The School Superintendents Association, AASA, announced its four finalists for the 2026 National Superintendent of the Year Award. The winner will be named at the annual National Conference on Education in February.
AASA along with award co-sponsors Corebridge Financial and Sourcewell will recognize on of the finalists “for their outstanding leadership and dedication to advancing public education in their communities,” a press release noted.
The following finalists were nominated by their state associations and honored with the title of State Superintendent of the Year. They were measured against criteria such as leadership for learning, communication, professionalism and community involvement.
Demetrus Liggins, superintendent of Fayette County Public Schools in Kentucky joins Roosevelt Nivens, superintendent of Lamar Consolidated Independent School District in Texas, Heather Perry, superintendent of Schools at Maine’s Gorham School Department, and Sonja Santelises, the chief executive officer at Baltimore City Schools in Maryland.
“These extraordinary leaders embody the transformative power of public education,” stated David R. Schuler, AASA’s executive director. “Their visionary leadership uplifts students and demonstrates our continued commitment to providing every child with the opportunities, experiences, and education that prepares them for college, career, and real life in the real world. We are honored to celebrate their incredible success and accomplishments.
The winner will be announced on stage during the National Conference on Education, Feb. 12-14 in Nashville, Tennessee. A $10,000 college scholarship will be presented in the name of the 2026 National Superintendent of the Year to a student who attends the high school from which the superintendent graduated or a school within the district.
FRISCO, Texas — STN Transportation Director of the Year Keba Baldwin sat on a panel discussion Saturday afternoon with peers Julie Hrebicek of Magnolia Independent School District in Texas and Quanika Dukes-Spruill of the Newark Board of Education in New Jersey.
Dukes-Spruill said she contracts with 63 providers, which requires a lot of management, oversight and compliance checking. The district transports 4,500 students in-district with another 600 students transported to and from out-of-district programs. She said last year a large undertaking was updating routes to adhere to a new district policy of universal bell times. In house, Newark has a small fleet of school buses operated by 19 drivers.
Meanwhile, Hrebicek said Magnolia ISD north of Houston has a district of 152-square miles, 115 routes, 85 of which are regular and 30 are special needs. She said Magnolia does contract out some Mckinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act students and some students with high-intensity behavior. After a $4 an hour pay raise, she said her district went from being 20 drivers short to having 12 currently in training.
Hrebicek said Magnolia is growing, and staff are seeing a lot of behaviors and various levels of those behaviors exhibited by students with disabilities. However, she said, what she’s finding is that instead of placing students in the least restrictive environment, transportation defaults to placing students in the most restrictive due to accommodating parent requests.
She continued that drivers are provided with high-intensity training to handle behaviors, as there have been several physical altercations with drivers and aides.
Dukes-Spruill said bus aides are an important part of transporting students successfully and safely. “It’s the driver’s responsibility to get there but not necessarily manage behaviors on the bus,” she said in terms of transporting students with special needs.
Written into the contracts with transportation providers, she said that each route must have an aide. Plus, she said, the district also has transportation inspectors that ensure every guideline and rule in the contract is being carried out on the road.
Baldwin, the director of transportation for Prince George’s County Public Schools in Maryland, added he, too, has seen a growth in the number of students with IEPs and transportation as a related service. He said when it comes to IEP, transportation needs to have a seat at the table. He said with the various disabilities served, transportation depends on and collaborates with its special education teams to guide the decisions.
Dukes-Spruill agreed that collaboration is key. She said that Newark has monthly mandatory partnership meetings that are designed for two-way communication, where the district and contractor partners share expectations and things that are working or not.
Hrebicek said if transportation isn’t present at the IEP meeting, service requirements could be put in the contract that may work in the classroom but are unsafe when on the school bus. She underscored the importance of a transportation employee’s perspective.
Dukes-Spruill added that vendors are required to provide incident reports on anything that happens on the bus. Plus, transportation employees request GPS location if buses are late and camera footage, if needed. She said it’s in the contract that they will request this information.
Baldwin said one benefit has been pulling camera footage remotely but also viewing live feeds. Driver and dispatcher communication is crucial, he said, because the dispatcher can log in remotely to see what the situation is and then decide next steps and communicate it to the driver and others who need to be involved.
He noted it’s important to go back to the basics and build relationships with students as well. “There is always other ways, you can’t depend on one way to do something, you have to have multiple options to serve students,” he said, adding the student may have had a terrible day at their school, and now they’re going to be on a school bus for an hour, which could lead to dangerous situations.
He said they encourage drivers to ask, “How are they, today?”
Hrebicek noted that safety is paramount, and while her staff tries to convey to a student that what happened at school, happened at school, “let’s have a new time on the school bus.” If the student is deemed to be unsafe on the school bus or another vehicle, the parent would be called to transport them and receive the necessary expense reimbursement.
Dukes-Spruill said Newark’s transportation department has a strong partnership with the office of special education. She noted a child who is experiencing dangerous behaviors will not be placed on the bus without intervention.
Baldwin, the director of transportation and central garage at Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS) in Maryland, thanked his mother as well as past and present transportation families.
“I’ve worked in North Carolina. I’ve worked in Virginia. Now, being in Maryland, I cannot go without saying thank you to those team members because what they provided to me was the willingness to share their thoughts, their honesty, their collaboration to help me grow, help them grow,” Baldwin said during his acceptance speech. “There’s a little saying that I always have kept in mind, from my athletic days, ‘you’re only as strong as your weakest person.’ The goal is to build everybody together.”
He thanked those team members for their collaboration and dedication. Addressing his current transportation team at PGCPS, he shared the slogan, “Gorgeous, Prince George’s.”
Baldwin added his team at PGCPS has challenged him to do good things.
“It’s really through your resilience that you have the perseverance,” he said. “These are folks that have been in this industry since day one, since first job out of high school. This is what they’re done for 15 years to 48 years of service. Folks that are in our transportation field and have a strong passion, just like you [all in the audience] have, and so all of this goes to them, because without them, their effort and their push, I’m not here doing this.”
He said it’s the support from various departments that helps drive what transportation does every day. He showed appreciation for his administrative support team, many of whom were in the audience to support him when receiving the award.
“Then finally, to all of you, this is a great venue. I want to say thank you to STN. Thank you to Blue Bird for just creating an opportunity for us to continue to come together, to network, learn from one another,” he concluded. “Each time we come, you meet new people, you learn new ideas. We need that. That’s how we get stronger. So again, thank you to Tony, STN and Bluebird for all that you do for us, it just makes me feel incredibly humble to accept this award, not only for myself, but for my team members past and present. Even with all of you, we’re going to this work happen for our students that we serve.”
Steven Whaley, alternative fuels manager of award sponsor Blue Bird, introduced Baldwin as a data-driven, technology-savvy director. “It’s my honor to present this award to someone whose career journey is as inspiring as his leadership” he said.
PCGPS transports over 85,000 students, over 4,500 of which are students with special needs transported on the school bus. it is the 10th largest school district in in the U.S.
Baldwin is featured in the November edition of School Transportation News magazine.
A student was stabbed shortly after exiting a school bus last week in Rossville, Maryland, reported Patch News.
According to the news report, Overlea High School administrators informed summer school families that the incident involved a student who had just gotten off bus number 183 on July 24 when the incident occurred.
Police responded to reports of a knife assault near the intersection of Franklin Square Drive and King Avenue. The victim, who was not identified at this writing, was transported to a hospital and is expected to recover.
Authorities have reportedly arrested a minor in connection with the stabbing. The suspect faces charges of first- and second-degree assault and was placed in the care of the Department of Juvenile Services.
In a message to families, Overlea leaders emphasized that student safety remains their highest priority and encouraged parents to reach out with any concerns.
Baltimore City Public Schools (BCPS) students ages 12 and under are now eligible to ride local metro buses, Light Rail and subway services free of charge with their student passes.
The expanded fare policy went into effect Sunday, with the Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) stating the aim is improving access to education, jobs and extracurricular opportunities for youth throughout the city.
“This change enables greater participation in after-school programs, access to part-time jobs and other opportunities,” officials said in the statement.
Under the new policy, children up to age 12 can now ride free. Previous, free rides were only available for children age 6 and younger. MTA said the change is expected to help more families take advantage of public transportation without added financial strain.
BCPS students will also see a major benefit. They can now use their student transit passes at any time of day, not simplyduring school hours. This flexibility allows students to more easily attend after-school programs, internships, part-time jobs and other opportunities.
In addition, the All-Access Student Transit Pass previously reserved for college students is now available for all private school students. This move broadens access to affordable transportation for more young people across the Baltimore region.
MTA also extended the transfer window for riders using the CharmPass app. Transfers, which were previously limited to 90 minutes, are now valid for up to 120 minutes. The change offers more flexibility and convenience for commuters navigating the city.
The fare changes also laid the groundwork for a low-income fare program. Eligible participants in the Maryland Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) will eventually benefit from discounted transit fares, supporting greater mobility for economically disadvantaged individuals.
However, the MTA is also tightening fare compliance. A new $5 surcharge is applied to light rail riders who who do not have a valid ticket and then purchase one using the CharmPass app during fare inspections. The measure is intended to encourage system-wide compliance while maintaining accessibility. MTA offers a complete policy guide.
The updated policy is part of a broader push to make public transportation more equitable and accessible for Baltimore’s youth and lower income communities.
In early December, a new website appeared online urging Sussex County residents to contact their councilmembers and tell them to deny a permit required for a proposed offshore wind farm.
The website – StopOffshoreWind.com – materialized days before the Sussex County Council would vote on the permit, which would allow for construction of an electrical substation needed by US Wind Inc. to build its massive ocean-based power plant.
StopOffshoreWind.com included the names and contact information for Sussex County Council members, as well as an online message form that sat underneath the phrase, “Write a Letter to your Sussex County Councilmembers.”
“Tell the Sussex County Council to DENY this permit,” the website stated.
What it did not show were the names of the people or companies that had created and funded it.
Spotlight Delaware has since learned that the website was the creation of a coalition of Maryland wind farm opponents, funded and led by the government of Worcester County, Md.
Sitting just south of Sussex County along the Atlantic coastline and within Maryland’s Eastern Shore, Worcester County is home to Ocean City, Md., a summer beach hotspot that is the primary driver of the county’s tourism-centered economy.
And, many of the local business owners there believe the sight of wind turbines 15 miles offshore would make the beaches less attractive to tourists.
Zach Bankert, executive director of the Ocean City Development Corporation, said his group had led local opposition to offshore wind development in past years. But, with a staff of just two employees, he said the operation was too small to be effective, which is why the county’s Office of Tourism and Economic Development recently took it over.
“When the county came in and said, ‘Hey, you know, we might have some funds for this, we’d like to kind of take this over’ … It was a no-brainer for us,” he said.
US Wind Inc.’s proposal is to build a wind farm with more than 100 turbines off the Delmarva coastline – just south of the Delaware, Maryland state line. It would send electricity ashore in Delaware with cables buried near the mouth of the Indian River.
When announcing a federal approval in September, the Biden Administration said the wind farm could produce up to 2 gigawatts of electricity, enough to power about 700,000 homes.
But coastal opponents say that electricity comes at too high a price, claiming wind turbines will drive tourists away, damage coastal environments and devastate fisheries.
StopOffshoreWind.com also claims that the windfarm will allow “foreign investors” to collect federal subsidies – references to U.S. government incentives provided to wind energy projects, and to US Wind’s ownership.
In emailed responses to questions from Spotlight Delaware, Worcester County Tourism Director Melanie Pursel said the local government authorized up to $100,000 in public money to fund what she called a coalition of local offshore wind opponents.
According to county records, the money specifically is for a contract with a Washington, D.C.-area public relations firm called Bedrock Advocacy Communications.
Pursel also noted in her early January email that Ocean City’s municipal government intended to match the county’s contribution. Last week, the Ocean City Council approved during a regular meeting a measure to distribute up to $100,000 to an “offshore wind opposition public relations campaign.”
During the meeting, City Manager Terry McGean said the campaign would target state lawmakers in Maryland and “other issues” that may arise in Delaware.
Ocean City Mayor Richard “Rick” Meehan said Bedrock Advocacy had already done a “really good job,” noting his belief that the group “played a significant role” in the Delaware county’s denial of US Wind’s substation permit.
“We’re all in,” Meehan said about the $100,000 appropriation. “And I’d hate to miss an opportunity to really capitalize, which might be the right timing to really get our messaging out.”
Winding up the opposition
US Wind is a subsidiary of Renexia SpA, an Italian energy infrastructure company. The American investment giant, Apollo Global Management, also owns a stake in the company.
In response to critics, US Wind spokeswoman Nancy Sopko said in an emailed statement that the opposition’s campaign is filled with “blatant misinformation designed to frighten people.”
Asked for details to support the claims, Sopko pointed to what she called doctored photos from a website called SaveOceanCity.org, which is run by Bankert’s Ocean City Development Corporation.
“The complete disregard for facts, accuracy, and settled science is irresponsible and dangerous,” Sopko said.
She also asserted that state leaders in Maryland and Delaware have been “full-throated” in their support for the wind project in a region that “needs more electricity to keep the lights on, grow the economy, and support local jobs.”
The opposition to the US Wind project is nominally being led by a political nonprofit, called Stop Offshore Wind Inc.
It was formed in Delaware on Dec. 5, around the time that StopOffshoreWind.com appeared. State business records show that Florida attorney Andrew L. Asher created the company.
Asher, a solo practitioner, previously served as general counsel for the BGR Group, a powerful lobbying firm in Washington, D.C. Its biggest clients in recent years include Qualcomm Inc. and the governments of Bahrain and India.
He continues to work for BGR Group in an “of counsel” capacity, according to his website. Asher did not respond to requests for comment. Pursel said Asher’s role in Stop Offshore Wind was limited to the creation of the entity, describing it as strictly administrative.
She further said that while “several county staff members” are working with the nonprofit, the entity “is not controlled” by Worcester County.
“Stop Offshore Wind Inc. is a 501(c)4 organization formed by a coalition of concerned citizens, community-based organizations, business organizations and local governments to raise awareness about the potential negative impacts of the US Wind proposed project,” said Pursel, who also calls herself a spokeswoman for the Stop Offshore Wind Coalition.
As a 501(c)4, Stop Offshore Wind Inc. is not required to disclose its donors.
Pursel said it had raised $11,000 from private donors as of late December, with much of the money donated during a Dec. 4 fundraiser.
A flyer for the fundraiser, which charged $150 a head, said the money raised would pay for “a bold, multi-channel media blitz” opposing industrial wind farms in Ocean City.
Prior to the Sussex County vote, Stop Offshore Wind did not list any governmental funding ties. Following inquiries from Spotlight Delaware, the website now has an “about us” page that lists its affiliation with Ocean City and Worcester County.
What led to all of this?
On Dec. 17, days after StopOffshoreWind.com appeared, the Sussex County Council voted to reject the windfarm’s substation building permit application.
The 4-to-1 vote in opposition came after the Sussex County Planning and Zoning Commission recommended that the county approve the permit. Three of the voting council members are leaving office in early 2025. Of those, two voted against the permit.
It is not clear if the StopOffshoreWind.com website influenced the council’s vote. Members of the county council would not comment on this story due to a pending appeal against the decision.
Still, the vote followed mounting public opposition in Sussex County to offshore wind. On the day of the vote, dozens of residents appeared at the county council meeting, with many asking to speak in opposition to the project.
The council did not allow comments, stating the public record had closed following a July meeting when they discussed, then tabled, the permit application.
Following the vote, US Wind CEO Jeff Grybowski said his company’s plan to build the offshore wind farm is “unchanged.”
“We know that the law is on our side and are confident that today’s decision will not stand,” Grybowski said.
On Dec. 26, US Wind’s subsidiary Renewable Development LLC appealed Sussex County’s permit denial through a petition asking a Delaware Superior Court judge to review the matter.
In the petition, the company’s attorneys called the council’s decision “irregular, arbitrary, capricious,” and “not supported by substantial evidence.”
On the heels of Sussex County’s rejection, Worcester County announced its own move to hinder US Wind’s plans: it would use eminent domain to buy two West Ocean City properties targeted as US Wind’s operations and maintenance facilities.
“If there ever was a worthy use of eminent domain, this is it,” Worcester County Chief Administrative Officer Weston Young said in a press release.
Also in the press release, Worcester County linked to two websites that it said provided more information “about efforts to protect Maryland’s Coast from ocean industrialization.” Those sites are StopOffshoreWind.com and SaveOceanCity.org. The latter represents the Ocean City Development Corporation’s opposition to offshore wind farms.
What’s on the horizon?
With a pending appeal and a Trump administration that opposes offshore wind, uncertainty looms over the US Wind project – as well as other wind farms proposed for the Delmarva peninsula.
According to the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Danish wind farm developer Ørsted intends to build up to 72 wind turbines 16 miles off the coast of Rehoboth Beach.
In early June, the company submitted its plans to the federal government, and they currently are under review.
This month, then-Delaware Gov. John Carney and the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control announced a 25-year agreement with US Wind. As part of the agreement, US Wind must give Delaware utilities $76 million worth of renewable energy credits throughout the life of the project to help the state meet its renewable energy goals.
Through the agreement, US Wind also commits to investing $200 million to upgrade Delaware’s electricity wires and other transmission infrastructure.
In a press statement touting the agreement, state officials claim that energy from the US Wind offshore site will produce enough power to lower electric rates in Delaware by $253 million over 20 years.
“We are ready to reap the environmental, health, workforce, energy cost and community benefits from this needed transition to renewable energy,” Carney said in the statement.
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