The structure of Howard County's school board could change based on three competing proposals from state lawmakers that seek to alter how school board members are elected.

Currently, school board candidates run for seven at-large seats in a nonpartisan race, but lawmakers say that system does not do enough to encourage diversity and push board members to respond to concerns from constituents.

Del. Vanessa Atterbeary said that when the General Assembly session opens next month, she'll reintroduce a bill that would align school board districts with councilmanic districts. Five members would be elected by district while the remaining two seats would be at-large positions.

Tying school board seats to council districts ensures board members are beholden to the needs of their constituents and gives parents and educators a single point of contact to address concerns, said Atterbeary, a Democrat.

“There is a belief amongst the community that certain schools in the county are treated different,” Atterbeary said. “All schools need to be represented equally and fairly and all parents need to feel like they have a voice.”

Her proposal drew support from the community at hearings last year but failed to make it to the General Assembly after state Del. Bob Flanagan and state Sens. Edward Kasemeyer, a Democrat, and Gail Bates voted against it.

Bates and Flanagan, both Republicans, said they feared the proposal would inject politics into the nonpartisan school board race.

This coming session, both are offering a competing proposals.

“Councilmanic districts are highly partisan and grossly gerrymandered,” Flanagan said. “We do not want to inject partisanship, gerrymandering and all of the related problems into the election of the school board.”

Flanagan's proposal calls for districts drawn by an 11-member commission of citizens selected through a lottery managed by the county executive.

The commission, which would be chaired by a retired judge selected by the Howard County Council and funded by county taxpayer dollars, would create seven school board districts.

Members would draw districts to match the proportion of registered voters by party. All members would have to be registered voters and could not serve as public officials in the state.

The county would reimburse commission members for their participation.

Bates' proposal would also create a commission to draw districts, but would place selection powers in the hands of local organizations and require citizen input throughout the process.

“There is no place for politics with the school board,” Bates said.

The Howard County Education Association, the Parent-Teacher Association Council of Howard County and the Howard County Administrators Association would each appoint three members.

Each organization could only appoint one person from each councilmanic district, an effort to screen the body from partisan influence and reflect the county's diversity.

Members of the commission would be barred from seeking public office in the county during their terms. Districts would be drawn to evenly distribute populations and ensure high school attendance areas remain in similar zones.

The Howard County state delegation will consider the proposals by January following a public hearing on Dec. 21.

Atterbeary's proposal would go into effect in 2018 while the other proposals would go into effect in 2022.

This year's school board race ushered in three new members — Kirsten Coombs, Mavis Ellis and Christina Delmont-Small — ousting three incumbents. Only one person of color, Mavis Ellis, is represented on the new board, which was sworn in on Dec. 5.

Atterbeary's proposal drew support from the local teachers union and community members, but was criticized by schools Superintendent Renee Foose and membersof the former school board, who expressed concerns about injecting politics into the race.

Flanagan said the current system showed “a clear opportunity to change direction,” but a more targeted model was still warranted.

“We've seen some red flags from the school system management. We have a concerning report regarding public information requests. We have serious questions about how public input has been disregarded in making major decisions,” Flanagan said. “People feel that they're not being heard.”

Moves to change how school board members are elected cropped up nearly four years ago when former state schools Superintendent Nancy Grasmick sought to create a hybrid model with five members elected by district and two appointed by the county executive. Grasmick made the recommendation as the head of a commission under then-County Executive Ken Ulman.

Del. Frank Turner, a Columbia Democrat, pushed for Grasmick's proposal in the 2012 General Assembly but withdrew the bill after hitting public pushback.

Howard's school board was appointed by the governor until the 1970s. In 2006, the number of seats grew from five to seven.

Of Maryland's 24 local school boards, 11 are elected and three are formed by appointments from the governor. The remaining boards are composed of a combination of elected and appointed positions.

The Howard County delegation will hear input on the proposals at its yearly public hearing on all draft state bills at 7 p.m. Wednesday in the George Howard building in Ellicott City.