2 days ago
Anne Arundel County schools superintendent prepares for new year with improved staffing, reforms
As Anne Arundel County students prepare to head back to school, district leaders are celebrating progress made inside and outside of the classroom.
Superintendent Dr. Mark Bidell said the district is heading into the new year with serious momentum and with improved staffing levels, expanded sports and new reforms.
From middle school soccer teams to streamlined grading policies, Dr. Bidell said last year was all about growth, and this year is about building on it.
"Academics have been great. The launch of middle school sports has been great," he said.
The district introduced middle school sports with soccer in the spring. This fall, they are adding basketball, track and unified Bocce to the schedule.
"All middle schools did it," Dr. Bidell said. "The involvement of parents, the interest of students, was off the charts.
"It's exciting times right now in terms of what we're doing to develop our students socially and emotionally," he added.
A new grading policy introduced last year penalized late work, limited re-dos and streamlined how grades are calculated. The policy aimed to help students and teachers get on the same page when it comes to expectations for the school year.
"Our goal is, we want to try to have alignment, we want to calibrate to the best of our ability so that one 'A' looks like another 'A' in another class," Dr. Bidell said.
Students should also know what to expect when it comes to cellphones when school starts.
Last year, the district began requiring elementary and middle school students to keep their phones off or silenced and out of sight throughout the day. High school students could only use their phones during lunch.
Bidell said he is reviewing teacher surveys to see if additional measures need to be taken.
"I can tell you we're going to take a look at this feedback and I'll have to make a tough decision at some point," he said.
While suspensions and referrals are down slightly, and attendance is up, behavioral challenges are still a focus, according to Bidell.
"We're going to really focus on that with one of our earlier senior team meetings — making meaning out of all of these referrals," Bidell said. "Why are kids being referred? Why are the out-of-school suspension numbers where they are?"
The district's biggest strength going into the new year is staffing.
"When I got here, we had over 300 teacher vacancies," Bidell said. "We're right now, as a school district, sitting at 69 vacancies, and we still have three weeks to go."
This means the district will likely have fewer than 50 teacher vacancies by the first day of school on August 26 — something that is unprecedented for a district of this size.
Not to mention, all bus driver positions are filled, and employees across the district have received an 18% pay raise over the past couple of years.
"We've done a really good job of building a culture and climate here that is increasing our retention numbers, but also increasing our recruitment numbers," Bidell said.
