Category: Board Member

Carrie Curtis Young is a secondary literature teacher with 20 years of experience in urban education. During that time she has written English and French curriculum and assessments, developed college essay writing workshops for graduating seniors, served as an AP Reader for the CollegeBoard, and mentored early career teachers. In her curricular work, Ms. Young seeks to expand the concept of the literary canon. Ms. Young strives to make space in the classroom for the meanings and ideas that students carry with them, incorporating their experience into the dialogue that accompanies class discussion.

Ms. Young studied linguistics at the University of Paris, has Master’s degrees in both teaching and counseling from Johns Hopkins University, and is a Nationally Certified Counselor. She lives in Baltimore, Maryland, with her family.

Mary C. Curtis, columnist at Roll Call and host of its ‘Equal Time with Mary C. Curtis’ podcast, is an award-winning journalist and educator based in Charlotte, N.C., and Washington, D.C. A former Nieman Fellow at Harvard, Curtis, who covers the intersection of politics, culture and race, contributes to WFAE, an NPR affiliate in Charlotte and is a senior facilitator with The OpEd Project, which increases the range of voices in opinion writing. She has contributed to MSNBC, NPR, the Black News Channel, ESPN’s The Undefeated and The Washington Post, covered presidential campaigns since 2008, and has worked at The New York Times, Charlotte Observer, Baltimore Sun and the Associated Press.

She was chosen for The HistoryMakers, the single largest collection — archived in the Library of Congress — which promotes successes and documents events important to the African American community and American society.

Honors include the National Society of Newspaper Columnists’ 2022 Ernie Pyle Lifetime Achievement Award, Clarion Awards from the Association for Women in Communications, awards from the National Headliners and the Society of Professional Journalists, three first-place awards from the National Association of Black Journalists, and the Thomas Wolfe Award for an examination of Confederate heritage groups.

Curtis has contributed to several books, including an essay in “Covering Politics in the Age of Trump” (LSU Press; 2021) and “Now What?” The Voters Have Spoken — Essays on Life After Trump.”

www.maryccurtis.com

Janice Curtis Greene is an accomplished storyteller and Author, an American Griot. She has been telling African, African American and Multicultural stories for over 25 years. She is past President and Life Member of the Griots’ Circle of Maryland, Inc. and a Life Member, Board Member and President Elect of the National Association of Black Storytellers (NABS). She is also a member of the National Storyteller’s Network and the Network of Biblical Storytellers International. Commissioner Janice Curtis Greene was recently appointed by Governor Larry Hogan as a Commissioner on the Maryland Commission on African American History and Culture.

Janice Curtis Greene has delighted adult and student audiences at various churches, schools, colleges, libraries, hospitals, festivals and gatherings throughout the United States including Baltimore, Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, Atlanta, Minneapolis, Camden, Los Angeles, Houston, Charleston, Cleveland and New Orleans and as far away as Brazil, Canada, Zambia, South Africa, Egypt and on a Carnival Cruise. Janice mesmerizes her audiences with folktales, original stories and Bible Stories set to syncopated Rap rhythms. Janice has performed as narrator with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and is also known for her portrayals of historical African American females such as Harriett Tubman, Rosa Parks, Juanita Jackson Mitchell, Phillis Wheatley and Mother Mary Lange foundress of the Oblate Sister of Providence.

Janice has contracted with Baltimore County, Anne Arundel County, Prince Georges and Harford County Libraries and Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore City. Janice is on the Maryland State Arts Council Visiting Artist Roster, is a Resident Artist at the Reginald Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History and Culture, National Great Blacks in Wax Museum, Hosanna School Museum, Oakley Cabin Museum and Benjamin Banneker Historical Park and Museum.

Janice the Griot has been honored for her community service by then Mayor of Baltimore, Kurt L. Schmoke and for her volunteer activities with children by the Continentals Societies, Inc. and Lambda Kappa Mu Sorority. In 2015 Janice was awarded the Woman of the Year in the Cultural Arts by Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Alpha Zeta Chapter and the LINKS, Inc. and in 2016 received the Harriet Tubman Lifetime Achievement Award by Baltimore African American Tourism Council.

Janice is also a spiritual revivalist. Her original stories “Conversations with my Mother” and “Standing My Ground” stories of healing after the death of her sons have touched many hearts. She has also been a revivalist at Women’s Gatherings and Catholic Churches in Baltimore, Washington and Philadelphia.

Mrs. Greene partners with the Benjamin Banneker Historical Park and Museum where she portrays Phillis Wheatley, the Reginald Lewis Museum of Maryland History and Culture where portrayal of Harriet Tubman and Juanita Jackson Mitchell and is a part of the Living History to Go Program, the National Great Blacks in Wax Museum where she brings the wax figures to life through Historical Portrayals and Morgan State University and the Lillie Carroll Jackson Civil Rights Museum where she teaches Living History Workshops to Theater Students and the Community.

Along with all of her storytelling performances Mrs. Greene has been a mentor for the Growing Griots Literacy Learning Program for 10 years volunteering her time teaching oratory skills to at risk middle and high school students for this 25 week program.

Janice’s chant, “Storytellers in the House” the Anthem of Black Storytellers is published in “Sayin’ Somethin’: Stories from the National Association of Black Storyteller”. Several of her articles written for the Catholic Review Newspaper are featured in the book, “What We Have Seen and Heard: Essays and Stories from Black Catholics of Baltimore”. Mrs. Greene also authored the children’s book, “Thema and the Wonderful Black Gourd” for which she was honored by Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake and Howard County Executive, Ken Ulman for her contribution to African American Literature.

Mrs. Greene is active in her church, New All Saints Catholic Church where she teaches Sunday School, sings on the Gospel Choir and has directed the Sacred Dance Ministry for over 20 years. She retired from the Social Security Administration in Woodlawn in 2008 after 35 years of service and resides in Windsor Mill, Maryland with her husband of 44 years, Paris Wendell Greene. She live by Luke 12:48, “Of whom much is given, of him much is required”.