logo
Howard County Board of Education approves $1.2 billion 2026 operating budget

Howard County Board of Education approves $1.2 billion 2026 operating budget

CBS News05-03-2025

The Howard County Board of Education approved the FY2026 operating budget Tuesday, which totals $1.257 billion.
The approved budget is $111.9 million more than the 2025 budget, an increase of about 9.7%.
Before approving the budget, the Board of Education added several additional priorities, including funding to hire athletic trainers in all high schools.
The additions come after Howard County teachers, students and parents raised concerns about the safety of student athletes as there are no full-time athletic trainers in the district. Currently, the district contracts less than 10 athletic trainers.
During a public meeting in February, several student athletes advocated for full-time trainers, saying the lack of personnel leaves many games and practices uncovered.
"I'm only able to play because of my athletic trainer. She recognizes my symptoms before I say anything, communicate with my coaches, and has prevented multiple hospital trips for me," said Atholton High School student Grace Dejarnette.
"My son, he wrestled, and his knee was dislocated in a match. He had to use his other leg to pop it back into place because no one was there," Cat Carter said during the meeting.
According to our partners at the Baltimore Banner, a Hammond High School parent sued the district, claiming her son was paralyzed after school staff were unable to provide medical care when he collapsed during basketball practice.
Additonal budget items
The Board of Education added several other priorities, some of which address staffing shortages. The approved budget adds a total of 250 new full-time employees.
The board included a request for additional special needs staffing to meet the demand in elementary schools.
The budget includes additional literacy and math positions and other investments into reading and math instruction. The board also requested more assistant principals to address middle school staffing needs and more human resources, legal and print services staff.
Other added priorities include increased funding for employee raises, expansions to the Innovative Pathways program, a replacement budget system software and some one-time improvements to security, water filtration and other equipment.
The board also addressed the possible impacts of Gov. Wes Moore's proposed 2026 budget, which could include a $5.5 million reduction in state aid, a $2.5 million increase in special education non-public tuition costs and a $6.8 million shift in the reacher retirement system.
"...The Board felt it was also important to leverage the budget request to memorialize some unfunded priorities of the system. The Board's proposal amplifies a commitment to special education services, adding 140 full-time positions," Board of Education Chair Jolene Mosley said.
Howard County Executive Calvin Ball is expected to present his budget to the county council in April. It includes funding for the school system.
The board of education is expected to pass the final budget in May after the county budget is adopted.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Lyell Immunopharma Strengthens Clinical and Commercial Capabilities with Key Board and Executive Appointments
Lyell Immunopharma Strengthens Clinical and Commercial Capabilities with Key Board and Executive Appointments

Yahoo

time3 hours ago

  • Yahoo

Lyell Immunopharma Strengthens Clinical and Commercial Capabilities with Key Board and Executive Appointments

Mark J. Bachleda, PharmD, MBA appointed as independent member of the Board of Directors David Shook, MD appointed as Chief Medical Officer, Mark Meltz, JD as General Counsel and Corporate Secretary, and Jarrad Aguirre, MD, MBA as Senior Vice-President of Medical Affairs SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., June 09, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Lyell Immunopharma, Inc. (Nasdaq: LYEL), a clinical-stage company advancing a pipeline of next-generation CAR T-cell therapies for patients with cancer, today announced the appointment of Mark J. Bachleda, PharmD, MBA as an independent member of the Board of Directors, David Shook, MD as Chief Medical Officer, and Mark Meltz, JD as General Counsel and Corporate Secretary. These appointments, along with the appointment earlier in the year of Jarrad Aguirre, MD, MBA as Senior Vice President, Medical Affairs, further strengthen the Company's clinical and commercial capabilities. 'As Lyell prepares to move forward with two pivotal programs designed to advance LYL314 towards approval for patients with aggressive large B-cell lymphoma, we are delighted to welcome leaders who further strengthen and bring new expertise to our Board of Directors and our Executive Committee,' said Lynn Seely, MD, Lyell's President and Chief Executive Officer. 'Collectively, these new leaders have deep cell therapy expertise and highly relevant experience launching new medicines for patients. We look forward to their contributions as we continue to make progress on achieving our mission of bringing next-generation cell therapies to patients with cancer.' 'The addition of Dr. Bachleda to the Lyell Board provides us with experienced commercial leadership, including in cell therapy, at this critical time as Lyell becomes a late-stage clinical company initiating pivotal clinical trials and anticipating a commercial launch of LYL314,' said Rick Klausner, MD, Chairman of the Lyell Board of Directors. 'I could not be more pleased with the progress the company is making and am confident that our new executive leaders will ensure operational excellence as we focus on rapidly advancing LYL314, our autologous CD19/CD20 CAR T-cell therapy, to patients.' Mark J. Bachleda, PharmD, MBA appointed independent member of the Board of Directors Dr. Bachleda is currently the Chief Executive Officer and a member of the Board of Directors of Eyconis, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing therapeutics for eye diseases. He has served in executive leadership roles at Amgen, Juno Therapeutics, and Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS), and, most recently, he was Chief Commercial Officer at Galera Therapeutics. Prior to joining Galera, he served as Vice President & U.S. Business Unit Head of the CAR T-cell therapy franchise at BMS, a role he held previously at Celgene Corporation before its acquisition by BMS. Prior to this, he was Vice President, Sales & Account Management at Juno when it was acquired by Celgene. His experience includes a 15-year career at Amgen in the U.S. and international roles of increasing responsibility up to Country President & General Manager of Amgen Czech Republic. Earlier in his career, he held positions at Pfizer, Inc., and Johnson & Johnson. Dr. Bachleda is a registered pharmacist and received his PharmD degree from the University of Illinois at Chicago. He completed a post-doctoral fellowship in health policy and economics at Thomas Jefferson University and earned MBA degrees from both Columbia University and the University of California, Berkeley. David Shook, MD appointed Chief Medical Officer Dr. Shook is an early pioneer of cell therapy and remains a practicing pediatric oncologist and transplant physician. Prior to Lyell, Dr. Shook was Chief Medical Officer and Head of Research and Development at Nkarta where he was responsible for leading the clinical development of multiple CAR NK cell product candidates for oncology. Prior to joining Nkarta, Dr. Shook held roles as Medical Director, Pediatric Cellular Therapy at AdventHealth and was Fellowship Director and a Faculty Member at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. While at St. Jude, he conducted multiple first-in-human cell therapy trials, as well as research in the laboratory of Dario Campana, MD, PhD where he co-developed the membrane bound form of interleukin-15. He earned an MD from The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and a BS from Purdue University. Mark Meltz, JD appointed General Counsel and Corporate Secretary Mr. Meltz is an accomplished legal and business executive with more than two decades of experience leading and advising life sciences, technology and emerging growth companies. Prior to joining Lyell, Mr. Meltz was Chief Operating Officer and General Counsel of Kinnate Biopharma Inc., a clinical stage precision oncology company, through its sale to XOMA Corporation. Before Kinnate, he was Senior Vice President and General Counsel of Audentes Therapeutics through its sale to Astellas Pharma. Mr. Meltz also was previously Executive Vice President and Chief Business Development and Legal Officer at PaxVax through its sale to Emergent BioSolutions. Earlier in his career, Mr. Meltz was Associate General Counsel at Biogen and Head of Legal for North America at Novartis in its Vaccines & Diagnostics division. Mr. Meltz has supported multiple commercial launches at PaxVax, Biogen and Novartis. He earned a BA with Departmental Honors in Psychology from Yale University and a JD, Magna Cum Laude, from Boston College Law School. Jarrad Aguirre, MD, MBA appointed Senior Vice President, Medical Affairs Dr. Aguirre joined Lyell as Senior Vice President, Medical Affairs in January 2025. Prior to Lyell, Dr. Aguirre was Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Miga Health, a digital health company focused on heart health, through its sale to Bitterroot Bio. Before Miga Health, Dr. Aguirre served in leadership roles at Myovant Sciences, most recently as Head of Corporate Strategy. Dr. Aguirre earned an MD and an MBA from Stanford University, an MPhil in Medical Anthropology from the University of Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar, and a BS in Biology from Yale University. About Lyell Immunopharma, Inc. Lyell is a clinical-stage company advancing a pipeline of next-generation CAR T-cell therapies for patients with hematologic malignancies and solid tumors. To realize the potential of cell therapy for cancer, Lyell utilizes a suite of technologies to endow CAR T cells with attributes needed to drive durable tumor cytotoxicity and achieve consistent and long-lasting clinical responses, including the ability to resist exhaustion, maintain qualities of durable stemness and function in the hostile tumor microenvironment. To learn more, please visit Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements expressed or implied in this press release include, but are not limited to, statements regarding: the performance of the Company's additions to its leadership team and Board of Directors, including the anticipated benefits of expanded strength of the Company's clinical and commercial capabilities; the continued clinical progress and anticipated commercial launch of the LYL314 trials; Lyell's anticipated progress, business plans, business strategy and clinical trials; Lyell's advancement of its pipeline, technology platform and research, development and clinical capabilities; the potential clinical benefits and therapeutic potential of Lyell's product candidates; and other statements that are not historical fact. These statements are based on Lyell's current plans, objectives, estimates, expectations and intentions, are not guarantees of future performance and inherently involve significant risks and uncertainties. Actual results and the timing of events could differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements as a result of these risks and uncertainties, which include, but are not limited to, risks and uncertainties related to: the ability to retain the continued service of its key personnel; the complexity of manufacturing cellular therapies, which subjects Lyell to a multitude of manufacturing risks, any of which could substantially increase our costs, delay Lyell's programs or limit supply of Lyell's product candidates; the effects of macroeconomic conditions, including the effects of disruption between the U.S. and its trading partners due to tariffs or other policies, any geopolitical instability and actual or perceived changes in interest rates and economic inflation; Lyell's ability to initiate or progress clinical trials on the anticipated timelines, if at all; Lyell's limited experience as a company in enrolling and conducting clinical trials, and lack of experience in completing clinical trials; the nonclinical profiles of Lyell's product candidates or technology not translating in clinical trials; the potential for results from clinical trials to differ from nonclinical, early clinical, preliminary or expected results; significant adverse events, toxicities or other undesirable side effects associated with Lyell's product candidates; the significant uncertainty associated with Lyell's product candidates ever receiving any regulatory approvals; Lyell's ability to obtain, maintain or protect intellectual property rights related to its product candidates; implementation of Lyell's strategic plans for its business and product candidates; the sufficiency of Lyell's capital resources and need for additional capital to achieve its goals; and other risks, including those described under the heading 'Risk Factors' in Lyell's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2025, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 13, 2025. Forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of this date, and Lyell undertakes no duty to update such information except as required under applicable law. Contact: Ellen RoseSenior Vice President, Communications and Investor Relationserose@ in to access your portfolio

Fulbright board members, accusing Trump of politicizing the program, announce resignation
Fulbright board members, accusing Trump of politicizing the program, announce resignation

Yahoo

time5 hours ago

  • Yahoo

Fulbright board members, accusing Trump of politicizing the program, announce resignation

Board members of the Fulbright Scholarship Program announced their resignation Wednesday, protesting what they call the Trump administration's politicization of the program, as the White House continues to find itself locked in a battle with universities around the nation. In a memo released on Wednesday, board members said they voted 'overwhelmingly' to resign in light of the actions of political appointees at the State Department, which manages the program. The 12-person board was appointed by former President Joe Biden. The program awards nearly 8,000 scholarships to academics each year, according to its website. The board said the administration usurped the program's authority when the State Department denied some of those awards for a "substantial number of individuals" for the 2025-2026 academic year, overriding the board's decision to admit academics studying subjects including biology, engineering, medical sciences, music and history. 'Our resignation is not a decision we take lightly,' the memo read. 'But to continue to serve after the Administration has consistently ignored the Board's request that they follow the law would risk legitimizing actions we believe are unlawful and damage the integrity of this storied program and America's credibility abroad.' The Fulbright Program directed a request for comment to the State Department, which did not immediately respond. However, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) — the ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee — confirmed the board members' resignation. 'While I understand and respect the bipartisan Fulbright Board for resigning en masse rather than grant credibility to a politicized and unlawful process, I'm painfully aware that today's move will change the quality of Fulbright programming and the independent research that has made our country a leader in so many fields,' Shaheen said. The Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board's page on the State Department's website — which earlier Wednesday listed a dozen members — only has one member on Wednesday afternoon: Carmen Estrada-Schaye, the president of Historic Homes Restoration, who was appointed to the board in 2022. Members on the board included several alumnis of Joe Biden's White House, including former deputy chief of staff Jen O'Malley Dillon, former head of speechwriting Vinay Reddy and Louisa Terrell, former director of the Office of Legislative Affairs. Congress established the Fulbright Program nearly 80 years ago and, according to the board, specified that the board has final approval authority of applicants. The program was established to 'increase mutual understanding and support friendly and peaceful relations between the people of the United States and the people of other countries,' according to the Fulbright website. Forty-four Fulbright alumni have served as heads of state or government, according to the State Department, while 62 Fulbright alumni from 15 countries have been awarded the Nobel Prize. Ninety Fulbright alumni have received Pulitzer Prizes. 'This proud legacy has depended on one thing above all: the integrity of the program's selection process based on merit, not ideology, and its insulation from political interference,' the board's memo said. 'That integrity is now undermined.' The board said it has repeatedly raised legal issues and strong objections with senior administration officials, including in writing, but officials have refused to acknowledge or respond to the board. The White House did not respond to a request for comment. Since President Donald Trump began his second term, the White House has clashed with universities for programs and policies the administration has labeled divisive. Recently, the administration tried to stop foreign students and scholars from attending Harvard University. A court has temporarily blocked the administration from enforcing the order.

Entire Fulbright board resigns, citing Trump administration interference
Entire Fulbright board resigns, citing Trump administration interference

Yahoo

time5 hours ago

  • Yahoo

Entire Fulbright board resigns, citing Trump administration interference

All members of the Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board resigned Wednesday, citing alleged political interference by members of the Trump administration. In a statement posted to Substack, the dozen former board members said they 'voted overwhelmingly' to resign 'rather than endorse unprecedented actions that we believe are impermissible under the law, compromise U.S. national interests and integrity, and undermine the mission and mandates Congress established for the Fulbright program nearly 80 years ago.' The prestigious program — which awards a select group of scholars and academics the opportunity to continue research abroad each year — is managed by the State Department, where career officials conduct a yearlong search for applicants, who are ultimately approved by the independent Fulbright board. But the former board members said the Trump administration 'has usurped the authority of the Board' by denying Fulbright scholarships to 'a substantial number of individuals' selected for the upcoming academic year. They said among the individuals whose awards have been revoked include those intending to pursue studies in biology, engineering, architecture, agriculture, crop sciences, animal sciences, biochemistry, medical sciences, music and history. The former board members also said administration officials are conducting 'an unauthorized review process' of an additional 1,200 foreign Fulbright recipients, which, they said, could lead to rejections of more awards. 'We believe these actions not only contradict the statute but are antithetical to the Fulbright mission and the values, including free speech and academic freedom, that Congress specified in the statute,' they wrote. The former board members touted the program's long-standing bipartisan support, describing the program as 'a bipartisan pillar of American diplomacy' and 'an enduring symbol of our nation's commitment to mutual understanding and diplomacy, academic excellence, and international cooperation.' 'This proud legacy has depended on one thing above all: the integrity of the program's selection process based on merit, not ideology, and its insulation from political interference,' they wrote. 'That integrity is now undermined.' The former board members said they have repeatedly raised their legal concerns and 'strong objections' with senior administration officials, who they said 'have refused to acknowledge or respond' to their concerns. 'Our resignation is not a decision we take lightly. But to continue to serve after the Administration has consistently ignored the Board's request that they follow the law would risk legitimizing actions we believe are unlawful and damage the integrity of this storied program and America's credibility abroad,' they wrote. 'Indeed, the erosion of the Fulbright program weakens America and our national security interests.' 'It is our sincere hope that Congress, the courts, and future Fulbright Boards will prevent the administration's efforts to degrade, dismantle, or even eliminate one of our nation's most respected and valuable programs,' the former members added. The White House defended the administration's involvement. 'President Trump, not the Fulbright Board, was elected by the American people to ensure all foreign policy initiatives align with our national interests,' White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said in a statement. A senior State Department official echoed that sentiment and pushed back against the claim that the Fulbright board has always been nonpartisan. 'The 12 members of the Fulbright Board were partisan political appointees of the Biden Administration. It's ridiculous to believe that these members would continue to have final say over the application process, especially when it comes to determining academic suitability and alignment with President Trump's Executive Orders,' the official said in a statement. 'The claim that the Fulbright Hayes Act affords exclusive and final say over Fulbright Applications to the Fulbright board is false. This is nothing but a political stunt attempting to undermine President Trump,' the official added. Updated at 4:25 p.m. EDT Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store