Monday, April 8, 2013
New legislation gives the Prince George's County Executive expanded powers over the public school board of education.
The search process for a new Prince George's school superintendent candidate will begin anew in the next few months, this time with county excecutive Rushern Baker at the helm. Legislation passed by the Maryland General Assembly Saturday gives Baker the authority to select the next superintendent of the county's public schools, a position that will now be called the chief executive officer. The legislation, pending Gov. Martin O'Malley's signature, goes into effect on June 1. Under the new legislation, O’Malley will select a three-person search committee, which will then select three candidates for the school CEO position. Baker will select the new CEO from this list of finalists. The three original finalists, who were selected by the …
County Executive Rushern Baker's proposed overhaul of the PGCPS administration clears a major milestone.
Prince George's County Schools will soon become directly accountable to the Prince George's County Executive, once Gov. Martin O'Malley signs off on the legislation. The changes allow the county executive to select the next superintendent who, but the official job title changes to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Prince George’s County Public Schools. Also, the county executive will be able to select the chair and vice chair of the Prince George's County Board of Education. The legislation also allows the county executive to appoint three members to the Board of Education and the Prince George's County Council to make one appointment.
Friday, April 5, 2013
One candidate withdrew earlier this week, and now two more have left the search process, leaving the future of the county schools uncertain.
Prince George's County Public Schools announced Friday evening that the remaining two superintendent candidates have withdrawn from the search process, citing an uncertainty in leadership as a reason. Alvin L. Crawley, the interim superintendent, and Harrison Peters notified the Prince George’s County Board of Education of their decision to withdraw Friday. Dr. Eric Becoats, another finalist, withdrew on April 2. The Board of Education issued the following statement: “All three candidates were considered for the position under the current PGCPS governance structure. However, due to the disruption that occurred with this process and the uncertainty of the leadership of the school system in the coming months, we accept and understand why …
Tuesday, April 2, 2013
How do Prince George's County residents feel about the three choices for superintendent?
UPDATE, 11 p.m.: The Prince George's County Public Schools announced at 10 p.m. that one of the three superintendent candidates has withdrawn from the position: Original Post, 2 p.m.: In early March, Patch reported on the announcement by the Prince George’s County Board of Education that they had whittled the list of candidates to replace school superintendent William R. Hite, Jr., who vacated the position to become chief of schools in Philadelphia. Pared down from an initial list of ten, the three candidates are: Patch wanted to find out what residents thought about the three candidates and while some were familiar with the candidates, many were not, but a number of locals were more than happy to share their opinions. Alice Tennin, 38, …
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
Students will return to school on Monday, April 8.
There may still be a chill in the air, but spring break has arrived right on schedule for Prince George's County Public School (PGCPS) students. Students begin their break Thursday, which is a planning day for teachers. Schools are also closed on Friday and Monday in observance of the Easter holiday. Kids will remain home Tuesday through Friday next week on official spring break, giving students a total of 11 consecutive days off of school, weekends included. Classes will resume for PGCPS students on Monday, April 8, at regularly scheduled times.
Monday, March 25, 2013
Much of the region was blanketed Monday by heavy, wet snow.
Update, 12:51 p.m.: All after-school and evening activities at Prince George's County Public Schools have been canceled due to today's inclement weather. Original article: Prince George's County Public Schools are operating under a two-hour delay Monday thanks to a burst of wet, heavy snow that blanketed much of the region overnight. Emergency personnel still must report on time, according to school officials. The following schedule changes are also in effect:
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
The Prince George's County Board of Education has decried the move saying it is unnecessary and reduces public oversight.
The Prince George’s County Board of Education (BOE) released a statement Monday declaring its opposition to County Executive Rushern Baker’s recent move to gain more control over public schools, saying the proposed legislation falls short of reform and is an unnecessary distraction. If passed, Baker claims the legislation would give autonomy to the superintendent and more resources to the schools. It would also give him more control of the superintendent hiring process and the proposed $1.7 billion Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS) budget. But the nine-member elected BOE argues that the bill would reduce public oversight and does not recognize student achievement: Do you think Prince George’s County Public Schools would be …
Monday, March 18, 2013
The Prince George's County Executive is pushing for legislation that would put him in charge of the school system's budget and more, reports NBC4.
Prince George’s County Executive Rushern Baker wants to take a more active role in the county’s public education system. Baker thinks he has the solution to fix the county school system, and is pushing for legislation that would give him more control over the Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS) budget and superintendent hiring process, reports NBC4. "My proposal is an effort to make our schools stronger by using all the resources the County government has to offer so that our children and families have the tools they need to be successful,” said Baker in a statement, according to NBC 4. Baker told the news station that his plan would give the superintendent more autonomy and the school system more resources. Currently, PGCPS's …
Friday, March 15, 2013
What's for lunch in March 2013 in the county's public schools.
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
The Fiscal Year 2014 budget represents a $28.9 million increase over last year's budget.
The Prince George’s County Board of Education (BOE) has approved a $1.7 billion dollar budget for Fiscal Year 2014, representing at 1.7 percent increase—or $28.9 million—over last year’s budget, according to a statement released by the school system. The requested budget, which was presented to the BOE by Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS) Interim Superintendent Alvin Crawley in December, reflects funds to support staff compensation increases, student-based budgeting increases, and other initiatives. “This year, we continue to focus on budget priorities that will help ensure our students graduate college and career ready,” Board Chair Verjeana Jacobs (District 5) said in the statement. “Our goal is to meet our students’ needs …
Dorothy Ginter
8:35 pm on Monday, April 8, 2013
The legislation gives the County Executive the right to appoint 3 new members, as well as naming the Chair and Vice-Chair of the BOE. It will be interesting to see just how the Board of Ed will be able increase the academic performance of the students, when the curriculum is really set at the State level through the State Superintendent of Schools and the State Board of Education as mandated … more ›