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Board asks superintendent to press MSDE for Nottingham Middle support, citing data concerns
Summary
After parent testimony about data errors, the Board voted to ask the superintendent to pursue low-performing and community-school designations for Nottingham Middle School by July 1 so students can access additional resources; staff said MSDE requires two years of data and denied an exception request.
The Baltimore County Board of Education voted April 21 to ask Superintendent Dr. Rogers to take all actions necessary to support the designation of Nottingham Middle School as both a low-performing school and a community school by July 1, 2026, so that additional resources can be in place for the 2026-27 school year.
The motion, offered by board member Miss Henn and seconded, came after several speakers from the Nottingham community urged the board to seek MSDE designations. "Nottingham cannot afford to lose these educators," Mary Crow told the board, arguing that a designation would help attract and retain nationally board-certified teachers through stipends and secure a full-time community-school facilitator and longer-term supports.
Superintendent Dr. Rogers and staff explained the state criteria and current data. Staff said MSDE requires a two-year average to designate a school as low-performing and that Nottingham's two-year measure currently calculates at 51 percent economically disadvantaged versus the state threshold of 55 percent. Dr. Rogers told the board staff had sought an exception from MSDE and that the request was denied; staff said they had reviewed and verified the data on site and would share MSDE's denial with the board.
Board members discussed monitoring and next steps. Miss Henn said her motion was intended to ensure active pursuit of designations and to keep Nottingham's status under review as new data arrive; Miss Frempong asked that monitoring updates be placed on future agendas. The motion passed on a roll-call vote.
The board directed the superintendent and staff to continue communication with MSDE and to provide the board with updates on data and steps taken to secure resources for students.
Next steps: staff will forward MSDE communications to the board, continue to monitor enrollment and direct-certification counts, and provide follow-up reports at future meetings so the board can act quickly if new data change the school's eligibility.
