Board members from the Maryland Association of Boards of Education (MABE) today announced that Caroline County native Milton (“Milt”) Nagel has been named new Executive Director for the statewide association which represents all of Maryland’s 24 public school systems. Nagel, whose new role begins on July 1 of this year, takes the reins from Frances (“Francie”) Glendening, who has led MABE’s efforts over the past decade. He moves into the Executive Director slot from his current role as MABE’s Deputy Executive Director.

In sharing news of MABE’s new Executive Director, MABE President Joe Goetz (Kent County) noted that Nagel stood out from other candidates in part due to his vision of expanding current MABE offerings for school board members throughout the state, combined with his significant experience, skill set, and demonstrated ability to both lead and serve.

“Milt is passionate about finding solutions, and we’re greatly excited to see what the next several years can bring. Importantly, he also has an innate ability to bring people together,” Goetz noted. “Given the wide variety of Maryland’s 24 school systems, combined with the current climate school board members face with a still-growing list of challenges, we needed MABE’s next leader to be someone who can build on the successes of the past. We needed someone who is both a team player and strategist, both confident and humble, and who can both lead and serve. Milt fits that bill to a T.”

Prior to serving as MABE’s Deputy Executive Director, Nagel served Maryland’s Caroline County Public Schools for nearly three decades, primarily as Assistant Superintendent for Administrative Services, and also as Interim Superintendent of Schools for one year. Prior to joining Caroline County Public Schools, he served as a Staff Accountant with Jefferson, Urian, Doane & Sterner, PA, and for eight years as an Officer with the United States Army Reserve. Nagel earned his BS ACC in Accounting from the University of Delaware. He and his wife, Christina (“Tina”), live in Federalsburg, Maryland.

When asked for his thoughts on goals and priorities for the coming years, Nagel emphasized his gratitude at the prospect of being a part of real change.

“MABE has done so many incredible things for public education in Maryland through the years. Building on this strong platform, I see the chance to offer even more,” he said. “Whether actively advocating for school systems’ priorities, providing timely legal resources and trainings, or sharing strategic communications, I want MABE to be at the forefront of fulfilling the needs of school board members in Maryland.”

Nagel also specified his expectation that the MABE Health Platform, which offers best-in-class health insurance solutions for school districts to help control their health care costs, will play a central role in cost containment efforts for school systems. He also will continue to lead development of the MABE Time To Care Act Collaborative Solution (Maryland’s version of the federal Family and Medical Leave Act), in a way that will be a more cost-effective solution for school systems. Further, Nagel will remain active with MABE’s Group Insurance Pool, Workers’ Compensation Fund, and MABE’s OPEB Trust. MABE’s new Executive Director also plans to grow the association’s Board Service Academy training options, and to be engaged on a rotating basis in school systems’ board meetings.

Both Goetz and Nagel singled out how MABE has benefited from outgoing Executive Director Francie Glendening’s leadership as MABE Executive Director for the past 10 years.

“Francie has given so much to public education in Maryland,” Goetz said. “Her tenacity, her ability to jump in and help tackle public education challenges in our state, and her knowledge – all have been of huge importance to MABE’s member school systems throughout Maryland.”

“I saw firsthand how Francie, as MABE’s Executive Director, worked wonders in achieving financial stability and growth for MABE,” Nagel added. “She delivered on growing the amount of services we offered to our members, and was instrumental in bringing the association to a more modern, automated level. She’s brought MABE such a long way.”

About MABE:

Founded in 1957, The Maryland Association of Boards of Education is a private, non-profit organization dedicated to serving and supporting boards of education in Maryland. MABE is a leading advocate for public education in the state. All 24 Maryland boards of education are members of MABE.