Hilary Baude

Dedicated teacher leader with 19 years of early childhood teaching experience. Living kidney donor passionate about educating the community on the gift of organ donation through a patient-centered lens. Skilled in collaborating with stakeholders, conducting research, analyzing data, and using results to inform systematic changes. Passionate about cultivating positive relationships with the community and making meaningful changes to the lives of patients living with kidney disease through education, partnership, and compassion.

Leader

• Created and presented a vision for a patient education program at the National Kidney Donation Organization retreat.
• Designed and implemented a research study to address a problem of practice in the school setting, analyzed and interpreted the results, and developed implications for practice and policy.
• Revised the Groton Public Schools kindergarten ELA curriculum as a member of the curriculum writing team.
• Collaborated with colleagues across the district to establish goals for reading, writing, and phonics workshop.
• Provided professional development to colleagues on research-based strategies.
• Participated in lesson study models and administrative walk-throughs to provide feedback to teachers on instructional strategies.
• Analyzed school-wide academic data to identify trends and collaborated with administration and reading interventionists to develop instructional schedules to target student needs.

Activist

• Engage in ongoing efforts as a National Kidney Registry (NKR) sponsored athlete to educate the public on the importance of living organ donation, using major athletic events as platforms to elevate the message and garner media interest, such as completing 12 marathons in 1 year, competing in the IronMan World Championship, and organizing a team of 14 kidney donors and recipients to complete the 200 mile Wild West Relay.
• Collaborated with a kidney transplant recipient to create a vision for a patient education program, using video from our athletic events to create video shorts that could be shown in transplant centers or dialysis units to inspire hope and provide education to patients about their options for treatment and transplant, promoting equity in the kidney community.
• Compiled and organized data to demonstrate racial and socioeconomic inequities across the district and collaborated with committee members to establish and present a mission and vision statement to the Board of Education for approval as a member of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee.
• Secured a grant to fund the purchase of outdoor gear to increase students' time outdoors as a member of the school-wide Outdoor Committee.
• Administered the Planning and Evaluation Tool for Effective Schoolwide Reading Programs-Revised (PET-R) to teachers and conducted focus groups to compile data and determine the literacy needs of the school.

• National Kidney Donation Organization
• Districtwide Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee
• Districtwide School Safety and Climate
• Districtwide Wellness Committee
• Districtwide School Improvement Team
• School-based Discipline Committee
• National Education Association
• Connecticut Education Association

State of Connecticut Intermediate Administration and Supervision (092)

State of Connecticut Professional Educator Certification

• Elementary, Kindergarten through Grade 6 (003)
• Integrated Early Childhood/Special Education, Nursery through Grade 3 (113)

• 2025 Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame nominee
• Mayoral Proclamation Recipient (2024)
• Recognized in the world's "50 Most Interesting Athletes" (2023)
• 2023 Groton School District Teacher of the Year
• 2023 Connecticut Teacher of the Year Semifinalist
• 2023 American Hero Award (National Kidney Registry)
• First organ donor to complete the IronMan World Championships (2023)
• MVP and Sportsmanship Awards (Seton Hall Swimming)
• Big East Academic All-Star (Seton Hall Swimming)
• Cum Laude (Seton Hall)
• Magna Cum Laude (University of Saint Joseph's and Sacred Heart University)