could an outwardly healthy, 6-foot-3-inch, 205-pound man in his 30s who routinely exercised, didn’t drink in excess or smoke, ate right and was, in the words of his mother, “as strong as

Above: Leslie at home in Kensington with Hildy, the Bernese mountain dog the family got as a puppy while Simon was going through chemo Left: Leslie and Simon visited Australia in the fall of 2013. They were expecting their first child.

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THREE DAYS. THAT’S ALL Simon

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an ox,” get colon cancer? It’s a question researchers, oncologists and an increasing number of younger patients are asking themselves these days. Even as the overall number of colorectal cancer cases—colon cancer or rectal cancer— is decreasing, the rate among adults younger than 50 has more than doubled since the 1990s, according to the National Cancer Institute. “If the current trends continue, by 2030, colon cancer cases are expected to increase by 90% in patients under 35, and rectal cancer cases are expected to

increase by 124% in patients that age,” Dr. Y. Nancy You of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center said in an article for the center in October 2020. “In addition, about 60% of these young patients are diagnosed with stage III and IV colorectal cancer. That means their cancer is being found later, when it’s harder to treat.” That was the case with Maloy, who was a bit of an introvert despite being widely known for his sharply worded writing and opinions. “There really was nothing he wanted more in the world

than to be home hanging out with family and friends, raising his boys, cooking amazing meals or baking bread, doing the Sunday New York Times crossword, playing with his dog, or puttering around in the raised-bed garden he built in our backyard,” Leslie, 43, says in an email. “There is still nothing we want more than to have him back with us again.”

FROM A YOUNG AGE, Maloy harbored a love for writing and an intolerance for injustice. He was a sensitive kid, always quick to snuggle up to the family’s

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‘it still seems unbelievable’ Bernese mountain dogs. The middle of three boys, he wrote about his younger brother, Owen, in grade school, concluding that “he’s kind of an OK guy. I think we’ll keep him,” as his father recalls. By high school, Maloy was writing fiction for pleasure and playing hockey in his hometown of Greenwich, Connecticut. When a game against a rival included several controversial calls and ended in a loss, his team skated off the ice, forgoing the traditional postgame handshakes. “Everyone except for one player—that was Simon,” says his mother, Susie. “He alone went down the line.” Maloy majored in history at Williams College in Massachusetts, but he didn’t become overtly political until after his graduation in 2003, when he started listening to the now defunct left-leaning radio network Air America. One day he

ple that has ever set foot in that organization. He could cut right to the core of something and lay it out very plainly and simply in a way that is compelling. In one sense his prose was kind of eloquent, but it was very accessible.” On New Year’s Eve in 2004, Simon and Leslie were introduced at a mutual friend’s party. She thought he was cute, and also was attracted to his quick wit and intelligence. “In a crowded room, he was not going to be the guy who was holding court in the corner. That was not him,” she says. “He was the guy who was going to be observing everyone in the corner. In some ways, he was a lot more comfortable behind a computer screen where he could write.” They dated for six years before marrying in 2011 in Oaxaca, Mexico, about a four-hour drive from the Mexican town where Leslie’s mother grew up. By this time, Leslie was working in media relations and Simon had become a wellknown pundit in political circles. For six months, he liveblogged while listening to every second of every Rush Limbaugh broadcast. It was a job that “might be your idea of hell, or it might be your idea of paradise,” The Boston Globe wrote in a 2009 story about him. For Maloy, holding those he considered right-wing rubes accountable in articles and on social media was pure pleasure. His Twitter account eventually had more than 52,000 followers. When he wasn’t throwing jabs and barbs toward people he saw as insincere or hypocritical, he would post about his cooking or his dog. “I am old enough to remember when Chris Christie was the blue-state Republican governor that was gonna win it all. I am four years old,” he posted on Feb. 21, 2019. A day later: “I want the Mueller

“HE WANTED HIS WORK TO SPEAK FOR ITSELF,” LESLIE SAYS. “HE DIDN’T WANT IT TO BE LIKE, ‘THE GUY WITH CANCER WROTE THIS.’ ” heard an interview with Media Matters for America founder David Brock that captivated him. He wrote to Brock and eventually landed an internship with the progressive organization before becoming a paid member of its staff. “We were all broke, entry-level people in D.C., so we did poker games and stuff like that. Simon and I became friends because we both sucked at poker,” says Julie Millican, vice president of Media Matters, who met Maloy in 2005. “Everybody was always intimidated by him until you got to know him because he was so smart and one of the most talented peo176

report mainly so I can see Rudy Giuliani on TV with all his facial features going in different directions at the same time.” In 2013, Maloy left Media Matters for a short stint with the Democratic National Committee before eventually landing at Salon. There, he wrote an essay the day after Donald Trump’s election that received more than 11,000 views on Facebook. “In my capacity as a media figure, I too often treated Trump as a joke, a bumbling incompetent, someone who obviously could not be treated seriously as a legitimate candidate for the presidency. Now I can only think that I was too hidebound by conventional wisdom, too comfortably out of touch to see what was in front of me. I succumbed to the sideshow element of this awful race more times than I can be comfortable with. I own this failure, too.”

IN THE LATE SUMMER of 2017,

Maloy began experiencing nagging stomach pain. “You could hear his stomach churning,” Leslie says. “It sounded like water going down a drain. Sometimes I could hear it from across the room.” A doctor initially thought it could be irritable bowel syndrome, but medication for that didn’t help. So Maloy went to a gastroenterologist, who ran tests that were inconclusive. A week later, Leslie was getting ready to go out with friends when her husband emerged from their bedroom. “It stopped me in my tracks because all of a sudden he looked incredibly sick. He was just gray,” Leslie says. “I actually said, ‘I can’t leave you.’ I canceled my plans and said, ‘You’re going to go see the doctor tomorrow. This is ridiculous. You look horrible.’ ” His weigh-in at that appointment showed that he had lost 9 pounds, and a CT scan was scheduled for the following Monday. It was mid-October, and Maloy had gone back to work for Media Matters, so he went to his office after the procedure. When he got there, the doctor called asking him to come back. “We went in and the office was empty,” Les-

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lie says. “I thought, ‘Oh, this is not good.’ The doctor said that they had found a large tumor in his colon, and she told us to go home and pack a bag and go to the emergency room.” On the way home, Simon called his parents. “I will never forget his voice,” his father says. “He simply said, ‘I have cancer.’ He wasn’t tearful, but he was clearly shaken.” That Thursday, Maloy underwent surgery at D.C.’s Sibley Memorial Hospital that removed 12 inches of his colon, the tumor, and some lymph nodes. The pathology revealed that his cancer was the most advanced level of Stage 3. Worse, doctors found that he had signet ring cell carcinoma, an aggressive subset of colon cancer. “ We typically think about the progression of colon cancer from a polyp to cancer over a 10-year period, which is why we recommend get-

ting a colonoscopy every 10 years,” says Dr. Valerie Lee, Maloy’s oncologist at Sibley. “But when people have these features, our best guess is it comes up much more quickly.” No one knows exactly why rates of colorectal cancer, which is the third most common cancer diagnosed in both men and women in the U.S. excluding skin cancers, are rising among younger people. One theory points to genetics. Nearly a third of colorectal cancer patients under 35 have an inherited genetic mutation that caused their cancer, compared with 3% to 5% of all patients, according to MD Anderson. About 15% to 20% of patients under 35 have a family history of colorectal cancer or of other cancers that indicate they may be at higher risk, compared with about 12% to 15% of all colorectal cancer patients, the center says. Though Maloy’s maternal grand-

father died from colon cancer when he was 58, Leslie says that wasn’t something Simon worried about. Despite the slight increase of younger patients who have a genetic predisposition, most of the colon cancer cases in people under 50 that Lee has seen haven’t been related to genetics. “We think that there may be something in our environmental exposures, possibly in some of the foods that we’ve eaten,” she says. “There’s a lot of interest in looking at our gut flora as well.” In 2018, the American Cancer Society lowered the recommended age for a first colonoscopy in average-risk adults from 50 to 45. But Lee says that shouldn’t dissuade anyone younger than that who has symptoms—which include persistent abdominal pain, unexplained weight loss and rectal bleeding—from consulting their physician immediately. Colon can-

Adam Isaacson Team The Adam Isaacson Team is affiliated with TTR Sotheby’s International Realty. Our team provides high level expertise on luxury residential sales in the Washington Metropolitan area (MD, DC, VA). From 2014-2021 we have been chosen as a Top Producing Team at Washingtonian Magazine, Best Team Bethesda Magazine, Top 100 Agents in Maryland, and most recently Adam was inducted into The Marquis Who’s Who in America® for outstanding achievements in the real estate field. Our focus is on: 1) Families looking for a place to call “home”; 2) Downsizers hoping to sell their luxury homes and move into walkable communities; and 3) First time homebuyers; Our team’s mission is to create an open and honest relationship, offer personalized guidance and help our client’s make smart real estate decisions. We also have a lot of fun :)

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‘it still seems unbelievable’

cer is usually more treatable the earlier it’s caught, she says. Despite the seriousness of Maloy’s circumstances, doctors were cautiously optimistic that the surgery was successful. But they still proceeded with an aggressive plan to fight the disease. Maloy, who came out of the hospital 21 pounds lighter than when he checked in, went back to Sibley for chemo once every two weeks, then did follow-up at home. He didn’t lose his hair, but the side effects were rough. He had a metallic taste in his mouth that ruined the flavor of some foods, particularly frustrating for a gourmand who once wrote a food blog. He was so sensitive to cold that he had to wear gloves to get something from the refrigerator. Throughout this ordeal, he kept working, going into the office when he could. He would type on his laptop during the five-hour chemo sessions until he felt so awful that he had to quit. Then he was out of commission for several days. Still, he told almost none of his colleagues about his condition. “He did not want to be pitied,” Leslie says. “He wanted his work to speak for itself. He didn’t want it to be like, ‘the guy with cancer wrote this.’ ” After that three-day reprieve in May 2018, Maloy’s spirits sagged. He always heeded his doctors’ advice and never gave up hope that he’d be cured, but he also wasn’t the type to hold unrealistic expectations. One of his favorite articles in The Onion, his father says, is headlined “Loved Ones Recall Local Man’s Cowardly Battle With Cancer.” In October, another CT scan showed cancerous lymph nodes in his abdomen. He was Stage 4. Terminal. He started another round of chemo, which was even more brutal than the first. His hair started falling out. He kept working, but primarily from home. Steroids affected his ability to sleep, and bumps started protruding from under the skin on his neck. Still, in April 2019 he cooked Easter dinner for the family. He was in good 178

spirits, and tweeted a picture of a halfeaten cake that had fallen victim to Hildy. Later that week, doctors found an enlarged lymph node pressing on his bile duct. When a surgeon went to place a stent to bypass the blockage, he realized that the cancer had spread throughout Maloy’s abdominal cavity and stomach. This time, Maloy declined to go through another round of chemo. “He said, ‘I just want to go home, be in my house and be with my boys,’ ” Leslie recalls. “So we did.” Even before her husband got sick, Leslie made a point of talking to her kids about death. She never wanted it to be a mystery to them. She’d stop to point out a bug on the sidewalk that had died. Everything, she told them, has a beginning and an end. “In terms of Simon’s illness, I told them that he had a sickness called cancer,” she says. “I always used to say that the doctors were trying their best to help him, but I tried to never make it seem like he’s going to be all better.” Maloy spent his final weeks at home in hospice care. One night before bed, then 5-year-old Avery asked Leslie if his daddy was going to die. “I said, ‘Yes, he’s coming to the end of his life very soon,’ ” Leslie says. “He said, ‘Daddy can’t die; he’s part of my family. What am I going to do without a dad?’ He was so upset, it was so heartbreaking. I honestly think that was worse than the moment that I had to tell them that he had died. It was the breaking of the innocence.” Simon Maloy passed away in the early morning hours of June 10, 2019. Leslie and his parents were by his side. “I think it’s the final act of love that you can give, to walk with someone in those moments that ultimately they are doing by themselves,” she says. “He was surrounded by love.”

ON THE AFTERNOON OF her hus-

band’s death, Leslie began getting texts from friends telling her that Simon was trending on Twitter. Media Matters, which started a GoFundMe that raised more than $100,000 for the fam-

ily, had put out a statement about him, and his readers, followers and fans had responded en masse. “This won’t make sense to everyone, but @SimonMaloy was my favorite person I didn’t know. I already miss him,” one person wrote. “I’m in tears. I feel like I’ve lost a friend,” posted another. “You see someone in the light of your own relationship: He was my husband— he was the father of my children,” Leslie says. “Here were strangers mourning Simon and talking about how much he meant to them, how much they loved to read what he had to say, how they were going to miss him. It was lovely and touching. It felt like a hug from the universe.” In the beginning, she says, grief was there from the time she woke up until she closed her eyes. It has relented, but not left. “I see how big the kids are now, and that’s where I realize that time is passing,” Leslie says in June. “That feeling of time separating you from someone is really painful. It feels like a forced separation. There’s nothing you can do about it, and every day that goes by and every milestone that they miss is just pushing them in time away from you. But I think eventually small happinesses start to wiggle their way in.” Minutes later, Susie Maloy pulls into the driveway with James. She and Simon’s father fulfilled their son’s dying wish—“the only thing he ever asked us to do for him,” Chris says—and moved from Connecticut to D.C. to help raise the boys. As Leslie walks outside into a chorus of cicadas, Hildy trots by her side. In the driveway, she hugs James, who is a smiling, sweaty mess after a half day of outdoor pre-K. Together, they all walk back into the house, where old memories endure and new ones are waiting to be made. n Mike Unger is a writer and editor who grew up in Montgomery County and lives in Baltimore.

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SEASON

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Live music makes a bold return to the Concert Hall

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SCOTT BRADLEE’S

POSTMODERN JUKEBOX THE GRAND REOPENING TOUR Sun, Oct 24

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Horticulturist Kelley Heim is pictured in the Brookside Trial Garden, where staff test new plants on the market to see how they fare in Maryland’s climate. “It’s really intense there— the heat is high and the sun is unrelenting,” she says. “I joke that if it can survive the Trial Garden, it can survive anywhere at Brookside.”

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Escaping to Brookside Gardens BY CARALEE ADAMS | PHOTOS BY LAURA CHASE DE FORMIGNY

TUCKED AWAY JUST BEYOND the whir of traffic on Georgia Avenue in Wheaton, Brookside Gardens is an oasis of sorts. Winding paths lead visitors around lush displays and manicured landscapes featuring more than 20,000 species of plants that change with the seasons. With its ponds, brooks and gazebos, the 50-acre property was never a more popular refuge than during the pandemic. “When traditional entertainment, businesses, shopping centers and restaurants all closed down, people turned towards the outdoors as a safe place to be,” says Stephanie Oberle, who has been director of Brookside since 2008 and has worked there for 24 years. A publicly funded display garden that charges no entry fee, Brookside kept its outdoor space in Wheaton Regional Park open from sunrise to sunset throughout COVID-19, attracting nearly 850,000 visitors in 2020—about 50% more than in a typical year. When Brookside was founded in 1969, Montgomery County had about 500,000 residents; today the county is

home to a diverse population of more than 1 million. Oberle says there’s been a concerted effort to design programs and events that appeal to a wider audience. Educational programs have expanded beyond traditional gardening slideshows to include yoga classes and lectures on food justice. Brookside recently introduced a community engagement fellowship program to connect with communities of color and hear what people want the gardens to offer. Brookside hosts seasonal activities such as Children’s Day (Sept. 18 and 19 this year), the Garden of Lights holiday display and the Summer Twilight Concert Series. Oberle thinks of Brookside as a living museum, with the plants as its collection. “The gardens can be many things to many people,” she says. “They can be a place of personal reflection— we’ve seen that with COVID—but it can also be a place of community and gathering and family and making memories.” Bethesda Magazine spent a day at Brookside in May.

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Bethesda resident Yumiko Miura, pictured weeding in the Rain Garden outside of the conservatories, has volunteered at Brookside for nine years. The garden was planted at the base of a grassy slope to catch rainwater from the lawn above. The space includes perennials and shrubs that help hold and filter water, capturing pollutants and preventing flooding. Volunteers like Miura help a team of 14 horticulturists and seasonal workers. A variety of volunteer positions at Brookside include working at the information desk, helping with children’s programs, doing stream and grounds cleanup, and serving as a greenhouse/nursery aide. Each year, about 650 people volunteer on a regular basis; an additional 500 come for a day of service, often with their employers.

In the maintenance area to the west of the gardens, away from public view, a production greenhouse is where horticulturists submit designs to growers for upcoming displays. Staff there begin to grow the requested plants months in advance. This May, they were working on chrysanthemums for fall displays and orders for the Garden Railway Society show starting in late November.

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Brookside grows houseplants to sell in its gift shop. Succulents— including string of dolphins (below) and echeveria “Perle von Nurnberg” (left)—have become increasingly popular in recent years.

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Feng Zhu of Rockville takes photographs in the Rose Garden. Zhu comes every week to see the changing variety of flowers and sends pictures to her mother and brother in China via WeChat.

Jeanette Proudfoot, a horticulturist from Silver Spring, and Jack Cantilli, a gardener from College Park, move castor bean and other plants from the production greenhouse to put next to the entrance of Brookside’s Visitor Center. The display in the front bed area is bright and bold to catch the attention of arriving visitors. Proudfoot employs sustainable practices, such as reusing leaves from the lawn as mulch, and skips any synthetic liquid fertilizer that could seep into the groundwater. When the plants are dug up in the fall, Proudfoot will replace them with a cover crop, such as red clover. “When you remove plant material, you are removing nutrients—this puts it back into the soil,” she says. “It also adds organic matter and is an early pollinator for birds and insects.”

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Charles Votaw of Garrett Park leads a tai chi class every week at the Japanese Tea House. He says Brookside is a beautiful setting for the Chinese martial art, which participants often practice outdoors. “We can watch the cranes and turtles as we are standing holding our postures and exercising,” says Votaw, pointing out that many tai chi postures have names inspired by animal movements, such as “White Crane Spreads Its Wings.”

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The great blue heron is among about 80 types of birds that frequent Brookside, both as year-round residents and migratory species that come in the spring and fall.

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Near the upper pond in the Gude Garden, Josh Demers, a lead gardener, cuts back viburnums. This part of Brookside reflects a Japanese style of gardening, with several evergreens that can be shaped into tall domes or spheres. Demers interned at Brookside in 2012 while he was studying landscape technology at Montgomery College. After graduating from the University of Maryland with a degree in landscape management, he started working full time at Brookside in 2016.

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The Reflection Terrace features a memorial to honor victims of the D.C.-area sniper attacks. Etched in a large flat-topped stone with a view of the Gude Garden pond is the message: “Linger here and reflect on those lost to violence. Hope for a more peaceful world. Seek a reverence for life among all people.” There are also standing granite blocks: one with a descrip-

tion of the 2002 attacks and the other with the names of those killed. The terrace was dedicated in 2004 under the leadership of then-County Executive Doug Duncan. During times of community trauma, like the sniper shootings or 9/11, county residents have sought out green spaces like Brookside as places of healing, Director Stephanie Oberle says.

Ila and Jim Beck of Rockville take their grandchildren, Felix, 3, and Cora, 5, to Brookside every few weeks. They follow the lines of the labyrinth, working it like a big puzzle to get to the center. “Kids being kids, they do it as fast as possible,” Jim says.

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Mirola Calupe and her 13-year-old daughter, Kalea Zyck, who live in Silver Spring, visit Brookside often and are especially fond of the Fragrance and Rose Gardens.

In March, this walkway in the Rose Garden was transformed into an art display called “Facets of Hope,” with individual strands of vintage crystals hung to honor each life lost to COVID-19 in Montgomery County. The total number of strands reached 1,554 in early June. When Brookside Director Stephanie Oberle puts up new crystals, she often encounters visitors lingering in the area who tell her how grateful they are for the exhibit. “We are coming out of COVID, but it is still affecting people’s lives—and that grieving takes a long time. It doesn’t just go away,” Oberle says. “The beauty of this place sets people at ease. There are benches to sit and be quiet. That space encourages stillness, so people have time to reflect, process, think about their grief and the happy memories of their loved ones.”

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First-time Brookside visitor Mike Powell drove his motorcycle from Dover, Delaware, for the day to visit the gardens and take photos. He’s inside the North House Conservatory that’s home to tropical and flowering plants, including banana, palm, eucalyptus and cacao trees, as well as snapdragons, rosescented geraniums and tricolor sage. The South House is smaller and plays host to the popular live butterfly and caterpillar display, Wings of Fancy, which typically runs from spring through fall.

Lou Giacchino, who has been a weekly volunteer at Brookside for more than 20 years, checks on plants in the propagation area of a production greenhouse. A Silver Spring resident and former vice president of the Potomac Rose Society, he says he’s always learning something new as he works alongside the professional gardeners in the greenhouses and the Rose Garden.

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Jessica Laigle, wellness and advancement programs specialist, became interested in the link between nature and healing while getting her master’s degree in social work and public health. She’s helped develop a “Strolls for Well-Being” program for Brookside that was piloted in the spring and will be introduced this fall. Four groups of up to 15 participants will be invited to walk in the gardens, journal and reflect. There are 12 individual walks, each with a theme such as awareness, trust or joy, and three group meetings, all completed over the course of eight weeks. Just as the walking paths promote physical health, the hope is that the program will encourage a mindful use of the garden for mental health.

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Looking through the North House Conservatory window, Stephen Walter, a seasonal gardener assistant, is busy weeding outdoors. Because of the pandemic, Montgomery County cut its funding for the gardens by 6% for the fiscal year that ended on June 30. That meant Brookside had to reduce the budget for its seasonal gardening staff, so employees from the conservatories (which were closed to the public) helped out whenever there was a gap. Funding was restored in the 2022 budget.

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Bert Zeitler has worked as a greenhouse grower and technician at Brookside for 27 years. The Silver Spring resident is standing inside the tropical section of a greenhouse, where some plants spend the winter with heat lights (controlled by a timer) and fans. Over about eight years, Zeitler has grown lantana plants into this rounded tree, which he’s shaped for the Fragrance Garden to provide nectar-rich flowers for bees and butterflies. This spring, robins made a nest and laid eggs in the tree—this part of the greenhouse has an open roof—so Zeitler kept the tree inside until the babies fledged.

Two-year-old Lucy Lyons comes to Brookside with her brother, Ezra, and her parents, Michael and Hannah Lyons, about once a week. The family lives in Kensington. “It’s nice to have a large, quiet place for the kids to spend time in,” says Michael, noting that the children especially like the fountains and chasing the geese. “They would live outside if they could.” Here, Lucy is pictured in the Children’s Garden, which changes its theme every five years. Its current focus is on “Exploring Maryland,” and kids can drive a wooden tractor, scout for black bears, or play in an old flat-bottomed aluminum boat while pretending to catch crabs. n

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Our Business Speaks for Itself 100% 5-star client reviews “Sondra and Pam go way beyond most people’s understanding of agent representation. I would engage them again in a heartbeat! Consider yourself lucky if you select Sondra and Pam to sell your home.” - Seller, Bethesda, MD Sondra Mulheron & Pam Schiattareggia Realtor® MD | DC S: 301.785.9536 P: 301.802.7796 O: 301.304.8444 sondra.pam@compass.com Compass is a licensed real estate brokerage that abides by Equal Housing Opportunity laws. Information is compiled from sources deemed reliable but is not guaranteed. All measurements and square footages are approximate. This is not intended to solicit property already listed. Compass is licensed as Compass Real Estate in DC and as Compass in Virginia and Maryland. 7200 Wisconsin Ave, Suite 500, Bethesda, MD 20814 | 301.304.8444

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interior design. architecture. home sales.

PHOTO BY MICHAEL VENTURA

home

Some homeowners are incorporating high-tech appliances in their kitchens. A Bethesda couple chose this dishwasher, which can be turned on through an app on their phone. For more, turn to page 198.

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home | HOUSE APPROPRIATIONS 1

COUNTER CULTURE

Linger at the kitchen island in comfort with a wide range of stools to suit any style BY CAROLYN WEBER

1. TAKING SHAPE

2. FRENCH TWIST

3. SIT AND SPIN

An updated version of a classic midcentury modern molded plywood design, this stool provides a comfy perch with a generous seat and wide back. The seat is available in eight stain color options, including white, and the tapered wooden legs come in a choice of white oak, cherry or walnut. The Pike stool costs $229 at Room & Board, which is slated to open in September in Bethesda (800-3019720, roomandboard.com).

Inspired by a Parisian antique, these casual stools would be right at home in a cottage or beach house. The sturdy seats and backs are constructed of hand-wrapped abaca fibers with a fresh striped pattern. The solid mahogany frames are available in white, ebony, and natural wood finishes. The Carson counter stool retails for $698 at Serena & Lily on Bethesda Row (240-531-1839, serenaandlily.com).

This stool, with a sophisticated European design, has all the moves. The padded barrelback seat swivels, and a gas mechanism in the chrome base powers the stool up or down to adjust from counter height to bar height. The seat is fully customizable in a wide array of colors in fabric, leather, or leather-like upholstery. The Jumper stool sells for $2,500 at Roche Bobois in Chevy Chase, D.C. (202-686-5667, roche-bobois.com).

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4. SPLIT PERSONALITY

This stool can be contemporary or traditional, depending on how you look at it. It features slim, tubular iron legs up front and shapely solid oak legs with a natural finish in the back. The cushioned seat and backrest are upholstered in a tweedylooking textured burgundy fabric of easy-care polyester. The Raaf stool sells for $449 at Crate and Barrel in Upper Northwest D.C.’s Spring Valley neighborhood (202-364-6100, crateandbarrel.com).

5. BACK IN BLACK Add a touch of elegance to the kitchen with this distinctive wood stool and its cerused finish. A curved back of lacquered rattan provides ample support, and a linen-covered drop-in cushion and brass arm caps and sabots finish the chic look. The wood stain comes in black, natural or driftwood, and the seat in a variety of colors. The Edward counter stool from Bungalow 5 is priced at $850, through Urban Country in Bethesda (301-654-0500, urbancountrydesigns.com).

6. RUSTIC MODERN

COURTESY PHOTOS

Woven leather seating is durable and adds warmth and contrast to sleek kitchen materials such as quartz and stainless steel. The Kleio stool combines a hand-cut basket-weave seat with powder-coated metal legs and footrest. It comes in two colors— smoke gray leather with a black frame, and natural leather with a gunmetal frame. Find it for $649 at Pottery Barn in Bethesda (301-654-1598, potterybarn.com).

Carolyn Weber lives in Silver Spring and frequently writes about architecture and home design. BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021

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home

COOL and Kitchen life gets an upgrade with the latest high-tech appliances BY AMY HALPERN

WHEN ELENA TERMINIELLO WALKS through the grocery store, she often uses her phone to check the contents of her refrigerator, where cameras inside reveal whether her family is running low on yogurt or milk or Parmesan cheese. The clinical social worker and mother of two also uses the phone to preheat her oven before leaving work at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center to head to her Bethesda home—and to turn off the heat or lower the temperature if she has left something baking and is running late. Her microwave can be programmed with an app and doubles as an air fryer. “We do pizzas in there,” says her husband, Maurizio Grimaldi, 57, a scientist at the National Institutes of Health. A self-proclaimed techie, he researched all of his family’s new kitchen appliances online, made several trips to local stores to see as many of the options as he could, and decided on the final selections himself. If not for his wife’s insistence on getting a professional-grade BlueStar cooktop when they expanded their Cape Cod-style house two years ago, Grimaldi would have picked one that could “talk” to the other appliances— all “smart” products made by Samsung. Then the fan in the hood would have automatically

adjusted its speed based on how much heat was being generated. “We each had a splurge item,” says Terminiello, and hers was the highend—but low-tech—cooktop. With its stainless steel surface and metallic knobs, it blends aesthetically with the rest of the appliances, but all it does is heat food when she turns a dial. “It’s the opposite of everything he chose,” she says. Still, her husband’s tech-savvy choices for the other appliances are slowly drawing her in. “You do start drinking the Kool-Aid a little bit if I’m going to be honest,” she says. Now, she loves how the built-in computer screen on the front panel of her refrigerator also serves as a television and music hub. The couple’s teenage daughter logs into her Spotify account on the fridge and plays songs for her mom while they’re cooking. The screen also displays when someone is at the front door, and it keeps the family’s calendar updated. “The refrigerator is always a talking point,” says Terminiello, 50. It connects through Bluetooth to all their other devices, so when she pulls up a recipe on the screen, the ingredients she needs to make the dish are automatically stored on a shopping list on her phone. And when she’s at work and her kids leave the refrigerator door open, her phone

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Bethesda homeowners Maurizio Grimaldi and Elena Terminiello chose a refrigerator with a front panel that allows them to watch shows, display their calendar and see when someone is at the front door.

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home sends an alert so she can text them to close it. The fridge also keeps track of the other appliances. “When we’re on vacation,” she says, “we can double-check that everything is off without going back.” Daren Smith, president of Silver Spring-based Smiley Renovations, worked with the couple on their kitchen remodel and says the family’s choices were new territory for him, too. “We don’t get a lot of requests for the technology—certainly not like the screens on the refrigerators—that often,” he says. But when Grimaldi came to him with his research and his selections, “I thought it was kind of cool, and I was kind of excited to have him do that,” Smith says. Grimaldi thinks many homeowners have been slow to embrace techforward kitchen products because few designers have encouraged them. “It’s easier to sell an appliance that you turn [on] and you’re done,” he says. Otherwise, when something goes wrong, “who are you going to call?” The only problem he and his wife have experienced in their new kitchen was an electrical malfunction that caused the light in the hood above their cooktop to stop working. A technician came three times before it was resolved, but everything else has functioned just fine. “It’s laughable,” Grimaldi says, that people rely so much on the technology in their vehicles—there are more than 200 computer chips in most cars today, he points out—but people are hesitant to buy “smart” appliances for their kitchens.

HOMEOWNERS IN MONTGOMERY County fall into two general camps when choosing kitchen gear, according to local retailers and contractors. Many still follow the traditional route, focusing less on tech gadgetry and more on products known for being high-end and easy to operate. A small but growing number are buying appliances that interface with each other and can be controlled from anywhere. Grimaldi says he and his wife could use an app on their phones to instruct their refrigerator to turn on the dishwasher even when they are upstairs

watching a movie. Greg Childress, manager of Bray & Scarff in Chevy Chase, says about 10% of customers who come into the appliance store ask about “smart” kitchen products, and those who do are generally younger. “The older generation is saying, you know, ‘Hey, I don’t want to be more invasive with the technology than it already is,’ ” he says. Samsung and LG, companies better known for their televisions than their ovens, have become market leaders in smart kitchen technology, but Bray & Scarff and most of the other local appliance retailers don’t stock either label. Consumers buy those brands directly through the manufacturers’ websites or at big-box stores like Lowe’s, Home Depot and Best Buy. Still, according to Childress, many of the mid- to highpriced lines sold by his store have started to add smart features to their latest models. “A lot of the products of today will tell you how to cook it, when to cook it, how long to cook it, and what pan to cook it in,” he says. “Smart is here to stay.” High-end brands Bosch, Thermador and Gaggenau—all owned by the same German company—now come with “Home Connect,” integrative technology that lets customers run diagnostic checks through their phones to know when their appliances need servicing, and to preheat their ovens and monitor temperature settings remotely via an app. Dacor, acquired by Samsung in 2016, recently began offering refrigerators with cameras inside. And many of the newest Sub-Zero and Wolf products have a small quartz screen inside the appliance that displays a code when something malfunctions so homeowners know what’s wrong. That’s supposed to help cut down on diagnostictrip charges because a technician often can bring the needed part on the first visit. “Manufacturers are constantly trying to push the envelope and take it to a new level,” Childress says. His biggest challenge these days is with availability. “The manufacturers’ production is down but the demand for the product is up really high...so in some

cases you are seeing lead times that are now going into 2022,” he says. Yuval David and his husband, Mark McDermott, picked a sleek Wi-Fienabled Bosch refrigerator as part of their kitchen remodel. The couple had relocated from Manhattan to Montgomery County early in the COVID-19 pandemic after having what David calls “suburban fantasies” and realizing that they both can work from anywhere. David says he didn’t pick the fridge because of its connectivity, but it turns out he likes the technology. “When you have guests over or kids over and if somebody forgets to close the refrigerator it will notify you…there’s an app for that,” says David, an actor, director and socialchange advocate who says he learned a lot about cooking and entertaining while serving as a host and judge at food shows and festivals in the U.S. and abroad. When he and McDermott bought their house, David wanted to create the same type of kitchen that they had in their New York apartment—sleek, modern and designed around entertaining dozens of friends on a whim. “I’m the type of person who can whip up a meal for 50 people in an hour or maybe two,” he says. Shortly after moving in, David discovered Home Depot’s new design center on Rockville Pike. “Walking through there— through the design center—gave me even more ideas that truly fit my aesthetic,” he says. He went there so many times that he became friends with the staff. Now he has what he calls a “tech-forward kitchen” with two steam ovens, including a dual-function model with a gas cooktop; a dishwasher with an energyefficient air-dry setting; and more. Nearly every appliance he chose plays a “little jingle” that lets him know when something is turning on or off, or needs checking. Friends who’ve come to visit have commented on how helpful that is—and how cool the tunes are. And his Miele ovens are smart enough to know that he uses the convection steam setting most often, so that’s the option that appears first when he turns them on, saving him the trouble of scrolling through

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the array of choices. “There are high-end appliances that have all these extra bells and whistles that are truly unnecessary… for my needs,” David says. “But there are other high-end appliances that make it a much easier process of cooking and working efficiently in the kitchen.”

CAROLINE FAWCETT AND HER husband, Thomas O’Donnell, weren’t looking for the latest technology when they remodeled their Chevy Chase kitchen last year. “I work out of my house,” says Fawcett, a labor economist. “I’m not the busy mom at the soccer games [who wants to] turn [her] oven on and all that other stuff.” But the couple ended up choosing an induction cooktop—one of the kitchen trade’s newest advances. It heats by transferring currents from an electromagnetic field located below the cooktop’s surface directly onto the cookware. Traditional electric and gas stoves operate using a thermal current that heats the entire surface of the burner. Induction cooking has become increasingly popular because it heats up

as quickly as gas, and the heat disperses more evenly; it’s also considered safer because there is no flame—the pot gets hot, but not the cooktop’s surface. Fawcett’s kitchen designer, Nadia Subaran of Aidan Design in Silver Spring, introduced the idea to the couple; she had installed an induction cooktop in her own house. “She encouraged me to talk to people who had one,” Fawcett says. Everyone, including the couple’s daughter, a professionally trained chef living in New York City, seems to love it, she says. Saucepans and skillets must have magnetic bottoms to work with an induction current, so customers making the switch often have to start over with different pots and pans. That wasn’t a deterrent for Fawcett. Some of her pots, like those by the French company Le Creuset, work fine on her new cooktop. And she didn’t mind getting rid of the others—some had been around since she got married 40 years ago. Kelly Emerson, who works with Subaran at Aidan Design, says the firm’s designers encourage customers to

An induction cooktop in the recently remodeled kitchen of Caroline Fawcett and Thomas O’Donnell, who live in Chevy Chase

research as much as they can in advance. That way, clients are comfortable with the products they eventually choose. Still, the designers try to accommodate standard-size appliances so something else will fit the space if a homeowner decides later to make a change. Emerson says she does worry a bit about gadgets that are particularly cutting edge. When Kohler came out with a motionsensing faucet for home use a couple of years ago, she wanted to make sure that clients who selected it were able to turn it off manually, just in case. Kohler, a brand known more for its bathroom components than kitchen appliances, now has a faucet that’s voice activated. Through an app called “Kohler Konnect,” it pairs with Amazon Alexa and Apple’s and Google’s cloud-based voice services to dispense water in virtu-

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Bottom: Their built-in Miele coffee maker and temperaturecontrolled wine refrigerator are just off the kitchen.

ally all measurable increments. “You can tell it to fill up [two] cups of water,” says Jim Grace, vice president of marketing for Reico Kitchen & Bath, which has a showroom in Bethesda. Design consultant Erin Siarey, who works out of the Kohler Signature Store in downtown Bethesda, says the voice-activated faucets, because they are so new, are still yielding more inquiries than actual buyers, but the motion-sensor models have become popular. Another trend is sparkling water on tap, according to Daren Smith of

Smiley Renovations. Since last year, many of his customers have been requesting Zip Water’s HydroTap system, which offers two choices of filtered water—sparkling or still. The faucet works through a built-in compressor under the sink. “Just about every time we let folks know about it, they are all in to have one installed,” Smith says. “After your early adopters who go all in,” many consumers are just looking for ways technology can make things a little easier, says Grace, who’s based in Reico’s headquarters in Springfield, Virginia. “Most people like to ease into technology to avoid being overwhelmed by it.”

FOR DR. SIRISHA DURBHAKULA , it was all about the vegetables. When she and her husband remodeled their Potomac kitchen in 2019, the pediatrician and mother of three was focused on making it easy for her family to eat healthy. Her favorite addition: a Miele steam oven, perfect for cooking Brussels sprouts, sweet potatoes and asparagus, the family’s new staples. Durbhakula’s daughter is the family baker, and her specialty had long been cookies and brownies. Since adding the steam oven—which is supposed to retain nutrients better than a microwave and to heat faster than a regular oven—one of the 12-year-old’s favorite dishes to make is gluten-free strawberry cobbler with oats, almond flour and honey. Just off the kitchen is a Miele coffee maker that’s built into a wall. Durbhakula, 46, preset everyone’s favorite beverages onto its digital screen so they only have to press a button to get their latte, espresso or tea. Just below it is a temperaturecontrolled wine refrigerator. Some of the kitchen’s cabinets have front panels that open upward at the slightest touch, much like the doors of a 1980s DeLorean automobile. Sometimes called “appliance garages,” these oversize storage centers have been gaining traction in the kitchen design trade. “Because we’ve gone to such an open-concept kitchen…people are looking for ways to clean up the kitchen and not have clutter on countertops,” says Meghan Browne, the designer at Jennifer

PHOTOS BY KEIANA PHOTOGRAPHY

Below: In Dr. Sirisha Durbhakula’s Potomac kitchen, there’s a Miele steam oven that her family uses for cooking vegetables, and a storage center for small appliances.

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PHOTO BY MICHAEL VENTURA

Yuval David in his “tech-forward kitchen,” which features two steam ovens, including this dual-function model with a gas cooktop

Gilmer Kitchen & Bath in Chevy Chase who worked with Durbhakula on the sleek and spacious layout. Browne says her clients are more likely to ask for ways to hide their existing gadgetry than they are to inquire about state-of-the-art appliances. Even Durbhakula admits that she hasn’t explored all the technology that’s offered by her new kitchen products. Even with the steam oven, she only really knows the basics. “I think these things can all do a lot more than I’m using them for,” she says. “We just have not adapted yet to the concept that our life could be even easier.” n Amy Halpern is a journalist who has worked in print and television news. She lives in Potomac.

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Data provided by

JUNE’S MOST EXPENSIVE

at A peek rea’s f the a some o pensive x most e sold n rece tly s house

HOME SALES SALE PRICE: SALE PRICE:

$3.9 million LIST PRICE: $4.3 MILLION

Address: 11517 Highland Farm Road, Rockville 20854 Days on Market: 1 Listing Agency: Washington Fine Properties Bedrooms: 8 Full/Half Baths: 8/2

$3.6 million LIST PRICE: $3.5 MILLION

Address: 7406 Fairfax Road, Bethesda 20814 Days on Market: 2 Listing Agency: TTR Sotheby’s International Realty Bedrooms: 5 Full/Half Baths: 5/2

SALE PRICE:

$3.3 million LIST PRICE: $3.4 MILLION

SALE PRICE:

$3.9 million

Address: 6005 Highland Drive, Chevy Chase 20815 Days on Market: 16 Listing Agency: TTR Sotheby’s International Realty Bedrooms: 6 Full/Half Baths: 5/2

LIST PRICE: $4.1 MILLION

Address: 9805 Logan Drive, Potomac 20854 Days on Market: 14 Listing Agency: Washington Fine Properties Bedrooms: 6 Full/Half Baths: 8/2

SALE PRICE:

$3.1 million LIST PRICE: $3.2 MILLION

Address: 9724 Sorrel Ave., Potomac 20854 Days on Market: 63 Listing Agency: RE/MAX Realty Services Bedrooms: 6 Full/Half Baths: 7/2

SALE PRICE:

$3.3 million LIST PRICE: $3.3 MILLION

Address: 10850 Spring Knoll Drive, Potomac 20854 Days on Market: 6 Listing Agency: Long & Foster Real Estate Bedrooms: 5 Full/Half Baths: 8/3

206

$3 million LIST PRICE: $3.5 MILLION

Address: 9325 Belle Terre, Potomac 20854 Days on Market: 309 Listing Agency: Compass Bedrooms: 11 Full/Half Baths: 10/2 COURTESY PHOTOS

SALE PRICE:

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GREAT FALLS $14,000,000 Château de Lumière, Great Falls, VA Daniel Heider +1 202 938 3685 Mark C. Lowham +1 703 966 6949

GEORGETOWN $18,000,000 SENECA HIGHLANDS $5,900,000 The Penthouse, Residences at Ritz Carlton, Washington, DC 15325 Masonwood Drive, North Potomac, MD Corey Burr +1 301 346 3345 Mark C. Lowham +1 703 966 6949 Matt McCormick +1 202 365 5883

EDGEMOOR $4,999,000 7511 Hampden Lane, Bethesda, MD Lauren Davis +1 202 549 8784 Jonathan Taylor +1 202 276 3344

WESLEY HEIGHTS $9,495,000 4400 Garfield Street NW, Washington, DC Russell Firestone +1 202 271 1701

AVENEL $2,000,000 7017 Mountain Gate Drive, Bethesda, MD Corey Burr +1 301 346 3345

POTOMAC $2,995,000 7200 Brookstone Court, Potomac, MD Jonathan Taylor +1 202 276 3344

EDGEMOOR $3,495,000 5110 Wessling Lane, Bethesda, MD Lauren Davis +1 202 549 8784

KALORAMA $5,550,000 2446 Kalorama Road NW, Washington, DC Michael Rankin +1 202 271 3344

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SALE PRICE:

LIST PRICE: $3 MILLION

LIST PRICE: $2.9 MILLION

LIST PRICE: $2.7 MILLION

Address: 5409 Surrey St., Chevy Chase 20815 Days on Market: 17 Listing Agency: Compass Bedrooms: 4 Full/Half Baths: 4/0

Address: 6 Sedgwick Lane, North Bethesda 20852 Days on Market: 112 Listing Agency: The Agency DC Bedrooms: 7 Full/Half Baths: 7/1

Address: 5800 Highland Drive, Chevy Chase 20815 Days on Market: 6 Listing Agency: Washington Fine Properties Bedrooms: 7 Full/Half Baths: 7/1

SALE PRICE:

LIST PRICE: $2.9 MILLION

LIST PRICE: $2.8 MILLION

LIST PRICE: $2.4 MILLION

Address: 4819 Wellington Drive, Chevy Chase 20815 Days on Market: 11 Listing Agency: Washington Fine Properties Bedrooms: 5 Full/Half Baths: 5/1

Address: 3931 Oliver St., Chevy Chase 20815 Days on Market: 1 Listing Agency: Long & Foster Real Estate Bedrooms: 6 Full/Half Baths: 5/1

$2.9 million

$2.9 million Address: 7800 Glenbrook Road, Bethesda 20814 Days on Market: 2 Listing Agency: Long & Foster Real Estate Bedrooms: 6 Full/Half Baths: 5/0

$2.8 million

$2.7 million

$2.6 million

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SALE PRICE:

LIST PRICE: $2.5 MILLION

LIST PRICE: $2.3 MILLION

Address: 5109 Wehawken Road, Bethesda 20816 Days on Market: 13 Listing Agency: Premier Properties Bedrooms: 6 Full/Half Baths: 4/1

Address: 6531 Elgin Lane, Bethesda 20817 Days on Market: 3 Listing Agency: RLAH Real Estate Bedrooms: 6 Full/Half Baths: 5/2

Address: 8301 Meadowlark Lane, Bethesda 20817 Days on Market: 8 Listing Agency: Compass Bedrooms: 4 Full/Half Baths: 3/1

SALE PRICE:

LIST PRICE: $2.4 MILLION

LIST PRICE: $2.5 MILLION

Address: 3908 Rosemary St., Chevy Chase 20815 Days on Market: 2 Listing Agency: Washington Fine Properties Bedrooms: 5 Full/Half Baths: 5/1

Address: 3805 Taylor St., Chevy Chase 20815 Days on Market: 2 Listing Agency: Washington Fine Properties Bedrooms: 6 Full/Half Baths: 3/2

Address: 11508 Dalyn Terrace, Potomac 20854 Days on Market: 44 Listing Agency: Washington Fine Properties Bedrooms: 6 Full/Half Baths: 6/1

$2.6 million

$2.5 million

Note: Some sale and list prices have been rounded.

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home | BY THE NUMBERS

REAL ESTATE TRENDS BY ZIP CODE

JUNE 2020

JUNE 2021

20015 (Upper NW D.C.) Number of Homes Sold Average Sold Price Average Days on Market Above Asking Price Below Asking Price Sold Over $1 Million

16 $1.2 Mil. 13 11 4 11

21 $1.4 Mil. 5 14 3 20

20016 (Upper NW D.C.)

JUNE 2020

JUNE 2021

JUNE 2020

20818 (Cabin John)

20854 (Potomac)

Number of Homes Sold Average Sold Price Average Days on Market Above Asking Price Below Asking Price Sold Over $1 Million

1 2 $1 Mil. $1.1 Mil. 108 4 0 2 1 0 1 1

JUNE 2021

57 83 $1.2 Mil. $1.4 Mil. 43 12 13 55 37 18 27 59

20832 (Olney)

20855 (Rockville)

Number of Homes Sold 15 20 Average Sold Price $606,426 $707,893 Average Days on Market 16 6 Above Asking Price 5 17 Below Asking Price 7 2 Sold Over $1 Million 0 1

Number of Homes Sold 13 26 Average Sold Price $602,038 $659,888 Average Days on Market 16 7 Above Asking Price 7 18 Below Asking Price 5 6 Sold Over $1 Million 0 1

20850 (Rockville)

20877 (Gaithersburg)

Number of Homes Sold 25 37 Average Sold Price $713,258 $843,370 Average Days on Market 21 9 7 26 Above Asking Price Below Asking Price 14 6 Sold Over $1 Million 2 8

Number of Homes Sold 9 21 Average Sold Price $500,764 $522,280 Average Days on Market 17 12 2 15 Above Asking Price Below Asking Price 5 4 Sold Over $1 Million 0 0

20815 (Chevy Chase)

20851 (Rockville)

20878 (Gaithersburg/North Potomac)

Number of Homes Sold Average Sold Price Average Days on Market Above Asking Price Below Asking Price Sold Over $1 Million

Number of Homes Sold 9 24 Average Sold Price $419,466 $495,603 Average Days on Market 19 8 Above Asking Price 4 16 Below Asking Price 4 2 Sold Over $1 Million 0 0

Number of Homes Sold 36 50 Average Sold Price $699,997 $849,934 Average Days on Market 22 7 Above Asking Price 10 41 Below Asking Price 18 4 Sold Over $1 Million 2 9

20852 (North Bethesda/Rockville)

20879 (Gaithersburg)

Number of Homes Sold 20 19 Average Sold Price $700,145 $1.1 Mil. Average Days on Market 18 11 Above Asking Price 9 15 Below Asking Price 8 3 Sold Over $1 Million 3 12

Number of Homes Sold 13 20 Average Sold Price $490,292 $641,550 Average Days on Market 20 6 Above Asking Price 5 17 Below Asking Price 8 2 Sold Over $1 Million 0 2

20853 (Rockville)

20882 (Gaithersburg)

Number of Homes Sold 43 35 Average Sold Price $570,335 $671,193 Average Days on Market 26 11 Above Asking Price 16 24 Below Asking Price 20 3 Sold Over $1 Million 1 1

Number of Homes Sold 16 26 Average Sold Price $576,162 $725,092 Average Days on Market 18 9 Above Asking Price 6 19 Below Asking Price 8 5 Sold Over $1 Million 0 3

Number of Homes Sold Average Sold Price Average Days on Market Above Asking Price Below Asking Price Sold Over $1 Million

14 $2.2 Mil. 25 2 9 13

52 $2.2 Mil. 16 30 15 50

20814 (Bethesda) Number of Homes Sold Average Sold Price Average Days on Market Above Asking Price Below Asking Price Sold Over $1 Million

13 $1.2 Mil. 59 2 9 7

29 $1.4 Mil. 9 19 3 20

23 38 $1.6 Mil. $1.7 Mil. 29 8 6 19 11 14 17 33

20816 (Bethesda) Number of Homes Sold Average Sold Price Average Days on Market Above Asking Price Below Asking Price Sold Over $1 Million

16 $1.3 Mil. 16 4 7 11

24 $1.5 Mil. 4 21 1 22

20817 (Bethesda) Number of Homes Sold Average Sold Price Average Days on Market Above Asking Price Below Asking Price Sold Over $1 Million

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48 52 $1.3 Mil. $1.4 Mil. 43 9 10 34 35 12 31 41

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20886 (Gaithersburg)

20901 (Silver Spring)

20903 (Silver Spring)

Number of Homes Sold 11 12 Average Sold Price $492,127 $564,958 Average Days on Market 26 5 Above Asking Price 4 11 Below Asking Price 5 0 Sold Over $1 Million 0 0

Number of Homes Sold 29 33 Average Sold Price $621,515 $599,377 Average Days on Market 11 9 Above Asking Price 14 26 Below Asking Price 8 3 Sold Over $1 Million 0 0

Number of Homes Sold 4 5 Average Sold Price $500,000 $528,800 Average Days on Market 12 7 Above Asking Price 1 5 Below Asking Price 1 0 Sold Over $1 Million 0 0

20895 (Kensington)

20902 (Silver Spring)

20910 (Silver Spring)

Number of Homes Sold 25 35 Average Sold Price $748,648 $768,371 Average Days on Market 16 7 Above Asking Price 9 26 10 6 Below Asking Price Sold Over $1 Million 3 6

Number of Homes Sold 29 48 Average Sold Price $515,422 $580,798 Average Days on Market 19 8 Above Asking Price 16 38 10 8 Below Asking Price Sold Over $1 Million 0 1

Number of Homes Sold 11 26 Average Sold Price $756,259 $826,951 Average Days on Market 13 8 Above Asking Price 8 19 3 3 Below Asking Price Sold Over $1 Million 1 4

Information courtesy of Bright MLS, as of July 15, 2021. The Bright MLS real estate service area spans 40,000 square miles throughout the mid-Atlantic region, including Delaware, Maryland, Washington, D.C., and parts of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia. As a leading Multiple Listing Service (MLS), Bright serves approximately 85,000 real estate professionals who in turn serve more than 20 million consumers. For more information, visit brightmls.com. Note: This information includes single-family homes sold from June 1, 2021, to June 30, 2021, as of July 15, 2021, excluding sales where sellers have withheld permission to advertise or promote. Information should be independently verified. Reports reference data provided by ShowingTime, a showing management and market stats technology provider to the residential real estate industry. Some sale and list prices have been rounded.

Celebrating 28 years

7001 Wisconsin Avenue, Chevy Chase, MD www.KitchenBathStudios.com

Nancy Kotarski, NCIDQ•Karen Hourgian, CKD•Jerry Weed, CKD•Jordan Weed•Fred Grenfell•Peggy Jaeger, CKD, ABD Call for a free consultation in our spacious showroom. Monday-Friday 9-5, Saturday 10-3

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Home Experts PROFILES

Sandy Spring Builders LLC

MICHAEL KRESS PHOTOGRAPHY

TOM BENNETT, RAY SOBRINO, MIMI BRODSKY KRESS, PHIL LEIBOVITZ, TYLER ABRAMS

Sandy Spring Builders is the premier custom homebuilder in the area. We are an integrated, full-service team with 40 years of experience in bringing our client’s vision to life. Our vast portfolio of wellbuilt homes makes a lasting impression, proven by myriad awards including Best of Bethesda every year since its inception. 4705 West Virginia Ave. Bethesda, MD 20814 301-913-5995 www.sandyspringbuilders.com

Q: What makes you different than other builders? A: We have been in business for over 40 years, our experience in the industry is unparalleled. We are full-service and our talented team members are passionate, knowledgeable, and experienced. Our portfolio shows that we can build anything. We work toward our client’s goals, financially and architecturally, and we’re part of the team from the beginning. Q: What brings you the most satisfaction in your work? A: Two things – our beautiful homes and our excellent reputation. We can drive all over the area and are incredibly proud to see our projects everywhere. We take great pleasure in bringing prospective clients into finished homes and hearing the homeowners speak so enthusiastically about their home and working with us. We value our clients and want to be their "builder for life." Most importantly, we

love what we do and give back to our community! Q: What are your buyers demanding these days? A: Clients still want great design and prefer open floor plans. Function is important –elevators for empty-nesters or mudrooms with cubbies and an informal powder room for families. We call it “livablity” and understand it better than most. Many clients are tech-savvy and desire a smart home with ability to control lighting, music, security and HVAC systems from a cell phone or laptop. Limited use of solar panels and electric car-chargers have become more popular. Our team approach works well to help guide clients through the complicated process of building a custom home and makes it less overwhelming.

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Elie Ben Architecture MARYAM TABRIZCHI, AIA Bethesda, Maryland 202-860-7050 Maryam@ElieBenArch.com www.ElieBenArch.com

Q: How do you start the design and build of a

residential project?

functional and cost-effective architectural solution. We start our process of design by understanding the unique requirements of your project. Whether you build a modern, transitional or traditional style, your vision drives the style we design for you. Your vision coupled with the architect’s extensive expertise brings your project to life. A successful project is a team work that requires collaboration between the Client, Architect, Engineers and Builders. We are experts in coordinating among all the team members. Elie Ben Architecture is passionate in closely working with clients by getting them involved during the design process. We value client’s expectations and are committed to a seamless client experience.

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A: Building a successful project starts from a

Donna Leanos VICE PRESIDENT, TTR SOTHEBY’S INTERNATIONAL REALTY 4809 Bethesda Ave. Bethesda, MD 20814 Direct: 443-841-0512 | Office: 301-516-1212 donna.leanos@sothebysrealty.com www.sothebysrealty.com Licensed in MD, DC, and VA

Q: We can't find a home we love. Should we

build?

can renovate, custom build a home or purchase a "spec" home. Choosing a builder and agent that you trust is so important. Not all builders are the same and not all agents are experienced in the process. My goal is to make the process as smooth as possible, considering details like budget, location, lot acquisition, timing, home size, layout and features in your new space. Over the last 15 years, I've focused on new builds and renovations in Bethesda, Chevy Chase and DC neighborhoods. Working with clients, I'm always careful to focus on achieving an optimal financial outcome. After all, for most people their home is their most important investment.

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STEPHANIE WILLIAMS

A: Considering your desired level of involvement, you

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Dana Rice Group of Compass Just named the #1 Medium Compass Team in Maryland and #6 in the region in the 2021 REAL Trends ranking, Dana Rice Group has sold more than $619 million since Dana founded the team in 2016, placing them in the top one percent of residential real estate agents globally.

COURTESY PHOTO

5471 Wisconsin Ave., Suite 300 Chevy Chase, MD 20815 202-669-6908 dana.rice@compass.com www.danaricegroup.com

Q: What should homeowners know

about today’s market? A: The important thing to know is what is universal in any market: buyers care about overall home maintenance. No matter the pace of the real estate market, homeowners should recognize that good maintenance, fresh paint, impeccable curb appeal, strategic marketing and excellent pricing strategy will protect you regardless of how the market is doing. Just having a “hot” market does not mean your home is going to sell. In fact, when you do fail to sell, you’ll fail bigger and more publicly than if the market is struggling. This is not the time to skimp on efforts because it’s a “hot” market.

Q: What is your best tip for people

looking to sell? A: Work with a real estate agent from the first thought of selling. Especially one that understands market values in your specific area. We Realtors are consistently honing our recommendations based on current market data. The information that we provide one month may be totally different three months later. It’s important to stay in touch and in tune with the Realtors. They are the front line of any trend. With complimenting backgrounds in architecture, staging, marketing, sales and communications, our agents have unique perspectives on the market, servicing both first-time buyers and those looking at properties in the upper brackets with diligence, care and excellence. From Left: Catie Martin, Karen Kelly, Kate Fralin, Elizabeth Brooks, Dana Rice, Inma Aldamiz, Laura Werber, Melissa Wagar, Kcrystal Boschma, Lisa Resch (Not pictured: Brian Myles)

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PROFILES

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Awards & Honors Top Agent, Long & Foster All Points Office Washingtonian, Top Agent Christie’s International Luxury Alliance, Top 1% Nationally Bethesda Magazine, Top Producer Potomac Chamber of Commerce Business Person of the Year Long & Foster All Points 4701 Sangamore Road Bethesda, MD 20816 301-466-5898 | andy4homes@gmail.com jessie.alderdice@gmail.com www.andy4homes.com

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Q: How do you measure success? A: I always measure success through

my clients’ eyes. To me, success is the excitement in my buyer’s eyes when we find their perfect home. Or the look of satisfaction on my seller’s face when we reach the settlement table. Success is always the end result when you truly listen to your clients, make it your goal to fully understand their wants and needs, and then deliver more than they expected. I never waver in my determination to exceed my clients’ expectations. I’m only successful if my clients are happy.

Q: What are your top priorities? A: I’ve always made it my top priority

to recognize and value the trust my clients have placed in me with one of the largest—if not the largest—purchase they will ever make. I hold myself accountable to deliver the utmost value to make a difference in their lives, hence my tagline: Integrity. Experience. Commitment. Local.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

Q: What do you love most about doing business in this area? A: My family has been in the Washington area for six generations, and I’ve been a real estate professional here for nearly 30 years. My clients, therefore, benefit from the deep local knowledge, experience and strong community connections I’ve gained from being raised in area neighborhoods. I’ve also loved being part of the transition the Washington, D.C. metro area has experienced over the last few decades. As the landscape continues to change, so does real estate. With the only constant in this area being change, working with buyers and sellers never becomes stagnant.

TONY J. LEWIS

Andy & Jessica Alderdice, Realtors

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Tom, Dan & Ilan Fulop ROCKVILLE INTERIORS

TONY J. LEWIS

Honors & Accolades Designers’ Top Choice-Window Treatments, Home & Design Magazine Best of Bethesda’s Readers’ Poll, Winner, Best Custom Window Treatments & Drapes, Bethesda Magazine, 2020 Best of DC Design DC, Modern Luxury Magazine 5414 Randolph Road Rockville, MD 20852 301-424-1900 hello@rockvilleinteriors.com

www.rockvilleinteriors.com

Q: Can I operate my blinds through an

app? A: Absolutely! With our motorized shades, we can install an app on your mobile devices enabling you to move your window treatments with the touch of a button. Operate shades individually, room-byroom or in the whole house simultaneously. The app even has a scheduling feature so you can program the shades to move automatically throughout the day whenever you want. Best of all, the app connects with other smart home platforms such as Alexa so when you walk in the house with your hands full just say “Alexa, Kitchen Shades Open” and live a little easier.

their great eyes for design as well as their experience with fabric and material options and hardware choices, and work with you to design the perfect look and feel. When you're happy with your design choices, our installers will measure your spaces and double-check for accuracy. Then, our in-house fabricators put together everything according to your vision and ready it for installation. Installation is scheduled and finished to your complete satisfaction. Our warranties cover you for a substantial time, as well.

Q: What's your design and installation process look like? A: Unlike many other interior companies, we can set you up with one of our designers for a free consultation either at your home or in our showroom. Our designers bring their deep knowledge of the industry and BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 217

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With 35 years as a Senior Home Lending Advisor, Deb specializes in lending to selfemployed clients, vacation home financing, condo and co-op lending, first-time homebuyer programs, and conforming loans and jumbo mortgages. A Chase National Achiever, “A Top Vote Getter” for Best Mortgage Broker, Bethesda Magazine Best of Bethesda Readers’ Poll, 2017, 2021; Top Mortgage Broker, 2012 – 2015; and Washingtonian Top Mortgage Professional, 2019 – 2021. Senior Home Lending Advisor, Chase NMLS ID 481255 1401 New York Ave. NW Washington, DC 20005 301-332-7758 | deb.levy@chase.com

homeloan.chase.com/deb.levy

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Q: What do your clients and customers want to know about most? A: After 35 years in mortgage lending I can safely say that purchasing a home is like hopping on the fastest roller coaster ride at the amusement park. It's no slow train across country, for sure. While much information can be found on the Internet, there is more misinformation than not and the Washington metro area is unique in and of itself. Many of our clients want to know solely what the rate is and, while rate and monthly payment is super important, it’s also vital to feel a sense of education and knowledge in the process. That's why we like to focus on borrowers as individuals and take a truly consultative approach to determine all options for financing and help the borrower to identify what makes the most sense for them. This approach has earned our team lifelong clients as well as the adult children of lifelong clients. Chase is a full-service

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 | BETHESDAMAGAZINE.COM

national bank and, with COVID and new work-from-home approaches, many of our clients are also moving to other parts of the country. It’s been really exciting for them and us to be a part of their transition to a new home as well as welcome newcomers to our community. The benefit of being a part of the One Chase Team is that we can work with our bank partners to help our borrowers with their banking and investing. Ultimately, it’s about being comfortable and getting a great rate! Deb | Senior Home Lending Advisor CPC | All home lending products are subject to credit and property approval. Rates, program terms and conditions are subject to change without notice. Not all products are available in all states or for all amounts. Other restrictions and limitations apply. Home lending products offered by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. ©2021 JPMorgan Chase & Co.

From Left: Deb Levy, Lisa Bennett (Home Lending Assistant) and Bone Officer Assistant – Griff

MICHAEL VENTURA

Deb Levy

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The Banner Team Named the #1 Medium-Sized Team in Maryland and #60 Medium-Sized Team Nationally by the year’s 2021 RealTrends Ranking; 2021 Bethesda Magazine Top Producer and 2021 Washingtonian Best Real Estate Team, The Banner Team is consistently highly rated, having sold more than $1.5 billion, and offers A Team Behind Every Transaction. 4650 East West Highway Bethesda, MD 20814 301-365-9090 Info@BannerTeam.com COURTESY PHOTO

www.BannerTeam.com

Q: What should homeowners know

about today’s market—post pandemic? A: We remain in a robust market in most areas of the DMV. If 2020 meant going at 90mph in a 35mph zone, we are now doing 70-75, with many listings still getting multiple offers. Property values are based on a moment in time—keeping up with current inventory and sales is critical to pricing correctly in an escalating market. Major factors are driving this busy market: Baby boomers are active and working, many preferring to stay in single-family homes rather than downsize. Millennials have more buying power due to low interest rates. Focus has shifted for many from "walk to Metro" to "home offices" and "more space." Move-up buyers have outgrown their first home. Building starts are lower due to lack of lot inventory and the rise in cost of materials and labor. It's basic economics: Supply and Demand!

Q: What makes your client experience

unique? A: We prefer to let our latest client review speak for us: "If anyone asks for the best real estate agent in the area, there is no doubt it is the Banner Team. Expertise, professionalism, and caring are the hallmarks of working with them. No one is in their league. Head and shoulders above the so-called “top” agents...Someone was there to hold our hands even when we did not know we needed any handholding. All the work that they did paid big dividends….5+ stars every day of the week." Front Row, From Left: Brook Bassin, Michelle Teichberg, Wendy Banner, Julia Fortin, Ilene Gordon. Back Row, From Left: Gail Gordon, Jody Aucamp, Ashley Vonada, Pat Karta, Emily Moritt

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Doug Monsein, Founder DOUGLAS CONSTRUCTION GROUP

Honors Industry Expert, Home & Design Magazine Bethesda Magazine's Best of Bethesda Readers’ Poll, only Best Green Builder winner! Face of Custom Homes, Bethesda Magazine A Top Vote Getter, Bethesda Magazine Best of Bethesda Readers’ Poll for Best Builder 8429 Fox Run Bethesda, MD 20814 301-983-6947 | doug@dcghomes.com

www.dcghomes.com

Q: What makes the homes you build unique and different? A: With custom homes, we encourage our client's creative vision and work hard to capture every detail of what they hope to achieve. We meet frequently, work with imaginative professionals, and more than anything listen to details that are important, while ensuring everyone is having fun! When we build for the marketplace, we are marketcentric. We stay current in determining what today's families want and need in homes, those long-lasting form and function elements that provide benefits for decades to come. 220

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MICHAEL VENTURA

Q: What have been some of the pandemic effects on homebuyer wants and needs? A: Today’s home takes on new functions as it now serves as living space, office, classroom, gym, entertainment center and more. Preferences now start with more space. New normals include teleworking and virtual education and I suspect those are here to stay in varied measures. These also translate into more space needed around and outside the house as people hunker down and don't venture out as much. Even though there was a movement towards more outdoor space pre-pandemic, now with migrations from denser populated areas it's even more desirable, with our clients asking for porches, patios, grilling stoops, fire features, water features and ponds, sport courts, swimming pools, exterior lighting and other elements. New work-from-home amenities also include wireless alarm systems with video doorbells and security cameras, more automation, zoned and programmable HVAC systems, locking systems, meeting rooms and similar office-like comforts and conveniences as people are spending more time at home.

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Margie Halem FOUNDING AGENT, BETHESDA COMPASS

COURTESY PHOTO

Honors & Accolades #1 Team, Compass Bethesda, 2021 Compass Bethesda Founding Agent “A Top Vote Getter” for Best Real Estate Agent, Bethesda Magazine’s Best of Bethesda Readers’ Poll, 2010-2021 Best of & Top Producer, Washingtonian Wall Street Journal Top Agents 1% Agents Nationwide Sole DC Representative, Compass Private Client Network 7200 Wisconsin Ave. Bethesda, MD 20814 301-775-4196 Margie@Compass.com www.MargieHalemGroup.com

Q: What is your expertise and

specialties? A: It's in the geography I cover—from NW DC to Northern VA and Montgomery County. I specialize in all price ranges with an emphasis on the luxury market, including condos, land acquisition, development and single-family homes in all the metro areas. We have serviced firsttime buyers and repeat customers for 36 years and have experienced every market change, so we know what we are doing. I am supported by a knowledgeable team of agents who specialize in various sub-markets enabling us to know about new listings in advance of the general market. We have strong relationships with home inspectors, contractors, lenders and title companies to help buyers and sellers close during this very demanding time. Q: What do my clients and customers want to know about most? A: Currently, the question I get asked

the most is, "Should I buy in this current environment?" The only advantage of waiting is possibly price. That may not be an advantage if inflation increases, because home prices will increase, too. I think there is no time like the present. You cannot replicate the home. Interest rates are low and are predicted to increase. You currently get more house for your money. Also, if you are selling an existing home, capital gains taxes are scheduled to increase materially, which makes the proceeds from your house sale much smaller. I continue to have a passion for helping clients realize their dreams. Front Row: Elizabeth Meltzer, Margie Halem, Harrison Halem, Courtney Halem Back Row: Nicole Blinkhorn, Amy Gordon, Lori Silverman, Ashley Townsend Not Pictured: Judi Casey

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Trent Heminger & Mary Noone With more than 90 collective years in real estate, and $210 million worth of sales and 302 transactions in 2020 – Trent & Co is ranked #1 for medium-sized teams in the DMV for both volume transactions by this year’s Wall Street Journal’s annual REAL Trends + Tom Ferry’s The Thousand. Trent & Co. at Compass Real Estate 5471 Wisconsin Ave., 3rd Floor Chevy Chase, MD 20815 301-298-1001 mary.noone@compass.com

www.trentandco.com Q: What renovations will get me the highest

return when selling my home?

A: So often clients smartly ask, "what matters?"

"What will get our biggest return?" For clients who may be considering a move within the next 5-10 years, you can easily offer folks a Home Warranty or disclose the roof age and repair list. More important are nice kitchens and baths. People in this area don’t have time to renovate and need 'move in ready.' If you're considering changes to your home, ask us what will add value! Not only do we have great resources, but also examples of selling that get you the highest return. Currently a simple white counter to “blend in” your darker cabinets is all that’s needed to give your home a fresh look while gaining you the biggest return. Always ask. We'd rather weigh in now than have you invest in something that doesn’t get you the highest return later.

strong numbers to share what’s happening. During Covid, several ZIP codes in Bethesda that typically average 140 single-family homes available in a month had all-time lows of 40 homes! That's a lot of inventory to make up. While we may start to see "less crazy," with so much pent-up demand, well-priced, move-in-ready homes will continue to be a void. Don’t be afraid to explore where your home comes in. We are always happy to share the reality in real estate numbers.

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Q: Where is the home market going since Covid? A: No one has a crystal ball. But we do have many

fitness. wellness. medicine.

PHOTO BY LINDSEY MAX

health

Bethesda nutrition and wellness coach Linda Petursdottir works with clients to address their health challenges through workshops, cooking classes, group reboot programs and individual coaching. For more, turn the page.

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health | BE WELL

EAT YOUR VEGETABLES A nutrition and wellness coach talks about the link between the food we eat and the way we feel BY CARALEE ADAMS | PHOTO BY LINDSEY MAX

LINDA PETURSDOTTIR’S APPROACH to healthy living often starts in the kitchen. “You can’t exercise your way out of a bad diet,” she says. “You’re not going to be able to make the progress that you need to make if you’re not putting in the right fuel.” Petursdottir, 46, works with clients to better manage their nutrition, fitness, sleep habits and stress levels. The Bethesda resident learned about the value of eating right at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition in New York City, which she attended from 2004-2005. After graduating in 2005, she launched her business, Simple Well Being, offering individual coaching, cooking classes, wellness workshops and short-term group reboot programs. Last year, Petursdottir became certified as a functional medicine coach and began to take a deeper look at the health of her clients, who are typically women in their 40s. Through a four-page intake form, she gathers information about their daily routines, medical histories and prior lab results to address problems ranging from digestive issues to headaches and high blood pressure. Petursdottir says that getting to the root of someone’s individual health challenges and working together to craft a plan is like piecing together a puzzle. “Symptoms can be a gift,” she says. “It’s important to be really observant about what your body’s trying to tell you, to get curious and use that as a way of revealing maybe some underlying imbalances.” A recent client told Petursdottir that she felt stuck with her nutrition routine and couldn’t kick her sugar cravings. When Petursdottir realized the woman was sensitive to dairy products, suffered from seasonal allergies and also had trouble sleeping, she helped her set goals that included lifestyle changes and 224

adding interesting, healthy foods to her diet. Those changes led to weight loss as a side effect, Petursdottir says. Petursdottir’s 21-day reboot program, conducted online during the pandemic, helps clients recognize the link between what they are eating and how they are feeling. Her overall emphasis isn’t about deprivation, but rather on introducing tasty recipes that leave little room for eating unhealthy foods and encourage clients to develop eating routines they can maintain for the long term. “It’s about making realistic upgrades and additions,” Petursdottir says. “It’s a mindset of abundance.” It took time for Petursdottir to find her own healthy balance. She grew up in the small town of Hafnarfjörður, Iceland, and was the country’s national champion in gymnastics from 1987 through 1989, competing until she was 19. After moving to South Carolina at age 20 to study psychology at Coastal Carolina University, she indulged in fast food, gained weight and wasn’t motivated by gym workouts. While dating her future husband, Mark Sincevich, she turned the corner by taking cooking classes together and getting into yoga and meditation. She also discovered the fun of exercising outdoors with him, including hiking, biking, running, skiing, golfing and tennis. Their two teenage sons sometimes join them on their outings. As people emerge from the pandemic, Petursdottir says she’s seeing a growing interest in wellness from those who want to adopt healthy habits to stave off chronic illnesses that could put them at greater risk for COVID-19—or whatever the next pandemic might be. “People are ready to hit the reset button and start taking their nutrition really seriously,” she says. n

IN HER OWN WORDS... PUTTING IN THE WORK “So much of our environment is default unhealthy. It’s default convenience. There are remote controls for everything. You don’t have to walk, you can do the drive-thru. …And if you have a pain, here’s a painkiller. So it takes being a deviant to be healthy. It takes being educated and assertive, a little bit of swimming upstream to be healthy. My job is to empower people to be healthy deviants. It’s going to be hard, but you know what? It’s going to pay off.”

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THE RIGHT FIT

QUICK FIX

HER HEALTHY SMOOTHIE

“I remember coming to nutrition school thinking that I really knew a lot about healthy eating. Then I realized that I didn’t. There is a whole big world of different dietary theories. Our homework would be to follow a certain kind of dietary approach for a given amount of time and explore what that looks like for us—[such as] a high-protein diet or vegan diet. Everybody would have different experiences. The point of the whole thing was that there’s no one single diet that’s best for everyone.”

“I have clients who don’t cook. I show them how to assemble, where there is no recipe involved. Let’s say a grain bowl. You can buy frozen cooked quinoa, brown rice, or cauliflower rice that you just thaw or heat. Then add in greens, some vegetables and a sauce. Knowing you’re not going to be cooking, let’s create some lifelines: there’s that assembled meal, there’s a Crock-Pot meal, and there’s a healthy takeout. And then there’s three days of healthy meal delivery. Of course, it takes a little bit of creativity and sometimes a little money.”

“Typically, one-third is liquid that’s not juice; one-third is fruit; and then one-third is vegetables—spinach, yellow squash, cabbage, avocados. Then add a protein boost that could be protein powder, chia seeds, flaxseeds, or hempseeds. It’s more macronutrient balanced by having a combination of healthy fats and protein along with fiber. A smoothie with juice, strawberries and yogurt is like a big load of carbohydrates. You’re going to spike your blood sugar, and it’s going to crash and you can be looking for food a half hour later.”

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health

The Unexpected Everyone who joins a bereavement group at Hope Connections for Cancer Support has lost a loved one. One couple found each other. BY MIKE UNGER

ON A SUNNY AFTERNOON in early April, Ruth Lehman and Joe

McKee are sitting on the patio of their new home in Silver Spring, reminiscing about past heartaches and the unusual circumstances that brought them together. The pleasant spring weather matches the newlyweds’ moods, and they occasionally clutch each other’s hand under the table as they talk. Inside, Lehman’s cats, Simba and Buddy, lounge on kitchen chairs. “I was not a cat person,” McKee, 66, says. “If either one of us is in a recliner, Simba will stretch out and roll to his side or even on his back and reach a paw up and touch your chin. It’s incredibly cute. I [still] don’t know if I’d say I’m a cat person. I’m a Simba and Buddy person.” The couple met at a cancer bereavement group three years ago when both were in the throes of grief. McKee went to his first meeting at Hope Connections for Cancer Support—a Bethesda-based nonprofit that provides education and emotional support for people with cancer, survivors, caregivers, family members and friends—a week after the memorial service for his beloved wife of 35 years, Mary Jane, who died of colon cancer. Lehman already was a regular at the Tuesday night sessions, having started going after a close friend succumbed to pancreatic cancer. McKee, whose daughter affectionately describes him as an introvert, was never one to wear his emotions on his sleeve, but after his wife’s death he felt he needed an outlet. “I wasn’t comfortable blubbering in front of my daughter,” he says. “She was going through the loss of her mother. I didn’t feel comfortable talking to other people when you’re going through a loss like that. Considering the

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PHOTO BY CREDIT PHOTO LISA HELFERT

Joe McKee and Ruth Lehman outside the Hope Connections building in Bethesda

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health circumstances and the subject matter, Hope Connections was a very comfortable situation.” At those first sessions together, Lehman, who was divorced and had little interest in dating, was moved by McKee’s story about retiring early to spend his wife’s final days with her. “It was clear to me that there was a lot going on for him that was not so easy to talk about,” she recalls. “It was really good to see him crying in the group occasionally because I knew it was so fresh. He talked about his daughter and his grandbaby with such love.” Over time, Lehman’s presence at the meetings made it easier for McKee to share his feelings. He noticed the empathy she extended to other members of the group, and when she asked him if he had anyone to talk to, he felt she genuinely cared about his answer. One other thing about her caught his attention. “I thought, ‘Wow, she’s pretty cute,’ ” he says sheepishly. “I felt a little guilty.” McKee, who worked at the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing for 25 years, and Lehman, a geriatric care manager turned real estate agent, weren’t looking for love when they found Hope Connections. Single for 11 years, Lehman was perfectly content living an active life with her friends and two adult daughters. McKee had just lost the woman with whom he’d spent more than half his life. “It was a real surprise to me that it was easy to be in a relationship again,” Lehman says. “I was not a very trusting person of men, but I found him to be extremely trustworthy and kind, and easy to get along with. If it hadn’t been for all of those qualities, I never would have said yes to the marriage proposal.”

MARY MCCUSKER, THE presi-

dent and CEO of Hope Connections, says she’s never heard of a romantic relationship blooming from a bereavement group, but she understands how it could happen. “Having been a caregiver and experiencing the loss of a loved one was one of the most challenging experiences of my life,” she says. “It changes you forever. When you meet someone that 228

has gone through a similar situation, you connect on a different level.” Co-founded by Montgomery County residents Bernie and Bonnie Kogod to honor their daughter, who died of cancer when she was 18, Hope Connections opened in March 2007 in Bethesda as The Wellness Community-Greater Washington, DC. (It changed its name in 2011.) Attorney Liza Marshall, who is married to renowned oncologist Dr. John Marshall, chief of hematology/oncology at Georgetown University Hospital’s Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, was a founding member of the Hope Connections Board of Directors. She was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2006 and attended some of the first support groups. “No matter how hard you try, it’s very hard to understand what people are going through and how they are feeling until you have actually experienced the same thing yourself,” she says. “There are so many things that are very distinctive to both the treatment of cancer and ongoing survivorship. You get itchy skin, or it can be hard to eat because of mouth sores. It’s so important to have other people to talk to. The joke is you have a place not only where you can let your hair down, but you can take your wig off.” The organization offers cancerspecific and general cancer support groups, as well as groups for caregivers. Cancer care is a costly proposi-

tion, even for those with decent health insurance in normal times, McCusker says. “About 30% of our participants pay between $10,000 and $30,000 in outof-pocket costs. These people become temporarily poor, and many will declare bankruptcy or experience lasting negative financial consequences due to their disease.” That’s one reason all of Hope Connections’ programs, which also include mind-body classes such as yoga, Pilates and meditation, as well as financial literacy, are free. The nonprofit raises roughly $1 million a year, primarily through private donations, and all of the services it provides are run by licensed professionals. The group serves about 3,200 participants annually; more than 60% live in Montgomery County. “Support groups break down isolation when somebody is in the grieving process,” says Tom Sumser, a clinical social worker who has been a group facilitator at Hope Connections for 12 years. “They afford people an environment where they can be understood.”

LEHMAN MET BETH SULLIVAN

when they lived near each other in their 20s, and their friendship strengthened when Sullivan was diagnosed with cancer in the mid-2010s. Lehman, who has a master’s degree in counseling and spent six years working at Aging Network Services in Bethesda, would drive her

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PHOTOS BY NORA PRINDLE

Opposite page: After quarantining together and getting engaged the day of the presidential inauguration in January, Lehman and McKee married this March in a friend’s yard in Silver Spring. Only their immediate family attended; McKee’s granddaughters were flower girls and Lehman’s grandson was the ring bearer.

to doctor’s appointments and take her out almost every weekend. When Sullivan became too sick to leave her house, Lehman would cook her dinner and they’d watch Pride and Prejudice movies on the couch. “She said to me, ‘I want you to be with me when I die,’ ” Lehman says. “I felt very privileged, like she had let me into her world in a way that she didn’t do to many people. It was a really sweet moment for me, but it freaked me out at the same time.” Needing some guidance, Lehman began attending a caregivers support group at Hope Connections. She shared tidbits about Sullivan, who worked for 37 years as a gardener at the vice president’s residence in D.C., including a story about the time Jill Biden came to visit her. “It just helped to feel like there was a community,” Lehman says. “I didn’t feel so alone dealing with this friend who was dying.” When Sullivan died in 2017, Lehman was bedside for her final moments. “I held her hand as she struggled to breathe,” she says. “Her cousin and her power of attorney were there. By that time she had a 24-hour caregiver who was wonderful. She coached us. She said, ‘She just needs to know that you love her and you’re with her.’ We told her that over

and over again. It felt like I lost my sister.” Shortly after, Lehman switched to a bereavement group. Around the same time, McKee’s wife, Mary Jane, was in the midst of her battle with cancer, which had been diagnosed in 2012. They’d met at a mutual friend’s Halloween party, where she showed up dressed as a kangaroo and he went as John Belushi’s samurai warrior. “I asked the guy throwing the party, ‘What’s the girl’s name in the kangaroo suit?’ ” McKee says. “He said, ‘She’s been handing out Mary Jane candies all night, how could you not know?’ ” When their only child, Molly, was just a year old, Mary Jane was diagnosed with breast cancer. She recovered fully, but years later everyone knew the outcome would be different when the colon cancer metastasized to her liver. Mary Jane’s doctor was John Marshall, who recommended that she seek the services of Hope Connections. “Cancer has its own flavor emotionally,” says Marshall, a member of the organization’s medical board. “It’s very hard for us to say what’s going to happen next to a patient. Are you going to survive or not? The work of treating it is often all consuming. Your life’s going along fine,

and then all of a sudden, wham—your whole life changes. Hope Connections does a big piece of caring for patients and caregivers that no medical center delivers well. I always say to our patients that we’re making sure your body is doing OK, but we also need to make sure that your heart and your mind and your soul are doing OK. That’s where Hope Connections comes in.” Throughout her illness, Mary Jane never lost her sense of humor, McKee says. Once, her car was totaled in the parking lot while she was at MedStar Montgomery Medical Center in Olney for a chemo infusion. She said she had to laugh, and after her hourslong appointment she posed cheerily for a photo next to her smashed up sedan as it was hauled away on the bed of a truck. As the end drew near in November 2018, McKee retired, and 10 days later his 64-year-old wife died. “My mom had passed in February of ’18. She was 98, so you kind of expect it. Sixty-four is pretty young,” McKee says as his voice trails off. He started attending the bereavement group almost immediately. “When he told me that he started going there, I was pleasantly surprised,” says his 33-year-old daughter, Molly McKee-

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health Seabrook. “But he got a lot out of it.” The bereavement groups of roughly six to 12 people meet for 90 minutes. Everyone has the opportunity to talk about the person they’ve lost and the circumstances that brought them there. Most do; a few just listen. “There was one woman I remember who talked about how she and her husband traveled all the time,” Lehman says. “He died, and they had this trip planned. She was so torn; she didn’t know if she could stand to go without him.” Occasionally people bring in photos. Some speak about an upcoming anniversary of a loved one’s death, or how they’re coping that particular week; others discuss their kids or whatever is going on in their lives. “Our [group] leader, Tom, always said, ‘You’re going to laugh and you’re going to cry,’ ” McKee says. “And I did both. Grieving was a big part of it, but it wasn’t the only thing.” Before COVID-19, they would all stand up and hold hands at the end of every

meeting, reflecting on something positive they took away from that night’s experience. The groups are usually made up of mostly women who have lost their spouse, but McKee was surprised to see younger people who were grieving the loss of a parent, sibling or friend. Although McKee was a newcomer and Lehman had been in the group for more than a year, the two started chatting after sessions. When Lehman’s uncle died, McKee sent her a condolence text and flowers. Touched by the gesture, she invited him to a Christmas party at her townhouse. Busy with her hosting duties, they didn’t get to talk a lot, so they decided to meet for lunch at Il Pizzico in Rockville a few weeks later. “We both felt so awkward,” Lehman says. “I hadn’t dated in 35 years,” says McKee. They each acknowledged their discomfort and soldiered on, discussing their families and places they wanted

to travel. “There was a connection that I can’t explain,” McKee says. That lunch turned into another, which led to dinner. Soon the couple needed to tell their adult children that they were dating. “She was on the phone with me and my sister and she said, ‘Well, there’s this man and he’s been texting me quite a lot,’ ” says Emma Prindle, 33, the younger of Lehman’s two daughters. “I said, ‘Really?’ It sounded like what a teenager might say.” McKee’s situation was more delicate. His daughter, Molly, had just lost her mother, and she was pregnant with her second daughter. “He started talking about this quote-unquote friend a lot,” she says. “I could just tell that this was clearly a little bit more than a friend. He came over for dinner one night and told me, and I think I said, ‘No s---,’ because I just knew. So I asked questions about her, and my dad said that in the bereavement group she really stood out as helping people to open up. My dad felt she

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was very special because of that.” The extended families hit it off, which was a good thing because McKee and Lehman decided when the pandemic arrived that he would move into her house. The decision, they admit, was accelerated by the circumstances of the world. At the beginning of the quarantine, they hunkered down like everyone else, loading up on cans of soup and bingeing Netflix shows like The Kominsky Method and Grace and Frankie. He spent much of his time getting the house he’d lived in since 1983 ready to hit the market. At Lehman’s place in Leisure World, he hung cabinets in the bathroom and fixed her broken dishwasher and a leaky sink. She cooked, and he ate. He loves her Guinness stew. The day of the presidential inauguration in January, they ordered a catered lunch, got dressed up, and popped a bottle of Champagne. After Joe Biden took the oath, McKee asked Lehman to dance. “That should have been my clue,” she says. “There was a little drawer in the side table that was open. Joe said, ‘Come over here and look in this drawer.’ He had spelled out ‘will you marry me’ with Scrabble letters.” She turned around to find McKee on one knee holding a ring. Stunned, Lehman, who never intended to remarry, took a moment before she answered him. “I was surprised by how happy I was about that,” she says. “It just felt right.” They were married on March 20 in a friend’s yard in Silver Spring. Only their immediate families attended. McKee’s granddaughters were the flower girls. Lehman’s 11-year-old grandson was the ring bearer, and her daughter Nora took photos. The groom sported a gray suit with a pink tie that matched the bride’s dress. Lehman wore pink shoes that a friend from Hope Connections helped her pick out. Before playing with their grandkids, the couple danced to their wedding song, Stacey Kent’s version of “What the World Needs Now Is Love.” n Mike Unger is a writer and editor who grew up in Montgomery County and lives in Baltimore.

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