Garrett County Board of Education re-elects Tom Woods as president; adopts strategic plan, retains law firm and sets 2025 meeting schedule

Northern Middle School — The Garrett County Board of Education on Jan. 14 re-elected Tom Woods as board president and chose Rodney Glogfelty as vice president, adopted a three-year Garrett County Public Schools strategic plan aligned with the state Blueprint for Maryland’s Future, retained the law firm of Costello and Hoover as board counsel and confirmed the board’s regular public meeting schedule.

Clerk of Court Bill Beneger administered the oath of office to board members present, including Matthew Triage, at the start of the meeting. The board then moved briefly into a closed executive session under Maryland Annotated Code, General Provisions §3-305(b)(1) to discuss personnel matters, including an update on superintendent goals, an anonymous letter concerning Southern Garrett High School and other personnel updates.

Votes at a glance

- Election of board president: Tom Woods was nominated and elected by voice vote. The board chair called the vote “unanimous.” - Election of vice president: Rodney Glogfelty was nominated and elected by voice vote. - Adoption of strategic plan: The board voted to adopt the Garrett County Public Schools strategic plan aligned with the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future. The motion carried by voice vote. - Retention of board counsel: The firm Costello and Hoover was approved as board counsel for calendar year 2025. - Meeting schedule: The board voted to continue holding regular public sessions at 4 p.m. on the second Tuesday of each month, rotating monthly between northern and southern locations in the county. - Agenda and consent agenda: The board approved the public agenda and the consent agenda by voice vote.

Board President Tom Woods thanked members for the support after the vote. Several members noted continuity of leadership as helpful while the district implements the newly adopted strategic plan and navigates forthcoming state decisions about the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future.

The meeting record shows the motions were made from the floor, seconded, and decided by voice vote; where recorded, the chair called votes unanimous. No roll-call tallies were provided in the public transcript for these items.

The board announced it will post closed-session summaries, consent-agenda documents and other material referenced during the meeting on the district website.