WELCOME BACK!!
Welcome to September! Thank you for your commitment to starting the year strong and to creating engaging, inclusive, and meaningful learning experiences for ALL of your students. The start of the school year is always full of possibilities, and we look forward to supporting you throughout the 2026-2027 School Year. Please don't hesitate to reach out to the AACPS HPED Leadership Team as we strive to Belong.Grow.Succeed for another year!
💕TEAMHPED
Don't let the calendar fool you. September in Maryland can still bring summer-like temperatures! As you plan outdoor activities, please be sure to provide students with regular water breaks during outdoor activities.
The AACPS Office of Athletics offers Game & Practice Restrictions Due to Heat guidance document, which outlines recommendations and precautions to consider when Anne Arundel County is under a heat advisory.
Active trips to school enable children to incorporate the regular physical activity they need each day while also forming healthy habits that can last a lifetime. Walk, Bike & Roll events are a wonderful way to celebrate the joy and independence of walking, biking and rolling to school and they bring schools and communities together for a common purpose. Most of all, they are fun! Join thousands of communities in celebrating Walk & Roll to School Day on October 7, 2026.
SAVE THE DATE
SHAPE Maryland Convention
November 14, 2026
Ashore Convention Center, Ocean City, MD
Interested in a Scholarship????
Click Here to apply for "First Come, First Serve" Scholarship (based on funding) to cover your registration to one of the conferences above. Application window closes on September 11th.
A Well Being Opportunity for Educators with CEUs -
September 19th
Looking for a chance to nourish yourself before the speed of school life pick's back up? Consider joining Kim Brooks and Christine DeGuzman in a Saturday PD designed specicifally for educators AND earn Continuing Education Units towards your teaching license renewal!
Holistic Well-Being for Educators
Saturday, September 19th | 8am–12pm
Anne Arundel Community College
$65 | CEUs included
Facilitators bring expertise in yoga, Reiki, meditation, breathwork, Human Design, health coaching, and more.
AACPS HPED TEAM STORE
Check out our AACPS HPED Swag Store!
The online store is open all year round with shirts, jackets, hats, backpacks, and more! Delivery or free pick up in Annapolis available.
Resources from August PD
Don't forget to take a look at the 2026 HPED Professional Learning Day Canvas Page where you can review sessions you may have missed or sessions you may want to revisit in the future!
Reflection Survey
If you haven't done so already, please consider filling out the reflection survey to provide feedback on this year's HPED August PD Day!
Canvas Updates and Reminders
Don’t forget to self enroll in the HPED Community by clicking the link below:
Reminders When Building Your Canvas Courses:
Don't forget to edit or remove “Instructor Notes” in your Canvas courses (look for the yellow highlights and the parenthesis).
Any item without the parenthesis contains content that should be reviewed before being published. Please check the links to make sure they are the documents you want students to see.
Any item with (parenthesis) needs to be edited before it is published. Please also RENAME these items and remove the parenthesis.
If you want parents/guardians to view documents - it is recommended to upload a PDF instead or setting share permission to anyone with the link can view. This may require you to save a copy to your own google drive.
Using Student View is a great tool to preview your course from a student's perspective.
It is important to recognize the many wonderful things that are taking place in AACPS HPED every single day.
Please take a moment to nominate an amazing colleague to be featured in our "Shout Out" section each month!
This month's AACPS HPED "Shout Outs" go to...
Severna Park HS HPED department - Thank you for being such a great host for our August PD day! ~ HPED TEAM
ALL OUR AACPS HPED Teachers who presented at August PD - Another fantastic kick off to the school year and we couldn't have done it without all of you! Thank you for your williness to present and keep this conference style professioal development going! ~ Christiana Walsh
Glen Burnie HPED Team- Thank you for a great first year as DC/LT in 25-26! Looking forward to what's to come as our department changes and grows! Go Gophers! ~ Marissa Pasanissi, GBHS Dept Chair
Amy, Deb, Meghan, Nick, Nicole, Maureen & Meg- Thank you for the many hours you spend helping to prepare amazing professional learning and supporting our students. You are amazing and we are lucky to have each of you! ~ Christiana Walsh
The following equipment is looking for a new home, If you wish to claim any of the items listed below, please contact Nick Klug (nklug@aacps.org). First come, first served, based on the timestamp on reply. Thanks!
Blue Crash Mat QTY: 1
(12ft x 5ft x 9in)
Check out the OIT Digital Tools
Nick's Bad Joke of the Month!
Bad Joke Sept2026.MOV
AACPS HPED now has an Instagram page and we would love to highlight the amazing work you do with your students. Please consider sending a video or photo with caption to Meg Bryant (mbryant@aacps.org) so that we can highlight the great work you do every day!
Social Media Shares and Reminders:
The Office of Communications has also asked everyone to not take pictures of students we know do not have permission to publicly post. You should not blur or place emojis over students' faces when we are not sure if they have permission. Unless you know for sure that a student’s family has given permission- do not post photos/videos. Front office staff at your school, most likely the principal’s secretary, can print a report for you of students who do not have permission to be posted on social media.
This year’s hashtags are #AACPSFamily & #BelongGrowSucceed.
Don't forget to follow us on X/Twitter @AACPSHPED and now Instagram @aacpshped
(please follow us!)
