Matthew Boratenski

Matthew Boratenski is the AFI Screen Education Maryland Coordinator and AFI Silver Theatre Education Coordinator. He taught English, computer applications and social studies for 30 years in Montgomery County Public Schools and served as English Resource Teacher/Department Chair at Paint Branch High School, September 1997-2002. His duties included the following supervisory activities: Observing and scheduling a professional staff of 20 teachers; coordinating and supervising student interns from Johns Hopkins University; designing and implementing school-wide and system-wide staff development activities; serving as a member of the school leadership team/ instructional council among many other duties. In 1997, he became the MCPS liaison with the American Film Institute’s Novel Look at Film project and writer/editor of viewing guide.

Since then, he has recruited and trained teachers from the state of Maryland and the District of Columbia to use filmmaking as a 21st Century tool to engage student learning of all subjects. At the Silver Theatre he has created and managed the Educational Screenings and the Community Screenings Programs which bring students, senior citizens and mental health providers to the theater to screen films with an educational component.

In 2006 he was awarded the Montgomery County Public Schools Distinguished Service to Public Education. In 2008, he produced SchoolDocs: Harnessing the Power of Media in Education as part of the SilverDocs International Conference.