Debate over BOOST scholarships and funding for Maryland School for the Deaf surfaces in subcommittee

The subcommittee reviewed funding from the Maryland State Department of Education for state‑aided institutions and the BOOST scholarship program. DLS said the FY25 funding for educational organizations totals about $51.2 million (a 15% decrease), with roughly $36 million in general funds for state‑aided institutions (SAIs) and $15 million in special funds for Aid to Non‑Public Schools and BOOST.

DLS noted program exhibits showing Maryland School for the Blind (MSB) enrollment and financials, ARPA/ESSER expenditures related to educational technology and operations, and BOOST award distribution: $9 million in FY24 charges with $8.6 million actually awarded and a projected remaining FY25 balance of about $500,000. The analysis highlighted that BOOST students scored, on average, lower than non‑BOOST peers across some assessment metrics and asked MSDE to explain why special education awards did not meet legislative directives and how BOOST schools plan to close performance gaps.

Testimony included MSDE staff and representatives from state‑aided institutions explaining program reach: state‑aided institutions served approximately 350,000 students and 38,000 educators in FY23 with curricular and field‑trip programming. MSDE officials said roughly $406,000 in unallocated funds were shifted to textbook and technology programs and expected the remaining nonpublic school funds to be fully used by summer.

BOOST proponents (Catholic Conference, parents, and other advocates) urged continued or increased support for scholarships, citing high demand (DLS noted about $18 million in demand for $9 million appropriated this year) and personal success stories. "Boost has been a major investment in our state providing scholarships for low income and majority‑minority kids," said Garrett O'Day of the Maryland Catholic Conference.

Separately, representatives of the Maryland School for the Deaf and its union urged an amendment to reallocate $3 million from BOOST to MSD to convert roughly 25–30 contractual educator positions to full‑time permanent roles, arguing that MSD is a public state agency whose students require stable, permanent staff and that about 27% of MSD faculty and staff are contractual. Todd Reynolds of AFT Maryland said these conversions are needed to protect educator due process and program quality.

Committee members questioned the fairness of reallocating funds between distinct programs — particularly taking money from a private‑school scholarship program to pay for public school staffing — and requested context on precedent and budget tradeoffs. No amendment was adopted during the hearing; the request was recorded for committee consideration in the budget process.