UPDATE (APRIL 7, 2013): HB1107, Prince George's County School Board Governance, Passed:  The House concurred with the final passage of HB1107 by a vote of 81 to 45. MABE thanks all boards and members for their efforts to block this legislation. Please see below for a summary of the bill as passed and MABE’s reasons for opposing.

As adopted, HB1107 severely undermines the local boards’ governance authority. It allows the Prince George's County Government to have an unprecedented role in selecting the school system's superintendent and 4 members of the board of education.

House Bill 1107, as passed by the Senate on April 4 and in the House on April 6, 2013:

• Adds 3 members appointed by the County Executive (AMENDMENT: Increased from 2 to 3);
• Adds 1 member appointed by the County Council (AMENDMENT: Reduced from 2 to 1);
• Allows the County Executive to select the Chair and Vice-Chair of the board (AMENDMENT: Vice-Chair must be chosen from elected board members);
• Allows the County Executive to fill any vacancies on the board;
• Requires a two-thirds vote of the board to take any action contrary to an action of the CEO (superintendent); (AMENDMENT: Two-thirds vote rule does not apply to personnel actions or appeals from personnel actions);
• Creates a search committee for the next CEO that does not include any board members;
• Allows the County Executive to select the next CEO based on the 3 finalists recommended by the search committee; and
• Allows the CEO to hire and set salaries for a chief operating officer, chief finance officer, chief academic officer, chief of staff, board liaison, and any other necessary executive staff.

MABE opposed this legislation because it:

• Eliminates the ability of a local board of education to hire its own superintendent;
• Allows the County Executive to select board leadership; and
• Creates an inappropriate so-called "hybrid" board that includes members appointed by the local government and local funding authority – creating an unprecedented conflict of interest in the context of budget negotiations and other issues.

MABE strongly advocated, in the alternative, a "hybrid" board that would have included members both appointed by the Governor and locally elected (as in Harford and Caroline Counties) or a board of members jointly selected by the Mayor and Governor from a list of candidates selected by the State Board of Education (as in Baltimore City). Instead, under the provisions of House Bill 1107, the Prince George's County Executive and Council select 4 members of the board, and the County Executive selects the Chair and Vice-Chair.

In addition, MABE advocated for amendments that would have provided the board a role in, at the very least, selecting finalists for the position of CEO; and an amendment to allow the board members to elect their own officers, rather than being selected by the County Executive.

Again, none of these amendments were discussed by the subcommittee or full committee, with the outcome being a vote to concur to the Senate-amended version of the bill, and thereby avoiding amendments which could have resulted in a conference committee, and facilitating the prompt passage in the full House. 

Click here to read the Senate-amendments that were adopted on the Senate-passed version of House Bill 1107.

UPDATED APRIL 3, 2013: MABE Opposes County Takeover of Prince George’s School Board and Superintendent

MABE urges all board member to contact their local Senators immediately to voice strong opposition to the amendments described below. Prince George’s County Senators ARE CONSIDERING THESE AMENDMENTS AND COULD BE VOTING ON THEM AT ANY TIME.

Link to Roster of All Legislators by County and District

The Prince George's County Senators are proposing yet another plan to restructure the board of education and office of the superintendent – and this plan proposes even more county government intrusion into the selection of board members, officers of the board, and the superintendent, than previous plans.

The latest proposal is in the form of amendments to House Bill 1107, the bill passed by the House to create a task force to evaluate best practices for school board operations in Prince George's County. The amendments to House Bill 1107 would grant the county government unprecedented control of the board of education.

Specifically, MABE opposes the proposal because it would:

• add 2 members appointed by the County Executive;
• add 2 members appointed by the County Council;
• allow the County Executive to select the Chair and Vice Chair of the board;
• allow the County Executive to fill any vacancies on the board;
• require a two-thirds vote of the board to take any action contrary to an action of the CEO (superintendent);
• create a search committee for the next CEO that does not include any board members;
• allow the County Executive to select the next CEO based on the 3 finalists recommended by the search committee; and
• allow the CEO to hire and set salaries for a chief operating officer, chief finance officer, chief academic officer, chief of staff, board liaison, and any other necessary executive staff.

MABE objects to this proposal because it would set a very dangerous precedent for county intrusion into school board governance by:

• eliminating the ability of a local board of education to hire its own superintendent; 
• creating an inappropriate so-called “hybrid" board that does not provide for either a combination of Governor-appointed and locally-elected as in Harford and Caroline counties or joint selection by the Governor and locally-elected executive from a list provided by the State Board of Education as in Baltimore City. Instead, the Prince George's County Executive and Council would be allowed to select 4 members of the board and appoint the board leadership.

Click here for an outline of latest plan and a complete set of proposed amendments to House Bill 1107.

The Senate Education, Health and Environmental Affairs Committee could vote at any time on House Bill 1107. MABE urges all board member to contact their local Senators immediately to voice strong opposition to the described above. 

UPDATED SATURDAY, MAR. 30, 2013

Yesterday, at a hearing before the Senate Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs Committee, MABE president Rodger Janssen testified against Senate Bill 1071, the proposed takeover of the Prince George’s County school board and superintendent by the county government. Also testifying against the bill was Prince George’s County school board president and MABE secretary Verjeana Jacobs. Mr. Janssen’s testimony is provided below.

Also of note, the hearing was covered by the Washington Post, as reported in today’s paper: “Baker’s plan under fire in Annapolis as lawmakers try to craft a compromise.”

Excerpts from that article:

Stumbling blocks remain among lawmakers from other jurisdictions, whose local school boards are wary. At Friday’s hearing, the Maryland Association of Boards of Education opposed Baker’s bill, which MABE President Rodger Janssen of Baltimore County said “would be disastrous” and threaten school system independence from political interference across Maryland.

The school board chair, who has labeled Baker’s move a “power grab,” testified that the system suffers from a poor image that is undeserved. “In reality, this school system’s performance has shown steady and consistent progress. . . .Prince George’s has made double-digit increases at every grade over a seven-year span,” said Verjeana M. Jacobs (District 5).

The Maryland Association of Boards of Education
Testimony Before the
Senate Education, Health and Environmental Affairs Committee
Opposing Senate Bill 1071
“Prince George's County – School System – Academic Revitalization
and Management Effectiveness Initiative”

March 29, 2013 – Madam Chair and members of the Committee, I am Rodger Janssen, President of the Maryland Association of Boards of Education, representing all 24 local boards of education in the State, in opposition to Senate Bill 1071.

Local Board Governance & Accountability

MABE opposes Senate Bill 1071 because it would impose an unworkable governance and accountability system in Prince George’s County by granting the board of education a policy making role without the authority to oversee the implementation of those policies. The bill would make the board of education responsible for the improved academic achievement of students, but would not provide the board with the authority to oversee their own school superintendent; the individual responsible for administering the system to achieve this goal.

Senate Bill 1071 would impose a strict separation of roles and accountability for the local board of education and school superintendent by making the superintendent a cabinet-level appointee and at-will employee serving at the pleasure of the County Executive. This employment relationship is simply not workable under Maryland law; laws not proposed to be amended by this legislation.

This legislation would severely limit or eliminate the executive, legislative and judicial functions carried out by boards of education. Boards of education are not local agencies, but are, in fact and by law, state agencies responsible for carrying out the state’s education laws and regulations. The operation of the three major functions of local boards presumes an employer/employee relationship between the local board and the superintendent. In this context, MABE opposes Senate Bill 1071 because it would sever this relationship by making the superintendent an employee of the county government.

Today, in all 24 school systems, boards of education hold their single employee, the superintendent, accountable for implementing their adopted policies. The bill would result in an impractical and dysfunctional separation in Prince George’s County between the education policy-making role of the board of education, and the ability to ensure that the superintendent is, in fact, carrying out those policies.

State Accountability for Education Funding & Student Learning

MABE opposes Senate Bill 1071 because it presents a dangerous shift of fiscal accountability and fiduciary duty away from the board of education to the local government. This bill would grant all budget and oversight control to the county government, including control over the State’s investment of Thornton Bridge to Excellence dollars. The total budget shift, away from the local board to the county, is $1.7 billion. Of this, nearly $1 billion is state funding that would become subject to the control of the county government.

The State’s constitutional mandate to provide a thorough and efficient system of public schools presumes a balance of power between the State and local governments. True, each local government plays an important role as the source of local revenues to sustain excellent schools in their communities. But the governance of local school systems, and fiscal responsibility for the combination of local, state and federal dollars, is vested in local boards of education. In this way, there is a partnership between the State and each local board of education that is grounded in a statewide obligation to student learning. This partnership has worked well for Maryland, making it possible for all of us to collaborate and succeed. Together we have enacted the Thornton Bridge to Excellence Act, adopted a statewide curriculum, successfully implemented all of the testing and accountability measures under the No Child Left Behind Act, enforced statewide financial accountability and reporting requirements, moved forward into the new era of the Common Core Standards, and held counties accountable for meeting Maintenance of Effort.

Conclusion

Of course, there is much work to be done to continuously improve the quality of public education programs across the state. However, MABE firmly believes that severing the tie between the local board of education and their superintendent will not help, but hinder, such progress. 

MABE opposes Senate Bill 1071 because it proposes a county takeover of the governance and administrative roles of the local board of education, the office of the superintendent, and transfer school system budget control to the county government in Prince George’s County.

MABE also believes that this bill would set a troubling precedent for broader education policy in Maryland, and threaten the fundamental governance structure of a an educational system that has served as a model for the nation. 
For these reasons, MABE urges an unfavorable report on Senate Bill 1071.
 

UPDATE: MARCH 26, 2013: MABE Opposes County Takeover of Prince George’s School Board and Superintendent

Now Introduced as Senate Bill 1071

The Prince George's County Senators have introduced Senate Bill 1071, entitled the "Academic Revitalization and Management Effectiveness Initiative" for the Prince George's County School System.

Senate Bill 1071 is substantially similar to the amendments to House Bill 1107 which MABE opposed when circulated in the House last week; and the subject of the Prince George’s Delegation meeting on Saturday, March 23 at which Board Chair Verjeana Jacobs presented a statement and packet of materials opposing the County Government's proposed takeover.

MABE opposes Senate Bill 1071 because its primary goal is to shift budget authority and employment of the local Superintendent away from the local Board of Education to the county government.

Senate Bill 1071 is a 25-page bill to restructure the Prince George’s County school system, Board of Education and office of the Superintendent. The bill would consolidate authority in the new office of CEO of the Prince George’s County school system and limit the authority of the Board of Education by:

• Making the CEO of the school system a cabinet-level appointee and at-will employee serving at the pleasure of the County Executive;
• Allowing the CEO, as an employee of the County Executive, to:
  • Prepare the school system’s annual budget; and
  • Prepare curriculum guides, courses of study, and lists of textbooks and other instructional materials;
• Granting the CEO the sole authority to set attendance areas and consolidate schools; and
• Making the CEO responsible for the management and oversight of all school system operations (administration, instructional salaries, special education, transportation, food services, etc.)
• Granting the County Executive’s one appointed member of the Board veto power over Board actions (see below).

Senate Bill 1071 would severely limit the authority of the Board of Education by:

Granting the Board of Education very limited policy making powers focused on improving student achievement and community engagement;

• Making the Board of Education “responsible” for the academic achievement of the students, and responsible for providing effective curriculum, instructional, and assessment programs;
• Prohibiting the Board of Education from implementing any policy or taking any action contrary to the CEO’s management and oversight actions unless the Board has a two-thirds majority that must include the vote of the County Executive’s appointee. This allows for a one-member veto of Board of Education action.

Senate Bill 1071 would restructure the Board of Education by:

• Converting the elected board to a hybrid board of the current 9 elected member and student board member, by adding 1 voting member appointed by the county council and 1 voting member appointed by the county executive;
• Adding ex officio members, including the President of the Prince George’s County PTA, and 3 members appointed by the Presidents of the University of Maryland, Bowie State, and Prince George’s Community College.

Again, MABE opposes Senate Bill 1071 because its primary goal is to shift budget authority and employment of the local Superintendent away from the local Board of Education to the county government.

The bill hearing on Senate Bill 1071 is scheduled for 1:00 this Friday, March 29, in the Senate Education, Health and Environmental Affairs Committee.

Call to Action – Urge your Senators and Delegates to oppose Senate Bill 1071, because it would:

• Limit the Board of Education to a policy making role;
• Give school system budget and oversight control to the county government; and
• Make the superintendent an at-will employee of the county government.

The General Assembly should reject this school system takeover and:

• Not allow a county government to have total control over not only the county funding but also the state funding for public education;
• Not allow a county government to employ the superintendent who is responsible for requesting adequate funding from the county government; and
• Not allow the total restructuring of a local school system without the type of comprehensive study proposed by House Bill 1107. (Note – House Bill 1107 passed the House and remains available to the Senate as a bill to create a "Task Force to Evaluate Best Practices for School Board Operation in Prince George's County."

MABE urges all boards and board members in Maryland to immediately contact their legislators, Senators and Delegates, to oppose a county government takeover of the Prince George's County Board of Education and office of the superintendent. There is grave concern that Senate Bill 1071 will pass the Senate and soon be before the House. So contacting Delegates now is timely. 

Link to Roster of All Legislators by County and District

UPDATE MARCH 23, 2013 – This morning the Prince George’s County House and Senate delegations held a meeting at which County Executive Rushern Baker and Board of Education Chair Verjeana Jacobs presented their cases for and against the proposed restructuring of the school system. MABE provided each member of the delegation a statement of opposition in advance of the hearing, and MABE’s Executive Director Francie Glendening and Director of Governmental Relations John Woolums were in attendance. 

The subject of the hearing was the set of amendments proposed by the County Executive, which includes the proposals opposed in the previous Call to Action. Most recently, MABE has learned that separate legislation will be introduced in the Senate on Monday. As soon as it is available, MABE will summarize and share revised talking points. MABE knows the Senate bill will address some of the concerns raised by the initial set of amendments, but it will continue to propose to shift the employment, direction and control of the office of the superintendent from the board of education to the county government. 

Therefore, MABE continues to urge all members to contact their legislators to “Oppose a County Government Takeover of the Prince George’s County Board of Education and Office of the Superintendent.”

Act Now! Oppose a County Government Takeover of the Prince George’s County Board of Education and Office of the Superintendent

In the past week, a bill to create a task force to study the Prince George’s County school system (House Bill 1107) has become the vehicle, potentially, for more than 40 pages of amendments to restructure the local school system. The House did not act on these amendments before passing House Bill 1107, and now a separate bill will be introduced in the Senate on Monday.

However, the primary goal of these amendments and the separate bill is the same – to shift the employment of the local superintendent away from the local board of education to the county government, as an “at will” member of the County Executive’s cabinet.

Call to Action – Urge your Senators to oppose legislation, which will be before the Senate Education, Health and Environmental Affairs Committee, which would:

• Limit the Board of Education’s governance and policy making role;
• Shift school system budget control to the county government; and
• Make the superintendent an “at will” employee of the county government.

The General Assembly should reject school system takeover legislation and:

• Not allow a county government to have total control over not only the county funding but also the state funding for public education;
• Not allow a county government to employ the superintendent who is responsible for requesting adequate funding from the county government; and
• Not allow the total restructuring of a local school system without any opportunity for local input through public meetings and opportunities for public comments.

Link to Roster of All Legislators by County and District

The good news is that the House did not consider amendments to restructure the entire Prince George’s County Board of Education and office of the superintendent. House Bill 1107 has passed the House, and remains a bill to create a “Task Force to Evaluate Best Practices for School Board Operation in Prince George’s County.”

The bad news is that the takeover amendments are fully expected to be offered in the Senate as a separate bill. As soon as it is available, MABE will summarize and share revised talking points. For now, the document providing the county’s proposal is available as the set of amendments to House Bill 1107, which is now pending in the Senate.

Again, MABE urges all boards and board members in Maryland to immediately contact their legislators, Senators and Delegates, to oppose a county government takeover of the Prince George’s County Board of Education and office of the superintendent. There is grave concern that legislation will be adopted in the Senate, resulting in the House having to act on the bill in the last days of session.

March 22, 2013 – Act Now! Oppose a County Government Takeover of the Prince George’s County Board of Education and Office of the Superintendent
 
A bill to create a task force to study the Prince George’s County school system (House Bill 1107) has become the vehicle, potentially, for more than 40 pages of amendments to restructure the local school system. The primary goal of these amendments is to shift all budget authority and employment of the local superintendent away from the local board of education to the county government.
 
Call to Action - Urge your Senators to oppose amendments to House Bill 1107, which will be before the Senate Education, Health and Environmental Affairs Committee, that would:

• Limit the Board of Education to a “narrowly tailored” policy making role;
• Give all school system budget control to the county government; and
• Make the superintendent an “at will” employee of the county government.

The General Assembly should reject school system takeover amendments to House Bill 1107 and:

• Not allow a county government to have total control over not only the county funding but also the state funding for public education;
• Not allow a county government to employ the superintendent who is responsible for requesting adequate funding from the county government; and
• Not allow the total restructuring of a local school system without any opportunity for local input through public meetings and opportunities for public comments.

Link to Roster of All Legislators by County and District

The good news is that the House did not consider amendments to restructure the entire Prince George’s County board of education and office of the superintendent. House Bill 1107 has passed the House, and remains a bill to create a “Task Force to Evaluate Best Practices for School Board Operation in Prince George’s County.”

 The bad news is that the takeover amendments are now expected to be offered in the Senate. (Amendments to House Bill 1107 drafted, but not introduced or debated in the House, to amend the task force bill to restructure the Prince George's County school system.) 
 
MABE urges all boards and board members in Maryland to immediately contact their legislators, Senators and Delegates, to oppose a county government takeover of the Prince George’s County Board of Education and office of the superintendent. There is grave concern that amendments will be adopted in the Senate, resulting in the House having to act on the bill in the last days of session. 

This session saw the introduction of more than 2,600 bills, with more than 350 relating directly or indirectly to the funding, operation, or governance of local school systems. MABE monitored all of these bills, and submitted written and oral testimony on more than 75 separate pieces of legislation. MABE’s legislative priorities focused on preserving local board governance authority, securing adequate operating and capital funding, and opposing legislative encroachment into the education policy and regulatory arena reserved to local boards of education in conjunction with the State Board. Major legislation enacted in 2013 includes the passage of landmark reforms in college and career readiness aligned with the Common Core Standards, and the restructuring of the governance structure of the Prince George’s County board of education and office of the superintendent. The budget and policy outcomes of the 2013 legislative session impacting Maryland’s public school systems, boards of education, employees, and students are highlighted in MABE's 2013 Session Summary.

UPDATE (APRIL 7, 2013): HB1107, Prince George's County School Board Governance, Passed:  The House concurred with the final passage of HB1107 by a vote of 81 to 45. MABE thanks all boards and members for their efforts to block this legislation. Please see below for a summary of the bill as passed and MABE’s reasons for opposing.

As adopted, HB1107 severely undermines the local boards’ governance authority. It allows the Prince George's County Government to have an unprecedented role in selecting the school system's superintendent and 4 members of the board of education.

House Bill 1107, as passed by the Senate on April 4 and in the House on April 6, 2013:

• Adds 3 members appointed by the County Executive (AMENDMENT: Increased from 2 to 3);
• Adds 1 member appointed by the County Council (AMENDMENT: Reduced from 2 to 1);
• Allows the County Executive to select the Chair and Vice-Chair of the board (AMENDMENT: Vice-Chair must be chosen from elected board members);
• Allows the County Executive to fill any vacancies on the board;
• Requires a two-thirds vote of the board to take any action contrary to an action of the CEO (superintendent); (AMENDMENT: Two-thirds vote rule does not apply to personnel actions or appeals from personnel actions);
• Creates a search committee for the next CEO that does not include any board members;
• Allows the County Executive to select the next CEO based on the 3 finalists recommended by the search committee; and
• Allows the CEO to hire and set salaries for a chief operating officer, chief finance officer, chief academic officer, chief of staff, board liaison, and any other necessary executive staff.

MABE opposed this legislation because it:

• Eliminates the ability of a local board of education to hire its own superintendent;
• Allows the County Executive to select board leadership; and
• Creates an inappropriate so-called "hybrid" board that includes members appointed by the local government and local funding authority – creating an unprecedented conflict of interest in the context of budget negotiations and other issues.

MABE strongly advocated, in the alternative, a "hybrid" board that would have included members both appointed by the Governor and locally elected (as in Harford and Caroline Counties) or a board of members jointly selected by the Mayor and Governor from a list of candidates selected by the State Board of Education (as in Baltimore City). Instead, under the provisions of House Bill 1107, the Prince George's County Executive and Council select 4 members of the board, and the County Executive selects the Chair and Vice-Chair.

In addition, MABE advocated for amendments that would have provided the board a role in, at the very least, selecting finalists for the position of CEO; and an amendment to allow the board members to elect their own officers, rather than being selected by the County Executive.

Again, none of these amendments were discussed by the subcommittee or full committee, with the outcome being a vote to concur to the Senate-amended version of the bill, and thereby avoiding amendments which could have resulted in a conference committee, and facilitating the prompt passage in the full House. 

Click here to read the Senate-amendments that were adopted on the Senate-passed version of House Bill 1107.

The Somerset County Board of Education is seeking qualified applicants for the position of Interim Superintendent of Schools. Visit our Superintendent Search page for details. 

The 2012-2013 Maryland School Law Deskbook is the first education law reference of its kind in Maryland. Written by experienced education law attorneys, and published in cooperation between the Maryland Association of Boards of Education (MABE) and LexisNexis, this comprehensive publication offers current and authoritative information on legal issues facing schools within the context of state and federal education law.

To purchase the 2012-2013 Maryland School Law Deskbook call 1-800-223-1940, or click on the link below.

LexisNexis Bookstore

Is a current or former member of your school board deserving of MABE’s highest honor? The Charles W. Willis Award represents recognition by peers of outstanding service at the local and state level. The award, established 

  All Risk Management facilitated Peer Group members may now access our Secure Website. Our Peer Groups include; Security Directors, Maintenance Managers, Benefits Administrators, and School Risk Managers. Group Insurance Pool and Workers' Compensation Fund Trustees also have access to this secure website. Information on our Risk Management Programs as well as a variety of risk related issues is available. Contact us by e-mail at risk@mabe.org if you need help accessing this site.  

January 2013 - Flu Season News

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC), influenza activity continues to increase in the United States. Influenza activity indicators were at the highest levels so far this season in Maryland during the last week of December 2012. 

Most of the country is now experiencing high levels of influenza-like-illness. For the week ending on December 29, 2012, twenty-nine states and New York City reported high influenza-like-illness activity up from 16 states the week before. CDC’s FluView update can be viewed online at http://www.cdc.gov/flu/weekly/summary.htm.

November 2012 - Health and Sedentary Behavior

Could sitting for long periods of time be harming our health?  New research has found that long periods of very low physical activity, like prolonged sitting, is associated with changes in our body's metabolism that put us at greater risk for diabetes and cardiac disease. Find out why you may not want to take all this news sitting down! LEARN MORE

 Are you a member of the Group Insurance Pool or the Workers' Compensation Self-Insurance Fund? If so, you have access to all of the computer based training courses offered by SafeSchools (www.SafeSchools.com). Why did the Trustees of the insurance programs decide to sponsor this service for its members? Because effective training is a necessary tool for any organization and SafeSchools has proven to be effective at bringing more training to more employees with less administrative overhead.

With over 100 Courses available, which ones should you focus on? Although from a Risk Management perspective they all have value, it is important to emphasize that training related to what drives your insurance "loss costs" is important to include in any training plan.  When we look at what types of injuries employees are suffering, two stand out.   LEARN MORE   

September 2012 - Use of Personal Automobiles for Board Business

Do you drive your own vehicle for school business?  Do you supervise someone who does? A number of steps and measures need to be addressed whenever employees use their personal vehicles for school board business. This brief will help point you in the right direction. LEARN MORE  

Theatre Safety

Make sure the only drama your theatre students and school board encounter is produced on stage. Managing risks common to theatre production can be a real challenge for teachers and school administrators. LEARN MORE

May 2012 – Risk Management's secure website is now available online to members of the Risk Managers Users Groups, Benefits Coordinators and Group Insurance and Workers Comp Trustees. CLICK HERE