New Superintendent

It appears The Sun's editorial staff bought wholesale the opinions of the county executive and school board members regarding the proposed changes to how school board members are selected ("Time out for Balto. Co.," Feb. 24.). In doing so they may well have sabotaged years of work by Baltimore County parents who have struggled for elected representation on the board. Arguing that the ongoing search for a new superintendent is reason to delay legislation to create an elected school board is a red herring.

Baltimore City schools CEO Andrés Alonso may be a top contender to take the helm of the long-troubled Chicago Public Schools, according to an article published by the Chicago Tribune. According to the report, Alonso's successes in Baltimore during his near four-year tenure have drawn the attention of Chicago's recently elected mayor, Rahm Emanuel, who has made it a priority of his administration to seek a reform-minded school leader to take over Chicago's struggling school system.

The Maryland State Police force has another new superintendent, the sixth in 10 years. Gov. William Donald Schaefer chose a man whose experience has been mostly in administrative positions, particularly in providing bodyguard and other personal security services for governors and other senior state officials. Although the governor says Capt. Larry Tolliver will have the head job temporarily while a nationwide search is conducted for a new top cop, he also said the only way Tolliver could lose the job "is not to play ball."

11 escape house on fire; arson suspectedHARWOOD -- Four adults and seven children escaped from a burning one-story, wood-frame house early yesterday in a fire investigators are labeling suspicious.The fire in the 800 block of Harwood Road was reported about 2:44 a.m., said Lt. Robert H. Kornmann of the Anne Arundel County Fire Department.30-year educator named superintendentWESTMINSTERWESTMINSTER -- Brian Lockard, a Westminster native and second-generation educator, was appointed the new superintendent of Carroll County public schools yesterday.

As a quarterback Kurt Schmoke led his City College footballteam to championships in 1965 and again in 1966. His coach devised the overall game strategy. Schmoke called the plays and frequently carried the ball himself.Football is a simple game. You block. You tackle. You run the ball. In contrast, urban education is emphatically not a simple game. Look around the league. You'll find a few successful schools, but no big-city school system in the country has had a winning season in a long time.

Baltimore County's Board of Education is seeking input from residents about its search for a new superintendent of schools. Three public forums have been scheduled for residents to inform board members of issues they should consider when choosing a new head for the county's school system. The first meeting will be held Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. at Loch Raven High School, 1212 Cowpens Ave. in Towson. On Thursday, two meetings will be held, both beginning at 6 p.m. One gathering will be conducted at Woodlawn High School, 1801 Woodlawn Drive in Woodlawn.

In a surprise move, the county school board named retired homicide detective Mike McNelly president yesterday and began what board members called a "new day" in Anne Arundel County education. The board welcomed its new superintendent, Eric J. Smith, and quickly made changes in both the substance and tone of its work. The meeting ended two hours early, and brevity and fiscal accountability were the order of the day. "We are entering into a new phase for Anne Arundel County schools," said McNelly, 56, a Dunkirk resident and seven-year board member.

I was sorry to read of Mamie Perkins' retirement from the Howard County Public Schools. She proved her ability when she was deputy superintendent during the absence of Sydney Cousin. I heard no complaints about her leadership, ability or loyalty to the educational system of Howard County. In reading the article ("Deputy superintendent retires from school system," Aug. 9), I was amazed that a person with her experience (39 years) was not promoted to the position of superintendent and feel that Howard County lost an extremely qualified leader.

The Baltimore County school board, which has been criticized in the past two years for failing to listen to complaints from the public, has pledged to seek advice on the hiring of the next superintendent from an array of interests in the community. The school board signed a contract this week with a national search firm to help choose a new superintendent. School board President Lawrence Schmidt said Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates was chosen in part because it has a good record of soliciting views from different groups.

A school activist, a university teacher and supervisor, and a Comcast Cable executive were named yesterday to the Baltimore County school board, which faces a major task in finding a new superintendent.Gov. Parris N. Glendening, who made the appointments, said the new members would bring first-rate experience in business, education, and community service to the 12-member board. "This mix of new members should help strengthen the board during a time of transition," he said.The board fired Stuart Berger as superintendent this month with a $300,000 buyout and will begin a search for a successor next month.