By Mike Sarzo

More than a week after Prince George's County Public Schools Superintendent John Deasy's announcement that he would leave the school system in February, the predictable comparisons to previous superintendent departures began circulating throughout the media.

Those comparisons don't all hold water. Even with questions surrounding Deasy's Ph.D. from the University of Louisville, Deasy's departure stunned a school system that, by many accounts, was happy with his job performance as superintendent.

Deasy's performance can't be measured in just increased test scores. It can't be evaluated through establishing innovative programs such as academies to help students having problems with the Maryland High School Assessment tests. It can't be judged through efforts to create kindergarten through eighth grade schools.

One schoolteacher told me that Deasy answered e-mails from rank and file teachers. I've heard people praise his decision to drive his own vehicle to events rather than hire a driver. Even more than those isolated cases, the confidence people within and outside the school system showed Deasy was palpable.

Granted, it's going to be hard to top the belief people showed in Deasy, but if you heard the way some people were talking about Deasy's departure, you'd think the system's last great hope left with him.

Yes, PGCPS has a long road to climb with or without Deasy. As The Sentinel reported two years ago, it was one of two school systems in the state to be placed on the state's corrective action list. However, even with that announcement, the state expressed confidence that Deasy and his programs would be the right medicine to avoid Baltimore City's fate: To have its superintendent forced out and other changes made.

Now that Deasy is leaving, people have made comparisons between Deasy's departure and predecessor Andre Hornsby's resignation in light of a corruption investigation. Even when considering questions about Deasy's qualifications and a clerical error on his resume coming to light, these comparisons are categorically unfair. Hornsby was convicted on six counts including fraud, evidence tampering and obstruction of justice. If Deasy deliberately lied about dates on his resume, that would be a form of fraud. However, according to published reports, Deasy made an honest mistake.

Some observers of the school system expressed rightful concern about frequent turnover among superintendents. Each time a new person comes into a leadership role, he or she often brings in a new style of managing or wants to bring in his or her own people. Often, this leaves previous staff in the lurch. There's also no guarantee that a new person will be a success no matter how well he or she did at a previous post.

No matter who the Prince George's County Board of Education chooses to replace Deasy, the eventual pick will not have it easy. The eventual superintendent still has to deal with a school system that can be better, even though it has shown great improvement since Deasy's tenure began.

Unlike some people who choose to look at Deasy's departure with a "glass half empty" approach, I see signs that the glass could be half full. It's up to the school system to ensure that they take the steps needed to keep heading in the right direction.