Maryland State Board of Education limits dual enrollment courses

The Maryland State Board of Education on Tuesday voted to limit the number of dual enrollment credits that students can receive each semester.

As part of the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future, the state’s education reform plan, school districts must pay for community college courses that high school students dually enroll in.

Superintendents have expressed concern to the state board and the Accountability and Implementation Board that they are struggling to afford the tuition of the previously unlimited college courses. Lawmakers tweaked the Blueprint this legislative session to allow the two state boards to limit course offerings to two classes each semester.

“It’s one of the great successes of the Blueprint so far,” said Phil Lasser, executive director of the superintendent’s office. “Here is a way to make sure students still get to take advantage of those dual enrollment courses at no cost to the student or their family … and make the budgets work for [school districts].”

Tough fiscal budgets have also led some school districts to propose cutting arts and sports programs to afford Blueprint programs as federal funds granted during the coronavirus pandemic expire. Cecil County and Howard County school boards have proposed cutting music programs to balance their budgets.

State education policies require fine arts instruction in elementary and middle schools, Rachel McGrain, executive director of nonprofit Arts Education in Maryland Schools, and Peter Dayton, director of operations, told board members Tuesday. Some districts have additional local policies protecting the arts, such as Baltimore’s strategic plan for fine arts.

There’s no clear consequence for districts that aren’t following the state policies, Dayton said, and school districts might not know it’s required by state standards.

“Contrary to the misperception of the arts being a superfluous or extra activity, it is a core requirement in the same way as other core subject areas like [English] and math that has specific regulations around what students are entitled to receive in our public schools,” he said.

Dayton and McGrain expected school districts would try to cut fine arts courses when Blueprint programs ramped up. They successfully advocated for adding arts education as part of the Blueprint’s implementation plan.