Back to School News 2022-23

Teachers’ rooms are spotless. Floors are shiny. Students are organizing school supplies. It must be close to the first day of school! The teachers and staff at Ingenuity are so excited for a fantastic learning year ahead! 

In this newsletter, you will find…

• Spotlight on Ingenuity’s new staff and teachers 
• Welcome incoming 6th and 9th graders!
• Summer Academy Successes
• Farewell to the Class of 2022 
• Symposium Pictures
• Ingenuity is Hiring! 

Thank you for being part of Baltimore City’s longest-standing advanced math, science, and research community for middle and high school students.

Sincerely,

Lisette Morris

Executive Director

Staff Spotlights

Dr. Mikhail Goldenberg retired after 25 years of teaching math for Ingenuity at Poly and Ms. Maya Spicinetskiy retired after 22 years of teaching math for Ingenuity at Roland Park. Dr. Sergei Zverev, Associate Director, accepted a position with Baltimore City Public Schools over the summer. These three talented individuals have contributed greatly to what Ingenuity is today.

We are thrilled to introduce three incredible new staff joining Ingenuity this year. Please join us in welcoming them to The Ingenuity community!

Selene Willis  (Her bio is here), Deputy Director, High School

Selene will lead Ingenuity’s instructional program at Poly. She has been a formal science educator for 15 years in public and independent schools. Most recently, she completed the Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellowship at NASA, focusing on equity, inclusion, and broadening participation of STEM education for Science Activation projects within NASA’s Science Mission Directorate.

Selene holds a Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry from Virginia Tech and a Master of Teaching in Education from Pace University. Selene is in the final stages of her doctoral degree in Science Curriculum and Instruction From the University of South Florida. Her research examines the use of justice-centered science pedagogy and curriculum development as a path to student critical consciousness.

Elisa No (Her bio is here), Ingenuity Advanced Math Teacher

Elisa will deliver Ingenuity’s advanced math instruction (AP Calculus AB & BC and eventually Differential Equations & Linear Algebra or beyond) and support students with math enrichment outside the classroom. She will also work with the Ingenuity middle school math team to offer guidance and alignment of our curriculum from Grade 6 to college level math.

Elisa had been in the field of education for 10 years. She began her journey as
a middle and high school math teacher in Baltimore City where she also served as a department chair and as part of the instructional leadership team. She expanded her teaching experience by moving abroad to teach math at an international school in Asia, teaching students from all around the world. She has
coached and led instruction for math teachers, and has continued her love for teaching math as an adjunct professor.

Elisa has her BS in Biomedical Engineering from Johns Hopkins University. She also has her MA in Curriculum and Instructional Design as well as in Educational Leadership. As a teacher, she loves to spread her joy of math and to provide opportunities for all students to explore and become confident innovative thinkers.

Kowsar Ahmed (Her bio is here), Ingenuity Research Teacher (part-time)

Kowar will support Dr. Rosen in teaching Ingenuity’s Research courses, and supervise the students’ progress on independent research projects with external mentors.

Kowsar is a medical student at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Her passion for teaching began at a young age as she tutored her younger siblings and volunteered as a peer tutor throughout her schooling. She loved fostering the growth and resilience of her students while learning to meet their individual needs. At the same time, her family’s experiences growing up in Ethiopia with limited access to healthcare sparked her interest in medicine. As a prospective physician, she seeks to address health inequities while emphasizing patient education to advocate for the underserved.

Kowsar received her B.S. in Neuroscience from Johns Hopkins, where she first began conducting research. After graduating, she worked as a clinical research coordinator at the University of Minnesota.

Welcome 6th and 9th Grade Students and Families!

We welcome 95 rising Ingenuity 9th graders to Poly and close to 200 6th graders in our four middle schools to the 2022-23 school year. We had the pleasure of meeting these academically curious students at various spring and summer events. During our 6th and 9th Grade Orientations, we explored our Core Values and discussed how the students can cultivate a culture of support and inclusivity to succeed together. We were excited to have Ingenuity alumni with us to lead these engaging sessions. 

Symposium Pictures

Enjoy these beautiful pictures from our May 2022 STEM Research Symposium! 

Summer Academy Successes 

Over 500 students grades 6-9 came to Poly this summer for Ingenuity’s expanded Summer Academies. Students explored new math concepts, collaborated on STEM projects, participated in complex board games, and more! Ingenuity high school students and alumni did an amazing job serving as Youth Counselors all summer.

Farewell to the Class of 2022 

The class of 2022 survived their 11th grade year mostly from a computer screen at home – a critical year in high school preparation for college. We are so proud of their resilience, returning to school last year as seniors to wrap up their high school journeys. This class succeeded in having an average weighted GPA of 4.4 and earned over $8 million in college scholarships. 

Ingenuity is Hiring!

Ingenuity is seeking a full-time Dynamic Development Director!