The Anne Arundel County Government consists of Departments and Offices as well as Boards & Commissions and other entities. These entities work together to serve our Citizen's needs.
With almost 54,000 businesses, Anne Arundel County is a major hub of commerce and development. With a $35 billion economy, low taxes, a vast multi-modal transportation system, highly skilled workforce and excellent educational institutions, Anne Arundel County is the premier location to do business.
This commission provides ongoing review of the systemic racism that contributes to the opportunity gap in the County and is charged with monitoring progress toward eliminating the gap.
Joint Commission on the Opportunity Gap
The JCOG was created by Executive Order in May 2021 to further the work of the Joint Initiative to Eliminate the Opportunity Gap, a partnership with Anne Arundel County Public schools which commenced in September 2019 and resulted in four priority recommendations, 14 goals, and 78 potential strategies. The report was formally presented to the public in November 2020.
Have you ever wanted to serve on a board or commission? Now is your chance! Several AACO Boards and Commissions currently have vacancies to be filled.
About Us
The commission is composed of 15 appointed members representing the County, school system and community and is the result of a collaborative effort to meet the first priority recommendation in the Joint Initiative to Eliminate the Opportunity Gap report. The Commission is empowered to provide ongoing review and oversight of structural and systemic racism that contributes to the opportunity gap in AACPS and the County, and to recommend changes to address equity issues in academics and discipline. It is charged, specifically, with monitoring progress toward meeting the remaining three priority recommendations including:
Engaging government agencies and community partners to mitigate the effects of social determinants of education in low income communities, thereby increasing readiness for school and achievement throughout school,
Increasing transparency and accountability by improving the public’s ability to locate, read, and interpret available reports on progress toward opportunity gap goals, and
Establishing a practice within the Board of Education, the AACPS Central Office, the Anne Arundel County Government, and the Anne Arundel County Council of preparing a documented equity analysis to accompany all proposed policies and decisions.
For details on the Joint Initiative and access to historical data and reports, visit the Anne Arundel County Public Schools webpage at https://www.aacps.org/closethegap.
