It’s hard to tell right from wrong in the complicated debate over state school’s superintendent Nancy Grasmick’s future. Many had called for her ouster after the state school board, with the support of outgoing Republican appointees, extended Grasmick’s contract, and legislators were looking for creative ways to reverse the board’s action.

One proposal that was being bandied about was a move to prevent a “lame duck” board from extending a contract. But Gov. Martin O’Malley’s public burial of the hatchet with Grasmick yesterday appears to have put a damper on that effort.

Anyway, I’m curious about how people view the situation. Was it proper for the board to extend the contract when members knew Gov. O’Malley was preparing to reconstitute it? Is that the board members’ right, or should they respect a new administration’s intentions? On the other hand, it’s always a bad precedent to change established law based on one objectionable development.

What do you think?

Above: Gov. O’Malley, hoping to put an unproductive political feud behind him, shook hands with Schools Superintendent Nancy Grasmick on Monday, pledging to work hard on education initiatives - instead of her removal. (AP Photo/Brian Witte)

What’s in a name? Well, at least an indication of tone and meaning, as evidenced by Gov. Martin O’Malley’s education funding announcement on Wednesday.

Maryland’s annual “beg-a-thon,” where school districts from around the state come before the Board of Public Works to compete for school construction dollars, has a new moniker.

In a press release, O’Malley now calls the event a “hope-a-thon,” which allows “school superintendents to have a more meaningful conversation with the Board of Public Works on their jurisdiction’s key school priorities.”

School officials were asking for part of an unallocated $108 million out of $333 million in state aid for public school construction funding planned for fiscal 2009.

How about this new name? Do you think it’s a more accurate representation of the event, or is the BPW off-base?

Above: This newly-built complex in Howard County includes Reservoir High, Lime Kiln Middle, and Fulton Elementary schools. Image courtesy of Johns Hopkins APL.