The Board of Education of Anne Arundel County will recognize the 2024 winners of the Mo Gaba Positivity and Perseverance Awards at its next meeting, scheduled for Wednesday, February 7, 2024.
The award was created by the Board of Education in January 2021 to honor students who exhibited the same outlook on life as Mo, an AACPS student and “superfan” of the Baltimore Orioles and Baltimore Ravens whose health challenges never defeated his intellectual brilliance, positive attitude, fun-loving spirit, or his ability to make others smile and marvel at his resilience. Mo died in July 2020 at the age of 14 after multiple battles with cancer.
The 2024 winners were announced by video on January 26, 2024, the date of the school system’s annual Mo Gaba Day, which coincides with Mo’s birthday.
Also at the meeting, the Board will consider contract renewals for Monarch Academy Public Charter School in Glen Burnie and Monarch Global Academy Public Contract School in Laurel.
During his report, Superintendent of Schools Dr. Mark Bedell will announce the mascots and colors for the new Severn Run High School and Two Rivers Elementary School. Committees at those schools have been discussing options since names for the schools were adopted by the Board of Education in December.
The meeting will begin at noon and will be held in the Board Room at the Parham Building, located at 2644 Riva Road, Annapolis. It is open to the public and subject to normal space limitations in the Board Room.
A complete agenda for the meeting can be found here. More information on agenda items will be posted on the AACPS website in the Board Docs section under the Board of Education tab. Protocols, procedures, and expectations for those attending the meeting can be found here.
The Board will also meet in a public session at 10 a.m. for the sole purpose of voting to immediately go into closed session, during which time it will discuss confidential matters as permitted by the Maryland Open Meetings Act including, but not limited to, legal advice, personnel, and negotiations. Closed session is not open to the public.
PROCESS FOR PUBLIC COMMENT ON AGENDA ITEMS
The Board will hear public comment from up to 10 total speakers (virtual and in-person combined) per agenda item (excluding personnel items, reports, informational presentations, and recognitions) during a single public comment section in the early portion of the meeting. Additionally, up to 10 speakers can comment on non-agenda items, excluding student-specific or personnel matters, towards the end of the meeting.
To register for public comment, visit www.aacps.org/boardcomment from 3 p.m. on the Friday before the meeting until noon on the Monday before. Speakers can sign up for a maximum of two agenda items but only once for each item. If there are more than 10 registered speakers for an item, a lottery will be used to select the speakers.
Registered speakers will be notified via email. Each speaker has a 2-minute time limit and must address the specific agenda item for which they are registered.
Written comments on agenda items (250-word maximum) can also be submitted online or dropped off at the Parham Building in Annapolis. Those needing interpreter services or accessibility accommodations should call 410-222-5311.
The general session of the meeting will be broadcast live on AACPS-TV and on AACPS’ YouTube channel. Archived videos of past meetings are available online.
BOARD SCHEDULES PUBLIC FORUM TO HEAR INPUT FROM STUDENTS
The Board of Education will hold a public forum to hear from Anne Arundel County Public Schools students at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, February 20, in the Board Room of the Parham Building, located at 2644 Riva Road in Annapolis.
Public comments at the forum will be limited to those from AACPS students, and student status will be verified before registrations are confirmed. Students may provide comments either in person or virtually. Comments will be delivered in person and virtually and will be limited to 50 students. Speakers will have two minutes each to deliver their remarks and must sign up prior to the hearing.
A link to sign up for virtual comment will go live at noon on Monday, February 12, at www.aacps.org/boardcomment. It will close at 11:59 p.m. on Thursday, February 15, 2024. Those wishing to provide comment either in person or virtually must register through that link.
If more than 50 students sign up to speak, the Board will employ a randomized, computerized lottery to select the 50 students who will comment at the hearing. Students who secure a slot to speak will be notified by email on February 16, 2024, at the email address they provide when they register.
Speakers may comment on any item of interest to them but may not address student-specific or personnel matters and will be stopped by the Board President should they attempt to do so.
Those who require the services of an interpreter to offer comment to the Board should call 410-222-5311 to make those arrangements after receiving confirmation of an opportunity to speak at the meeting.
The forum will be broadcast live on AACPS-TV and on AACPS’ YouTube channel. It can also be viewed live on AACPS’ YouTube channel.
COMMITTEE MEETINGS
The Board of Education’s committees will hold upcoming virtual meetings according to the following schedule. The meetings will not be broadcast, but those wishing to listen to the meetings can access them by telephone through the codes listed below.
- Policy Committee: 3 p.m., February 6, 2024. Call 301-960-3676, enter the Conference ID 691 399 984#.
- Budget Committee: Noon, February 20, 2024. Call 301-960-3676, enter the Conference ID 294 319 360#.
- Equity Committee: Noon, February 27, 2024. Call 301-960-3676, enter the Conference ID 543 729 222#.