Hornsby Resigns in Pr. George's
Embattled Schools Chief Is Under Investigation
By Nick Anderson, Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, May 28, 2005

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Prince George's County schools chief Andre J. Hornsby resigned yesterday amid an FBI investigation into his stewardship of federal funds and persistent questions about his management ethics at the helm of Maryland's second-largest school system.

Hornsby resigned effective June 30, halfway through a four-year contract, and is expected to go on administrative leave within a week. He negotiated a $125,000 severance under the contract's terms, half his annual base salary.

His departure at the close of the school year once again shakes a 136,000-student system that lags in test scores behind its peers in the Washington area despite the county's growing wealth. And it leaves the system in search of its third schools chief in six years.

Hornsby, a sometimes combative executive who asserted his expertise as an educator of minority children in New York, Houston and elsewhere, pledged to improve the uneven reputation of Prince George's schools when he arrived in the majority-black county two years ago.

A state report on whether the school system has advanced on standardized test scores in elementary and middle schools is due within weeks. It is likely to be an important gauge of Hornsby's controversial tenure.

Also expected within days is an independent consultant's review of Hornsby's actions in a $1 million educational technology purchase last year and other management issues. Hornsby lived with a saleswoman for the technology company, LeapFrog SchoolHouse, at the time of the purchase.

In a joint statement released yesterday evening, the board and Hornsby said the schools chief resigned "to prevent external distractions from interfering with the significant academic progress now being made by the system." Hornsby, 51, made a low-key appearance at high school graduation exercises and at a board meeting Thursday, giving no hint of his decision to exit. He made no public appearances yesterday and could not be reached for comment.

After accepting the resignation, the Board of Education named its top personnel officer, Howard Burnett, as interim chief. Board Chairman Beatrice P. Tignor, who led the search committee that picked Hornsby two years ago, said the board did not force him out.

The statement also described as "unfortunate" questions about "the propriety of certain operational issues." That, too, was an apparent reference to the federal probe and to the independent review of Hornsby's actions by Huron Consulting Group Inc. of Chicago.

In the statement, the board praised Hornsby for making "remarkable progress" in student achievement and said it has been "generally supportive" of Hornsby's policies.

In Hornsby's first year, 2003-04, test scores rose in many county schools. But the state still lists more than 70 lower-performing schools -- more than a third of the system -- as needing improvement. Raising the performance of the school system is a top priority for county leaders preoccupied with improving education and reducing crime.

County Executive Jack B. Johnson (D), in a prepared statement, said: "I have always believed Dr. Hornsby was doing a good job. I regret he was not able to complete the work he began to improve public education in Prince George's County. The issue at point now is to find a highly qualified chief executive officer."

The school board plans to name an acting chief soon to succeed Burnett. But it is unclear whether the board, due to be replaced next year, will pick a permanent chief. A board statement pledged only "a comprehensive search process" with community input.

The timing of the exit gives the school board just over two months to make leadership decisions before school resumes in August.

Hornsby's departure injects another note of instability in a system that is due to return to an elected school board next year. Prince George's has long had difficulty retaining teachers and principals. Hornsby named more than 87 principals in the 196-school system during his tenure.

The constantly churning system also has high student turnover from school to school, and it serves a county in which many anxious parents wonder whether they should abandon public schools for home school or private school.

The nine-member board was formed in 2002 by gubernatorial and county executive appointment, after the state abolished an elected school board widely viewed as dysfunctional.

Some critics have said the appointed board overlooked troubles in Hornsby's record when he was hired. In a previous position, Hornsby was fired as superintendent in Yonkers, N.Y., after only two years.

As in Prince George's, he was praised in Yonkers for raising test scores but criticized for alleged ethical misjudgments.

Tignor, in a telephone interview, called Hornsby an efficient and often accomplished administrator with political blind spots.

"Running a school system is more than just the academics of it," Tignor said, adding that Hornsby had "flaws" in some areas. "Maybe it was just not having a clear understanding of the culture of the Prince George's County community. When your support erodes, it makes it difficult in terms of keeping successful things going," she said.

In many ways, the LeapFrog purchase was emblematic of Hornsby's management style. A self-described "tech nut," he wanted to get computers quickly into the hands of kindergartners and first-graders for an early-reading initiative in schools serving disadvantaged children. So he negotiated a deal with the Emeryville, Calif.-based company and got its interactive "LeapPads" into schools last summer. He drew on federal anti-poverty funds for the deal.

But Hornsby did not disclose to the board his relationship with a LeapFrog saleswoman, which was exposed in news reports last fall and drew swift public criticism.

The FBI began an investigation of Hornsby's handling of the purchase and other matters related to federal funding. On April 19, federal agents seized records from Hornsby's office and another school facility while he was out of town.

Late yesterday, FBI spokesman Barry Maddox declined to comment on Hornsby's resignation, as did Vickie LeDuc, a spokeswoman for the U.S. attorney's office in Baltimore.

Hornsby has steadfastly denied wrongdoing and has expressed sorrow for any embarrassment he has caused the school system.

The school board commissioned the Huron report this year after an initial ethics review, which had cleared Hornsby, was criticized as insufficient. The Huron report is expected to be released within a week.

Staff writers Ovetta Wiggins and Eric Rich contributed to this report

Ethical Questions are Asked Concerning Prince George's County Schools Chief Andre J. Hornsby and a $1 Million Purchase