Montgomery County Board of Education Appoints New Superintendent

The Montgomery County Board of Education voted unanimously in favor of their pick for the new public schools superintendent Thursday evening.

Dr. Jack Smith currently serves as Maryland state interim superintendent. He previously was the superintendent for Calvert County.

The appointment starts in July, and Smith said he will spend the next five months learning.

"I will come here to join meetings, to listen, to the members of the staff and the community and the board, and just get to know everything I can possibly get to know about Montgomery County Public Schools," he said.

Smith will inherit a school system with a growing population and a growing achievement gap between rich and poor.

One of his first short-term goals will be improving graduation rates.

"That's something you can act on pretty quickly in terms of identifying students who are at risk of not graduating and then going out and finding them and bringing them back to you and making sure they get all the support they need to graduate," Smith said.

Montgomery County Council member Nancy Floreen had breakfast with Smith.

“He’s currently acting secretary of education for the state, and that’s pretty significant,” Floreen said. “Understanding how Maryland works is very important in understanding how we can move ourselves forward.”

However, a Change.org petition titled urged Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan not to name Smith the permanent state superintendent.

After Smith left Calvert County Public Schools, the Calvert Recorder conducted a three-month investigation into the compensation package for Smith and his executive staff.

"Like extra leave and increasing salaries regardless of the fact the school system was in a downward spiral as far as salaries and pay raises and step increases and stuff like that," reporter Sara Newman said.

Former Montgomery County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Joshua Starr resigned a year ago. In May, Dr. Andrew Houlihan of Houston turned the job down.