Southern Maryland superintendents urge lawmakers not to divert school funding to state-level programs

Delegate Edith Patterson convened the Southern Maryland delegation on a February morning in 2025 to hear updates from local school leaders and the College of Southern Maryland on student programs and education funding.

The superintendents said they are closely tracking the governor's Excellence in Maryland Public Schools Act (Senate Bill 429 / House Bill 504) and a draft of curative language filed as Senate Bill 852, and warned that some provisions would redirect money intended by the state's blueprint law from local school systems to state-level initiatives.

"There are parts of this bill that redirect some of that funding to go to [the Maryland State Department of Education] for different initiatives," said Dr. Maria Navarro, superintendent of Charles County Public Schools. "Our concerns . . . lie that it will likely pull staffing and resources away from the schoolhouse." Navarro said Charles County is beginning a new strategic-plan process and flagged expanded pre-K and increased Advanced Placement participation as local priorities.

Dr. Smith, superintendent of St. Mary's County Public Schools, told the delegation that Maryland's public schools overall…