# Howard County Board of Education (non-partisan) **In one sentence:** Howard County votes on which of 3 candidates will serve on the 7-person board that sets the county's public school policy [2][7], and you can vote for up to 2. ## The candidates ### Mark E. Covington - **Background:** Lives in Columbia; age 63 at the election; occupation: retired/self-employed. B.S. Health Education (Towson State 1986); M.Ed. School Administration (Bowie State 1994). First run for political office [1]. His own site adds: longtime classroom teacher, principal and administrator in Prince George's and Howard counties, and former Loyola University teacher-education instructor [8]. - **Top stated priorities:** Protect local schools against expected federal education cuts, with input from local groups; no cuts or freezes to instructional programs; review classroom device use and move away from one-on-one devices; increase spending on human resources and student mental-health services [1]. - **Record or experience relevant to this office:** About 40 years in education (his claim) [1]. His campaign site claims (unverified beyond the site): multi-million dollar budget management, closing achievement gaps, rising graduation rates at DuVal High, a restorative-practice model at Howard High, and vice chair of the HCPSS Community Advisory Council [8]. ### Linda Frascarella - **Background:** Has lived in Howard County with her husband since 1990; their three children graduated from Atholton High School in 2013 and 2015. Degrees: B.A. Colgate, M.B.A. University of Maryland, M.A.T. Johns Hopkins, plus policy and financial-planning certificates [5]. Campaign site: financial manager with strong analytical skills, former HCPSS employee, master's in teaching [4]. - **Top stated priorities:** Public education as "the foundation of our democracy"; she will dedicate the time and effort needed for the role [4]. - **Record or experience relevant to this office:** 17 years at GE in finance and leadership roles; 17 years at Discovery Education as a K-12 ed-tech project manager; 2004 elementary/middle teaching certificate; HCPSS substitute teaching. Community service includes League of Women Voters and Sierra Club boards, PTA, room parent, and youth-sports coaching [4][5]. The Sun's answers for her were not in the sources checked. ### Lanlan Xu - **Background:** Lives in Howard County with her husband for over a decade; their two children attended Howard County public schools. PhD in Public Policy (Indiana University); doctorate in German Literature (Georgetown) [6]. Her own site says she has 10+ years of community leadership and policy experience [6]. - **Top stated priorities:** Her "STEP UP" plan: student success (academics plus social-emotional support), transparency and accountable decisions, empowering educators, long-term planning for a growing community, unity and inclusion, and data-driven progress [6]. - **Record or experience relevant to this office:** Vice president of health policy at a consulting firm; former senior roles at HHS; policy advisor at the White House Initiative on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders; currently on the Howard County AAPI Commission, with past service on the Commission for Women, Columbia Festival of the Arts, Tourism Board, and Flag Commission [6]. The Sun's answers for her were not in the sources checked. ## Where they differ - **How they frame the biggest challenge:** Covington points to federal education cuts as the main threat and wants local policies that buffer against them [1]. Frascarella frames the board's job as protecting public education as the foundation of democracy [4]. Xu emphasizes giving every student the support, resources, and opportunities to thrive [6]. - **Where they come from:** Covington is a career educator (retired; ~40 years) [1][8]. Frascarella is a business/finance and ed-tech professional who taught as a substitute [4][5]. Xu is a health and public policy professional and community board member [6]. - **On spending:** Only Covington stated specific spending views — no program cuts or freezes, cut back on classroom screens, spend more on staffing and student mental health [1]. Frascarella and Xu: Not found in sources checked. - **On redistricting:** Covington calls it the most overstated issue and wants an equitable, transparent process [1]. The other two: Not found in sources checked. ## If you care most about... - **Budget and spending** -> Only Covington stated specific plans: protect instructional programs, review classroom screens, add mental-health and HR spending [1]. The other two: Not found in sources checked. - **Student mental health and well-being** -> Covington says it is under-covered and wants more spending there [1]; Xu lists social-emotional support as a priority [6]. - **Transparency and accountability** -> Covington wants residents to judge by transparency, fairness, and community surveys [1]; Xu lists transparent, accountable decision-making [6]. - **Stability against federal education cuts** -> Covington's central theme is local policies that buffer students from federal changes [1]. The others: Not found in sources checked. ## What we could not verify - The Sun profile [1] was cut off mid-sentence, so some of Covington's questionnaire answers are incomplete. - No source in this packet states which board seat (district or at-large) each candidate is running for, though state law [7] describes the 5 district seats and 2 at-large seats. - No source in this packet records endorsements for or against any candidate. - Covington's and Xu's detailed backgrounds come only from their own campaign sites [6][8]; no independent source in the packet corroborated them. ## Confidence Medium — the election structure and ballot list are from official sources [2][3][7][10]; Covington's positions come from the Baltimore Sun [1], but Frascarella's and Xu's priorities come only from their own sites, and the Sun profile was truncated. ## Sources [1] Howard County school board 2026 election candidate profiles - The Baltimore Sun - https://www.baltimoresun.com/2026/05/20/howard-county-board-of-education-candidates-2026-election/ [2] Board of Education – HCPSS - HCPSS - https://www.hcpss.org/board/ [3] 2026 Gubernatorial General Election Local Candidates List (Howard County) - Maryland State Board of Elections - https://elections.maryland.gov/elections/2026/General_candidates/2026_GG_all_counties_candidatelist.html [4] Linda for Board of Education – Vote for Linda - Candidate's own site - https://vote4frascarella.com/ [5] Meet Linda – Linda for Board of Education - Candidate's own site - https://vote4frascarella.com/about/ [6] Dr. Lanlan Xu for Howard County Board of Education - Candidate's own site - https://www.lanlanxu.org [7] Education Article §3-701 (Howard County Board composition) - Maryland General Assembly - https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Laws/StatuteText?article=ged§ion=3-701&enactments=false [8] Meet Mark | Covington for BOE - Candidate's own site - https://www.covingtonforboe.com/about [9] Mark Covington for Board of Education - Candidate's own site - https://www.covingtonforboe.com/ [10] 2026 General Election Candidate List, Howard County - Maryland State Board of Elections - https://elections.maryland.gov/elections/2026/general_candidates/2026_GG_all_counties_candidatelist.html#howardcounty