A bill approved by the Maryland Senate on Friday would give Baltimore’s mayor and a handful of senators unrivaled power over Baltimore City Public Schools.
The legislation now before the Maryland House of Delegates would discard a community panel that helps pick nine of the city’s 12 school board members, instead allowing Mayor Brandon Scott to appoint them with Senate approval.
The city is the only jurisdiction with a majority-appointed board, and if the bill passes, it would be the only Maryland school district where elected leaders would control who leads the system.
Senators advanced the bill despite opposition from nearly every community member who testified at a hearing earlier this month. It will need House approval and the governor’s signature before it becomes law. Scott has not taken a position on the legislation, according to Nina Themelis, director of government relations.
“I think we’re just going to have to see how it turns out,” Scott said, noting that the proper structure for the process has been debated for years. “For me...the only thing I care about is making sure we get the best representative on the school board.”
Currently, the school board is appointed by the mayor from a list put together by the Baltimore City Public School Board Community Panel, made up of teachers, students, parents and advocates. The committee solicits applicants, assembles the list and holds public interviews of the candidates. The committee then sends three candidates for each position on the board to the mayor to choose from.
The bill introduced by Sen. Antonio Hayes would allow the mayor to appoint board members, though the candidates would need Senate confirmation. Because state legislators from other regions generally don’t interfere with the preferences of local senators, the city’s five senators would likely have the final say.
Hayes did not respond to a request for comment. He said previously that he introduced the bill to provide greater transparency and to streamline the appointment process.
Senate President Bill Ferguson offered an amendment requiring the mayor to hold a public meeting on the candidates, but it does not say that the mayor has to follow any of the views represented.
“Ultimately, the mayor could do whatever what he or she wants,” said Melissa Schober, a parent and a former member of the Parent and Community Advisory Board, which is one of the organizations on the panel that currently suggests school board candidates. That panel also includes City Council members, the Baltimore Teachers Union and student groups. Most importantly, she said, the panel included groups, including the disability community, that had been harmed by school system policies in the past.
“I place a lot of trust in the values and expertise of the people on the community panel. It is a thoughtful group of individuals,” she said.
Two student leaders said they oppose the bill because it leaves out those who understand schools’ inner workings. Benjamin Grimaldi, legislative affairs director of the Associated Student Congress of Baltimore City, said the public meeting required by the bill would include a wide, diverse group of people who have never had much interest in the school system.
The bill “doesn’t allow the community to have any voice in the school board [appointment] process,” said Zayra Chicas-Guzman, the student representative to the board. She said the community members who pick candidates now are in school buildings every day.
“They know what kind of governance we need,” she said. “To me it is a little confusing why we would switch power from the people to our elected officials.”
Twenty counties in Maryland elect all their school board members. Three school boards have some appointed members, but the majority are elected. In Baltimore County, for instance, the governor appoints four board members from a list compiled by a committee of community members.
If the city school board bill passes, it would be a dramatic departure from nearly 30 years of tradition. For more than two decades, Baltimore’s mayor and the governor jointly appointed city school board members from candidates that were vetted by Maryland’s state school superintendent. Maryland’s legislature returned more control to the city in 2017, creating the current system.
The bill would also mandate compensation for board members for the first time following a task force recommendation. They would receive $10,000 a year for their roles, and the student member would receive a $10,000 scholarship.
Emily Opilo contributed to this report.
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