Exclusive: Board Retreat Minutes

Board of Education President Nancy Navarro in the Gazette in May of 2007;

School board President Nancy Navarro (Dist. 5) of Silver Spring will propose the board ``finally" have an in-depth discussion at its May 31 retreat about the disproportionate suspension numbers and the persistent achievement gap.
However, it may be too tough for the school board to do something about suspensions, she said. ``You want to give the principals the autonomy to run their own schools," Navarro said. ``We really need to focus on the staff development."

So, did she do that, did the Board "finally" have an in-depth discussion about suspensions and the achievement gap? We never knew because after the Board Retreat on May 31, 2007, President Navarro didn't release the minutes of that meeting and Board Retreats aren't televised for public viewing.

But now, for the first time in TWO years, the public can read the Draft Retreat minutes of the May 31, 2007 Board of Education Retreat. These minutes have never been approved by the Board or made public on the MCPS Board of Education website.

Board of Education Draft Minutes from Retreats held during 2007, 2008 and 2009 have been obtained by the Parents' Coalition of Montgomery County, Maryland via a Maryland Public Information Act request. These never before seen documents are now available on our website, giving the public their first glimpse of the school policy decisions that are being made on Board retreats.

Did Board of Education President Nancy Navarro get the Board to "finally" have an in-depth discussion on suspensions and the achievement gap at the May 31, 2007 Board of Education Retreat...?

Read the Draft Minutes of the May 31, 2007 Board Retreat below and find out for yourself.
May 31, 2007 Draft Board Retreat Minutes