Christopher Barclay Elected Vice President of the Board

Patricia B. O’Neill was elected unanimously by her colleagues today (Dec. 8) as president of the Board for the next year. Christopher Barclay also was elected unanimously as vice president. The election occurred during the Board's regularly scheduled business meeting. Both new officers will serve for a one-year term.

“The Board will be challenged as we navigate the current financial difficulties,” said Mrs. O’Neill, “but we are committed to providing challenging academics and a supportive environment for all of our students. It is my honor to work with my colleagues on the Board toward this important goal.”

Mrs. O'Neill was first elected to the Board of Education in 1998. She previously has served three times as Board president and four times as vice president.

Mrs. O’Neill is past president of the Maryland Association of Boards of Education (MABE) and past co-chair of the Washington Area Boards of Education. She has served on numerous advisory committees for education-related issues, including the Maryland Blue Ribbon Panel on Teen Pregnancy and the Maryland Comparable HSA Task Force. In 2006, she was named by then-Governor Robert Ehrlich to represent MABE on the newly formed Task Force on School Safety and was selected as a member of the national network of 100 District Leaders for Citizenship and Service-Learning.

In 2009, she received the Charles A. Willis Award, the highest honor bestowed by the Maryland Association of Boards of Education. She also recently participated in the Harvard Public Education Leadership Project. Prior to joining the Board, Mrs. O’Neill was a longtime PTA activist in the Walt Whitman cluster, serving in various volunteer and leadership roles.

Mrs. O’Neill is a graduate of Walter Johnson High School and has a degree in social science from Southern Methodist University. She is married and has two daughters who are graduates of MCPS.

Mr. Barclay was elected to his first four-year term on November 4, 2008, after being appointed to the Board on December 9, 2006.

Mr. Barclay has served in a number of volunteer leadership roles with the Montgomery County Council of PTAs (MCCPTA), including Montgomery Blair cluster coordinator and MCCPTA Nominating Committee chair. He also has served on the NAACP Parents’ Council. He was active in the development of the Downcounty Consortium as a member of the Downcounty Consortium Base Area Study Committee. In addition to Mr. Barclay’s volunteer education activities, he also has been involved in community leadership roles on the Takoma Foundation Board of Directors and the Takoma Park Department of Recreation Advisory Committee.

Mr. Barclay has worked in the telecommunications industry since 1993. He is a 1984 graduate of Columbia College of Chicago. He is married and has three children attending MCPS.