Board of Education Member Brenda Wolff announced she will not run for reelection to a third term, noting, “I just think eight years is a long time. I think it’s time for some new ideas and new perspectives.”
She added, “I just need to get back to some family time.”
Wolff was first elected in 2018 and will remain on the board to finish her second term in December.
Wolff represents District 5 and has served as both vice president, her current role, and president of the board.
Reminiscing on her years on the board, Wolff said dealing with the pandemic and changes to the superintendent position were “rough.”
Throughout her years on the board, she has pushed to make sure the east county receives equal treatment as compared to other jurisdictions— treatment she said has gotten better, but still not great. Down county has three middle school magnet programs while the east county has none, she pointed out.
Wolff said she is thrilled that Montgomery County Public Schools administration currently is analyzing its programs to ensure they are distributed equally throughout the county. “That has been my highest priority,” she said.
She also has stressed the need for pre-kindergarten instruction for all. “We’ve been making inroads,” she said. “We try to add seats every year.”
Wolff touched on other issues she continues to deal with, such as being called not-so-nice names. “Civility has gone out the door,” she said.
“As the only Black member, a lot of times people think you speak for the entire community and can fix all the ills you have suffered for all these years,” she said. But Wolff said problems take time to fix and the pot of money the school board has to spend is only so big.
However, she noted there has been progress. “I feel we have made inroads in meeting this challenge,” said Wolff.
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