August 31, 2023, Community Update: Transition Team Report
Dear Team BCPS,
I hope you are having a great first week of the 2023-2024 school year! As I have visited schools this week, I have seen high levels of engagement and energy, rigorous instruction, and relationship building. Our transportation staff have transported more than 80,000 students to and from school with minimal delays and disruptions, all students have had access to nutritious meals free of charge, and our buildings and grounds were fully prepped and ready for the return of students and staff. It is so good to have our students and staff back and we are excited for what we know will be an outstanding school year for our community.
As I shared in my July 3 welcome message, our staff have been working hard to prepare for this new school year and to improve outcomes for all students. Part of that summer work included the critically important efforts of my Transition Team and today, I am pleased to share their final report. 39 individuals graciously agreed to serve on the Transition Team and share their deep expertise and understanding of the issues impacting BCPS and public education. The transition team critically assessed BCPS’ current state of teaching and learning, operations, and culture/context. They were charged with developing short-term and long-term recommendations that will spur system progress in the following focus areas:
- Teaching and Learning
- Culture and Climate
- Infrastructure
- Operations
- Community Engagement and Communication
Their assessment has resulted in a list of 23 short- and long-term recommendations to drive improvement in our five focus areas. You can read the full report here.
I am deeply grateful to co-chairs Jill Snell and Dr. Douglas Anthony and to all members of the transition team who worked intensely over a 21-day period, investing their time, energy, insights, and talents to develop these comprehensive and thoughtful recommendations.
In the coming months, I will share more details about the process we will use to review and implement the Transition Team’s recommendations. I will also use insights and feedback from the 10 “Meet the Superintendent” events we held this summer and the experiences of our Team BCPS community to inform our strategic planning. There are great things happening in our school system, however, we must also acknowledge the urgent need to reverse the trend of declining academic performance and improve climate and operational efficiency. We must ensure each student at every school is meeting their full potential. There is significant work before us and I pledge to lead with a sense of urgency, thoroughly assess our areas of strength and opportunity, and implement collaborative and strategic action plans with fidelity. Together we will build on the strengths of this incredible school system, improve in areas where we need to grow, and deliver on our shared vision that BCPS will be one of the top performing school systems in the state. Thank you for your commitment to Team BCPS.
In partnership,
Dr. Myriam Rogers (Yarbrough)
Superintendent
READ THE TRANSITION TEAM'S REPORT