Harford County Public Schools Superintendent describes district struggles and successes
BALTIMORE -- WJZ has been assessing the goals and challenges of local school districts.
This go-round, Harford County Public Schools Superintendent Sean Bulson sat down with WJZ staff to talk about how his school district is preparing for students to return to the hallways.
"The first day of school is always just great energy, and what I hope to see on the first day is just kids with books in their hands," Bulson said. "I want to see them working and learning the very first day from the very first minute."
He said his goal of striving for excellence in education remains the same.
"There are so many great things going on, but that gets lost in the noise of everything going on," he said. "So, we're trying to figure out how to tell that story better. So, there is just a lot we're working on."
Student participation is among Bulson's long list of priorities.
"Engagement in general, what we're dealing with between social media and devices," he said. "I mean, getting anyone's attention is hard."
Bulson said that the COVID-19 pandemic led to a learning loss, which has created ripples and forced school leaders to study the data and address the problem areas.
"On the student achievement front, we're still hyper-focused on some core elements of language arts, reading and math, and we have seen data go the right direction but it's still not moving fast enough," he said.
Filling teacher vacancies is another obstacle for the district and an issue that has not been resolved fast enough, Bulson said.
"It isn't just, 'We don't have someone in front,'" he said. "It's that unfortunately now we're not getting as many qualified candidates."
That said, there is still a lot to look forward to in the new school year, Bulson said.
"We now have more than 40 students signed up for apprenticeships this year," he said. "We have more than 70 businesses engaged, and that is, I believe, a front-end of redefining of what the high school experience is going to be like."
Additionally, while neighboring school districts are struggling with transportation setbacks, Bulson said Harford County has not been widely affected by them.
"It's getting harder every year, but I am blessed here in Harford County," he said. "We have a fantastic transportation team. We work with great contractors."
