Dr. Jack R. Smith, who is currently the interim state superintendent of Maryland schools and was formerly the superintendent of Calvert County Public Schools, will serve as Montgomery County Public Schools superintendent starting July 1.

He was selected out of more than 70 applications from all over the country and 11 candidate interviews. According to the MCPS web page, Dr. Smith “has earned a reputation for encouraging and helping school-based staff to learn and use innovative strategies to promote the success of children in the classroom.”

MCPS has not had an official superintendent in over a year while interim superintendent Larry Bowers filled in. Because of the gap in official leadership, Dr. Smith has many issues he’s excited to address for MCPS.

Two of the most important issues are the budget and funding of the schools. “What we talk about when we talk about school funding would be all the resources that would be provided to the schools,” Dr. Smith said. Resources include instructional material, staffing, and more, “So [with] all of those different factors, [it determines] how the money is allocated,” Dr. Smith added.

MCPS will work closely with the county and state governments, while making sure that it is still contributing the full share of money necessary and also doing its best to provide for and meet the needs of every student. Dr. Smith said he is excited to “dig in and learn…about how schools are funded…staffed, [and] how much time is allocated.”

He strongly believes that students need to learn and have foundational skills before moving on to specialized programs. “Think about what you need to know and understand in…math [to be] a musician,…what you need…as a writer to be a successful scientist,” Dr. Smith said. “All of these are connected. If we can [get] every student… [to] really learn, [they’ll] achieve at the the highest level.”

“When it gets to specialized programs, then students have a real equity, a real opportunity to move into those programs and then you do see diversity in those programs,” Dr. Smith added. Allowing students plenty of opportunities and choices for MCPS students’ futures, also giving all students an equitable education.    

“[It will] be interesting to me to find out exactly what’s happening in Montgomery County, where is it working well, where are the gaps and the holes that need to filled,” Dr. Smith said.