Baltimore school board OKs CEO Sonja Santelises’ $1.78B budget as her contract status stays in limbo

Baltimore City’s Board of School Commissioners unanimously approved the district’s $1.78 billion operating budget for fiscal year 2025 on Wednesday night. Nine board members voted to add the budget to a consent agenda, meaning they approved it without discussion while voting on minor procurement contracts.

And although Sonja Santelises, CEO of the Baltimore City Public School System, proposed the budget to fund the next school year, it’s unknown whether she will be around to see it. Santelises’ contract expires in a little over a month, and the board has yet to announce a contract renewal, leaving the district in limbo over who will lead it.

Ronald McFadden, chair of the board of commissioners, said after Wednesday’s meeting that he would not discuss Santelises’ contract because it is a confidential personnel matter. He did not have a timeline for when a decision might be announced but said it would come “certainly by the first of July.” Santelises’ contract expires June 30.

Asked whether she wanted to continue to lead the district, Santelises declined to comment, saying it would “not be appropriate right now.” She declined to estimate when an agreement might be reached and referred the question to the board, adding, “I can’t negotiate a contract by myself.”

Mayor Brandon Scott, who declared a primary victory Tuesday, has repeatedly said Santelises’ eight-year tenure is a point of pride. If Santelises agrees to another four-year contract, she would be the district’s longest-serving leader in decades.

“We know that the school board and her are still negotiating, and they should be able to do that without any interference, especially of a political nature,” Scott said at an April 22 news conference. Scott spoke in response to a question about Santelises waiting until after the election to make an announcement.

The operating budget is a $42 million increase compared with fiscal year 2024. It’s the third year of funding during the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future education reform plan and comes as federal money offered during the coronavirus pandemic expires. The state provided a more modest funding increase for Blueprint programs than in previous years.

In response to a question about why the budget was approved without discussion, McFadden said district staff have held multiple meetings with individual schools and community stakeholders, and that the board felt prepared to vote without a second presentation. There has been one public presentation at an April board meeting. Members then had five weeks to review the budget proposal.

A majority of the district’s revenue, about $1.5 billion, is from state and local funding for Blueprint programs.

City schools received $135 million in concentration-of-poverty grants, a Blueprint initiative that supports low-income schools with academic programs, arts and athletics, school health services, registered school nurses and other social supports. More than 120 schools were eligible for the grant in 2023, the most recent data available.

The grant is allocated on a per-pupil basis, meaning 75% of the money must follow the student. District staff can use the other 25% for flexible purposes. The district isn’t “flashing alarms of a budget gap” because of those flexible funds, Santelises said.

Unlike other regional school districts struggling to adjust to new funding formulas required by the Blueprint, city schools have used school-based budgeting for years. The practice allowed for a smooth process during a lean budget year, Santelises said.

State funding for the Blueprint stabilized the district enough to start programs that staff have long desired but lacked the funds to implement, such as literacy coaches and middle school athletics.

The budget earmarks more than $52.6 million for academics through a series of strategies to improve literacy and math proficiency among the district’s 70,900 students who attend 160 schools and programs. The funds are directed for tutoring, expanded algebra offerings and new math and prekindergarten curriculums.

More than $7.9 million is allocated to create a “well-rounded education” by offering students individual learning plans, a new science curriculum, updated library materials and expanded Advanced Placement classes, and gifted and advanced learning programs. About $4.5 million is directed to Judy Centers, community prekindergarten centers required by the Blueprint.

Around $35.4 million will fund initiatives to prepare students for college or a career after high school, such as career coaching, career and technology education, dual enrollment courses that earn college credit, school counselors, and a program to keep freshmen on track to graduate.

Other budget priorities include $13 million for summer school programming, $10.6 million for school police officers, $47.1 million for social workers and psychologists, $7 million for behavioral health services, and $73 million for food and nutrition services. Teacher salaries will also increase by an average of 6.5%.