New CEO announced for Prince George's County Public Schools

PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, Md. — Change is coming to Prince George's County in the form of a new CEO for the public school system. On Wednesday, County Executive Angela Alsobrooks made the official announcement that Millard House II would be stepping into the role.

House, 51, will be picking off where Dr. Monica Goldson left off. Goldson broke the news on Jan. 5 that she would be retiring from the role of CEO of Prince George's County Public Schools (PGCPS) by the end of the 2022-2023 academic year. The news came after 32 years with the school system.

The new CEO formerly served as superintendent of the 210,000-student Houston Independent School District. This is the 8th largest district in the nation and largest in the state of Texas. Millard left as the Texas Education Agency (TEA) was set to takeover the school district beginning June 1. The takeover, which was first initiated in 2019, was based on failing schools and other issues, and is still seen as hostile by many.

Before the Houston role, House took on responsibilities as the director of schools at Clarksville-Montgomery County School System in Tennessee, served as CEO at Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools in North Carolina, and was the deputy superintendent at Tulsa Public Schools in Oklahoma.

Alsobrooks said the selection of House was made after a nationwide search, as well as the help of focus groups, surveys, and interviews to gauge the community during the efforts. The majority of the survey responses received stated that the "ideal CEO candidate would be courageous, innovative, a collaborative leader, and an outstanding communicator." And in response, she said she believes that they got all of those things right with House. 

"Mr. House is eminently qualified," the county executive said as she introduced House. "He comes to us with over two decades of leadership experience. He has a well-rounded background that makes him the perfect fit for our school system," she said as she proudly introduced him.

She also said House has experience leading diverse school systems, like PGCPS, successfully which led to her confidence choosing him. 

"I was asked a question about 'Why Prince George's County?" House said. "And it came back down to a conversation that I initially had with the current CEO, Dr. Monica Goldson, where she indicated, 'Well, you know I'm leaving. And I'm retiring.' And at that time it was established that I would be heading out as well so through a few more conversations and opportunities to engage with her it became crystal clear that I would be making a run for this opportunity."

Watch the full announcement here: