Carey Wright will lead Maryland education after superintendent’s departure

Wright is known in the education world as the Mississippi superintendent who raised student reading and math performance in a state that for decades had abysmal results on the National Assessment of Educational Progress, a standardized test sometimes called the “gold standard” of student assessment because it is seen as the most consistent nationally representative measure of U.S. student achievement since the 1990s. She retired from the post in June 2022 and now lives in Baltimore County, according to an interview she gave to Maryland Matters.

The decision comes at a critical time for Maryland as it begins a historic $3.8 billion program to transform the state’s public education system — a job Choudhury was hired to do. But he lost support on the 14-member governing board for a second term as superintendent. Board leaders announced last week that he would leave his post by Oct. 6 but would keep his $325,000-plus salary until next June while serving as a senior policy adviser to the panel. He also will be allowed to consult for outside entities with board permission.

Maryland schools superintendent will keep his salary after leaving post

Choudhury withdrew from consideration for a second term last month after a problem-plagued two-year tenure in which he was accused of creating a toxic work environment, driving away veteran staffers and micromanaging the department. Choudhury had not been a district or a state superintendent before being hired in Maryland, and board members now want to bring in someone with deep leadership experience, one of the people with knowledge of the decision said. The people spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment on the decision.

In Maryland, the State Board of Education hires the superintendent, and the governor appoints members to that board. Gov. Wes Moore (D) has appointed six so far.

Maryland schools chief criticized for ‘toxic’ work style, management

One of the people familiar with the appointment said it is likely that Wright will apply for the permanent job.

Wright started her career as a teacher in Prince George’s County Public Schools, Maryland’s second-largest district. She also spent more than two decades in Howard County Public Schools as a teacher, principal and director of special education and student services, according to her LinkedIn profile.

She later was hired as the associate superintendent for the Office of Special Education and Student Services for Montgomery County Public Schools, but she then left the Maryland school district to work as the chief academic officer and deputy chief for the D.C. Public Schools’ Office of Teaching and Learning. In 2013, she was named as Mississippi’s state superintendent of education.