During her 21-year teaching career, Mrs. Jennifer Petrusa has taught at two middle schools in Harford County and two high schools in Georgia. She came to Maryland two years ago to be closer to her family, and ended up becoming one of the newest additions to the English department.  

Petrusa was searching for a top performing school with well-rounded students. She was attracted to the rural area because it seems like the place she plans to settle down here. 

After many years of teaching experience, she finds that the mentoring aspect of the occupation was her favorite thing. This year, she has enjoyed the smaller classes that allow her to connect to her students on a more personal level.  She wants to ensure that her students have a safe space to talk about their anxieties regarding life and their education, so they can get through the year smoothly.  

Petrusa is not only here to teach, but to also learn about the country life which is different to her more suburban upbringing.  

“From getting to know students I see that they have grown up in a more country setting,” Petrusa said. “They have somewhat different experiences.” 

Petrusa is excited to teach about the Kite Runner, a book that shows different experiences of people from different countries. She finds it important to bring cultures outside of America to her students, while the book is also a well written narrative about a father and son relationship.   

One of Petrusa’s favorite books is “The Kite Runner” by Khaled Hosseini, which describes experiences of people from different countries. She finds it important to learn about other cultures and “The Kite Runner” is story of a father and son living in Afghanistan.