# 10/27/26 CSMC Joint Meeting with St. Mary's County Board of Education


**Body:** St. Mary's County Government
**Date:** October 26, 2026
**Jurisdiction:** SLED

**Tags:** Education, Grants & Funding


The joint meeting of the St. Mary’s County Commissioners and Board of Education focused on enrollment, teacher recruitment, special education staffing, and FY2028 budget pressures. The transcript’s opening identifies the meeting date as October 28, 2025, while the supplied metadata lists October 27, 2026. School officials reported a $2.9 million Grow Your Own grant, in partnership with the Education Association of St. Mary’s County and Notre Dame of Maryland University, to support up to 100 paraeducators pursuing teaching credentials through June 30, 2030. The grant covers participant costs; no contract award or competitive procurement was discussed.

The Board presented a proposed $2.5 million special education staffing investment for 40 positions, and officials outlined projected FY2028 cost increases totaling $19.1 million. Because of budget constraints, the superintendent proposed transferring seven of nine frozen instructional positions to special education, one to maintenance for an HVAC coordinator, and freezing the public information officer/ombudsman position. The commissioners approved the categorical transfer request by motion and vote. No bids, vendor selections, or capital project awards were identified.

**Source:** St. Mary's County Government