FCPS Superintendent Terry Alban has been named the top superintendent in Maryland for 2017.  This honor means that Alban will compete for the National Superintendent award next year in March, along with superintendents from the 49 other states.

Alban, an educator for more than 30 years, is originally from Dundalk, a city in Baltimore County.  Her father was a steelworker and her mother a stay-at-home parent, neither of whom graduated from high school.  In 1977, she graduated from Patapsco High School and Center for the Arts.  Alban went on to earn her bachelor’s degree in elementary and special education from the College of Notre Dame of Maryland in 1981.  Alban received her master’s from Loyola and earned her doctorate in statistics and evaluation at University of Maryland, College Park.  She returned to Baltimore County Public Schools as a special education teacher.

In 2000, Alban moved to Montgomery County where she worked in the office that provided data on testing and academics to the district.  She then went on to Howard County Public Schools where she worked as the chief operating officer and an academic advisor specializing in testing and accountability.  This was a difficult job for her because she had previously only worked on the instructional side of the school system, but knew it was necessary to have this job if she was to become superintendent.  As chief operating officer, Alban was asked to work alongside maintenance and transportation staff.  She parked school buses, drove tractors, and operated floor scrubbers among other things.  To Alban’s disappointment, she was never allowed to paint the lines on a school soccer field because the staff was afraid she would not paint straight lines.  Finally, in 2011, Alban became FCPS’s superintendent.

When Alban arrived in Frederick County, the education budget was in a tight spot.  The local government had been giving FCPS the minimum amount of money possible under law, with the exception of funds for new technology.  There were many state and federal mandates and new costs that were being imposed without additional funds to pay for them.  Alban helped FCPS navigate through this tough time while also immersing herself in the community.  She meets regularly with the county commissioners and County Executive Jan Gardner.  Alban is a member of the Rotary Club and the board of directors for the Frederick County Chamber of Commerce.  It is not uncommon to see pictures of her on Twitter with students from various Frederick County schools.  Alban refers to the 40,000 students of FCPS as her children.

Alban said in her acceptance speech that she felt that the award was not just hers.  It was a group effort from all of FCPS to get her to this point and is proud to share this honor with all of us.