Claire Hunt

     In 2008, MySpace moved off the social networking scene, and Facebook moved in. Now, in 2013, Facebook is becoming more and more obsolete, with Twitter taking its place. Tweeters follow anyone from @GrumpyCat, who fills our news feeds with sarcastic comments, to superintendant Dr. Dallas Dance, reminding us that, yes, we will have school tomorrow. But now, Principal Andrew Last, among a few other Hereford teachers, has hatched into the Twitter world, joining #TeamBCPS.

     Mr. Last joined the social network on December 6, 2012 as @AndrewLast2. As of February 27, he has since sent 23 tweets and has 28 followers, twelve of whom are students and four are Hereford teachers.

     Tanner Baldwin (10) said he chose to follow Mr. Last “to find out [when] something important is happening in our school.” Tanner also follows Dr. Dance, Social Studies teacher Mr. Shinnick and, former facilitator, Ms. Linda McConaughy.

     Mr. Last said he joined Twitter because of Dr. Dance’s encouragement of all BCPS administrators to do so. “I’m just using it for school-related stuff,” said Mr. Last. Dr. Dance is a follower of Mr. Last and has on occasion forwarded Mr. Last’s tweets to the BCPS website.

     Mr. Last’s tweets are most often about Hereford, commenting on a recent meeting or congratulating a student, sports team, or faculty member. For example, Mr. Last tweeted “Congrats to Hereford Varsity & JV wrestling teams for winning both County Championships. Great Team effort,” on February 18.

     Recently, Mr. Last was retweeted by Dr. Dance on February 23. “Impressive teamwork and interest shown by Hereford High and other teams at the STEM Physics Olympics today at Dulaney,” tweeted Mr. Last.

     Other Hereford faculty tweeters include Social Studies teacher, Mr. Robert Greenwood (@BullsPsych). The Guidance Office(@HSCounseling) has created a Twitter account to help inform students, mostly on college opportunities and information. English teacher and Journalism advisor Mrs. Mary Beth Stuller (@its_me_MB) also created an account this school year as well. Mr. Last has expressed his encouragement of this type of teacher-student communication.

     BCPS has faced this progressive generation with grace. As more and more teachers and faculty join Twitter, #TeamBCPS continues to strengthen.