ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY, Md. — Anne Arundel County Public Schools has a new leader.
The Board of Education unanimously approved the appointment of Mark Bedell as the district's next superintendent.
Dr. Bedell will start his four-year term on July 1, succeeding George Arlotto, who has served as superintendent since 2014.
Dr. Bedell previously served as the superintendent of Kansas City Public Schools since 2016 and is the longest serving superintendent of the district in more than 50 years. He has earned high acclaim for his work in restoring the district’s full accreditation, closing achievement gaps, and raising the school system’s graduation rate, according to a press release from Anne Arundel Schools.
He will earn $305,000 annually at Anne Arundel Schools.
"Education is the pathway to economic prosperity. If we do education right, it doesn’t matter how you show up and where you come from, you can overcome,” Dr. Bedell said. “We have a responsibility as an administrative staff here to make sure that every single one of our kids grows. I am the superintendent of all,” Dr. Bedell continued. “I will serve each and every single one of our kids with a high degree of care and concern and we will make sure that our ultimate goal is how to we move this school district to become a top five school district in the state."
With a 2021-22 enrollment of more than 83,000 students, Anne Arundel County Public Schools is the fourth largest school district in Maryland and among the 40 largest in the United States.
