Edward C. Cosentino

Clemens Crossing Elementary School
Howard County Public School System
Columbia, Maryland
ecosentino@hcpss.org

In his seven years as principal, Edward Cosentino has always strived for excellence. He has been instrumental in integrating MAP and continuous data analysis into his school’s best practices, while engaging in intensive instructor mentoring and remaining a strong believer that standardized tests can never replace the evaluations of thoughtful and engaged teachers. This praxis has resulted in Clemens Crossing Elementary surpassing countywide performance averages, which Cosentino attributes to the infusion of data-rich conversations within teams and the inclusion of goal-setting with students. Cosentino has worked hard with his school’s Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) to become a National PTA School of Excellence. The PTA-staff partnership has resulted in a stronger focus on the social and emotional wellbeing of each student, developing initiatives such as Whole Child, Whole Health, in which PTA volunteers and school staff created newsletters on health, development, and safety that were distributed to families. Other community-building activities have included family movie and discussion nights and Boys’ and Girls’ Night Out, parent-children nights where families were able to connect and learn tools to manage the challenges of raising children in today’s world. His colleagues describe Cosentino as an “optimistic, positive leader” who “strives to make his school environment positive, productive, and safe for all that enter and exit the building.” Cosentino holds a Masters from Loyola College of Maryland and a Bachelor’s from Towson University.