The new interim superintendent is holding community and parent advisory sessions this week and next. Laurel (District 1) is tonight, College Park (District 3) is Thursday, and Hyattsville (District 2) is Friday.
By LILLIAN GLAROS
Prince George’s County Public Schools Interim Superintendent Shawn Joseph announced his 100 day plan at a press conference June 27th.
The new interim superintendent, whose contract was approved by the Prince George’s County Board of Education on the 26th, outlined a plan that prioritizes alignment with the school board, acquiring talented workers, academics, the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future, and engaging communities and unions.
“This plan will focus us, and when we focus, we tend to get better results,” Joseph said in a later interview. “So this plan will give us a baseline to know where our students are, to know what the needs are.”
In order to align the county’s central office with the board, Joseph said that he would hold meetings with individual members and the larger board to understand their visions and concerns for the district.
Later priorities include matching board committees with system priorities for the upcoming school year, as well as organizing “listen and learn” sessions with each member in their respective districts.
Talent acquisition priorities include assessing hiring practices and professional development, Joseph said.
“Great systems are filled with great people, and we must support and grow ours with a sense of urgency,” Joseph said during the conference.
The system will review academic data, using the results to find what’s working and what isn’t, and create a plan to help underperforming schools. Under Joseph’s plan, the system will also work on matching what it does with the pillars of The Blueprint for Maryland’s Future, including college and career readiness, Joseph said.
Joseph also said he system will prioritize engaging the community through nine virtual parent meetings, one per district, during the first month of the plan, and then nine more in-person parent meetings during the first 100 days.
“His plan prioritizes the unity between the leadership, the staff, the community, and I think that’s essential to deliver the results that every child needs, irrespective of zip code,” Board Chair Branndon Jackson said during a later interview.
County Executive Aisha Braveboy said during the conference that the plan’s goals were what county residents deserved. Joseph understands the potential of the county’s students, she said.
“I think he understood the fierce urgency of now,” Braveboy said. “Now is a time that we have to focus on preparing our school system to take our children back in the fall and be ready.”
Joseph said that due to his previous experience with the school system–he served as deputy superintendent for teaching and learning from 2014 to 2016–, he already had a sense of what needed to be improved within the district.
Jackson said the plan seems to be having good momentum, even in the early days of its enactment.
The plan centers students, he said, and is designed to give them a better learning environment.
“I think that the 100 day plan is thoughtful, it’s focused and it’s urgent in his intent,” Jackson said. “I think it demonstrates a deep respect for the people in our community, and it lays a strategic foundation to kind of address the long standing challenges that we’ve experienced.”