The Board of Education of Anne Arundel County will recognize the 2026 winners of the Mo Gaba Positivity and Perseverance Awards at its next meeting, scheduled for Wednesday, February 4, 2026.
The award was created by the Board of Education in January 2021 to honor students who exhibited the same outlook on life as Mo, an AACPS student and “superfan” of the Baltimore Orioles and Baltimore Ravens whose health challenges never defeated his intellectual brilliance, positive attitude, fun-loving spirit or his ability to make others smile and marvel at his resilience. Mo died in July 2020 at the age of 14 after multiple battles with cancer.
The 2026 winners were announced by video on Monday, January 26, 2026, what would have been Mo’s 20th birthday.
Wednesday’s meeting will begin at noon and will be held in the Board Room at the Parham Building, located at 2644 Riva Road in Annapolis. It is open to the public and subject to normal space limitations in the Board Room.
The Board will also meet in a public session at 10 a.m. for the sole purpose of voting to immediately go into closed session, during which time it will discuss confidential matters as permitted by the Maryland Open Meetings Act including, but not limited to, legal advice, personnel, and negotiations. Closed session is not open to the public.
Also at Wednesday’s meeting, the Board will consider approval of a new Honors Engineering Essentials high school course that would begin in the 2027-28 school year and receive an update on the Superintendent’s recommended Fiscal Year 2027 budget in the wake of Gov. Wes Moore’s proposed state budget.
A complete agenda for the meeting can be found on the Board meeting page. More information on agenda items will be posted on the AACPS website in the Board Docs section under the Board of Education tab.
PUBLIC COMMENT AT BOARD MEETINGS
The Board will hear public comments from up to 10 total speakers (virtual and in-person combined) per agenda item during a single public comment section in the early portion of the meeting. Additionally, up to 10 speakers can comment on non-agenda items.
Procedures and protocols for public comment, including items for which the Board will not accept comment, can be found on the Board meeting page. Links to register for public comment or submit written comment will be live on the Board meeting page at 3 p.m. on the Friday before the Board meeting.
The general session of the meeting will be broadcast live on AACPS-TV and on AACPS’ YouTube channel.
BOARD COMMITTEE MEETINGS
The Board of Education’s committees will hold upcoming virtual meetings according to the following schedule. The meetings will not be broadcast, but those wishing to listen to the meetings can access them by telephone through the codes listed below.
Policy Committee: 3 p.m., February 3, 2026. Call 301-960-3676, enter the Conference ID 213 335 382#.
Budget Committee: Noon, February 17, 2026. Call 301-960-3676, enter the Conference ID 488 904 901#.
Equity Committee: Noon, March 24, 2026. Call 301-960-3676, enter the Conference ID 644 861 382#.