BROWN NAMED PRINCIPAL
Beth Brown was named principal of Beverly Farms Elementary School by Montgomery County Public Schools last week. Brown is a principal intern at Fallsmead Elementary this year, and was previously and assistant principal at Flower Hill Elementary.
Beverly Farms made a positive impression on Brown the first time she ever walked out of her car and into the school, she said. “The atmosphere is so wonderful there,” said Brown. “Everyone was happy.”
Brown grew up in Fairhaven, Mass. She moved to Maryland in 1980, knowing she wanted to teach. “There weren’t many teaching positions in Massachusetts available at the time,” Brown said. She taught for four years at the Woods Academy, a private school in Bethesda, then joined Montgomery’s public schools as a technology instructor for school staff.
Since then, Brown has taught all grades from kindergarten through sixth, and worked with students of all middle-school and elementary-school ages.
“The principals that made a lasting impression on me are those that set high expectations,” Brown said. “I think it’s all about working together, forming teams [and] making sure the kids are our bottom line.”
Brown will officially succeed outgoing principal Laura Seigelbaum on July 1. Siegelbaum is retiring after 11 years as principal at Beverly Farms.
DENCHFIELD STAYS TRUE TO PYLE ROOTS
Mike Zarchin didn’t have to stray too far to get his wish. A first-year principal at Thomas Pyle Middle School, Zarchin had a wish list of enhancements to Pyle that included landscaping at the front of the school.
Kurt Denchfield delivered. A Pyle ‘88 alum and father of Pyle seventh-grader Taylor, Denchfield’s landscaping company planted trees and flowers in front of the school by the sign along Wilson Lane over Memorial Day weekend.
“It’s really my pleasure to give back to the school that gave me an excellent education [and] helped put me where I am today,” said Denchfield, who started a landscaping business while he was a high-schooler at Whitman.
Denchfield continued running his business through college and business school at the University of Maryland, College Park, then afterwards when he worked as a certified public accountant with a firm in Bethesda. When the landscaping work wound down late in the year, tax season was approaching.
Nearly four years ago, Denchfield felt he needed to decide which way to go. He opted to go full-time into landscaping. Denchfield Landscaping, Inc. Now has 15 crews. “It’s really grown from scratch,” Denchfield said.
“For one, this is my passion. I love doing this as opposed to debits and credit,” Denchfield said.
“It used to be seasonal, but we’ve smoothed it out to become a year-round operation,” said Denchfield. Through the “off season,” his company does snowplowing, night lighting, patios. During a mild winter, they can continue construction all the way through. The company now has nurseries in Hyattsville and Rockville.