Montgomery County’s state legislators are once again proposing a bill that would provide more voting power to the student member of the Montgomery County Board of Education.
Similar versions of the bill were quietly killed in two General Assembly sessions over the past four year years. The legislation would allow the student member to vote on collective bargaining, budgets, school closings and school boundaries—powers not currently entrusted to the student member. The bill will be introduced in the General Assembly, which begins in January.
In the 2015 session, the bill, which was supported by a majority of Montgomery County’s state representatives cleared the House of Delegates by a 125-10 margin, but died in the closing hours of the General Assembly after Republican Sen. Michael Hough, who represents parts of Frederick and Carroll counties, raised questions about the bill.
In 2012, now-Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh, who at the time was a state senator representing District 16 in Montgomery County, blocked a similar bill after he raised objections about the ability of a 17- or 18-year-old board member to navigate often complicated policy and political decisions.
Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School junior Eric Guerci currently serves as the student member of the board. He told state legislators at a public hearing in Rockville Monday night that he believes he is capable of making the types of decisions that the bill would allow and that he’s already allowed access to the same information the elected adult board members use to make the decisions.
“The expansion of SMOB voting rights would truly bring to light a countywide commitment to advancing the student voice, with an unwavering empowerment of the next generation,” Guerci said.
The student member of the board is elected annually by the county’s middle and high school students.
David Naimon, who has lobbied for this legislation for nearly 40 years after being elected the first student board member in 1978, pointed out Monday night that Anne Arundel County already has a fully enfranchised student member of its Board of Education.
“My plea to you is don’t make me come back again next year,” Naimon said. He also urged legislators to require that anyone who wants to kill the bill this year explain his or her reasoning in public.
The bill would not allow student members to vote on negative personnel matters, such as those involving disciplinary action against teachers or other school staff. The bill is widely supported by the county’s representatives, with 26 senators and delegates signed on as co-sponsors.
