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Two freshmen lawmakers from Prince George鈥檚 County want to reverse the core of a 2013 law that fundamentally changed the structure of the county board of education. If successful, the move could significantly strip authority from County Executive Angela D. Alsobrooks (D), a potential 2022 gubernatorial candidate.
Dels. Julian Ivey (D) and Ronald L. Watson (D), in separate bills, want to eliminate the board鈥檚 four appointed seats and put the power of selecting full-term members exclusively back in the hands of voters.
The duo is also calling for the elimination of the school system鈥檚 Chief Executive Officer position, reinstating a school superintendent, and they want board members to once again determine who the chair and vice chair are. They also want to term out all appointed seats.
But for now, it doesn鈥檛 appear likely that either bill will move very far during this General Assembly session.
Currently, there are 14 members on the Prince George鈥檚 County Board of Education 鈥� nine elected district seats and four appointed at-large seats. All members serve four-year terms. A student member is named each year by the Prince George鈥檚 Regional Association of Student Governments.
The county executive currently has the authority to appoint the school board鈥檚 CEO and three of four appointed board members, fill vacancies, and determine the chair and vice chair. The county council selects the fourth appointed board member.
Alsobrooks, who last month replaced retiring board chair Alvin Thornton with Juanita Miller, a former state delegate and fixture in the Prince George鈥檚 political scene for more than three decades, did not respond to a request for comment. Alsobrooks also named Sonya Williams, a civil engineer, to serve as the vice chair.
In 2019, Alsobrooks appointed Dr. Monica E. Goldson, who had already been deputy superintendent and acting schools CEO, as the permanent CEO.
Thornton, a retired Howard University administrator and veteran educator, has recommended that the county study the school board鈥檚 current hybrid system, which has been in place since 2013. But some political leaders are ready to make changes.
鈥淚t鈥檚 very clear now with the majority of the board of education supporting the reform members of the board, that it鈥檚 past time to restore fully elected membership status, and all the powers that come with that, back to the board of education,鈥� Ivey said in a telephone interview. 鈥淲e should be allowing our board of education to have the authority they used to have, and that includes the authority to hire a superintendent/CEO.鈥�
Ivey said the school board structure has been a contentious issue ever since the fully elected status was rescinded.
鈥淭his isn鈥檛 per se targeting our county executive or targeting the CEO of our public schools 鈥� this is about having a good government bill passed and allowing individuals to fully participate in their democracy,鈥� Ivey said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e not the only jurisdiction across the state looking to gain more democratic representation on our board of education. This is a good democracy bill, a good government bill.鈥�
Watson, a former elected education board member from 2006 to 2010, said his bill was drafted at the request of a former school board member.
鈥淚 know what a good functioning school board looks like and what type of infrastructure they need to be successful,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 do not believe they have that鈥� now.
In 2013, the Prince George鈥檚 County delegation sponsored sweeping legislation which significantly reduced the power of the elected school board. At the time, the school system was struggling.
The school superintendent position was eliminated and replaced with a school CEO position, appointed by the county executive (Alsobrooks鈥� predecessor, Rushern L. Baker III, was county executive at the time).
Watson believes the CEO position suggests the school system should be following a business model 鈥� and is too far removed from the everyday needs of the education system.
鈥淭he CEO is based on a business model, and what we know is that it is vitally important that the person who is running our school system has very deep roots steeped in education,鈥� Watson said. 鈥淗onestly speaking, prior superintendents who tried to apply did not meet the criteria for superintendent, and the CEO actually reduces those requirements.鈥�
Ivey鈥檚 and Watson鈥檚 bills are strikingly similar, but they break on some points.
Ivey is calling for聽, repealing staggered terms, and scheduling special elections for vacancies.
Watson is calling for聽聽that is elected countywide, similar to Montgomery County鈥檚 board of education elections. He would like to let the county executive preserve the right to appoint the school superintendent and fill any vacant board seats.
Both bills would require board members to be residents of the district they are elected to.
And the lawmakers have displayed a willingness and desire to work together towards a larger goal of restructuring the education board.
鈥淲ith respect to the county executive鈥檚 powers, I believe an elected board should have the ability to select their own leadership,鈥� Watson said. 鈥淭hey have to work together day in and day out. I don鈥檛 think we need political appointees to interfere with that process.
鈥淗owever, I do believe the county executive should continue to be responsible for the hiring and retention of the superintendent. That portion of the current structure is what has allowed us to have much better continuity with a superintendent, or a CEO in our case, to retain [the position].鈥�
Watson said the bill would keep intact existing districts, but allow people from other areas of the county to vote in all districts.
鈥淚 was an at-large member and had to run across the county,鈥� Watson said. 鈥淚n doing so, I had a very good understanding of the entirety of the school system. Each board member needs to recognize that our school system will not succeed unless the entire system succeeds.鈥�
Watson cited two schools in the district with vastly different success rates.
鈥淪ay this bill is not in place, the question is, why would someone who represents Eleanor Roosevelt, which is one of our better performing high schools, go inside the [Capital] Beltway and be concerned about Central High School?鈥� Watson asked. 鈥淭he folks inside the Beltway don鈥檛 elect him, so they really don鈥檛 have to care too much about that, but they need to. If you look at our school system, our most at-risk people are inside the Beltway, and all nine members need to be focused on the entirety of the school system.鈥�
Theresa Mitchell Dudley, president of the Prince George鈥檚 County Educators鈥� Association, said the board鈥檚 current structure has been problematic, but it鈥檚 a small problem on a larger scale. PGCEA, the teachers鈥� union, represents 10,500 educators in the county.
鈥淚t has caused a great deal of consternation amongst those of us who believe we should have fully elected representation,鈥� Dudley said in a telephone interview. 鈥淥ur board has not taken a position officially on either bill. However, I have been very clear. In order to make our school system better together, the county stakeholders have to have a clear vision on how to protect our schools from the problems that have been plaguing them.鈥�
Dudley cited the lack of a coordinated effort on the part of county stakeholders, including the county executive and the county council, 鈥渞ampant residential development,鈥� and school funding as major concerns.
鈥淚f we keep changing the board structure around without addressing the issues that surround protecting our schools, it really doesn鈥檛 matter,鈥� Dudley said. 鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 matter who is sitting in those seats when you don鈥檛 have enough money to fund those schools.鈥�
Dudley said while she believes neither bill will advance this year, she worries about history repeating itself.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e still alive,鈥� she said. 鈥淲hat we saw several years ago, was they waited until the last minute of session and they came in and made significant changes. I am concerned about that.鈥�
Watson said he is not worried if the legislation is delayed, for now.
鈥淭his is not an urgent issue,鈥� he said. 鈥淭his can be tabled and worked with more community input and resubmitted at a later date. Right now because of the special session and the impacts of COVID, trying to overturn the governor鈥檚 veto on Kirwan, that bill can be put on hold. We have more important things that we can deal with at this time.鈥�
Both bills will come before the House Ways and Means Committee 鈥� but they haven鈥檛 had a hearing or a vote in the county House delegation, and they are unlikely to move without one.
Del. Alonzo Washington (D-Prince George鈥檚), the Ways and Means vice chair, said the future of Ivey鈥檚 and Watson鈥檚 legislation is unknown.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 still up in the air,鈥� Washington said. 鈥淲e haven鈥檛 even had a public hearing yet.鈥�
Glynis Kazanjian is a freelance writer. She can be reached at聽glyniskaz@gmail.com.
