Maryland school honors late principal who refused to let poverty limit student success

HAGERSTOWN, Md. (WBFF) — A beloved Maryland elementary school principal who helped students defy the odds, is still making an impact nearly a year after his death. The school community is carrying on his work, and making sure the extraordinary legacy of Principal Thomas Garner continues.

Changing history is never easy. For 74 years, the same letters have hung on the walls of Salem Avenue Elementary, in Hagerstown. Now, the school is getting a new name.

“My belief is that it’s named after not just him, but all of us. All of the kids that walk these halls, all of the kids that he influenced, all the educators, all of the leaders he grew,” stated Marcie Burleson, the school’s academic achievement coordinator.

Burleson is speaking of Principal Thomas Garner, whom Project Baltimore first interviewed in 2018.

Marcie Burleson, academic achievement coordinator for Thomas J. Garner Elementary School (WBFF)

“We expect all kids to be able to do well. Period,” Garner told us. “As a principal, my job can’t be to let the outside forces control what happens within our building.”

At the time, Project Baltimore was examining Maryland academic results and noticed something remarkable about Garner’s school. According to federal data, 100 percent of his students lived in poverty. High poverty schools tend to underachieve academically. Yet, state data showed Garner’s fifth grade class scored slightly higher on state testing in math and English Language Arts than the Maryland average.

“My job is to show empathy, to be empathetic from where you’re coming from, but my job is also to push you up, to move you up,” explained Garner in 2018.

At Salem Avenue, Garner did things differently. As many elementary schools moved toward computer-based learning, his school continued emphasizing books and writing.

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Then, there was The Blitz.

The day before school started each year, Garner passed out T-shirts and addresses to his staff. They spread out, visiting every student’s home, to meet families and see how they live.

In recent years, Garner’s profile grew. In 2024, Salem Avenue was one of only 28 schools nationwide to be recognized by The Center for Model Schools.

“There’s nothing stopping any school from not doing what we’re doing,” Garner told Project Baltimore in 2024.

Principal Thomas Garner spent 21 years at Salem Avenue Elementary. Then, on the afternoon of October 10, 2025, shortly after lunch, he suffered a cardiac emergency and collapsed inside the school. Paramedics could not save him.

Late Principal Thomas Garner inside then Salem Avenue Elementary School (WBFF)

“Obviously incredibly dramatic experience. What was going through people’s minds with the school, with him, with you? The kids?” Project Baltimore’s Chris Papst asked Burleson.

“He would be so proud of us,” replied Burleson through tear-filled eyes. “We had kids to take care of, and we did what he would want us to do.”

Burleson explained that after Garner’s death, students at Salem Avenue didn’t miss any school.

We came right back,” Burleson told Project Baltimore. “This is for a lot of our kids, is their safe space. And we wanted them to feel safe here and that they weren’t going through this alone.”

ALSO READ | Maryland public school with 100% student poverty named national ‘Model School’

What happened next, this school would also not go through alone. Days after Garner’s death, work began to rename the building. Students printed and distributed petitions. The community gathered signatures. Within just nine months, The Washington County Board of Education voted to rename this school: Thomas J. Garner Elementary.

“What was that moment like for you?” Papst asked.

“Bittersweet. Incredibly proud because I think that we were honoring him and also sad. Because he’s not here,” Burleson recalled, eyes glistening.

In early September, 11 months after his passing, this Hagerstown community celebrated the legacy of Thomas Garner; a man who refused to allow a school with extreme levels of student poverty to fail.

Thomas J. Garner Elementary School (WBFF)

“I’m a firm believer that you can’t feel sorry for anyone. Feeling sorry for someone never has made them stronger,” Garner told Project Baltimore in 2023.

That was a mindset that got results. In 2026, months after his death, 48.2% of Garner’s fifth grade class scored proficient in math, 50% scored proficient in English. Both scores are nearly two points above the state average of 46.8% and 48.6% respectively.

“The drive and desire that he instilled in us, we just want to continue and make him proud,” concluded Burleson.

Follow Project Baltimore’s Chris Papst on X and Facebook. Send news tips to cjpapst@sbgtv.com