Participation By The Public
The Board of Education of Baltimore County recognizes the value of public comment at Board meetings. The Board welcomes individuals and organizations to attend all public meetings of the Board and to address its members, even when those meetings are held virtually.
While the Board of Education, as articulated in Policy 8315, encourages public input on policy, programs, and practices within the purview of this Board and this school system, specific student or employee matters should not be discussed and existing dispute resolution processes should be utilized, as appropriate. Inappropriate personal remarks or other behavior that disrupts or interferes with the conduct of the meeting will be deemed out of order. Persons using language that is threatening or promotes violence against a BCPS employee are subject to legal penalties. Persons who otherwise disrupt or disturb the meeting will not be allowed to continue their remarks and will be escorted from the meeting.
ACCESS TO BOARD MEETING BROADCASTS
The school system is committed to accessible communication with its stakeholders. Accordingly, the scheduled Board of Education meetings will be broadcast online through the Live Meeting Broadcast and BCPS-TV (Comcast Xfinity channel 73, Verizon FiOS channel 34).
ATTENDING THE BOARD MEETING IN PERSON
Members of the public may attend the Board meeting in person based on room capacity, and seating is on a first-come, first-served basis. Limited additional seating is available in the event the Board room is at capacity; however, if no seats are available, additional attendees may not be able to enter the building until there are seats.
WRITTEN PUBLIC COMMENTS
The Board accepts written comments. Comments from stakeholder groups and other members of the public may be e-mailed to [email protected]; all comments will be distributed to the Board of Education members. By sending an e-mail, submitters acknowledge that any e-mail, including the contents of the e-mail, the full name, and the e-mail address from which they are sent are subject to disclosure under the Maryland Public Information Act (MPIA).
SPEAKING AT THE BOARD MEETINGS
Public comment will take place in person and virtually at the meeting. Both stakeholders and those wishing to provide general public comment must register online by completing a registration form (see below), which will open one week prior to the Board meeting date and close at 3 p.m. the day before the meeting. There will be an option to join virtually or by phone on the online registration form. A link/call-in number will be provided to ONLY those members who chose the virtual/phone option.
Public comment is limited to 10 speakers who will be selected using an electronic random selection process from all registration submissions received within the same designated time frame. If selected, participants will receive confirmation of their registration and public comment guidelines and procedures. Comments are limited to 3 minutes per speaker. No speaker substitutions will be allowed.
For those who are not selected through the online registration, a wait list sign-up sheet will be available 30 minutes prior to the meeting; spaces will be allocated on a first-come/first-served basis. Speakers must be present to sign up on the wait list. If a registered speaker is absent, speaker slots will be reassigned from the wait list so that the 10 speaker slots are allocated.
Stakeholder group (see below) leaders or their designated representatives may sign up to address the Board. Comments are limited to 3 minutes per speaker.
To register to speak, click on the link REGISTRATION FORM – Board Meeting Public Comment.
Current Stakeholder Groups
Baltimore County Student Council/Superintendent’s Student Advisory Council
Teachers Association of Baltimore County (TABCO)
Council of Administrative and Supervisory Employees (CASE)
Educational Support Professional of Baltimore County (ESPBC)
Baltimore County Public School Organization of Professional Employees (BCPSOPE)
American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees – Local 434 (AFSCME)
Area Education Advisory Council (AEAC) – Coordinator
- Central AEAC
- Northeast AEAC
- Northwest AEAC
- Southeast AEAC
- Southwest AEAC
Baltimore County Alliance of Black School Educators (BCABSE)
Career & Technology Educational Advisory Council (CTEAC)
Citizens Advisory Committee for Gifted/Talented Education (GTCAC)
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)
- Randallstown Chapter
- Baltimore County Chapter
PTA Council of Baltimore County
Special Education Citizens Advisory Committee (SECAC)
Baltimore County Public Schools – Student