“Growing up in Maryland and spending most of my career in Maryland, I knew how good our schools were. I also knew how much we could improve,” Wright said after the vote. “There is,” he said.
Board member Joshua Michael, who chaired the search committee, said 26 people completed applications for the job, but “the board rallied strongly around Mr. Wright.”
Michael, who is also vice chairman of the state board, added that Wright has “extensive experience as an educational leader in public schools in Maryland and across the country” and a “track record of driving reform.”
In Maryland, the State Board of Education hires the superintendent and the governor appoints school board members. Gov. Wes Moore (Democratic) has so far appointed six people to the 14-member board. Mr. Wright was approved unanimously by state board members in attendance. One member was absent.
Moore said in a news release that Wright's career in public education “uniquely prepared him for this moment” in leadership of the state education system.
“I am confident that she is a champion for students and the leader we need to deliver on Maryland's promise to create a world-class public education system,” Moore said.
Wright was appointed interim state superintendent in October after former state Superintendent Mohamed Chaudhry lost support from the school board.
investigation The Washington Post revealed last year that several former employees alleged that Chaudhry created a “toxic” work environment that forced out former lieutenants and dozens of military veterans. At the Education Agency. Former employees claim he had a pattern of micromanagement that hindered important work, and several district leaders have quietly expressed confusion about the blueprint and other guidance from the department. Mr Chowdhury said former employees could not accept the change.
Since Chaudhry's retirement, Wright has led the state Department of Education, which oversees 24 school districts with about 890,000 students. She was tasked by a state commission to develop a literacy policy that incorporated more elements of the “science of reading,” a methodology that emphasizes phonics in teaching children to read.board The state has set a goal of placing Maryland among the top 10 states in reading proficiency on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), a standardized test also known as the “gold standard” of student assessment, for fourth and eighth graders by 2027. Set.
According to the most recent NAEP assessment, the state ranked 40th in the nation in fourth-grade reading proficiency. In the second year of junior high school, I was ranked 25th.
Mr. Wright succeeded in improving business performance. She is known in education circles as the Mississippi superintendent who improved student performance in reading and math in Mississippi after decades of low NAEP scores.
Wright is an educator from Maryland. She began her career at Prince George's County Public Schools, her second largest school system in the state. She also worked within the Howard County and Montgomery County School Systems before becoming Chief Academic Officer and Deputy Director of the D.C. Public Schools Office of Teaching and Learning.
In 2013, she was appointed Mississippi State Superintendent of Education. She retired from that position in her 2022 year.
Several board members congratulated Wright after Wednesday's vote.
“I think we're on the right path, and I'm very happy to see you all,” said Carroll County Commissioner Susan Getty.
Wright said her goal is to “always listen to all voices” and “make Maryland a destination for education.” She added that she will focus on improving literacy at all grade levels.
“I get energy from this job. This is a job I love,” Wright said. “I am committed to doing everything I can to improve outcomes for children.”
She will begin her four-year term at Maryland on July 1 with a salary of $360,500.
