Five Baltimore Principals Honored with Surprise Heart of the Schools Awards

Denita Plain walked into James McHenry Elementary School's "Sweetheart Breakfast" on March 13 expecting a routine check-in. She left as the guest of honor, one of five Baltimore City principals surprised that day with the Fund for Educational Excellence's annual Heart of the Schools Awards.

Plain's reaction captured what the award is built around. "We create an environment of family first. Our children know that someone is in the building to make sure that they are seen, supported and loved. So, we just wanted to do that and give that energy back to me. I asked them to match my energy, and so you can see authenticity and the excitement. I love my children," she told WBAL-TV 11 News.

The surprise fits a pattern at James McHenry: Plain has built a school students actively want to attend. The elementary school has won Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott's Attendance Challenge three times, a streak the award coverage credits in part to Plain's leadership.

A few miles away, City Neighbor High School principal Cheyanne Zahrt received her own surprise at lunchtime, when the award announcement interrupted her check-in on senior lunch. Students who nominated Zahrt described a principal who makes everyone in the building feel seen, heard, and supported. Her own account of the job lines up with that portrait. "Our mission at our school is that every kid is loved and inspired academically, and I think that's just key. Kids are really important. It's important to know and love children, and so every day, I greet them with hugs and welcome them at the door in the morning. I think putting that in gives you energy back," Zahrt said.

WBAL reporters covered two of the five surprise ceremonies live. The Fund for Educational Excellence, which organizes the Heart of the Schools Awards each year, honored all five principals at their respective schools. The names of the three remaining honorees were not included in available coverage at publication time; the Fund for Educational Excellence can provide the complete list.