Baltimore’s school board on Tuesday extended the contract of CEO Sonja Santelises through June 2026, adding a second year to the one-year contract she received in June.

The unusually timed move comes four months after Mayor Brandon Scott appointed three new members to the board who were more supportive of Santelises, apparently swinging the board in favor of her leadership continuing to a 10th year.

In June, after months of delay, the board gave her a one-year extension through July 2025 but refused to give her what she wanted, a 2½-year extension.

The board vote was 7-3, with board Chair Ronald McFadden and Vice Chair Shantell Roberts voting against the extension. School board members who voted for the extension and staffers stood and applauded the decision. Roberts and McFadden remained seated.

McFadden read a statement saying that the contract extension would give the board more time “to ensure that there is an open and transparent process to select the next CEO.” The board will hire a national search firm and the process will include public input.

“The board thanks the current CEO for moving the school district in a direction that will allow the next CEO to further enhance and accelerate the outcomes for our students,” McFadden said. Santelises will receive a 5.5% increase in her base salary of $349,000, retroactive to July 1.

Santelises will be the longest-serving city school superintendent in the past seven decades — since 1946 — and one of the longest-serving urban superintendents in the country.

The Baltimore Teachers Union had become increasingly vocal in recent months about the need to launch a national search for a replacement, fearing that the board might try to keep the search from public view. With her tenure extended to mid-2026, the search will not begin for at least another year.

Under her leadership, students have increased test scores every year for the past eight years in English, including during the pandemic. In some years, the increases have outpaced the average state increase and narrowed the gap. No city schools superintendent has seen sustained increases in test scores.

In addition, Baltimore City kindergarteners who attended a city school in prekindergarten outperformed their peers on a statewide assessment. Despite the academic improvement, the city school system’s scores remain at the bottom of the state.

Santelises inherited a school system that was forced to shut down dozens of schools one winter when the heat stopped working in aging buildings. More than two dozen new schools have been built or renovated through a billion-dollar program. The city’s most beloved and historic high schools are about to undergo total renovations. In addition, the city just completed the air conditioning of every school building.

At Tuesday’s meeting, Chief of Staff Alison Perkins-Cohen thanked Santelises for her contributions, including building a stronger team of leaders. Principal retention has grown from 86% to 95%. The city schools, Perkins said, has built partnerships with a number of foundations and businesses, including the Gates Foundation, the Wallace Foundation, the Ravens, and Under Armour, raising $75 million.

Santelises said her work depends on a team of people in the system. “I don’t do it perfectly. I am not a perfect human being,” she said.“ This is about a team I am proud to lead here. … This has been one of, if not the highlight, of my career, and it is a privilege to serve Baltimore City. I don’t want to be in any other district, but here, I love this city. I believe in the potential of these young people.”

Despite her accomplishments, a Baltimore Banner poll gave her a low approval rating two years ago, with about 57% of residents disapproving of the job she was doing. More than 80% said the failure of students to meet academic standards was an issue. Santelises also has clashed with the teachers union and charter schools at times, and conservative media outlets have called for her ouster.

Extending her contract for another year came after a highly unusual process that dragged on months longer than normal. School boards usually decide in the fall whether to keep superintendents whose contracts are up the following June 30, or conduct a national search for a replacement. In this case, the school board leadership declined to discuss the negotiations in May, long past the time when most school systems would have named a new leader or cemented a contract.

This story was updated to include a salary increase of 5.5%.

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