By Benjamin Hong, Co-Editor-In-Chief
This year, River Hill welcomes two new faces to its staff: Dr. Tina Turk, part of the Black Student Achievement Program (BSAP), and Jessica Felix, the school’s new psychologist. Both bring with them a dizzying array of experience, alongside a passion for supporting students in and out of the classroom.
Turk’s path to River Hill was anything but ordinary. A graduate of Edinboro University in Pennsylvania with a degree in speech communications, she went on to spend over 15 years as president of several career colleges across the country, from Florida to Georgia to Maryland.
But as her daughter grew older, Turk decided to take a step back, bringing her to where she is now as River Hill’s BSAP advisor. “After working long hours, not being there for her, I needed a change,” Turk stated.
As her extensive pedigree attests, education has long been at the heart of Turk’s career. A first-generation college graduate herself, Turk emphasizes the life-changing impact education can have. “Education changed my life. It saved my life,” she explained. Her vision at River Hill is to support all students, helping them access programs and opportunities they might not otherwise know about through promoting gifted programs and leading college tours. “I just want to be an advocate voice for our students,” she summarized.
Felix also took a unique path to River Hill. A school psychologist for 11 years, she previously worked at Mount View Middle School before stepping into her first high school role this fall. An alumna of the University of Maryland and currently a doctoral candidate there, Felix initially imagined becoming a teacher, even joining the Future Teachers of America Club in high school. But an AP Psychology class changed her plans. “It was probably my favorite class,” she recalled. “That let me know that yes, psychology is what I want to do.”
At River Hill, Felix is especially excited to help students navigate the transition from high school to adulthood. “It’s the last step before you’re fully independent,” she explained. “My goal is to make sure when students leave here, they’ll be fine, whether it’s college, a job, or whatever they choose.”
Though both are new to River Hill, Turk and Felix share a common goal to be resources students can turn to as they prepare for their futures. This places them in line with the missive shared by the general school community, setting them up for long and successful tenures as Hawks. For now, though, their immediate aims are to adjust to the new environment and cement themselves as a part of the River Hill ecosystem. As Felix summed up, “I’m just happy to be here, happy to learn more about the community, and just get connected to everybody.”