Former Anne Arundel County Public Schools superintendent Dr. Kevin Maxwell last night was named 2014 Maryland Superintendent of the Year by the Public School Superintendents Association of Maryland (PSSAM).
Dr. Maxwell, who served as AACPS superintendent for seven years before leaving to become Chief Executive Officer of Prince George’s County Public Schools in July, was heralded for leading efforts to increase student achievement and build critical partnerships with business and community groups.
“Our Board and our school system congratulate Dr. Maxwell on this well-deserved award,” Board President Teresa Milio Birge said. “He and our entire organization have worked very hard to help propel our school system forward, and we are grateful for his seven years of service to our children.”
During Dr. Maxwell’s tenure, the district vastly expanded access to and student enrollment in courses of rigor and relevance, and in programs of choice. From 2006 to 2013, enrollment in Advanced Placement courses rose by 150 percent, and the number of students taking AP exams increased by 54 percent, with more than 14,200 exams administered last year alone.
When Dr. Maxwell arrived, AACPS had two magnet programs in four schools across the county. Today, the district has eight programs in 16 schools at both the middle and high school levels.
The increase in program offerings and the efforts to challenge more students has also resulted in a dramatic increase in scholarship offers to graduating seniors in the county. Members of the Class of 2006 – the last before Dr. Maxwell’s arrival – garnered $42.8 million in scholarship offers. Members of last year’s graduating class were offered $127.5 million in scholarships, nearly a 300 percent increase.
“I am humbled and honored by this award, because it is chosen by my colleagues from across Maryland and because it is a reflection of the incredible work of incredible people in Anne Arundel County,” Dr. Maxwell said. “I believe the work we did together for our children has put them in better positions to have brighter, more successful futures, and that is the most important thing of all.”
Dr. Maxwell will represent Maryland in the 2014 National Superintendent of the Year competition. That award will be announced in February.
“Dr. Maxwell’s passion for and dedication to children were evident to me from the first time I met him, and that passion has produced great results,” County Executive Laura Neuman said. “We have an excellent school system that is a vital part of our great county, and Dr. Maxwell has played a key role in that.”
PSSAM consists of the superintendents and chief executive officers of Maryland’s 24 school systems. It was founded in 1954 to address educational issues across the state.