Art Teacher Honored With Special Award At The Potomac School In McLean

MCLEAN, VA — Cort Morgan, the art department chair at The Potomac School, received the 2023 Bill Cook Award for Excellent Teaching for his years of dedication as an educator at the McLean school.

Morgan, who is celebrating his 40th year at The Potomac School, has chaired the school’s art department for the past 15 years. He holds a bachelor’s degree in visual and environmental studies from Harvard University.

Named in honor of teacher and Assistant Head of School Bill Cook, who died in 2016, the award is presented annually to teachers “who exemplify the commitment to excellence and love of learning that define a Potomac School education.”

Morgan, who was good friends with Cook, was honored with the award at the school’s opening assembly on Sept. 8.

“This award is a testament to the dedication and compassion Cort has for his students,” Head of School John Kowalik said in a statement. “He translates his love of the arts to his students through teaching drawing, painting, sculpture, woodworking, architecture, art history, and more."

During his tenure at the school, Morgan has built wooden bridges and boardwalks, a deck, outdoor classrooms, and a concrete spillway for a pond.

“Using wood harvested from the campus, he has also skillfully built conference and coffee tables, benches, podiums, and more. It may be his work beyond the classroom and devotion to Potomac that truly sets him apart,” Kowalik said.

Morgan has taught in the Intermediate and Upper Schools at The Potomac School and served as an outdoor education leader, tech director, advisor and coach.

Kowalik noted that Morgan’s stewardship of the school’s outdoor spaces is “unparalleled.”

“As an educator, he pushes us to challenge what we know and the way things are in search of the way things should be. He claims to teach us good design — but in his classroom — ultimately, we learn to be good people,” said Matt Brow, a senior at The Potomac School and one of Morgan’s architecture students.

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