Shawn Joseph named Prince George’s County Public Schools’ new superintendent

Shawn Joseph, Prince George’s County Public Schools’ interim superintendent, was selected Monday to lead the state’s second-largest school system on a permanent basis.

Prince George’s County Executive Aisha Braveboy named Joseph interim superintendent last summer to replace Millard House II, who resigned from his role following a vote of no confidence from the county’s teachers union.

While serving in the interim role, Joseph took an unpaid leave from Howard University, where he worked as an assistant professor in the educational leadership and policy studies department. His experience includes a three-year stint as the superintendent of Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools before the school board ended his contract early.

“Dr. Joseph is prepared to lead Prince George’s County schools into its next chapter,” Braveboy said at a news conference at the Wayne K. Curry County Administration Building in Largo.

County leaders, including Council Chair Krystal Oriadha, council member and former Board of Education member Edward Burroughs III, Prince George’s Educators’ Association President Donna Christy and Maryland state Sen. Alonzo Washington, praised Joseph as the right pick to tackle the issues facing the school system.

“Dr. Joseph was by and far the best candidate, the only candidate for this job,” said Christy, who was part of the superintendent interview process. “Dr. Joseph has a vision. He sees our children for who they are, for their potential.”

Joseph will continue overseeing a district that has struggled to catch up to state averages in academic achievement. Three in 10 kids aren’t regularly showing up to school, and enrollment is projected to decline.

Joseph, who started the interim position on July 1 with a salary of $365,000, brings consistency to a system known for conflict. In announcing her retirement in 2023, former Superintendent Monica Goldson referenced divisions within the county school board that she said blocked progress.

“The continued political infighting among certain Board Members demonstrates a misalignment in the vision for the children of this county,” she wrote.

On Monday, Braveboy called Joseph a “uniter” who impressed the superintendent search committee and community members with his performance as the interim superintendent and his vision for the district’s future.

Joseph, who served as the county’s deputy superintendent for teaching and learning from 2014 to 2016, said he intends to create a new strategic plan focused on reading and math, and wants to go “back to the basics.”

“I’m humbled to lead this next chapter, and together we’ll build a future worthy of the brilliance sitting in our classrooms,” he said. “Because in Prince George’s County public schools, our children are not waiting to become brilliant, they already are. Our responsibility is to build a system worthy of that truth.”

What the community wants

There was a nationwide search for candidates who could meet the community’s needs — and it was challenging.

Braveboy’s office partnered with PoliHire, an executive search firm based in Washington, D.C., to search for the system’s next superintendent and survey the community on what they saw as the district’s strengths, challenges and what they were looking for in a leader.

“In my 30-plus years of recruiting, I’ve not seen a market in any point in time that you have so few individuals interested in leadership, and that is because of the visceral nature of communities, the engagement, the politics,” Kenyatta Uzzell, the founder and president of PoliHire, said at a community listening session in May. “Your strongest leaders no longer want to take those roles because they can’t be the practitioners.”

The firm’s report, based on more than 4,000 responses from students, guardians, teachers, administrators and support staff, found that people generally feel safe in schools, are confident teachers are helping students learn, and are pleased with classroom technology.

But it also laid out challenges, including poorly maintained facilities, uncertainty that students are ready for life after graduation, and doubt that the school system is fiscally responsible.

Survey respondents asked that the next leader be a strong communicator who can improve student achievement, school funding, safety, student behavior, teacher retention, special education and community trust in schools.

Ultimately, 26 candidates applied for the position, Uzzell said. Of those, five were interviewed by the superintendent search committee, which includes two county residents chosen by the governor and a state Board of Education member selected by the state superintendent.

The committee narrowed that pool to three finalists. From there, the county executive is responsible for selecting the superintendent, then the county Board of Education formally appoints the superintendent and negotiates a contract. The state superintendent approves the final appointment.

Braveboy did not release the names of the three finalists. During a listening session in May, she referenced a letter from the search committee stating that the finalists’ information remained confidential.

“That, I know, is not exactly how we would all want it to be, but that is the process that the state came up with,” Braveboy said.

Braveboy said Monday that Joseph was among the three finalists who interviewed with panels that included “community leaders, parents, advocates, education stakeholders and advisory committee members.” The finalists also participated in “stakeholder engagement sessions” and visited schools throughout the county.

“Panelists consistently rated Dr. Joseph the highest and strongest candidate evaluated during the search,” Braveboy said.

Participants, she said, described Joseph as “a thoughtful, grounded and highly qualified leader with a demonstrated understanding of the complexities facing Prince George’s County Public Schools.”

Some critics questioned the transparency of the process and circulated a petition calling for the release of the superintendent finalists’ names and for community forums with each candidate so families and other community members could meet potential new leaders.

“The community that was asked to shape this search is being shut out of it,” the petition read. It had nearly 500 signatures by the end of May.

That wasn’t the first time community members expressed concerns.

As the school board was considering Joseph’s interim appointment last year, more than 500 people signed a petition asking them to pause. They cited several concerns about his tenure at Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools, including criticism of his handling of sexual misconduct allegations. His contract there ended after the school board voted 5-3 to terminate it early.

At a news conference last year at the Prince George’s County school district’s headquarters in Upper Marlboro, Joseph denied any wrongdoing during his tenure in Nashville.

He said he improved reading scores, expanded gifted and talented instruction, reduced suspensions, and increased investment in mental health support. He was also the district’s first Black superintendent.

“I brought a lot of change, which brought a lot of noise from those protecting the status quo that were not used to seeing a Black man exercise leadership in a dynamic way,” Joseph said, drawing applause. “I did not come to Prince George’s County to relive old battles. I actually came to build a brighter future.”

When asked Monday about the end of his tenure in Nashville, Joseph encouraged critics to come to forums and bring issues to his attention.

“Don’t listen to what I say, watch what I do. And if you don’t agree, then there are forums. Come out and speak about it,” he said following the news conference. “The job of the public is to hold us accountable. We don’t fear accountability, we embrace it. It forces us to reflect.”

Focusing on achievement

In a school system where more than 1 in 4 students are learning English — the highest share in the state — leaders have focused on student growth.

Although math proficiency remains below state averages, there has been steady improvement. The most recent statewide Maryland Comprehensive Assessment Program shows that third graders in Prince George’s County are getting better at math.

Their math scores rose 3.3 percentage points, exceeding the 2-percentage-point gain statewide. Still, about 25% are considered proficient, compared to 42% statewide.

Since 2022, districtwide English proficiency has made slow growth, though only 37% of third graders are proficient, compared to half of those in the state.

Joseph said Monday that raising achievement and strengthening students’ skills in literacy and math are among his top priorities, along with improving services for students receiving special education and deepening trust with families.

“Our challenge in Prince George’s County isn’t whether kids are growing, it’s how fast they’re growing,” Joseph said. “We are going to focus on ensuring kids have access to high, rigorous curriculum and instruction, and make sure they meet their needs.”

Joseph, who is from Central Islip, New York, holds a doctoral degree in educational administration and policy studies from George Washington University. He earned his bachelor’s degree in English education from Lincoln University and his master’s in reading education from the Johns Hopkins University.

While studying at Lincoln, Joseph said he met a student who could not read. At the time, he wondered: “How do we put people on the moon and not teach children how to read in this country?”

That experience inspired him to switch his major from biology to English education and later become an English teacher. He also held roles as a reading specialist and eventually became Maryland’s Middle School Principal of the Year.

He then served as an assistant principal, principal and district administrator in Montgomery County Public Schools before becoming a superintendent in Seaford, Delaware, and later Nashville.

After leaving his post in Nashville, Joseph pivoted from leading a school system to higher education. The next chapter of his career, he said Monday, was going to be supporting aspiring superintendents and doing research.

“But purpose has a way of interrupting comfort,” he said, pausing as his eyes welled. “As I’ve been reunited with Prince George’s County Public Schools, something has been reignited.”