WASHINGTON — The president of Montgomery College might soon have a permanent security detail.

In an Op-Ed for industry publication Higher Ed, Montgomery College Board Chair Marsha Suggs Smith explained why the board is considering making President DeRionne Pollard’s security permanent.

“Some of the messages to our president have been ugly, racist and homophobic,” Suggs Smith writes.

She also mentions unpopular financial decisions Pollard has made as president, including closing programs and child care centers that cost some their jobs.

“Our president is also African-American and openly gay, and she talks very publicly about closing the achievement gap for students of color. She writes often about making our institution more LGBTQ friendly and nurtures what she calls ‘radical inclusion,'” Suggs Smith writes.

The board will soon decide whether to make her pilot program security permanent and whether a security firm or current staff should be employed to provide her security detail.