Baltimore County School Board Hates Change

There is a push to diversify the Baltimore County School Board. Baltimore County delegate Bobby Zirkin proposed a bill that would convert 7 of the existing seats on the board to elected positions. This bill was introduced because of complaints of a lack of response from the existing board members who are appointed and fairly safe from repercussions. Think of it like an old boys club - they're not going to kick out one of their own.

As noted in The Sun, State Senator Katherine Klausmeier and state Delegate John Olszewski Jr.requested a task force to hold public meetings to explore establishing elected positions on the board.

Yesterday, the Baltimore County School Board conducted an internal vote to determine if the existing board members would be in agreement with such a change. Surprisingly they voted against the proposal to have some of their seats changed to elected positions. And are we shocked? No, of course not. That's like asking a group of drunks (no, I'm not talking about the Montgomery County delegation) to determine if some of them will no longer be drunks. Of course they're going to vote against it.

No one likes changes. Especially when they've got a good thing going, such as perks and benefits, power, no accountability. Who cares if their decisions do not reflect the interests of the public that they have been appointed to represent. This is Maryland politics - not a democracy!

Now it is up to the Maryland General Assembly to determine if they will ram-rod the changes through. Is there anyone on the Baltimore County School Board that is bound for Annapolis? It'll be interesting to see who has the most pull on this issue.

I'd like to see the change. I think more public representation is a good thing. But what do I know? I'm just a commoner.