Chesapeake Schools Kick Off 2026-2027 School Year, Rule In Happiness

Chesapeake Conference of Seventh-day Adventists leaders visited all 10 conference schools on the first day of the 2026-2027 school year, Aug. 17, handing each of the conference’s 1,135 enrolled students a fidget ruler to launch the year with a smile.

Andre Hastick, president of Chesapeake Conference, opened the day at Atholton in Columbia, Maryland, walking through every classroom after 9 a.m. Nine other conference leaders fanned out across Maryland, Delaware, and West Virginia that same morning and afternoon to greet students, teachers, and parents at their schools’ doors.

Conference leaders and the schools they visited on Aug. 17 were: Atholton, in Columbia, Md., with 249 students; Baltimore White Marsh, in Baltimore, Md., with 21 students; Dover First, in Dover, Del., with 39 students; Frederick School, in Frederick, Md., with 97 students; Friendship, in Linthicum Heights, Md., with 17 students; Highland View Academy, in Hagerstown, Md., with 93 students; Mt. Aetna School, also in Hagerstown, Md., with 136 students; Rocky Knoll, in Martinsburg, W.Va., with 74 students; Spencerville Academy, in Spencerville, Md., with 365 students; and Wilmington Junior Academy, in Wilmington, Del., which, combined with its Daycare, has 46 students. 

Enrollment across the 10 schools totals 1,135 students for the 2026-2027 year, according to Chesapeake Conference’s Education Department.

Each visitor brought an interesting gift: a fidget ruler that doubled as a small visual pun on the day’s theme: conference leaders want students to rule their year with happiness. Teachers at different schools said the gift gave students something to hold and play with during first-day introductions and icebreakers.

Chesapeake Conference operates schools across Maryland, Delaware, and West Virginia, ranging from small congregational schools like Friendship to Spencerville, its largest, with 365 students. To learn more about Chesapeake Conference’s Education Department and Schools, visit here.