As Prince George’s County reopens its schools on Monday, the Maryland suburb will be borrowing something from the District. Or, someone to be exact — and it’s not clear if they’re planning to give him back.
The county has hired Alvin Crawley, a senior-level administrator of DC Public Schools, to be its interim superintendent until a permanent replacement for William Hite can be found. In late June, Hite announced he was leaving Prince George’s for the top schools post in Philadelphia.
Crawley serves as the deputy chief of programming in DCPS’s special education office, but he will officially begin in Prince George’s on Sept. 4. He also has worked in the Arlington, Chicago and Boston public school systems.
“I am very excited to lead Prince George’s County Public Schools at this critical time,” Crawley said. “The school system has made significant academic strides in recent years, and I look forward to helping students and teachers continue on that path.”
DC Public Schools officials did not return phone calls seeking comment on Crawley’s duties and performance with the school system, but Prince George’s Board of Education Chairwoman Verjeana Jacobs lauded the choice, saying Crawley would “help to provide stability for our staff, students and families as we search for our next superintendent of schools.”
The school board hired search firm Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates to lead a national search for the new permanent superintendent; the firm was recently employed by Montgomery County Public Schools to select Superintendent Joshua Starr.
Crawley received his bachelor’s degree in communication disorders and education from Hampton University, a master’s degree in speech and language pathology from Northeastern University and a doctorate in education from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. While at Arlington Public Schools, he co-authored the system’s report on reducing the achievement gap between low-income, minority students and their peers.
Duane Arbogast, the chief academic officer of PGCPS, was tapped as the acting deputy superintendent earlier this summer, after Bonita Coleman-Potter announced her departure for a school district in her native Mississippi.
