ANNAPOLIS, Md. — On the first day of school for most Maryland school districts, Gov. Larry Hogan repeated a call Tuesday for an education inspector general and signed an executive order establishing an Office of Educational Accountability.
Hogan has often criticized school districts for mismanaging the money the state sends to them in the form of school construction cash.
He has often been critical of Baltimore City and Baltimore County schools, both of which closed a number of schools on the first day of classes because of a lack of air conditioning.
At a news conference, Hogan cited two recent cases that he said proved the need for the new office and position.
In one example, he made reference to Prince George’s County schools, where a sex abuse scandal exposed a failure in reporting of suspected abuse by staffers and the grade-fixing scandal that ultimately pushed school CEO Kevin Maxwell out of office.
The governor also mentioned a Baltimore County school system superintendent who was recently released from jail on a perjury charge. Dr. Dallas Dance pleaded guilty in the case after failing to report to his school board $147,000 in consulting payments made while he was serving as schools chief.
“We have an obligation to the taxpayers, to the local school board members and to the parents and teachers to get to the bottom of this, which is exactly what we’re going to do,” Hogan said.
Hogan, a Republican, is running for reelection; asked about the move, just months before the November election, he joked and said, “I heard something about it, but I don’t see much evidence of that.”
But pressed on why he is taking the action now, Hogan said that at this time, no one is providing the kind of oversight his plan calls for.
Delegate Eric Leudtke, a Democrat and an educator, seized on that. “That’s the job of the State Board of Education and the State Department of Education, and if they’re not doing their job — he needs to say something to them,” Leudtke said.
Hogan’s Democratic challenger, Ben Jealous, held a separate news conference outlining a plan to help teachers who often spend money out of their own pockets to cover the cost of basic classroom supplies.
Responding to Hogan’s plan, Jealous said: “As governor, I will fully fund our schools, not blame our hardworking teachers and support staff.”
Jealous says the problems Hogan highlights stem from a lack of funding; Hogan insists it’s mismanagement.
Under Tuesday’s executive order, the Office of Educational Accountability would be led by Valerie Radomsky, a former Baltimore County Public Schools teacher.
Radomsky has most recently worked in the Maryland comptroller’s office as the chief adviser for education policy.
