BALTIMORE COUNTY, Md. — Dozens of people were in attendance for a rally outside Baltimore County’s Board of Education meeting.
They wanted to make sure their voices were heard on several issues, including safety in schools.
“Week over week of multiple incidents at multiple schools where the police are now having to be called, teachers are being hit, students not wanting to come to school," said Ryan Coleman, President of the Randallstown NAACP.
The Randallstown NAACP helped organize the rally.
Coleman said the scjool board needs to do more to not only keep students safe but teachers as well.
He said that could mean making changes to the district’s student discipline policy.
“We keep hearing students who are allowed to misbehave over and over again so what we want in the policy for these students to be sent to an alternative school or other placement for those schools can continue to go on," Coleman said.
Coleman also said academic achievement has been on the decline for years, especially for minority students.
He said the district must make closing the performance gap a priority.
"Just putting a slogan out there closing gaps, all of that is great but if you don’t have anything behind it, it doesn’t matter," Coleman said.
The Teacher's Association of Baltimore County (TABCO) was also at the rally and advocated for better pay.
Cindy Sexton, who is the president of TABCO, believes to fix the issues in schools you have enough teachers and staff. having enough teachers and staff.
“When you look at surrounding counties, and they are getting a better compensation package than us, some of them start higher and have a better salary scale than we do, we need to be competitive to keep people here." Sexton said.
A spokesperson for Baltimore County School District sent us this statement:
"BCPS is always appreciative for the opportunity to hear from stakeholder groups such as the Randallstown branch of the NAACP and TABCO who seek constructive solutions to issues challenging the school system and the community at large. Dr. Williams is committed to working closely with our partners to find solutions to these challenges. BCPS has taken many steps to address the issues surrounding school climate, student behavior, staff compensation and school safety that currently impact every school district in America."
