MSDE roundtable spotlights college-and-career readiness, teacher pipeline and Blueprint implementation

The Maryland State Department of Education on Tuesday convened higher‑education partners for a roundtable to gather feedback on phases 1 and 2 of a new statewide strategic plan tied to the Blueprint for Maryland's Future.

Doctor Monica Lawson, MSDE's deputy state superintendent for organizational effectiveness, outlined the plan's purpose and timeline, saying the department kicked off the process in November 2021 and expects to release the full strategic plan in June 2023. "The strategic plan will anchor our decision making," Lawson said, adding the plan is intended to accelerate student learning and close opportunity gaps widened by the COVID‑19 pandemic.

Why it matters: the strategic plan is intended to operationalize the Blueprint for Maryland's Future and focus MSDE's work on a small set of high‑leverage priorities. Lawson said the Blueprint, enacted by the General Assembly in 2021, "will provide $3.8 billion of funding over 10 years" to support school systems and related initiatives tied to the plan.

What the plan emphasizes: Lawson summarized phase 1 products (mission, vision, values, priorities and enablers) and phase 2 work (regional data walks, stakeholder engagement and draft goals/metrics). The stated priorities include kindergarten readiness, early reading (third grade), on‑track indicators for middle grades and college‑and‑career readiness. Enablers listed were public data and tools; high‑quality curricula and classroom systems; educator preparation, retention and diversity; and social‑emotional learning and wraparound supports.

Engagement numbers: MSDE reported nearly 28,000 survey responses, almost 7,000 participants at events statewide, 28 roundtables, roughly 350 stakeholders at some roundtables, about 40 hours of in‑depth dialogue, roughly 340 staff and leaders in data walks, and more than 35,000 total connections in phases 1–2. Lawson encouraged participants to review the phase 2 report and continue contributing via the department's online survey and resources.

Higher‑education feedback: the roundtable focused on the top‑ranked priority for that audience — "ready for college and career." Community college and university representatives described models and supports they said could increase readiness and access:

- Doug Kondjerski of Community College of Baltimore County urged statewide, managed CTE curricula and highlighted local P‑TECH and early‑college partnerships that let students earn college credits while in high school.

- Nancy Shapiro of the University System of Maryland emphasized starting interventions early (preK/kindergarten) and strengthening teacher preparation and alignment between K‑12 standards and college expectations.

- Melissa Hippolyte of College Bound Foundation described in‑school advisors and an intrusive advising model tied to a $4 million scholarship portfolio that supports students through high school and college enrollment.

- Speakers from Frederick Community College and local universities discussed credentialing high‑school teachers to expand dual‑enrollment access and using high‑school grades/GPA as additional measures of college readiness beyond statewide testing.

Challenges and supports: participants repeatedly cited pandemic‑era learning loss, students' social‑emotional needs, shortages of mental‑health staff, and basic‑needs insecurity (housing, food, broadband, transportation) as barriers to readiness. Suggested supports included expanded wraparound services, more counselors, paid internships or paid teacher‑candidate placements during full‑time internships, smaller class sizes, and intentional programs to diversify and retain teachers (Grow‑Your‑Own initiatives).

Measuring success: Nancy Shapiro said higher‑education metrics should include first‑to‑second‑year persistence and graduation/completion rates and a reduction in the number of students placed in developmental courses.

Next steps: Lawson said phase 3 will finalize targets, identify flagship strategies and run design sessions with mixed stakeholder groups to co‑author key programs; she thanked participants and said feedback from the roundtable will inform the final plan. MSDE provided links to the phase 1–2 strategic plan and a survey at Marylandpublicschools.org and the strategic plan website.

The roundtable closed with an appeal for more responses to the public survey and links to the department's resources; no formal actions or votes were taken at the meeting.