People Addressing AACPS Board Must Now Sign Up By Phone, Online

ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY, MD -- The Anne Arundel County Public Schools board of education has changed the way members of the public sign up to testify at board meetings. The board now will accept signups online or by phone starting with the July 10, 2019, meeting.

According to the school board, people wishing to speak before the board can begin signing up to speak on the Friday before a board meeting has been scheduled and after the agenda has been published. Signups will close at 4 p.m. the day before the meeting. That means the signup period for the July 10, 2019, meeting will open on July 5, 2019.

“This process will allow those who wish for the board to hear their views on an issue – whether it be an agenda item or something not on the agenda – to be able to reserve a spot in a more convenient manner,” board president Terry Gilleland said in a statement. “It will also afford the board and staff the opportunity to potentially address some issues more quickly, possibly before the board meeting occurs.”

The board will continue to hear testimony on agenda items when those items are before the board. Testimony on items not listed on the agenda will be heard during the public comment portion of board meetings. People scheduled to speak during the public comment period will be grouped by topic. People can sign up at www.aacps.org/boardtestimony or by calling 410-222-5311.