Carroll Coming Together for Education Excellence
The Together for Education Excellence Slate is a bipartisan slate of candidates for the (nonpartisan) Carroll County Board of Education, who aim to work together with parents, teachers, and community members from across Carroll County to ensure excellence in our public schools.
Lisa Maisano and Julie Walsh
Lisa Maisano and Julie Walsh are Carroll County moms who have long been volunteers and leaders in their communities. They met early in 2025 when Carroll County Public Schools (CCPS) was facing a funding and staffing crisis that threatened to cost a hundred teachers their jobs, move around another hundred, and result in dramatically increased class sizes in some parts of the County.
Almost overnight, Lisa and Julie sprang to action to try to prevent that from happening. They banded together with several other Carroll County residents to form the Carroll Education Coalition, each contributing their time and talents to reach out to decision-makers at both the County and State levels, and to inform and organize their community.
Blueprint Advocacy
Over the course of an intense few months, Julie and Lisa drove back and forth to Westminster and Annapolis, introduced themselves to lawmakers, and spoke in front of the Carroll County Board of Education, Carroll’s Board of County Commissioners, various State legislative committees, and the State’s Accountability and Implementation Board (AIB). They also dug into public documents to better understand the situation CCPS was in, so as to convey that information to Carroll County parents and equip them to advocate for their children’s schools.
In the end, due to the work of Lisa and Julie, their coalition partners, some Carroll lawmakers, CCPS staff, and thousands of concerned parents, the AIB granted CCPS a waiver that afforded the school system more time and flexibility to meet the requirements of the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future. It now looks like CCPS will be able to implement the law in a far less disruptive way than could have been expected a year ago.
The Decision to Run
When Lisa and Julie first met, they never could have envisioned running for office one day – let alone in partnership with one another. Neither finds political life, or the idea of serving in public office, to be attractive. They have decided to run because it feels like the right thing to do.
The two come from different sides of the political aisle, but share a commitment to integrity, cooperation, and practical problem-solving. Both are hard workers who want to get to the truth of the matter and honestly and clearly communicate that truth to their community so as to effect meaningful change. Both Julie and Lisa value their communities highly; they want to see them built up, not divided.
Leadership and Service
Lisa and Julie have both been leaders in their school PTA/PTOs and other community organizations, both have families who are deeply involved in Scouting, and both believe in – and practice – community service. Julie and Lisa have each spent many hundreds of hours volunteering in their communities, and many hours more facilitating the involvement of their families. The two have a combined eight children in six CCPS schools. Both are invested in the long-term success of Carroll County and its public school system, and want to help the County be a place where families can thrive.
Goals
Julie and Lisa want to see CCPS honor its duty to the children of Carroll County by providing for well-functioning schools, excellent teachers, the resources necessary for meeting children’s educational needs, and the opportunities that help children thrive. They hope to work with parents and community members all over the County to help achieve that goal.
