The Baltimore County school board, racked by years of infighting and a struggle to achieve a working majority, seems poised to turn the page.

The board’s election last week of Jane Lichter, an educator who spent 37 years with the school system, as chair, and career social worker Robin Harvey as vice chair, was the first sign. Both seemed eager to set a collegial tone at their first meeting, which came months after the board went to court to try to fire its longtime auditor — a case that revealed longstanding acrimony among members.

Votes were mostly unanimous at the Dec. 6 meeting, and members found a middle ground after mild disagreements on retaining records and ending the registration process for meetings. And Lichter and Harvey seemed willing to talk with reporters, a change from past chair Julie Henn.

If the collegiality continues, the 11-member board has the potential to reach a working majority of seven votes, a majority the old board struggled to reach on some major decisions.

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Three of the four newly elected board members are Democrats or have the support of the teachers union, and they will soon be joined by four new appointees selected by the incoming Democratic governor, Wes Moore.

The makeover of the board may make it easier to find common ground on key questions, such as whether to renew the contract of Superintendent Darryl Williams. Members of the County Council last summer urged the board to begin a search for a new leader. Lichter is familiar with Williams, having worked as a teacher, principal and executive director in the county schools before retiring in June 2021.

“My goal is for people to not judge this board by the actions of the board in the past,” Harvey said. “We are a predominantly new board and I think we all understand [that] how we operate impacts the work we’re able to do.”

They will disagree, she said, but there’s a way to go about it professionally that sets a better example for those watching.

A different board

The previous board had a reputation for friction, much of which came to light during the Andrea Barr case. Barr, the chief auditor, accused the board of not renewing her contract through an unlawful vote. The vote was taken after Barr said she was threatened by former school board member Kathleen Causey and board member Russell Kuehn to bend to their agendas, audit reviews that showed the system exceeded its budget, and a state investigation that found violations of state and county law.

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During one of the hearings, board member Moalie Jose testified that Causey sent a man to her house threatening a lawsuit if she didn’t apologize to Causey for accusing her of racism.

Barr has since been given her job back pending a trial or settlement.

New board members thought their first meeting on Tuesday went well.

“The tone of the meeting from the board was positive,” Lichter said. “I don’t remember many votes that came out unanimous in recent memory.”

There were 12 items to vote on that night, according to meeting minutes, and nine of those votes were unanimous. By comparison, the previous meeting on Nov. 22 had nine items to vote on. Only five were unanimous.

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Maggie Litz Domanowski, a new board member who has articulated a more conservative vision, also thought the first meeting went well. At the end of the meeting, Domanowski made a motion for the board to review its attendance guidelines in a future meeting. She hopes the board returns to fully open meetings instead of limiting attendance and the time set aside for public speakers. Some disagreed on when that discussion should take place, but all board members except for one, Jose, settled on a January discussion.

And after board members disagreed on the number of years that the system should retain financial disclosure statements — four or 10 — the board ultimately settled on seven years with little fuss.

Fate of the superintendent

Williams has until Feb. 1 to tell the board whether he wants to renew his contract, according to Maryland code. It expires June 30. If the board disagrees, it would need to start a search for a new leader.

Some County Council members wrote the school board to suggest it start a search this past summer, citing concerns about academic performance and transportation. The board held a special closed session to discuss the matter, but it did not move forward with a search.

Both Lichter and Harvey said it was too soon to say whether they would support a search.

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“I’m not ready to answer that question at this point,” Lichter said, adding that it was something for the board to talk about.

Harvey said it’d be premature to answer what should happen to Williams. She noted that she was speaking as an individual.

“When you talk about shifting a system in any kind of way, you have to give that due diligence and careful consideration,” she said.

She added that her decision will be based on what she thinks is best for the school system.

Domanowski, however, said she isn’t sure what to do. She said Thursday that she hadn’t had a chance yet to speak individually with Williams, but did say she was not happy when he delayed bringing students back to school after the pandemic kept kids home.

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“I want to see Dr. Williams do his job well,” she said. “And I think if we do a search again, is that going to push us back further?”

Domanowski said she was encouraged by other aspects of Williams’ performance, such as his communication with the public as parents were worried about school violence.

“I feel like he’s acknowledging parent concerns more,” she said.

New members become new leaders

The search for new leaders initially seemed like it might pose a problem. Henn said she wanted neither the chair nor vice chair role, and the rest of the board, except for former Vice Chair Rod McMillion, were either new or leaving because their appointments were ending. However, members unanimously — aside from Dr. Erin Hager who was not present — picked newcomers Lichter as chair and Harvey as vice chair.

Lichter took over the position right after the vote and led the rest of the meeting. She said in an interview that the quick change was “daunting,” but the meeting was positive overall.

Being chair was not on Lichter’s mind when she was campaigning (she won her District 2 election last month). However, she’s not new to the school system, having served as a special education teacher, language arts resource teacher, early childhood supervisor, language arts coordinator, principal and executive director. At past school board meetings, she’s sat on the other side to make presentations to the board.

But this job will be different. It’s more of seeing the big picture, she said, and making sure she steps aside to “make sure the superintendent is successful.”

Harvey said in an interview she’s “elated” to be working with Lichter. As for her vice chair role, she said she’s ready for it. Although she’s new to the school board, she has sat on boards and held leadership roles. She represents District 1 on the Baltimore County Commission for Women and is executive director for the Office of Licensing and Monitoring in the Maryland Department of Human Services.

Teachers and human resources

Members of the Teachers Association of Baltimore County showed up at the Dec. 6 meeting wearing red and holding signs to raise awareness about months long compensation delays and benefit mistakes they had experienced. They gave examples of the inconvenience and harm it had caused them, and stressed how difficult it’s been getting school staff to fix the problem.

Also mentioned were retirement benefit issues, which resulted in retirees being over- and undercharged. School officials blamed a ransomware attack.

They also announced plans to address the issues, which include creating customer service centers, moving clerical staff to work in human resources, and forgiving the remaining retiree premium balances for up to $2,000.

Williams said at the meeting that there are no excuses for the errors and that the system will “reimagine human resources.”

The board will meet again Dec. 20 for a work session.

kristen.griffith@thebaltimorebanner.com

A previous version of this story incorrectly stated Dr. Erin Hager's name

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