School Superintendent

Robert William Armacost, who staged antique shows in Hunt Valley and Annapolis and was a former Baltimore City Public Schools deputy superintendent, died of an apparent heart attack Feb. 14 at his Roland Park home. He was 74. Born in Baltimore and raised in Woodlawn, he was the son of physician Joshua Armacost. He was a 1955 graduate of Milford Mill High School and earned a degree at Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pa. He was an active alumnus and donor. He taught at Essex Elementary School and later taught English at Lansdowne High School.

The Archdiocese of Baltimore made its acting superintendent the official head of its 70 schools Tuesday, naming Barbara Edmondson to oversee 2,750 employees and more than 29,000 students. The first laywoman to supervise the school system, Edmondson has moved up through the ranks and feels privileged to serve with those "who believe in Catholic education. " "Together, we can strengthen our schools and continue a legacy that dates back more than 200 years," she said. The official announcement, which earned a standing ovation, came at the launch of the Principals Leadership Institute for Advanced Study, a certificate program for administrators that Edmondson helped to develop in partnership with area Catholic colleges.

A state delegate called into question on Friday Baltimore County schools Superintendent Joe A. Hairston's online endorsement of software products sold by a company that the system gave a contract to without competitive bidding. Del. Dan Morhaim, a Baltimore County Democrat, said during a legislative hearing that he had concerns about whether it was appropriate for the company, EduTrax, to have a testimonial from Hairston posted on its website. He said that such endorsements are not allowed under guidelines for state officials.

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.

Anne Arundel County Board of Education President Patricia Nalley says she is "happy" with Superintendent Kevin Maxwell's $969 million operating budget recommendation, which calls for a $37.5 million increase over last year. After hearing Maxwell outline the budget at Wednesday night's board meeting, Nalley said that she was confident that the board and county executives will work together on funding the budget to keep the school system on its "journey from good to great. " Yet Nalley's optimism comes as county budget officer John Hammond, who on Thursday afternoon said he has seen "a rough outline" of the proposal, repeated earlier comments that the county will give the school system no more than a $5.6 million maintenance-of-effort increase over last year.

Anne Arundel County schools Superintendent Kevin Maxwell has recommended an operating budget for the coming year that is $37.5 million more than the amount approved last year but will meet negotiated agreements with the system's four unions and includes funding for charter school expansion. Maxwell presented his $969 million recommendation at Wednesday night's school board meeting, saying that it included $1.34 million to hire 20 school-based mentor teachers required by state Department of Education regulations to meet federal Race to the Top initiatives.

Baltimore County Schools Superintendent Joe A. Hairston apparently believes he is unaccountable to anyone. When questions arose about the propriety of the district's decision to require all teachers to use a grading system from which one of his top deputies might one day profit, he skipped one meeting with concerned legislators and dodged questions at another. Now he's refused to speak with an investigator from the attorney general's office who was seeking answers to such basic questions as whether the deputy really should hold the copyright to the grading system and whether the district's decision in December to mandate the system's use (since rescinded)

Some Anne Arundel County school board members anticipate that Superintendent Kevin Maxwell's $159 million, fiscal year 2012 capital budget proposal — an increase of about $36 million from last fiscal year — will likely come up short of being completely funded. After hearing the proposal Wednesday, board members questioned how many of the more than three dozen prioritized projects on the proposal would end up being shelved for another year. The capital budget sets funding priorities for the school system's construction projects.