Deputy Superintendent

Leslie Wilson's work as a behind-the-scenes bureaucrat may involve statistical analysis and minutiae that would put most of the world to sleep, but she has suddenly become one of the most powerful people in the Maryland State Department of Education, sometimes more sought-after than her boss, Nancy S. Grasmick. Wilson is the assistant state superintendent for assessment, a lively woman who keeps track of student test scores and is now a magnet for contractors seeking work in a tough economy.

Mamie Perkins says she speaks each day to Howard County schools Superintendent Sydney Cousin, as she helps fill in for him while he is on a medical leave of absence and receives treatment for cancer. Perkins, whose promotion from Cousin's chief of staff to the county's deputy school superintendent was announced last week, says that Cousin is in good spirits and added, "Every day he reminds us of the expectations he has for us. " Perkins knows that those expectations will likely mount, both within the school system and the Howard community, as she assumes a role vacated when Deputy Superintendent Sandra Erickson retired in June.

Howard County Public Schools Superintendent Sydney Cousin is taking a medical leave of absence until March 1 as he battles a rare form of cancer, Howard Board of Education Chairwoman Janet Siddiqui said during Tuesday afternoon's board meeting. The county schools superintendent since 2004, Cousin has been on indefinite medical leave since Jan. 5. On Tuesday afternoon, the board voted 5-1 to approve the promotion of Mamie Perkins, the superintendent's chief of staff, to deputy superintendent.

A Navy enlisted man writes: We read with interest your recent article about Sandy Point State Park. My wife and I attempted to enter "just to look around" because the gate guard could not confirm/deny whether SCUBA diving was allowed. We figured that there would be signs posted or possibly maps that showed where SCUBA diving was allowed. Bottom line is they wanted to charge us just to look. So, before we spend the cost for a car and two occupants…can you tell us confirm that SCUBA is or is not allowed at Sandy Point State Park.

Howard County's chief operating officer confirmed yesterday that he will leave the school system in January to work for the state and oversee distribution of special-education funding for Baltimore City public schools. Raymond Brown, a former assistant state superintendent who has worked in Howard County for six years, will become a member of the state's Intensive Management Capacity Improvement Team, or IMCIT. Brown will oversee special-education finance. His duties will require him to monitor how special-education funding is dispersed to meet federal and state mandates.

The Naval Academy has threatened to have members of a national gay rights organization arrested if the group enters the campus as part of a planned protest tomorrow. Sixty students with Soulforce are expected instead to protest the academy's "don't ask, don't tell" policy outside the academy's gates tomorrow at 11:30 a.m., said Jacob P. Reitan, who is organizing the event. He said some protesters might also try to enter the campus, which is guarded by Department of Defense police and Marines.

Kenneth P. Lawson - who rose from teacher to deputy superintendent of the Anne Arundel County school system during a career that spanned 36 years - announced yesterday that he would step down this year. Beginning in June, Lawson will trade early mornings and late evenings at the system's offices on Riva Road in Annapolis for more time with his family, including a second grandchild expected in March. Lawson, 57, said he feels positive about his experience here. "My colleagues and I have spent 35 years working really hard to provide opportunities for the children," Lawson said.

VINDICATION may be sweet for the two Howard County school administrators whose demotions were reversed last week by the school board. But the county school system is left with a black eye at the end of this months-long scandal that grew out of anonymous allegations of favoritism, based on officials' actions on behalf of an administrator's children. A mark showing a student's withdrawal from a class was improperly removed from the record; some staff felt the administrators applied undue influence whether it was intended or not. A teacher-parent conference went poorly; sharp words were exchanged.

Howard County's interim school superintendent announced a restructuring of his top staff yesterday that includes three new positions and spots for two previously demoted administrators, who successfully appealed reassignments. "I'm trying to put some balance into the system, structural balance," interim chief Sydney L. Cousin said after the school board meeting during which he presented the changes. Cousin rearranged the hierarchical system into three areas, effective by June 12: curriculum development, curriculum implementation and business operations.

In response to scandals involving high-ranking Howard County education officials, school board member Sandra H. French is urging the creation of school system policies that govern grade changes and spell out proper ways for public officials to advocate for their children. "We have to have a clear-cut process, transparent to everyone," French said yesterday during a meeting with the Howard County Council. If such measures had been in place months ago, they might have prevented the situation that has left at least three educators fighting for their jobs through legal action - including a lawsuit filed this week against the superintendent's office.