On Nov. 21, Wes Moore, Governor of Maryland; Brandon Scott, Baltimore City Mayor; City Schools CEO Dr. Sonja Santelises; Brooke Lierman, Maryland Comptroller and Hampstead Hill Academy parent; and several other elected officials, visited Hampstead Hill Academy (HHA) in Canton. HHA is a Baltimore Curriculum Project (BCP) neighborhood conversion charter school and one of the city and state’s consistently highest ranked public schools—and the only MSDE 5-star-ranked school in City Schools.
These leaders spent the day experiencing HHA’s signature Leaders Go Places (LGP) program, a program for middle school students designed to inspire better grades, self awareness, and community connections across HHA. The LGP leadership development program, led by HHA educator Matt Cobb, is part of the school’s and BCP’s focus on Restorative Practices, a set of methods for building community, strengthening relationships, and dealing with conflict and problem-solving through open communication. In 2007, BCP introduced Restorative Practices to Baltimore City Public Schools with its program at City Springs Elementary / Middle School. Today, it’s adopted by Baltimore City and Baltimore County public schools but not widely embraced throughout the state’s school districts.
The day began as all LGP circles do, with students reciting LGP’s Five Promises in English and Spanish:
- I will contribute to the common good
- I will persevere
- I will produce quality work
- I will conduct myself with honor and integrity
- I will advocate for myself and others
After Mr. Cobb explained to the visitors how the weekly Friday circle works—the circle is a Restorative Practice habit of coming together in community for discussion—the 6th through 8th graders embraced the weekly practice of sharing apologies and acknowledgements.
Apologies are how we take responsibility for what we’ve done and prepare our relationships. Acknowledgements are how we build relationships even stronger by lifting others up and celebrating all that we’ve done.
Students shared their apologies to peers and faculty members before moving on to acknowledgements, which include individuals and groups like HHA’s two soccer teams winning championships this fall. Mr. Cobb connected the leadership practice and qualities the students are learning with how Mayor Scott and Gov. Moore work together on goals to make Baltimore City “more fair, safer, and stronger for everyone who lives there.”
Mayor Scott and Gov. Moore briefly spoke to the LGP group:
Mayor Scott: “True leadership is about working with everybody, not just people you like or [those who] look like you or think like you or agree with you all the time, but everybody to make any place better for all of us.”
Gov. Moore: “You are the highlight of my week, seeing you, being with you, watching you lead, watching you learn…and take the steps to bring our city, state, and country into a better place. One of [the five promises] I want to talk about is to advocate for yourself and others. When I wrote The Other Wes Moore, I had other titles, but the publisher [suggested that title]. I told them ‘No one knows who Wes Moore is. Why does anyone care who the other West Moore is?’ They said that I was missing the point, because it was not about [me.] It’s about the others. I love that you not just advocate for yourself, but for the person to your left and to your right. You cannot be successful if they are not successful. You cannot grow if they are not growing. You cannot win if they are not winning…We need you to win right now. And there’s nothing we will not do to make sure that you win. But also you need to win because you’ll make sure that the others win too. And that’s what this is all about.”
A highlight of the morning was having three LGP students selected to ask Gov. Moore questions.
Question 1 by Hayden J., 6th Grade: Who helped you the most on your path to becoming governor?
Gov. Moore: First, I have to give acknowledgement to who is my primary source of power in my life: God. I’m very clear about who put me to bed tonight and where all my power comes from and that’s from God. Our state’s amazing First Lady, Dawn Moore, was not just my rock on a campaign, she’s been the rock of my life…When you surround yourself with people who want nothing but the best for you in all circumstances, when you surround yourself with people who are willing to sacrifice on your behalf, when you surround yourself with people who will do anything to make sure that you lift and decline because they believe in you, then you are destined for success. Make sure you’re surrounding yourself with people who believe in you, who love you, who lift you up because that is how I can guarantee you’re going to have a successful journey.
Question 2 by Lesedi L. in 6th Grade: How did the relationships with the people you knew before becoming governor change after you were governor?
Gov. Moore: I am really thankful that a lot of the people who I work with now are people who were friends before. That’s helped us to get a lot of really good things done. I think about the relationship I have with Mayor Scott, who was my friend for many years before I became the governor. And our Comptroller, Brooke Lierman. We were friends before I decided to run for governor…I have the chance as governor to work with friends, because then we’re able to get really good and important things done. I know their heart, I know what they care about, I know what they fight for. That actually allows us to be able to work together to get a lot of really good things done. My hope for each and every one of us is that as you’re going on into your journey, make sure you continue to stay close with the people who you believe in and are aligned with…they are your partners for life. I was friends with City Schools CEO Dr. Sonja Santelises for years before I decided to run. You never know where life is going to take you, and you never know about what kind of click you’re going to need when it’s time for you to go out and do some really good work.
Question 3 by Blake G., 6th Grade: What advice would you give to kids who want to be leaders like you one day?
Gov. Moore: Find the thing that makes your heart be passionate. The answer is going to be different for everybody. Everybody’s going to have a different passion…Whatever your passion is, that’s your right answer. Make sure that you are following your passion and building that [leadership] track record in your passion. When I ran for governor, I had never run for office before in my life. This is the first elected thing in politics ever decided to do. But if you [asked] people who knew me what they thought I would want to work on as governor, they would say, ‘child poverty because that’s what he’s worked on his whole life.’ Find that thing that you would give everything to solve, that thing that helps you to wake up in the morning and that gives you purpose in life, go after it. Keep working on it because you’ll find that when you get to your position of leadership, no matter what that title is. I know people with no title who are doing amazing things in this world. and I know people with really big titles [who are] doing absolutely nothing. Title does not matter, but the ability to find that thing that makes your heart beat faster and to go after it, that’s the advice that I would give. Once you figure out what that thing is, grab it and don’t let go because you will be able to be victorious.
After the LGP circle, the group talked with Steve Plunk, Director of Restorative Practices, and Kat Locke-Jones, 2025 Maryland State Teacher of the Year and 7th grade ELA teacher, about how Restorative Practices have transformed the HHA school culture and broader community.
At the end of their visit, all the guests participated in a circle question: What was the highlight of experiencing our LGP circle, or, how will you be a Hornet and pollinate your learning to others after today?
Dr. Sonja Santelises, Baltimore City Schools CEO: “My highlight is the way that this is part of who HHA is…I love that this is real and I love the real student voice and the fact that this is part of who you are.”
Dr. Carey Wright, Maryland State Superintendent: “What really impressed me [is] the amount of respect that is shown [when someone is] speaking that you’re attentive and listening and then rewarding that with smiles. I am really struck with the quiet listening and attentiveness.”
Brooke Lierman, Comptroller and HHA parent: “I want to continue to be a Hornet for Baltimore City Public Schools. I am a proud HHA mom. With Leaders Go Places, we’re not just graduating people with good grades; we’re graduating good people. I think a lot of schools send off people with good grades who have not learned to be the best versions of themselves. These practices really help us to make sure we’re graduating [good people].”
Kat Locke-Jones, 2025 MarylandD Teacher of the Year: “I’ll be a Hornet because I think we often tell students what they are before they decide who they are. Giving them the space to have the language to tell their own stories is what restorative practices does, and I’m honored to be part of that.”
Gov. Moore: “I leave here committed to being a hornet about HHA and committed to being a hornet about all of you. Committed to making sure that the love and the inspiration and support that all of the students that you’re showing to each other. Making sure that all across the state, that we can make sure that this is not just a best practice, but that it’s a common practice.”
THANK YOU to all of the visitors for spending the morning at HHA!
Read more about HHA’s Leaders Go Places with LGP Director Matt Cobb’s BCP blog post about Empowering Middle School Students.
See HHA showcased in the new documentary Restorative Practices Make Strong Schools, which was produced this spring by Voices for Restorative Schools.
Discover how HHA Principal Matt Hornbeck leads with the values of community and connection.
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