Howard County families bring up concerns in latest public schools budget

Howard County families weighed in on the public schools' proposed FY2027 budget for the first time on Thursday, with many feeling it's not on the same page as the school district's needs.

Howard County Public School System (HCPSS) superintendent Bill Barnes said his operating budget is aimed at helping struggling students.

It involves repurposing a lot of positions, and it's something people criticized. In a background conversation with reporters ahead of unveiling his budget, Barnes said he foresaw this being a point of contention.

The delayed renovations at a high school were also brought up by those who testified.

Critiquing the strategy

In all, more than two dozen students, staff, and parents testified at Thursday's public hearing. It was switched to be fully virtual due to the weather this week.

One consistent critique that came up was the repurposing and reallocating of positions, namely, paraeducators, especially the ones who help high school science classes.

"The reality is, without the support, many labs will stop happening," said Riddhi Mittal, a student at River Hill High School. "When labs start to disappear, students lose the opportunity to apply concepts, experiment, and truly understand the material they are learning."

Right now, 14 science paraeducators are spread across the county's 13 high schools. All 14 are proposed to be re-purposed.

Several brought up the potential financial consequences to this move.

"OSHA, MOSH, and the EPA can inspect labs for violations without notice. Fines can start around $16,500 per day and exceed $160,000 per violation," said Centennial High School science paraeducator Jessica Stockham.

When unveiling his nearly $1.3 billion budget earlier this month, Barnes said the goal is to help two groups of students who historically underperform: special education students and multilingual learners.

To do so, aside from making investments and adding positions, Barnes proposed repurposing many positions at all levels. Paraeducators, particularly, are proposed to be repurposed under this plan.

The proposed budget also has some being converted into teaching positions and other roles.

Barnes made it clear, though, that those who aren't a fan of their repurposed role, or are losing their job, will have the opportunity to stay in the school district.

"It is my desire to have a job for anyone who wishes to stay with the Howard County Public School System through this process," Barnes said earlier this month. "We'll work with impacted staff throughout the spring and early summer to navigate their options."

Another point of concern brought up in the public hearing is the repurposing of library media specialists.

Oakland Mills High renovations

Several current Oakland Mills High School students and parents called for renovations at the school to be re-prioritized.

It's the latest showing of how these families have been ramping up their efforts since November, when the Board of Education voted to de-prioritize renovations in November. 

In that vote, the Board of Education approved an updated list of locally funded projects under the proposed FY27 capital budget.

While Oakland Mills High School was initially listed higher, the updated list instead put projects for other schools ahead. The re-prioritization followed an updated facilities prioritization list from school district staff.

For years, students have complained of mold and crumbling conditions at the school.

"Students deserve a place and environment where they are able to learn, gain knowledge, grow, and to be their best selves," said Oakland Mills High student JoJo Knight Jr. "They cannot do that if ceiling tiles are falling in the middle of class. I have been in class where the light shield has fallen, collapsed, and broken into pieces."

Next steps

There are still two more scheduled public hearings on the proposed budget. Both are scheduled for 7 p.m.:

• Feb. 9
• Feb. 12

There are also two more work sessions scheduled, which are at 1 p.m.:

• Feb. 5
• Feb. 19

The Board of Education is slated to adopt a budget at its Feb. 26 meeting. From there, it heads to Howard County Executive Calvin Ball's desk.

You can see the proposed FY27 budget here.