Ms. Rebecca Bittman is the English department chair, an English teacher, yearbook teacher, and theatre teacher at Crofton High School. She has been working in the AACPS system for the last 15 years.

“This is my 16th year in Maryland,” said Ms. Bittman. “I taught at North County HS for 14 years, Glen Burnie HS for 1 year and now I’m at Crofton.” 

Ms. Bittman said she is excited to be teaching at the new Crofton High School. “The idea of starting a school and its culture from scratch is so exciting to me,” she said. “We get to start new traditions and decide what school culture is going to be.” Ms. Bittman said she loves Crofton’s English department. “…I truly believe that we hired the best people for the jobs and we all worked together so well,” said Ms. Bittman.

Ms. Bittman grew up in southern Minnesota, near the border to Iowa. She attended the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, MN, and got her degree with majors in English and Education. “I’ve since gotten a Masters in Curriculum and Instruction and have my Admin 1 certificate/endorsement,” said Ms. Bittman.

For her first two years at college, Ms. Bittman was in a pre-veterinarian program at the University of St. Thomas. Although she doesn’t remember the moment when she decided to become a teacher, Ms. Bittman said she is grateful she found the path to teaching. Bittman described her experience as a teacher as “some of the most rewarding experiences and moments in my life”.

By looking back at all of her experiences from her career, Ms. Bittman said she can think of many memorable moments. One, in particular, was when she was teaching musical theatre. “The final “exam” or project at the end of the semester was for the different groups to put on a 30-minute musical,” Ms. Bittman remembered. The groups had to take an official musical and turn it into a 30-minute performance. “One year, a group of kids put on Chicago,” Ms. Bittman recalled. “IT WAS AMAZING!” The performance got a standing ovation, and it was even recorded.

Learra Carter, a 9th grader in Ms. Bittman’s class has her for English. She said she loved learning about foreshadowing. Carter described learning in Ms. Bittman’s class as “easy and understanding”.

Freshman Megan Howarth has Ms. Bittman for theatre club. This is the first year of Crofton High School’s Theatre Club. Howarth is excited to see the club grow. “I love learning about her plans for the future of the theatre club,” said Howarth. Howarth described Ms. Bittman as bringing joy and energy wherever she goes. Due to COVID-19, there have been unprecedented challenges, especially for performers. “She is very optimistic and makes everyone happy,” said Howarth when asked how Ms. Bittman has been dealing with the COVID restrictions. 

Whether she is teaching English, Yearbook, or Theatre, students said they are grateful for her hard work to make online learning enjoyable.