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Sunday, March 29, 2009

Weast can't make lease payment on Promethean Boards

On January 7, 2009, Superintendent Weast answered questions from MCPS Board of Education members about the purchase of 3,300 Promethean Boards. In that memo it was revealed to the Board that 2,600 of the Promethean Boards* now in MCPS classrooms were purchased through a lease agreement. The lease calls for annual payments for 4 years of $3.3 million per year. In response to Question #6, Superintendent Weast stated,
"For FY10 we plan to use e-Rate reimbursements to cover the entire $3.3 million obligation."
However, the E-Rate rebates for FY10 aren't going to be $3.3 million. On Monday, March 30th, MCPS will tell the County Council's MFP Committee (see page 55 of the pdf document) that the E-Rate rebates for FY10 will only be only about half of that amount at $1,676,033.

That means that Superintendent Weast is going to be $1,623,967 short in his Promethean Board lease payment for FY10.

What will be cut in the MCPS budget in order to make this lease payment, or will 1,300 Promethean Boards be returned?

*Promethean Boards are a brand of interactive white boards. Cost of system is approximately $5,000 per classroom.

1 comment:

  1. Comment from Cary Lamari on Maryland Politics Watch blog. See link for full comment:

    Nine days after last years CIP, where the County Council adopted a $698,000 appropriation as a pilot program for the purchase of electronic boards the Superintendent entered into a State piggyback contract with Dell Computers and purchased electronic boards without the necessary County Council approval. The MCPS committed Montgomery County to a 13, million dollar purchase of the Promethean Boards without the legally required supplemental appropriation from the County Council and now Montgomery County will be required to find 3.3 million dollars per year for 4 years for the purchase of these boards during a time of fiscal crisis. The Board of Education never held any Community discussion on the matter, the purchase was approved by the Board of Education as a consent Item, without communications with the County Council..continues at:

    http://maryland-politics.blogspot.com/2009/03/audubon-hosts-horde-of-candidates.html

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