New Howard County schools superintendent shares his 90-day plan

BALTIMORE -- The Howard County Public Schools are kicking off a new year with a new superintendent.

Superintendent Bill Barnes officially started his role in July after he was in the acting capacity since January.

In a sit-down interview with WJZ Howard County community reporter Dennis Valera, Barnes explained his approach of utilizing every voice in the school district.

It's a role he saw himself in, but now actually being a superintendent is something Barnes is still grasping.

"It's still hard for me to believe it's happening right now because I thought maybe in t, four or five years or something," Barnes said. "But, the opportunity presented itself right now."

Barnes was Howard County Public School System's chief academic officer since 2017 before becoming acting superintendent in January.

The 90-day plan

On July 1, his first official day as superintendent, Barnes unveiled a 90-day plan.

In it, his priorities are as follows: the Blueprint for Maryland's Future plan, diversity, equity and inclusion, improving learning outcomes, budget development, transportation, and recruiting top talent.

Overall, there's also a priority for a strategic vision that puts students at the top.

In each part of the plan, public engagement is a big part of it, as well as more public transparency.

Barnes said he had to include those, given what he had heard from everyone in the school district. He said the number one piece of feedback from people was asking for more involvement and engagement.

"I got excited about that. I wanted to get behind that level of engagement. I thought we could be the best possible school system if we tapped the talents of everyone in the school system," Barnes said.

Barnes said this is only the first of at least a dozen more in his 90-day plans. He elaborated that the following plans will be informed by what's needed and what the community wants.

"I have 16 90-Day Plans over four years," Barnes said. "I want the level of energy and intentionality that has the attention of our staff and our community related to this [plan] to be the same level of energy and intentionality for each of the other [plans] in my term."

Students' needs and priorities

Addressing students and their families, Barnes said he wants them to know their needs and priorities are top of mind for him.

"We're starting out on a fresh foot. I want our families to understand that our students' learning, and their services, are priorities for me. We want to do everything we can to make sure our students graduate with their dreams intact," he said.

Barnes plans to publicly provide an update on how his first 90 days go.

Valera had more questions about Barnes' plans for transportation specifically, to see what the school district is doing to avoid the bus crisis last school year.