School officials from the state’s 24 districts filed updated documents last month detailing their progress on, and problems with, the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future.
The latest filings are a follow-up to brief March reports, of a dozen pages or fewer, in which school officials including those from Montgomery County Public Schools, responded to at least five questions and prompts from the state on the top challenges they are facing implementing the Blueprint. Those documents and the ones filed last month are on the website of the Blueprint’s Accountability and Implementation Board (AIB).
School officials in the latest reports cited progress, but they also said they still face challenges that range from funding, to meeting diversity goals and implementing full-day prekindergarten, among others.
Many were like Harford County Superintendent Sean Bulson, a Blueprint supporter who acknowledges challenges. Bulson is a former principal of Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School and a former MCPS community superintendent.
In a recent interview, Bulson said the Blueprint has helped his district in several areas such as higher pre-K enrollment, youth apprenticeships and high school students taking courses at a community college, a program called dual enrollment.
But while schools receive state funding and additional resources as part of the Blueprint, Bulson and other school and county leaders have expressed concerns over a need for funding and a lack of flexibility in implementation of the plan.
For instance, Bulson said certain funding requirements could cause cuts to specialty programs and elective courses such as art and physical education.
He said one bright spot, however, has been collaboration with the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE), particularly Superintendent Carey Wright.
“In the last few months, we’ve seen that begin for the first time. I’m very encouraged by Dr. Wright’s work,” Bulson said. “But they [state officials] have to stay on track with that because we can do great things with this Blueprint.”
Wright said in a recent interview that she held a four-day meeting to review all 24 school district Blueprint documents, along with state education officials, local school leaders and officials with the AIB, the independent unit that oversees and approves all Blueprint plans.
The reports from each school district are based on the Blueprint’s five priorities: early childhood education, hiring and retaining high-quality and diverse teachers, preparing students for college and technical careers, providing additional resources for students in need and governance and accountability.
Wright said her staff will compile data and other information into one document including some of the challenges cited by local schools and present that report to the state Board of Education. In addition, she said state officials will provide feedback to school officials.
“It informs us if is there something else we could be doing to help facilitate that implementation. That gives us a better idea of what’s happening across the state,” Wright said.
“I think that everybody is invested in the Blueprint. I think that everybody’s trying to do the very, very best that they can to help children learn,” she said.
According to a sampling from the submitted reports, Montgomery County Public Schools continues to deal with staffing issues:
“Some challenges MCPS (Montgomery County Public Schools) continues to face in serving children with disabilities include: lack of highly qualified staff, specialized transportation needs, and availability of classroom space throughout the county.
MCPS is committed to providing professional learning and job-embedded coaching to support staff in serving our students receiving special education services. Two curriculum coaches use a support model that provides group and individual coaching for new teachers. In addition, MCPS convenes a new special educator professional learning community, quarterly, to provide additional professional learning on topics related to implementation of specially designed instruction.”