And here is what the Walter Johnson High School artificial turf field looks like now. The green plastic blades are deteriorating, shredding and turning into dust that can be inhaled by field users.
This picture shows the plastic grass blades at WJHS. Everything shown in this picture is plastic. The plastic has broken apart as the blades have deteriorated in the sun.
The Montgomery County Council has banned the use of toxin laden waste-tire-crumb infill and has required plant based infill on county synturf fields. But, the Board of Education has not acted on, and MCPS is not bound by, this important Montgomery County Council action.
The plastic itself is a problem- the coloring often contains the toxic heavy metal, lead (for which there is no safe level of exposure for children) and heats up to 125-170 deg F. on warm sunny days, when grass is as cool or cooler than the air temperature making recess a painful proposition.
The growing concern about links to cancer clusters among young adults who were frequent child users of artificial turf fields, especially those like soccer goalies who spend the most time on or close to the surface of the waste- tire-crumb infilled plastic fields, should raise concern for all.
For less than half the stated cost a cool, healthy, durable well draining, state of the art natural grass field can be installed with plenty of funds left over for many years of maintenance. Whereas, there will be little or no money for the important health and durability related maintenance of the artificial turf!
Please don't put children's short and long term health at risk out of ignorance. Plus, where will you get the half million dollars to dispose and replace the plastic and tire crumb field with a new field in 8 years? Most synturf fields barely last that long and many less, especially if not maintained well which most aren't!
Board of Education member Mike Durso was absent for this vote.
The Board members noted that Bethesda PTA's give fundraising "tips" to Red Zone (low-income) parents. Apparently, those "tips" justify a $550,000 playground for Bethesda schools while Silver Spring children play on dirt.
Then why were bank accounts set up using the students' social security number and why were W-2's issued?
It seems that State's Attorney John McCarthy isn't following his own investigation. The Washington Post has already reported that these were work-study funds and W-2's were issued.
...The prosecutor’s office examined records from 2001 to 2013, tracking
7,039 transactions amounting to about $69,000. The average transaction
was around $25.
The office also interviewed Rock Terrace staff. It didn’t talk
directly to parents or students, but rather reviewed parent statements
and other information the school system passed on from its
investigation.
The Educational Systems Federal Credit Union provided records for 93 students, Roslund said.
The investigation uncovered multiple inconsistencies related to how
staff managed the money and bank accounts. The “variances” point to a
lack of supervision and oversight “within individual school years,
individual student accounts and from year to year,” McCarthy said.
The investigation determined that money pulled from the accounts
generally was put toward school programs, but there was no documentation
of exactly how the money was spent...
WASHINGTON (WJLA) -- Public servants with personal drivers, security
details and quarter million dollar salaries - we're not talking
governors or U.S. senators. These compensation packages are going to
area school superintendents.
The 7 On Your Side I-Team obtained the employment
contracts of 29 local school superintendents - what they make and what
they get. We read them all and found some eye-opening compensation
packages.
The average school CEO salary is $193,432 - more than Virginia's Governor of $175,000.
"Who can justify a superintendent making more than the governor of
the state of Virginia?” responded Republican Virginia State Senator Dick
Black. “That's an outrage."
Prince George's county pays its CEO the most at $290,000, nearly
twice Maryland's governor’s salary of $150,000 – even though his
district has the state's second lowest graduation rate.
"The idea absolutely is to change that," said Segun Eubanks.
Eubanks is the chairman of the Prince George's County School Board. He took part in drafting that $290,000 salary.
"It's worth it and it's an impressive compensation package," he said. "Getting talented people around your kids is important."
Beyond salaries, most superintendents get a car allowance. But St.
Mary's and Loudoun County taxpayers fund the largest at $12,000 a year.
Meanwhile, the Loudoun County School Board has proposed charging
parents to bus their kids.
Karen Garza of Fairfax County is the only super who gets a housing
allowance; $24,000 a year - that's in addition to her $265,000 salary.
She also gets up to $65,000 a year in retirement benefits, which alone
is roughly equal to the average Fairfax teacher salary of $66,782 - a
topic that has become an issue.
Dean Howarth is a physics teacher in Fairfax County. "The teachers
who work at our school can't afford to live where they teach. And
there's an exodus of talent."
When it comes to paid time off, again, Kevin Maxwell of Prince George's gets the most at 51 days - more than 10 weeks.
"It sets a bad example,” stated Senator Black. "There was a time
when we used to talk about public service. It's not that way. They
have surrounded themselves with opulence."
As the I-Team dug deeper in the stack of contracts, we found two
superintendents, in Prince George's and Howard Counties get security.
"That's incredible. Are people trying to kill them?" asked Sue Perlin, a homeowner in Fairfax County...
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan just named two new members of the state
Board of Education — both supporters of the Common Core as well as
charter schools.
Hogan, a Republican, tapped Chester E. Finn,
Jr., president of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, and Andy Smarick,
partner at Bellwether Education Partners, to take the open seats on the
12-person board created by the departures of Charlene M. Dukes and Donna
Hill Staton.
Hogan, who was sworn in as Maryland governor in
January, had during the campaign characterized the implementation of
school reforms in the state as “a train wreck” and said he believed in
local control of assessments. In late January, a spokeswoman for Hogan
said in an e-mail, “Governor Hogan believes that we need to hit the
‘pause’ button on Common Core and give control back to teachers and
parents.”...
...The Maryland governor appoints all members of the Board of Education,
with advise and consent by the state Senate. Hogan will have more
chances to appoint members to the board this year, with four members
ending their terms, including the student member. (The governor appoints
the student member from a list of two people nominated by the Maryland
Association of Student Councils.) By the end of the year, then, he could
have appointed as many as half the members of the board, and next year,
a few more members are retiring...
Do you believe that family income is tied to a student's college chances?
Today's NYTimes asks that question, and provides an interactive test to let you know whether your thinking is in line with reality.
Read the article, take the test- and then see how you do. Unlike Montgomery County Public Schools, taking this test is entirely up to you. We aren't asking you to report your results - but if you would like to comment, please do so on our blog.
Keep in mind - education is supposed to be the great equalizer!
At today's Board of Education meeting, Superintendent Larry Bowers has slipped in an $11 million dollar no bid item on the Consent Agenda. The $11 million will buy "computers, associated hardware and services."
Wonder what this $11,798,868 million will buy? How many computers? What brand? What associated hardware? What services? What is meant by computers? Promethean Boards? Chrome Books? What services?
Take a guess. The BOE has no idea, why should they care?
We've seen this vague language many times before and the results of what Larry Bowers purchases are always a surprise!
Is this how the Montgomery County Board of Education oversees the spending of $11 million dollars?
Somerset Elementary Wants to Raise Funds for Artificial Turf
...The turf has an estimated cost of $550,000. The school’s PTA and
Foundation have said it would take them about two years to raise that
money, according to the memo.
It is unclear however, who would pay to maintain the artificial field.
The Somerset school has a student population of 575.
Piney Branch ES playing field. (Is that dirt we see?)
Of course not!
The reign of Superintendent Larry Bowers has begun. Look for a year of perks for the neighborhoods who can afford to pay to turn their public school into a private school.
Somerset Elementary School Hoping for Approval to Install Artificial Turf Field
Foundation at school plans to raise $550,000 to cover costs
... “The artificial turf on the playing field will provide safe playing
conditions and benefit both the school and the community,” wrote Interim
Superintendent Larry Bowers in his recommendation for approval.
Four years, two superintendents and one bruising state financial
report after the Prince George’s County Council came up with the idea,
officials are in the last stages of launching a comprehensive
performance audit of the school system.
Council member Derrick
Leon Davis (D-Mitchellville) sought an audit in 2011, under
then-Superintendent William R. Hite Jr., after years of upheaval in
school governance left many residents skeptical of how resources were
being used.
“We knew that if we were going to make a more
significant investment, we needed it,” he said of a systemwide audit,
which has not been done since 1998. “It will tell us what we get for the
money we spend.”
In seeking the audit, Davis was trying to
address some of the same concerns — about transparency, trust and
accountability — dominating the debate about County Executive Rushern L.
Baker III’s plan to raise property taxes to generate additional dollars
for the school system...
No
criminal conduct occurred when Rock Terrace School maintained accounts
without parents’ knowledge for special-education students in
transition-to-work programs, the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s
Office found.
The
office investigated the management of money and the accounts after some
parents in 2013 discovered the school had set up bank accounts for
their children to receive work stipends but the children had not
received the money. The State’s Attorney’s investigation confirmed the
findings of Montgomery County Public Schools’ internal investigation of
mismanagement but no criminal conduct.
Chief
of the Special Prosecutions Division Bryan Roslund said he could not
comment on mismanagement because the investigation was focused solely on
potential criminal activity.
“No
acts constituted a crime ... The broader question of what went on at
the school and what was being done with programs is not really for us to
answer,” Roslund said.
Roslund
said the investigation looked at school records and letters or comments
parents had sent to the school about the issue, but did not involve
interviewing parents. Lyda Astrove, a local attorney and advocate for
the parents and students, said that made it a “one-sided investigation.”...
...MCPS has reimbursed students in 71 payments adding up to about $34,400...
Tech industry companies continue to lobby for relaxing the standards for student data privacy, according to a report by Education Week. It cites loopholes in the recently adopted MD Bill HB 298 signed by Gov. Larry Hogan. According to J. Lupovitz, a student privacy advocate and VP of policy at the Common Sense Media,"One of the biggest issues with the new Maryland law is that it only covers education vendors that enter into contracts with districts, leaving a big loophole for other education technology providers" such as third party apps, websites and other services not covered by contracts.
Press Release: Maryland's State Assessment Program To Be Streamlined
PARCC to be Shorter, Use Single Testing Window
For Immediate Release Contact: William Reinhard, 410-767-0486
Baltimore, MD (May 21, 2015)
Maryland students in grades 3-8 and high school will spend less time
taking State assessments next year as a result of changes approved
unanimously by the multi-state consortium governing the tests.
The Partnership for the Assessment of Readiness for College and
Career (PARCC) yesterday voted to consolidate the PARCC assessment’s
two testing windows into one and cut total test time by about 90
minutes overall beginning in the 2015-16 school year. The changes
were made in response to feedback from parents, students, and educators
during the first year of testing and a careful review of test design.
“Next year’s PARCC tests will take less time away from lessons, and
cause less disruption to school schedules, while still keeping students
on track for college and careers,” said State Superintendent of School
Lillian M. Lowery. “These changes will help us focus on what’s most
important—ensuring that students are learning to think critically and
master the skills they will need to graduate, ready for success.”
The revisions to PARCC will:
Combine the two English language arts and two math testing
window to one 30-day window near the end of the semester or the
school year.
Reduce the number of test units that students will take from 8 or 9, depending upon the grade level, to 7 or 6.
Cut the testing time for students by about 90 minutes overall depending on content and grade level.
The first full year of PARCC implementation in Maryland has gone
smoothly for the most part, with more than 1.3 million tests
administered and completed. The new assessments, aligned to
Maryland’s College and Career Ready Standards, replaced the Maryland
School Assessment tests this year. Additional details on the changes
to the PARCC test is available here.
The Montgomery County Planning Board and the Board of Education have been meeting for years off camera and often without notice to the public. The meetings were labeled as dinner meetings to give the impression that the events were purely social. In fact, the meetings were packed with important discussions of public school planning issues.
The Parents' Coalition has attended some of these meetings and videotaped the meeting so that the public could observe the discussion and decision making of these two important public bodies.
Finally, tonight's meeting will be held in the Montgomery County Planning Board meeting room and the meeting will be televised so that all citizens of Montgomery County can observe the discussions and deliberations as these two public bodies discuss public school planning. Tune in at 5:30 PM this evening. The meeting will be webcast by the Planning Board at the link below.
The Agenda for this evenings meeting is also shown below.
Joint meeting of the Montgomery County Planning Board and Montgomery County Board of Education (Meeting may be viewed live on our website, visit (www.montgomeryplanningboard.org)
Under a Montgomery County Public Schools plan, a new Kensington
middle school would be squeezed on a site with inadequate space that
will make the school inferior, some opponents of the plan say.
Adding underground parking to the plan, they say, could help fix some of the bigger problems they see.
A group of residents said they are concerned that the site plan, as
it stands, would limit athletic and academic spaces and pose safety
hazards for drivers and pedestrians. The result, they said, is a school
that would fall below the district’s project guidelines and would be
unequal to other county schools, particularly Westland Middle School in
the same cluster.
However, a school district official said the middle school will be
similar to existing middle schools. He added that the district already
considered — and decided against — a parking structure.
Minnesota halted its
state assessments in science on Wednesday and Thursday due to a lack of
confidence "that Pearson's system will operate smoothly," Education
Commissioner Brenda Cassellius announced. For the second time this testing
season, Minnesota's assessments were disrupted by a "distributed
denial-of-service attack," and Pearson, the global education company
that designed and is administering the state's tests, told state
officials that this was a larger and more sophisticated attack than one
that occurred on April 21. "It is simply unacceptable and
unfair to subject students and teachers to this kind of uncertainty in a
high-stakes testing environment," Cassellius said in a statement. "I
have questions about Pearson's ability to follow through on their
assurances." The company holds a three-year contract, valued at $33.8
million, to administer Minnesota's reading, math and science proficiency tests. Pearson also released a statement,
saying the company had worked throughout the day on Wednesday to
mitigate what it described as malicious third-party attacks, in an
effort to "minimize the disruptions and return service to normal." The
company also said it is actively working to "strengthen our defenses to
fend off these attacks," and assured the state that student data was not
targeted, or at risk.
Below is the 2015 Washington Area Boards of Education (WABE) Guide. The
WABE Guide compares data from 10 public school systems around
Washington, D.C. The WABE Guide compares enrollment, class sizes,
staffing, revenue, salary and benefits information from each of the 10
counties.
At the same time, MSI filed a civil action in Montgomery County Circuit Court.
The Montgomery County Board of Education sought to have the appeal at the State Board dismissed.
In arguing for dismissal of the MSI action before the State BOE, the Montgomery County Board of Education's top outside lawyers argued the well known legal principle of "have it's cake and eat it too." (See opinion below.) The Montgomery County Board of Education's argument was that MSI could not "have it's cake and eat it too" by pursuing an appeal in two different places at the same time. The Montgomery County Board of Education requested that the MSI appeal at the State Board be dismissed.
The Maryland State Board of Education didn't bite.
The Maryland State Board of Education did not dismiss MSI's appeal. Instead, MSI prevailed in their request to have their appeal to the Maryland State Board of Education stayed until 60 days after the conclusion of their proceedings in civil court.
Are Montgomery County Public School parents too tough? Did these parents force former superintendent Josh Starr to resign? Did these same parents give Drew Houlihan the jitters? Probably not. If anything, our parents send their kids to school, make them sit for tests, sign them up for lots of AP and advanced testing, and even write checks whenever asked. Not so in NY. As in the state, not just the small enclave in Manhattan of uber expensive property. According to an article in today's NY Times, children across New York state are being encouraged to "opt out" of standardized testing. From the article:
At least 165,000 children, or one of every six eligible students, sat out at least one of the two standardized tests this year, more than double and possibly triple the number who did so in 2014, according to an analysis by The New York Times.
As the vanguard of an antitesting fervor that has spread across the country, New York’s opt-out movement already has become a political force. Just two months ago, lawmakers from both parties, at the behest of Gov.Andrew M. Cuomo, a Democrat, increasedthe role of test scoresin teacher evaluations and tenure decisions. Those same legislators are now tripping over one another to introduce bills that guarantee the right to refuse to take tests.
and
Only 30 of the 440 districts where data was available met the 95-percent test participation rate called for by federal requirements, a far cry from just two years ago, when almost every district complied.
Can you picture something similar happening in MoCo? Read the rest of the article here. I would love to think that our group, or any other parent grassroots organization, could be as successful as the "opt out" movement in NY. And certainly, don't believe that our local community has the power to scare away potential superintendent candidates. Its all rhetoric. Keep in mind - the biggest responsibility for the elected Board of Education in MoCo is to select a Superintendent of Schools. So - how well do you think the Board of Education is holding up to their promise to voters?
In October, 2014, an individual contacted the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) to lodge numerous allegations regarding the school and residency programs at Crossway Community, Inc. (Crossway). This individual expressed concern about alleged abuse of children in the day care program and that program participants who complained were retaliated against and/or kicked out of the school or residency programs.
Several other program participants subsequently expressed similar concerns to our office.
...
Inquiry and Outcome:
Mr. Nelson advised us that DHCA had been made aware of assertions that Crossway residents were threatened with the loss of their project-based Housing Choice Voucher Program subsidy if they did not complete the Crossway Family Learning Academy (FLA) program and enroll eligible children in the Crossway Community Montessori School childcare facility. HOC had previously advised the OIG that if true, this could be a violation of HUD rules.
The Maryland State Board of Education welcomed two new members today.
Chester E. Finn, Jr., Ed.D. of Montgomery County and Andy Smarick of
Queen Anne’s County were appointed by Governor Larry Hogan to fill two
seats on the 12-member board vacated by the departures of Charlene M.
Dukes, Ed.D. and Donna Hill Staton, Esq., whose terms ended in 2014...
...“Union and district officials have been “scrubbing the budget” to look for potential savings, Prouty said. He said he doesn’t know where the contracts might stand at the end of the process.”...
We work our whole lives to have a good credit score so when we purchase our first car or our first home, the process is fair and equitable.
Imagine if your score included your behavior online, since you were 8 years old.
No need to imagine anymore. This is what is happening.
The state of California, where all these 'tech' companies reside, have passed over 29 privacy laws to protect their kids. The rest of the states have either passed 'weak' student privacy bills or none. Maryland recently passed their Student Privacy Bill, but it was gutted of the protection the California Law has b/c the tech companies spent millions to lobby against the stronger language and won. Parent outcry was needed but few voices were spoken.
If you think this is made up, then listen to the KoJo NPR show today. These experts tell it like it is... tech companies are working with schools not to better our children but to create profiles that are so detailed, they are calling it:
[Neuromarketing is a new field of marketing research that studies consumers' sensorimotor, cognitive, and affective response to marketing stimuli.]
There’s no such thing as anonymous in today’s digitized world, when everything from web searches to clothing sizes are saved and quantified to create a digital you. Tech companies have become identity managers- collecting our personal data as we use their services, then selling that information to the highest bidder. Join us for a Tech Tuesday conversation about the data we leave behind while we go about our lives, and how that information is being sold and used.
Guests
Daniel Castro Vice President, Information Technology and Innovation Foundation; Director, Center for Data Innovation.
Alvaro Bedoya Founding Executive Director, Center on Privacy and Technology at Georgetown Law
Jeff Chester Executive Director, Center for Digital Democracy
The former superintendent of Montgomery County Public Schools is set
to become the next CEO of an international association of educators.
PDK International, based in Arlington, announced Tuesday that Joshua
Starr will replace William Bushaw, who served as the organization’s CEO
for the past 11 years....
...PDK also publishes Kappan, a magazine for educators, and an annual poll in partnership with Gallup about American public opinion on public schools...
When did Larry Bowers restructure MCPS administration? Any one have a clue?
We know Mr. Bowers is a firm opponent of transparency and open government so we don't expect to see a memo or any budget details on what he has been up to in the last few months. Mr. Bowers has a long history of major behind the scenes maneuvers with MCPS Operating Budget funds. By the way, what is Mr. Bowers paying himself these days? Perks? Car? Home office? Credit card?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
...Bowers proceeded to start an administrative restructuring even though he
was only planning to stay for a few months before a planned retirement...
The search for a new superintendent to take the helm over Montgomery County Public Schools is turning into a comedy.
At least, that is one way to read what has been happening since our former superintendent, Joshua Starr, walked away from the job a few months ago. First, we get a secret search- but its not so secret, because several candidates talk to the media. Perhaps they didn't realize that everyone else in the process signed a confidentiality agreement. Then, we get a candidate who withdraws almost as soon as his name is put out as the "preferred" choice. What exactly is the preferred choice, and how did we get to this point without a convened meeting of the Board of Education? Did the Board of Education actually meet? Rumors abound as to why Drew Houlihan with-Drew his name. Did the school system have buyers remorse?Did he forget to check out the school system? Not a good sign if Drew doesn't do his own research. Tonight, the latest development is that that Alan Goodwin, a self-described "leader" of the esteemed Montgomery County Association of Administrators & Principals (MCAAP), otherwise known as the MCPS Principals Union, asks that MCPS keep Larry Bowers, its interim superintendent, on for another year. Is Mr. Bowers doing a good job? Does he want to stay? Lets see that performance evaluation! Are we happy with the way he handled Rock Terrace fraud? Are we happy that he let the the numerous sex offenders stay in the classrooms? Lets talk about this. Do we know that the current superintendent search will yield no viable candidate by September 1? Looks like someone broke one of those precious confidentiality agreements by speaking with Alan. And - who gave Alan the authority to appoint an interim superintendent for a year? Yes, Alan is a member of the MCAAP board (a Vice President for the High School Chapter), but when did this entity meet? When did Alan have time to talk to his membership? He's also the principal of Walt Whitman High School, and its testing week. Does his school run so smoothly that he can conduct union business? Or did he just canvass a number of his friends for support over coffee (29 agree with Alan - any dissenters)? Recall MCPS has over 200 schools, and MCAAP membership extends to other administrators in the school buildings. According to its website, MCAAP has over 750 members. Do the math - Alan's recommendation is based on less than 4 percent of the Administrators in MCAAP. And what about the teachers? The service workers union? The parents? Or taxpayers? Sorry Alan - you lose your Keystone Cops badge. Don't pretend to represent the rest of the County, or even your membership. As for the rest of us? We'd like a superintendent who will serve the students, parents, teachers, and taxpayers, and be honored to take the helm in Montgomery County
If I ran the Montgomery County school system ... I would not jump to have another "interim superintendent" appointed for the next school year.
Even if some of the top prospects are gone.
I would conduct an review of what happened this year - a search failure - and what happened four years earlier with Dr. Starr's selection process. In hindsight, this is another search failure, since Dr. S left in a huff and didn't finish out his contract.
Even the search that eventually produced Dr. Weast was an initial failure. The BOE identified Ellie Massie, who had numerous problems and withdrew after her appointment.
So - over the last 16 years, the taxpayers in Montgomery County Maryland have endured three failed searches for school superintendents.
What I would consider -
1. Another search firm. Clearly, the current search firm doesn't work for us. Maybe for other counties or school systems, but not the folks in Montgomery County.
2. A transparent process. Secrecy is just not working. Same for confidentiality agreements. Meaningful community input and crowdsourcing are the way to go. Put the finalists names out there - as many other communities do, and gauge the reaction of the crowd. If the candidates have something to hide, chances are the crowd will find out, and sooner is better than later. Would Ellie Massie's financial woes have been discovered earlier? What about Josh's short fuse? And who knows what really made Drew Houlihan back down.
We're a tough group in Montgomery County. We need a superintendent who can work with us - our good points and our not so good points. The job is a great job - $300,000 and a car - who ever thought an educator could get paid a real living wage.
But please- no finger pointing at anyone outside of the current selection process as scaring away other candidates. Candidates should have researched us before they accepted the plane ticket to interview with the BOE. If anything, we are really a pretty tame county, considering what some of the other jurisdictions can do -- think about the test boycott in Scarsdale a few years back, and the outing of the Pearson privacy package. Oh, yes, and the Smartboard disaster - we're still buying them in MoCo when other counties have clearly moved on.
Kudos to Krista Brick - from mymedia.com who provided the following:
