Transition Team Report

MCPS has published the report of Superintendent Starr's Transition Team. Here is my analysis and executive summary of the Overview section. All quotes are from the report.

MCPS is a great school system – we say it ALL the time; therefore it is true. It is true even though our MSA scores are generally in the middle of the pack and even though one of every eight MCPS schools now falls short of standards set by MSDE.

The transition team met with EVERYONE we WANTED to meet with, and then we prepared this glossy report. We hope you like it.

1. Differentiation within and among schools, classrooms, and students

“Today MCPS continues to differentiate support and performance expectations between and among schools.” In other words, we expect less performance from schools in the red zone. Unequal outcomes show a “stubborn persistence” in MCPS schools. Close, damn gap! We SAID (many times) that we closed you; why won’t you close? We recommend more focus on differentiation, because we KNOW that will close the gap. It will just take more time and more focus and more reports.

2. Communications and relationships with stakeholders

We see “more work needs to be done to increase communication and subsequently build relationships with all parties”. To do this, we will continue to ignore and misinform parent groups with whom we have profound policy differences. We think this will make things better.

3. Implementation of vision, mission, and policies in practice

We “had so many initiatives under way that some members of the MCPS community were overwhelmed”. This “makes it difficult to discern the impact of many of the district’s ongoing efforts”. We recommend “a review and prioritization of the large number of initiatives”. No comment needed.

4. Design and delivery of professional development initiatives

We recommend that “professional development be reorganized” to “include a clear vision with intended outcomes”. In other words, the current system is poorly organized and has unclear goals.

5. Issues of race and equity

“MCPS has articulated a commitment to equity and excellence.” And we have shown a willingness to sacrifice excellence on the altar of equity. “Access to special programs and resources across the district concerns both the parents of high-achieving and struggling students”. We know some folks do not agree with our willingness to sacrifice excellence on the altar of equity. We recommend MCPS “maintain a focus on race and equity by embedding it within other initiatives”. We will embed our ideology more deeply to protect it from meddling parent groups.