Thursday, March 21, 2013
In his inaugural State of Schools address, Superintendent Dallas Dance touted plans to produce "globally competitive" graduates.
To succeed in "tomorrow's world," Superintendent Dallas Dance says Baltimore County public school students need to have an edge. "Our goal is not just to help our students graduate on time, but to help them graduate ready to be globally competitive," Dance said during his inaugural State of Schools address at Valley Mansion in Cockeysville on Thursday. "Earning a BCPS diploma needs to have a greater meaning. Our diplomas need to be distinguished for their value." The superintendent revealed his intent to pursue initiatives to ensure that all students will be bilingual upon graduation and that all middle and high school students will be equipped with digital technology as part of meeting that goal. "Technology allows our students access …
Tuesday, March 19, 2013
Arne Duncan is slated to visit Loch Raven High School on April 10.
U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan is making a third trip to Baltimore County—this time to discuss gun control. "This is a topic he's been very passionate about," said Dallas Dance, superintendent of Baltimore County Public Schools. Duncan will hold a town hall meeting at Loch Raven High School on April 10. A precise time has not yet been set. The secretary previously visited Perry Hall High School on Aug. 22, 2012 to discuss education reform as part of a school system professional development event. Less than a week later, Perry Hall High joined the national conversation on gun violence in schools when student Robert Gladden, 15, opened fire in the school's cafeteria, leaving a special needs schoolmate seriously injured. Gladden pleaded…
Monday, March 11, 2013
The Baltimore County Board of Education recently approved a recommendation from Superintendent Dallas Dance to merge three Dundalk schools.
Though they say no definitive plans are in the works, Baltimore County Public Schools officials aren't ruling out the possibility of additional school consolidations—similar to a recent Dundalk merger. "[Superintendent Dallas Dance] has been saying for a while that he's looking for ways to make things run more efficiently for the students," said Charles Herndon, a school system spokesman. The Board of Education approved a merger of Norwood Elementary, Holabird Middle and Eastwood Elementary schools in Dundalk against strong opposition from parents. The consolidation will result in the closure of Eastwood, starting in the 2013-2014 school year. Critics of the proposal accused the school system of caving to the whim of County Executive Kevin…
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
The Maryland State Department of Education rejected the school system's original proposal earlier in the year.
Though his original proposal was rejected, Superintendent Dallas Dance said Baltimore County Public Schools won't adopt the "generic" state teacher evaluation plan. "We'll go back to the drawing board with our folks," Dance said. Dance has until May to present the Maryland State Department of Education with an alternate proposal. The primary point of contention is that the state department wants the school system to count Maryland School Assessment results as 20 percent of the rating measuring student growth. Baltimore County's plan calls for 10 percent. "We believe we have a model that works best for us," he said. Baltimore County's acceptance of federal funds through the Race to the Top Grant awarded to the state mandates the county to …
Thursday, January 31, 2013
A Baltimore County Public Schools spokesman said the superintendent will need more time to study a rule which does away with priority placement for students with siblings in magnet programs.
Baltimore County families waiting on a decision about a controversial magnet school rule change will have to hold out for a good while longer. Shortly before the end of his tenure, former Superintendent Joe Hairston announced in April 2012 the end of a rule that granted kindergartners automatic admission into elementary magnet schools their siblings attend, starting in the 2015-2016 school year. Parents of affected students appealed to Superintendent Dallas Dance soon afterward to overturn the rule change. Dance said in August 2012 that he planned to make a recommendation to the Board of Education about the rule in February, but school system spokesman Mychael Dickerson said Wednesday that it will likely take another year before a decision…
Monday, January 14, 2013
The hearing is scheduled for Tuesday night at West Towson Elementary School.
Baltimore County residents have the opportunity to sound off on school system Superintendent Dallas Dance's proposed fiscal year 2014 operating budget. A public hearing for the budget, which Dance introduced to the Board of Education on Jan. 8, is scheduled for 7 p.m. Tuesday at West Towson Elementary School. The $1.3 billion request—a $41.9 million increase from the previous year—is notable for its plan to add approximately 100 teaching positions to the existing 8,792, and six guidance counselor positions to the existing 269. Former Superintendent Joe Hairson, who retired in June 2012, cut 194 teaching positions from the fiscal year 2012 budget. Those wishing to speak can sign up at the school starting at 6 p.m. on the day of the hearing…
Monday, December 17, 2012
The school system was already in the process of evaluating its safety practices following two local gun incidents.
While touring schools Monday morning, Superintendent Dallas Dance was asked by a kindergarten student what he is doing to keep kids safe after a shooting at a Newtown, CT school on Friday. "This is something we already take seriously," Dance said he told the student during an interview with local media Monday afternoon. Following two highly publicized gun incidents at Perry Hall High School and Stemmers Run Middle School respectively, the school system was already in the process of reviewing its safety practices and put some new measures to use after the Friday shooting. "We're continuing to move forward in our efforts because we already started this work," Dance said. He pointed to work currently being done by his administration …
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Olivia Adams is among 10 students chosen for the Student Advisory Board.
Baltimore County Public Schools Superintendent S. Dallas Dance has named Adam Antoszewski as a member of his Student Advisory Board for the 2012-13 school year. The Catonsville High School student will serve as a student member to the Board of Education Baltimore County. Adams is among the 10 students chosen for the board, according to a news release from the superintendent's office. Other students chosen are: “Hearing the voices of students is vital to my effectiveness as superintendent,” Dance said in a statement. “In addition to speaking with students at events and in their classrooms, meeting with this cross-section of students throughout the year will foster open communication and provide me with additional insights into the needs, …
Tuesday, September 11, 2012
Parents of middle school students said they received little information from school officials about the incident.
A steady line of parents, many holding the hands of their pre-teen children, filed out of Stemmers Run Middle School in Essex late Tuesday morning. Police announced that the school was on lock-down after an eighth-grader brought a gun to school that morning. No one was injured during the incident, and officials said they do not plan to release further details until a 2 p.m. press briefing. Officials said the school day would go on as regularly scheduled. Still, anxious parents and TV news trucks gathered around the school's entrances. Vehicles crowded parking lots to the Mormon church and Save-A-Lot grocery store across Stemmers Run Road. Some ignored the growing media prescence, while others stopped to criticize school officials for not …
Police say student brought weapon to class Tuesday morning.
UPDATE (4:46 p.m.)—Second Student Gun Incident Prompts Additional Police Presence. --- UPDATE (1:07 p.m.)—After Gun Reported, Parents Take Stemmers Run Students Home --- UPDATE (11:06 a.m.)—No one was injured but officials locked down Stemmers Run Middle School after a student brought a gun to class Tuesday morning. County police searched the building, but students were not dismissed early, according to a statement released by Baltimore County police. Police released few details ahead of a 2 p.m. news conference in Towson with Chief of Police Jim Johnson, County Executive Kevin Kamenetz and schools Superintendent Dallas Dance. An eighth grade student brought the weapon to school. School officials confiscated the weapon. The circumstances …
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