Pr. George's School Board Shakes Its Freshman Slump

It's been a rough few months for the Prince George's County Board of Education.

The school system's high-profile superintendent resigned after 2 1/2 years on the job. Board members caught flak over a glitch-prone computer grading and attendance system, a budget that eliminates about 900 jobs and a headquarters purchase that will cost more than advertised. And last week, they voted to close eight schools.

Yet the board has emerged from months of battle bruised but united on major issues facing Maryland's second-largest school system. Despite criticism from state lawmakers and constituents, board members lately seem ready to flex their muscles on meaty issues and stand up for themselves in the crucible of public debate. That's noteworthy, because all nine elected members took office a little more than two years ago as political newcomers.

"We absolutely have grown," said Chairman Verjeana M. Jacobs (At Large). "We came in brand-spanking new, with different views, but . . . I honestly believe this board has committed to making the tough decisions, even if it means risking elections."

Prince George's school boards have an up-and-down record. State lawmakers dissolved the last elected board in 2002 after members bickered over matters as trivial as where the superintendent would sit. It was replaced by an appointed board that ran smoothly but hired Andre J. Hornsby as schools chief despite misgivings by others. He is now in federal prison on public corruption charges.

The new board, elected in November 2006 to a four-year term, was determined to reverse that legacy but lacked experience. Its early tenure was marred by sloppy parliamentary procedure and the resignation of a member who went on an unauthorized trip with an 18-year-old student. Some critics accused the board of being little more than a rubber stamp for then-Superintendent John E. Deasy.

Then Deasy resigned in September to take another job. As board members and Interim Superintendent William R. Hite Jr. have grappled with a financial shortage, the large-scale redrawing of school boundaries and other matters, they have become a target for sharp attacks from powerful figures and face-to-face confrontations with parents.

In December, Maryland Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. (D-Calvert) sent board members a letter accusing them and other Prince George's leaders of "political pandering" in school construction plans. In February, parents heckled board Vice Chairman Ron Watson (At Large) as he tried to justify the headquarters move from Upper Marlboro to a complex near the Capital Beltway called Washington Plaza, with costs rising beyond the initial projection of $36 million. Most recently, more then 2,500 people joined a Facebook group hostile to the new attendance and grading system, some posting insults directed at school leaders.

Yet the board has forged ahead, compromising in some areas, acknowledging problems in others, but pressing on with a vision of improving student achievement and offering more opportunities to students from less-affluent parts of the county. In recent weeks, the board has passed a $1.6 billion annual budget, vowed to iron out problems with the grading system and pushed ahead with the new headquarters. It also has interviewed Hite for the superintendent's position and signaled that he is a strong contender to become a long-term leader of the 128,000-student system.

Thursday's vote to close eight schools -- the kind of issue that can be very divisive -- was unanimous and largely argument-free. Board members were so confident of the outcome that they issued a pre-written news release seconds after the vote was taken. They even drew grudging praise from one of their sharpest critics, David L. Cahn, co-chairman of Citizens for an Elected Board, who speaks at nearly every meeting.

"Yes, there's been some improvement, but there is still a long way to go," Cahn said. The board "still has a lot of Deasy's shadow to step out from. There have been some positive changes, but I think it's still not fully its own board."

Board members acknowledged that they have shouldered more responsibility since Deasy left. "We're trying to set a new foundation, a new framework, a new tone for the school system that will remain beyond the change in the superintendent," Watson said.

Some members said the gravity of the issues they face -- job cuts, school closures and long-term leadership decisions -- contrast sharply with their agenda in easier times. They're also mindful of elections approaching in 2010.

"It's a little bit of political pressure, too," said Linda Thornton Thomas (District 4). Before, she said, "a lot of times we were just nodding our heads. We allowed fewer questions to be asked."