Mentors

Valerie is a National Board Certified social studies educator focused on middle and high school civics and government. Valerie has taught in the Baltimore City Public School system, worked as a disciplinary literacy specialist at MSDE, and taught English overseas. She currently teaches high school social studies at Baltimore School for the Arts. She has mentored with the Center for Civic Education since 2006, primarily with Project Citizen and the James Madison Legacy Project.

Amy Rosenkrans is a lifelong resident of Havre de Grace, MD. She received her PhD from Notre Dame of Maryland University. In 2017, she was awarded the Joseph L. Arnold Prize for Outstanding Writing on Baltimore History by the Baltimore City Historical Society.

Dr. Rosenkrans is currently sharing her passion for history with middle school students and social studies teachers in Baltimore City. She is also a MCCHE mentor teacher for the Center for Civic Education’s JMLPE and CEAS projects.

In her spare time, she is on the Harford County Lafayette Bicentennial Committee and preparing for Lafayette’s return visit in July 2025. Additionally, she is the Secretary of the Maryland Women’s Heritage Center where she was one of the researchers on the Maryland Woman Suffragists Project and the lead researcher on the “Memories of the Baltimore Woman’s Industrial Exchange” project.

Ryan is a middle school social teacher with 16 years experience. He has participated as a mentor teacher for since 2022. Partnering with the Center for Civic Education in 2024, Ryan served as a pilot teacher for the Inquiry Companion We the People model lessons providing feedback on inquiry-based civic education. He is currently piloting the Elevating Unheard Perspectives modules exploring civil discourse practices for middle school students. Ryan’s work continues to contribute to research and development of civic education best practices.

Samantha is a National Board Certified social studies teacher. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in History and French and Master’s of Education from the University of Maryland. She also holds a Graduate Certificate in Mind, Brain, and Teaching from Johns Hopkins University. Samantha is a doctoral student in Indiana University’s Literacy, Culture, and Language program.

As a teacher of AP Government and Honors NSL Government, Reyna guides her students in developing critical thinking skills, constructing evidence-based arguments, and engaging in active listening and respectful discussions. She incorporate real-world political scenarios to demonstrate the practical application of government concepts and helps students analyze the societal impact of policies and decisions. Through involvement in Project Citizen as both a participant and mentor, as well as mentoring in JMLPE, Reyna provides hands-on experiences that empower students to apply civic education and policymaking to address issues within their school community.

Carol Carter is a dedicated professional with 12 years of experience in Prince George’s County Public Schools teaching 7th and 8th graders. She has been honored as the Prince George’s County History Day Teacher of the Year in 2021 and 2024, and was a recipient of the Gifted and Talented Education Award 2023. She began her We the People experience as a participant in our JMLPE program in 2023 and now serves as a mentor educator to elementary and middle school teachers in our Civics that Empowers All Students project.

Hayley Ressler has been teaching in Waldorf, Maryland since 2016. She began her relationship with MCCHE in 2017 by learning about We the People and leading teams to states for several years. She was invited to participate in Project Citizen in 2025 and is happy to continue working and leading!

With 25 years in education spanning grades K–8, Rhonda Patterson teaches 8th Grade U.S. History with Prince George’s County Public Schools, where she serves as Social Studies Department Chair, 8th Grade Team Lead, and mentor to both new and veteran teachers. She is also the founder of “Just for Us,” an afterschool program dedicated to supporting educators at Walker Mill Middle School.

Beyond the classroom, she has written curriculum for Teach250 through the Center for Civic Education and participated in the MCCHE program, engaging with both We the People and Project Citizen as a scholar. This year she will be a mentor. She holds two master’s degrees and is ABD in Educational Leadership. Education is a family legacy — both of her parents are retired educators.

Mike is an 18-year veteran social studies educator with Charles County Public Schools and a National Board Certified Teacher. He teaches Government and AP Human Geography, where he combines rigorous instruction with engaging, student-centered learning experiences that promote critical thinking, collaboration, and civic engagement. Michael believes students learn best when they actively explore current events, public policy, and global issues through discussions, simulations, debates, and project-based learning. His classroom emphasizes inquiry and real-world application, empowering students to become informed, engaged citizens.

Dedicated to continuous professional growth, Michael is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction with a concentration in Public Policy. His research interests focus on the intersection of curriculum, instructional practice, and educational policy. Throughout his career, he has remained committed to building positive relationships, maintaining high expectations, and creating meaningful learning experiences that inspire students to become lifelong learners and active members of their communities.

Bernard has an education for 47 years. He first started teaching at Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Washington DC. He taught History, Math, Science, Reading, and PE. The last five year at the school before they closed he was Vice-Principal. While at Our Lady of Perpetual Help he was introduced to the We The People, Foundations of Democracy, and Project Citizen Programs were he would later become State Coordinator for the three programs. He also coached boys basketball were they won back to back CYO championships.
After Our Lady of Perpetual Help closed he began teaching at Cesar Chavez School for public policy. Will at Chavez, he continued to work with the programs that he started at Our Lady of Perpetual Help. While at Chavez, he taught Math, Geography, US. History. AP US. History, DC History, and US Government. He incorporated We The People and Project Citizen into his content. His students captured several Project Citizen awards.
He is happy to be part of the Project Citizen family again. He has mentored in Rhode Island, and Maryland before.

Christian Pensiero is an experienced 5th-grade teacher in Howard County. She has been a leader in the We the People curricular program for over 15 years. Christian has served as a mentor for MCCHE since 2023 delivering professional learning to elementary and middle school educators. As the 2024 American Civics Educator Award recipient, she specializes in fostering civic engagement, critical thinking, and mentoring fellow educators.

Taylor has been with the District of Columbia Public Schools for 10 years. Her careerr has focused primarily on 4th and 5th grade students. She currently serves an Instructional Coach.Taylor has been a mentor with MCCHE since 2021 helping teachers across the District implement strong social studies instruction utilizing the We The People curriculum. Taylor believes all students deserve access to a quality teacher and she enjoys her role in assisting elementary school teachers.

Lisa Katz leads development strategy, funder reporting and the evidence practices that carry the Council’s case to partners and supporters. for the Council. A former Howard County educator and Maryland State Department of Education specialist, she spent nearly a decade leading data, analytics, and research at Discovery Education and now heads Groundswell Strategic Partners, advising mission-driven organizations on impact evidence and board and funder reporting. She holds a Master of Information Science with a concentration in Records Management from the University of Maryland College Park and a B.A. in History from the University of Delaware.

Lisa brings more than twenty-five years across Maryland classrooms, the state education agency, higher education, and enterprise data leadership. She began as a secondary educator in Howard County Public Schools, spent six years at the Maryland State Department of Education as a program implementation and instructional specialist, and returned to Howard County as Director of Digital Learning Innovation. For a decade she served as program director and faculty at the University of Maryland, College Park and McDaniel College.

Most recently she led the global data, analytics, and research organization at Discovery Education. She now heads Groundswell Strategic Partners, providing fractional data, research, and strategy leadership to mission-driven organizations including data governance, impact-evidence frameworks, and the board and funder reporting nonprofits depend on to show what contributed support produces.

Lisa believes the organizations doing the most durable civic work are rarely the ones with the largest budgets. They are the ones that can show, specifically and credibly, what their work changes. Her focus at the Council is making that case clear enough for supporters, donors and funders to act on. Lisa is looking forward to working with the Maryland Council for Civic & History Education.