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Anne Arundel County Public Schools board meeting, Feb 4, 2026

2 h 21 min · 0 public speakers

Enrollment ▶ 1:42:51

This board doesn’t post agenda times. Click a board member to jump to where they first speak; we list only members whose voice our check named. Video length 2 h 21 min.

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What happened

What happened at this meeting

Board approves honors engineering course and agreement with education leaders association 1:30:50

  • The board approved Honors Engineering Essentials, a new high school course planned for the 2027⁠-⁠2028 school year, by a vote of 8⁠-⁠0. 1:41:46
  • The chief financial officer said the district was looking at $612.9 million from the state and said the district would request an additional $10 million from county government. 1:42:13
  • Dana Schallheim thanked a charitable fund for a donation, and the motion that followed passed 8⁠-⁠0. 2:12:12
  • The board also ratified a fiscal year 2026 agreement with the Association of Educational Leaders that includes a 3% cost of living adjustment for Unit 2 employees, by a vote of 8⁠-⁠0. 2:18:28

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Item by item (15)
  1. Opening and agenda 3:16
    • Gloria Dent opened the meeting with an invocation and the Pledge of Allegiance and called for motions on the minutes and the agenda. 3:16
  2. Item 13:56
    • Sarah J. McDermott, Erica McFarland and Robert Silkworth presented the Educator, Employee and Volunteer of the Month recognitions. 14:09
    • The director of communications presented the district's Positivity and Perseverance Awards and said a committee reviewed 82 student nominations. 28:45
    • The director said an education foundation was providing a $500 grant in each winner's name to fund a school initiative. 28:45
  3. Committee reports 1:11:47
    • Dana Schallheim said the Policy Committee met February 3rd and that the policies discussed would come before the board for the standard 3-reader process. 1:11:47
    • Joanna Bache Tobin, Ph.D., said board members were putting together potential budget amendments and that the committee's next meeting would be Monday, February 17th at noon. 1:13:02
  4. President's report 1:13:53
    • One board member said school safety was the absolute top priority of the board. 1:14:14
    • Joanna Bache Tobin, Ph.D., said a student band from the district had been chosen to perform at the National School Boards Association national meeting in April in San Antonio, Texas. 1:16:01
  5. Superintendent's report 1:24:45
    • A district official delivering the report said the district had used all 3 inclement weather days and the last day for students would be Tuesday, June 16th. 1:26:04
    • The official said the County Council recognized 9 members of the district team for earning state or national awards. 1:27:08
  6. New high school engineering course 1:29:43
    • An assistant superintendent described Honors Engineering Essentials as a full-year 1-credit introductory course for grades 9 to 12, planned for the 2027⁠-⁠2028 school year. 1:30:50
    • Dana Schallheim asked whether the course would be offered at all high schools, and a staff member said it was intended for all comprehensive high schools. 1:33:10
    • Gloria Dent asked whether hiring would be needed, and a staff member said no new hires would be needed. ~1:40:16
    • The motion passed 8⁠-⁠0. 1:41:48
  7. State budget update 1:41:50
    • The chief financial officer said the health care request needed to rise from $10 million to $20 million and that the gap would increase from $50 to $60 million. 1:42:51
    • The chief financial officer said the district was looking at $612.9 million from the state, just shy of a $19 million increase. 1:43:40
    • Dana Schallheim asked whether pending utility legislation could help the district's purchasing consortium. 1:56:37
  8. Contracts and personnel actions 1:58:56
    • Each motion passed 8⁠-⁠0. 1:59:58
  9. Non-school communications policy 2:01:06
    • The director of legislation and policy said Policy KA was being updated to permit distribution and display of electronic materials in addition to printed materials. 2:01:22
    • The motion passed 8⁠-⁠0. 2:02:27
  10. Purchasing procedure policy second reading 2:02:31
    • A district staff member said Policy DEA would increase the contract modification that must be reported to the board from $100,000 to $500,000. 2:02:42
  11. State legislation 2:03:28
    • A district staff member recommended that the board adopt a support with amendments position on House Bill 154 and Senate Bill 999, which would require all public board meetings to be livestreamed. 2:03:29
    • Dana Schallheim moved to support the bill with amendments as recommended. 2:07:45
    • One board member said House Bill 337/Senate Bill 31 could amount to an unfunded mandate, and a staff member said the district could meet the bill's requirements without a negative fiscal impact. 2:08:19
    • A motion passed 8⁠-⁠0 before Dana Schallheim turned to the rest of the legislative program. 2:08:11
  12. Elementary school donation 2:10:32
    • The superintendent recommended approval of a donation in the amount of $100,000 to benefit Windsor Farm students. 2:10:56
    • The motion passed 8⁠-⁠0. 2:12:12
  13. Easements and stormwater agreement 2:12:17
    • The board considered a public utility easement and a stormwater management agreement for Old Mill Middle School North and a public utility easement for the Central Complex. 2:12:24
    • Each motion passed 8⁠-⁠0. 2:12:49
  14. Education leaders negotiated agreement 2:14:04
    • The staff member said the agreement continues the Unit 2 telework pilot and that the association ratified it on January 20th, 2026. 2:14:21
    • A staff member said all Unit 2 employees would receive a 3% cost of living adjustment and some would receive salary adjustments up to a maximum increase of 15%. 2:14:42
    • The motion passed 8⁠-⁠0. 2:18:29
  15. Review items and closed session 2:18:37
    • Dawn Pulliam moved that the board go into closed session to consult with counsel on a legal matter. 2:19:14

Written by software from the meeting's transcript and checked sentence by sentence against it.

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Video: posted by the district as “BOE Public Session 2-04-2026”