A bill granting Anne Arundel County Public Schools an exception to the required 180-day school year passed the Maryland General Assembly on April 5 and now awaits the governor’s signature.

At an editorial roundtable with Baltimore Sun staff, Gov. Wes Moore said he was “very familiar with the bill” but would not say whether he intends to sign it.

“The truth is, is that I’m still trying to make sure that my nine bills get passed,” Moore said referring to his legislative agenda, which includes amending the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future. “I have not had a chance to get to the hundreds of bills that have passed.”

State law requires public schools to be open for at least 180 days and a set number of instructional hours — 1,080 in elementary and middle schools and 1,170 in high schools. Districts may request an exception from the State Board of Education, but only if attendance is prevented by a natural or civil disaster or severe weather.

To meet the 180-day requirement while still carving out time for professional development and extra grading at the end of marking periods, Anne Arundel uses early dismissal days, which have proven unpopular.

“These requirements are arbitrary and outdated and unnecessarily constrain local school system calendars, limiting programmatic creativity and resulting in headaches for families and employees,” the district wrote in a letter asking for a favorable committee report on the bill.

Del. Heather Bagnall and Sen. Dawn Gile, who represent Annapolis, introduced House Bill 226 to grant an exception to the 180-day rule as long as the hourly requirements are met.

“I offered to sponsor this bill with my Senate colleague and D33 district mate Senator Dawn Gile because we believe our nationally renowned Superintendent Dr. Bedell has a transformational vision, which he utilized to great effect in Kansas City, and we wanted our county to have the flexibility to innovate,” said Bagnall in a statement. “I think the biggest difference this year was that though we approached it as a pilot for AACo, we also looked at the precedent it might set for the state.”

Anne Arundel County Public Schools has pushed for similar legislation for the past three years. The Board of Education and Superintendent Mark Bedell both support the bill.

“I’m delighted that it passed and I’m grateful for Delegate Bagnall and Senator Dawn Gile,” said board member Dana Schallheim.

Last summer, the district created the Innovative School Scheduling Workgroup, made up of staff, elected officials and community organization representatives, to develop a new calendar for the next academic year. The calendar used early dismissals to meet the mandatory 180 days, but the group also concluded that early dismissals hinder instruction-based conversations with students, guardians and teachers.

Teachers said they struggled to conduct effective lessons with shortened class periods, and guardians said they had difficulty finding childcare on days that ended early.

Data from the past three years shows attendance suffering on early dismissal days. In the 2023-24 school year, attendance on some of those days dropped as low as 14.09% below average, according to the district.

Bagnall said she believes Moore will support the bill.

“I know Governor Moore recognizes excellence in education and transformational leadership which is why Dr. [Carey] Wright, the architect of the Mississippi Miracle, now leads the Maryland} Department of Education. HB 226 will give Anne Arundel County the flexibility we are seeking to advance our county, aligning with the goals of the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future while allowing for some local flexibility to innovate,” said Bagnall.

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