Tuesday, August 14, 2012
If the approximately $72 million budget is approved, eight county school are slated to receive funding for air conditioning, which has been a controversial topic for the school system.
School system Superintendent S. Dallas Dance is requesting air conditioning funding for eight schools in his fiscal year 2014 state capital budget proposal—a stark contrast to his predecessor. Former Superintendent Joe Hairston faced criticism from Comptroller Peter Franchot in January for not requesting any air conditioning funds for the fiscal year 2013 budget. At this point, 36 percent of county schools have classrooms without air conditioning, according to figures provided by Baltimore County. The schools slated for air conditioning are listed in the budget, which is attached to this article. In a previous Patch story published in late July, Dance said that heat issues at schools are a "top, top priority." The Board of Education is …
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
S. Dallas Dance, 31, started his new role as Baltimore County Public Schools superintendent on July 1.
While some people have concerns about S. Dallas Dance's credentials, the new Baltimore County Public Schools superintendent says his skills set is what matters. "If you look at my resume—clearly you can see that any positions I had, I was asked to apply for them," Dance said. "As a matter of fact, in many cases, I didn't even apply, I was promoted to them." Dance, 31, took over the helm of the school system on July 1 from outgoing superintendent Joe Hairston, who served in the role for 12 years. Dance was previously chief of middle schools in the Houston, TX school system, and has held administrative and teaching positions in Virginia. Speaking to his ability, Dance told Patch that he was offered superintendent positions in New York, …
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
Parents had a front-row seat for Wednesday's ceremony marking the start of the $18.8 million project.
It's still taking Juliet Fisher a while to process that she's attended her last planning board meeting, her last town hall, her last council meeting in the long struggle to lobby for an expansion at Stoneleigh Elementary School. But as she sat in the front row, with school and elected officials at a groundbreaking Wednesday morning, she began making the adjustment to present tense. "I guess I don't have to say 'cautiously optimistic' anymore. Now I can say optimistic that we're moving forward. It's a wonderful achievement," said Fisher, a member of the parents group Stoneleigh United. "You still have to pinch yourself in some ways." There was much praise for the parents as the Stoneleigh Elementary community gathered to mark the beginning …
Monday, April 9, 2012
A rule was adjusted in December 2011, following a complaint from a Perry Hall football coach about field closures following Hurricane Irene.
UPDATE (11:15 a.m.)—If inclement weather closes school fields to recreation organizations, Baltimore County Public Schools will coordinate with the county to close park fields as well, according to Superintendent Joe Hairston. "Therefore, there is consistency, between the school system and the Department of Recreation and Parks," Hairston stated in a letter to the County Council, dated March 30. The letter was in response to a request from County Councilman David Marks, on behalf of the County Council, for the adjustment of Rule 6303, which allows for the automatic closure of school fields whenever schools are closed countywide due to inclement weather. The County Council sent a request on March 20 for more flexibility to the rule, and to…
Thursday, March 22, 2012
A Perry Hall football coach said his team should not have been restricted from a school field days after Hurricane Irene.
UPDATE (1:25 p.m.)—Shortly after Hurricane Irene in August 2011, a Perry Hall football coach wasn't allowed to hold practice on the fields of Perry Hall Elementary School. The fields were free of debris, but because schools had been closed countywide, fields were closed to recreation groups, as well. "The frustrating part was that kids were still practicing on the [Department of Recreation and Parks'] fields—it was only the schools' fields that were closed," said Bill Lutostanski, who coaches 9 and under football. "I thought it was absurd." Lutostanski, who works as a Baltimore County firefighter, contacted County Councilman David Marks about the incident and submitted an op-ed to Patch. County officials are now asking county school …
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Differences could derail plan to change the fully appointed Baltimore County school board for another year.
An expected amendment to a Senate bill could derail efforts to change how Baltimore County school board members are selected. The county's Senate delegation is expected to vote Wednesday to amend its version of a school board bill from a fully elected board to one that contains both elected and appointed members—the so-called hybrid school board. Currently, the bill, as proposed by Sen. Bobby Zirkin, calls for a fully elected school board made up of nine members. Sen. Zirkin, an Owings Mills Democrat and sponsor of the bill, said Tuesday the amendment creates a partially elected school board with one member elected from each of the county's current council districts. The board would also include up to four other members appointed at …
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Vicki Almond and David Marks weigh in on the School Board’s decision to potentially build an elementary school in Mays Chapel.
Councilman Todd Huff, who represents the majority of Lutherville-Timonium and Cockeysville, was none too happy after a lunch meeting with Board of Education officials two weeks ago. The reason? Huff believed that the Baltimore County Public Schools System had already decided to build a new elementary school in Mays Chapel—without keeping him in the loop. (See attached PDF.) A school system spokesman, however, said that he could not confirm that was the case and that an official location for a new elementary school has not been finalized. In an interview with Patch, Huff said fellow councilmembers Vicki Almond and David Marks attended the lunch meeting on Feb. 10. Both Almond and Marks said that they were given “the impression” that the 20-…
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Renee Foose is the deputy superintendent for Baltimore County Public Schools.
(UPDATED) Renee Foose, a deputy superindentent for Baltimore County Public Schools, is a finalist for superintendent positions in Florida and Michigan. According to the The Voice newspaper in Michigan, the Board of Education for L'Anse Creuse Public Schools released the names of the three finalists for the superintendent position on Wednesday. The school district serves several townships in Michigan, with 10 elementary schools, four middle schools and three high schools, according to the school system's website. The Orlando Sentinel also reported this week that Foose is one of six finalists for the superintendent of Orange County Public Schools in Florida. The Baltimore Sun reported last month that Foose had applied. Foose was hired by …
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Comptroller Peter Franchot tells the Baltimore County Public Schools superintendent that he's "tired of saying pretty please" on air conditioning.
Baltimore County schools Superintendent Joe Hairston's final appearance before the Board of Public Works ended in a heated exchange about air conditioning. Hairston, who is in the final months of his 12-year career with the schools system, found himself on the bad side of Comptroller Peter Franchot as he asked for $70 million in state money. Franchot launched into a five minute monologue about the lack of air conditioning in Baltimore County schools. "I'm kind of tired of saying 'pretty please.' I really am," Franchot said. Franchot specifically highlighted conditions at Middleborough Elementary School in Essex. Parents from the school attended Wednesday's meeting as they did in October when county officials asked for $7 million in school…
Friday, October 14, 2011
Outgoing Baltimore County Public Schools superintendent says he stands on facts while critics argue from emotion and were never right.
Baltimore County Public Schools Superintendent Joe A. Hairston discussed his 12-year tenure on Friday and hinted that unnamed critics of his administration may have been driven partially by racism. "It's not about Joe Hairston," the superintendent said, referring to himself in the third person. "You have a superintendent who happens to be Joe Hairston who had enough insight and vision to understand what was needed here for our children. I'll take the hits and the sacrifice if our children are going to be successful. "Anyone who wants to personalize that, they're the ones with issues and I think you need to address with them," he added. "I didn't create enemies, I mean I didn't declare enemies out there. I don't write newspaper articles. I …
TRC
6:32 am on Tuesday, September 11, 2012
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