Philadelphia’s Jermaine Dawson named new CEO of Baltimore City Public Schools
Dr. Jermaine Dawson has been announced as the new CEO of Baltimore City Public Schools. The post Philadelphia’s Jermaine Dawson named new CEO of Baltimore City Public Schools appeared first on AFRO American Newspapers.
Black News 
(Photo courtesy of the Baltimore Office of the Mayor / J.J. McQueen)
By Dr. Deborah Bailey
AFRO Contributing Editor
The Baltimore City Public School board unanimously appointed Dr. Jermaine Dawson as the next superintendent of Baltimore City Public Schools in a special board meeting held Monday morning, April 20. More than 600 people live streamed the announcement, including teachers in their classrooms.
Dr. Dawson, currently serving as Deputy Superintendent for Academic Services in the Philadelphia Public School System will begin July 1.
Dawson expressed appreciation for the board’s commitment to equity and academic excellence and vowed to champion those goals.
“I am honored to be partnering with a school board that ensures equity is not just a ‘buzz word’ but a lived reality for every student and where academic excellence is the reality for our students and the standard in every one of our schools,” he said.
Dawson is a career educator, having served in administrative positions in the public-school systems of Birmingham, Al., Fulton County, Ga. and Jacksonville, Fla. prior to his work in Philadelphia. He started his instructional career as a math instructor, a background that will be helpful as City Schools is eager to move out of the bottom rank in math scores based on the 2024-2025 Maryland Comprehensive Assessment Program (MCAP).
Dawson’s unique perspective on education and his personal background were key in making the selection. The new CEO experienced poverty growing up in Atlanta, which included periods of homelessness– a topic he has mentioned publicly both in interviewing for the Baltimore City Schools’ top job and in previous interviews.
Maryland State Department of Education reports that more than 5700 Baltimore City Public School students experienced homelessness according to 2023-2024 data. The Annie E. Casey Foundation 2023 report indicates 28 percent of Baltimore children aged 6-17 live in poverty.
Mayor Brandon M. Scott, along with several other city and state officials, joined the school board and current City Schools CEO, Dr. Sonya Santelises, for the board announcement. He spoke to why he thought Dawson was the best choice.
“As we begin this new chapter, I am confident that Dr. Dawson is the right leader for this moment. He shares our vision for city schools making sure all of our young people have the resources and support they need to reach their full potential,” Scott said. “Dr. Dawson understands the situation, the conditions and realities of what our young people are growing up in as he has had that same kind of upbringing in his hometown of Atlanta, Ga.”
Santelises thanked the School Board commissioners for their diligence in engaging the community and ensuring the integrity of the selection process. She then spoke directly to Dawson.
“‘Kairos timing’ in the Greek means ‘ripening of time.’ A time when multiple forces come together around purpose. I believe this is your ‘Kairos time,’” Santelises said. “I believe it is your time to take the work that has occurred over many years and bring us to a point that is much further along than we are now.”
The post Philadelphia’s Jermaine Dawson named new CEO of Baltimore City Public Schools appeared first on AFRO American Newspapers.
