BALTIMORE — Maryland’s school board took emergency action Tuesday to mandate that school leaders are informed when a student has committed a serious crime.
The new regulation follows WJZ’s reporting on a 17-year-old Howard High student now charged with murder, and the superintendent’s complaints that he was left in the dark about the teenager’s violent past when he changed school systems .
Before, if a student committed a violent crime and transferred schools, it was optional for the old school system to notify the new one.
On Tuesday morning, Maryland’s Board of Education voted unanimously to mandate that school systems share information when a student convicted or accused of a serious or violent crime transfers schools.
“We must be as clear and transparent as possible between and across school systems when it comes to sharing information about transfer students who may pose a threat to school communities,” said Maryland’s state superintendent Dr. Carey Wright.