Maryland State Board of Education Invites Live Public Comment to Virtual Board Meetings

BALTIMORE, MD – The Maryland State Department of Education invites live public comments in future meetings of the Maryland State Board of Education beginning with the next virtual meeting scheduled Tuesday, July 28, 2020. Members of the public are encouraged to submit comment(s)/feedback to the State Board of Education to share their views on issues pertaining to matters under Board authority and the administration of State public school systems.

Though the meeting still will be hosted as a virtual teleconference, via the Cisco application WebEx, the public will have the opportunity to call in and speak live during the usual three-minute time allotments offered.

“We want to continue our commitment to transparency and open communication,” said Brigadier General Warner I. Sumpter, USA, Ret., President of the Maryland State Board of Education. “As we transition from focusing on emergency measures addressing the COVID-19 pandemic to more regular agenda items, we again invite the public to participate and provide comment in real-time by telephone access.” Since March, members of the public were asked to submit their comments in writing to the State Board for distribution to all members.

The public comments will be conducted via phone only, and require the participant to dial in to a meeting, use a passcode, then wait until called on for comment by the Board President. Comments are limited to three minutes per speaker, monitored by staff. More details regarding the new procedure for public comment is available online: http://marylandpublicschools.org/stateboard/Documents/PublicCommentGuidelinesVirtualMeeting.pdf

Registration will close at 3 p.m. on the last business day preceding the Board meeting date. A person who desires to speak to the Board must register with the Office of the State Board of Education by calling 410-767-0467 and leaving a voice mail message or by submitting a written request to stateboard.msde@maryland.gov prior to each State Board meeting for distribution to State Board members. Written submissions emailed to the State Board should indicate “Public Comment” in the subject line and reference the meeting date (i.e. SUBJECT: Public Comment for Month/Day/Year”).

Sign-up for public comment is limited to 10 speakers. Registration is first-come, first-served. The first 10 speakers will receive confirmation of registration, along with the call-in number, passcode to join the meeting, and the guidelines and procedures for public comment.

Questions or comments should also be sent to stateboard.msde@maryland.gov.

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