Kwame Jamal Kenyatta-Bey
Running for school board in Baltimore City At Large
Email: KwameJKbey@aol.com
How old will you be on Election Day (Nov. 3)?
72
Are you currently employed? If so, where, and what is your job title?
Commissioner, Baltimore City Public Schools
What is the highest level of education that you completed, and where did you get that degree?
B.A. in theatre arts, Morgan State University
Why are you running for the school board?
I am running for reelection because I believe deeply in the promise of Baltimore’s public schools, and because I know that promise can be fulfilled only when we listen to our communities, support our educators and remain relentlessly focused on students.
I have spent more than three decades in Baltimore classrooms, teaching business and finance, biology and multilingual learners, among other subjects. For four years, I have also served as a school board commissioner—the only practicing classroom teacher on the board. That experience has given me a perspective that bridges policy and practice. I understand what decisions look like from the boardroom, but I also know what they mean when they reach a classroom.
I am seeking another term because there is more work to do: improving attendance and academic achievement, strengthening support for students with special needs, recruiting and retaining excellent educators, protecting the integrity of our governance and financial oversight and ensuring that every school — regardless of neighborhood — has the resources and opportunities its students deserve.
I also believe education must prepare young people not simply to graduate, but to build meaningful lives and contribute to their communities. Arts, career preparation, technology and strong academic foundations all have a place in that mission.
Most importantly, I believe public education exists because of the hopes, needs and aspirations of the community it serves. I am running to keep that community at the center of our decisions, and to help build schools that give every Baltimore child a genuine reason to believe in their future.
What makes you a good candidate for the board?
What makes me a strong candidate is that I bring both the perspective of an educator who has spent more than three decades in Baltimore classrooms and the experience of serving on the school board. I understand the difference between a policy that sounds good on paper and one that can actually work for students, families and educators.
I was the only practicing classroom teacher serving on the board during my four-year term. Before becoming a multilingual learner teacher, I taught business and finance, biology and other subjects. That breadth has taught me to see students as whole people with different talents, needs, challenges and aspirations.
As a commissioner, I have learned that effective governance requires more than voting. It requires asking difficult questions, examining the evidence, listening to people who may disagree and maintaining independent oversight. I am particularly committed to accountability, responsible use of public resources and ensuring that the board remains an effective governing body rather than simply reacting to administration.
I also believe that every child deserves to be seen, heard, challenged and supported. Academic achievement matters, but so do attendance, belonging, the arts, career preparation and what happens to our students after graduation.
I bring experience, independence, curiosity and a willingness to stand for what I believe is right, even when it is unpopular. I believe that is exactly what effective school-board service requires.
What is the most important issue facing your school board and what would you do about it if elected?
The most important issue facing our school board is ensuring that every Baltimore student is genuinely prepared for life after graduation. That means confronting the interconnected challenges of chronic absenteeism, academic achievement, student support, educator recruitment and retention and meaningful preparation for college, careers and citizenship.
If reelected, I would push the board to establish clear, measurable goals and insist that we regularly examine whether our strategies are producing results—not simply whether programs have been implemented. Attendance must remain a priority, because students cannot benefit from instruction they do not receive. But we also must ask why students are absent and address the barriers that keep them from school.
I would prioritize students who have historically been underserved, including students with disabilities, multilingual learners and students facing economic and social challenges. I would advocate for stronger connections among academic instruction, career and technical education, the arts and real-world opportunities so that students can see a purpose in their education.
I would also insist on meaningful community engagement. Educational institutions exist because communities entrust them with their children. Families, students, educators and communities must have a meaningful voice in determining what success looks like.
Finally, I would use my experience as both a classroom educator and board commissioner to strengthen accountability, fiscal oversight and governance. We cannot solve every problem overnight, but we can establish priorities, measure progress honestly and refuse to accept excuses when Baltimore's children are not receiving what they deserve.
Please name a public leader you admire and explain why.
A public leader I admire is Barack Obama because of his ability to bring people together around a common purpose while remaining grounded in the belief that public service is ultimately about people.
What I admire most is his capacity to listen, communicate across differences and approach complicated problems with thoughtfulness rather than simply reacting to the moment. He demonstrated that leadership does not require having every answer; it requires the willingness to ask the right questions, surround yourself with capable people and remain accountable for difficult decisions.
I also admire his emphasis on hope — not as a substitute for hard work, but as a reason to do the hard work. That resonates with how I view public education. Our students and communities deserve leaders who recognize the challenges honestly while still believing that better outcomes are possible.
Those qualities — listening, thoughtful leadership, perseverance and the ability to build common ground — are qualities I strive to bring to my service on the school board.
The Blueprint for Maryland’s Future, passed by the General Assembly in 2021, is a 10-year plan that includes increased funding to support early childhood education, higher teacher starting pay, college/career-readiness standards for high school graduates, and expanded services to multilingual and impoverished families, among other goals. Since the Blueprint's implementation, test scores have increased modestly in many parts of the state, but some school officials complain about the costs and administrative burdens placed on them by the Blueprint. Please tell us your views on the Blueprint and how it is affecting your school district.
I support the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future because its fundamental premise is correct: Maryland cannot expect different educational outcomes while continuing to invest in students and educators as we have in the past. Early childhood education, competitive educator compensation, college and career readiness and greater support for multilingual learners and economically disadvantaged students are investments in Maryland’s future.
At the same time, supporting the Blueprint does not mean ignoring the challenges of implementation. In Baltimore, we serve students with significant and varied needs, and the requirements of the Blueprint can create additional administrative demands for a system already managing limited resources and aging infrastructure. The question should not be whether we implement the Blueprint, but whether we are implementing it effectively and equitably.
I believe the state must provide the resources necessary to meet its commitments while allowing districts appropriate flexibility to respond to local circumstances. We also need better measures of success. Test scores matter, but they are only one indicator. Attendance, graduation, educator retention, access to rigorous coursework, career preparation and the success of students after graduation should also inform our evaluation.
As a former classroom teacher and current school board commissioner, I see the Blueprint as both an opportunity and an obligation. Baltimore should embrace its promise while insisting on transparency, accountability, adequate funding and meaningful community engagement. We should not confuse compliance with success. The ultimate test is whether the Blueprint improves the educational lives and long-term opportunities of Maryland's children.
Chronic absenteeism has been a problem in many schools since the Covid-19 pandemic. How big of a problem is absenteeism in your school district, and what if anything can the Board of Education do about it?
Chronic absenteeism is one of the most serious challenges facing Baltimore City Public Schools because attendance is the gateway to every other educational outcome. But we must ask not only why students are absent, but whether we are providing an educational experience they want, need and believe is worth attending.
As a theatrical director, I learned that when an audience does not show up for a production, I cannot simply blame the audience. I have to examine the production. Are we providing what our community expects, needs and desires from its schools? Are our curricular outcomes aligned with those expectations and with the futures our students envision?
The board should demand transparent attendance data, identify barriers to attendance and support targeted partnerships with families and community organizations. But we must also examine curriculum, school culture, relevance and student engagement.
Attendance is not merely a compliance issue. It is also a measure of whether our schools are giving students a compelling reason to be there.
Are you satisfied with your school district's policy on AI use by students? If so, why? If not, what would you suggest to improve the AI policy?
I am not yet satisfied with our approach to student use of artificial intelligence. I understand why educators who did not grow up with AI may be cautious about its impact. But I believe we should approach this new technology with curiosity and purpose rather than fear. It reminds me of the transition to the printing press: we did not stop educating because Johannes Gutenberg introduced a powerful new tool; we learned how that tool could transform education.
Technology evolves. AI is a tool, and a tool is most effective when people learn how to use it responsibly and well. Our responsibility is to educate students for the world they will inherit, not simply the world we grew up in.
The board should establish clear standards for responsible AI use, including disclosure of significant AI assistance, protections against plagiarism and fabrication, and strong safeguards for student privacy. Teachers need training and flexibility to teach AI literacy rather than simply police its use.
We should regularly evaluate and update our policy as the technology evolves. We are in the business of educating, and that means teaching our students to use the tools that will shape their future.
Youth mental health has been a growing concern for years now. Do you think your school district has the resources and personnel in place to deal with this issue adequately? If not, what would you suggest to improve the situation?
No. I do not believe Baltimore City Public Schools currently has all the resources and personnel necessary to adequately address mental health needs. But mental health challenges are not the sole possession of students. Schools are more than classrooms; they are communities, and the trauma and pressures of today’s society affect students, families and many of our educators and staff.
We need a broader definition of these struggles and a community-based approach that includes school-based counseling, behavioral-health services, stronger partnerships with community providers and support for the adults who care for our children. Prevention also means creating environments where people feel safe, connected and valued.
The board should establish a concrete benchmark: at least 90% of students referred for mental health services should receive initial professional contact within five school days, with quarterly reporting on access, staffing and wait times.
Our goal should be collective support that helps students and adults not merely manage trauma and mental health challenges, but continue to grow and thrive.
Do you think there are circumstances when books should be removed from school libraries? If so, what kind of books should be removed, and who should make those decisions?
I am adamantly opposed to book banning. Book banning comes dangerously close to book burning, and knowledge should never be possessed by a few or restricted to a few. As an educator who continues to serve in the classroom while serving on the board, I believe students should have access to ideas, perspectives and knowledge that may challenge them.
There are, however, reasonable parameters. Materials should be appropriate to the developmental stage of the students who can access them. That does not mean removing a book because its ideas are uncomfortable or unpopular. It means recognizing that some material may be unsuitable for younger children who have not yet developed the cognitive or emotional capacity to understand it.
Any restriction should therefore be based on clear developmental and educational standards — not politics, ideology, convenience or the preferences of a handful of people with power. Parents deserve a voice, but no single parent should determine access for everyone.
We must be extremely careful about who gets to decide what our children are allowed to read. My responsibility as an educator and board member is not to protect students from knowledge, but to help them learn how to engage with it. We should open doors to knowledge, not close them, and when we limit access, the burden of justification must be exceptionally high.
