The amounts of money local schools
earn through the sale of student portraits varies widely, according to
an investigation by the News4 I-Team.
Similar-sized
schools, often within the same school district, are cutting
demonstratively different contracts with photography vendors, causing
disparities and potentially burdensome work for school principals.
The I-Team, through a
review of school photography contacts in Virginia and Maryland, found
some school principals cutting more lucrative deals than others. Some
secured signing bonuses, while others negotiated more generous
commissions. The I-Team found local school districts, which use school
portraits as a fundraising tool for individual schools, allow individual
school principals to make contract agreements with portrait
photographers. Even within the same school district, those principals
hire a series of a different photography companies, and are permitted to
set their own prices for the pictures...
http://www.nbcwashington.com/investigations/Money-Schools-Earn-From-Student-Portraits-Varies-Widely-369744951.html
I call these kickbacks! Words like "earn" further obscure what's really happening. And it looks like MCPS has violated MD ED 5-112(b)(1) and its own policy DJA by failing to follow fair, proper, and transparent procurement practices.
ReplyDeleteThe I-team revelations
DeleteOf the MCPS machinations
Will trigger explanations
With absurd obfuscations.
Nothing like making long lasting impressions.
ReplyDelete$37,018 commission to Gaithersburg HS! And yet the IAF audit (http://apps.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/IndependentActivityFund/uploads/gaithersburghs/20151026_gaithersburghs.pdf) says that the Gaithersburg HS IAF is still in the red! Where is all the money going?
ReplyDeleteGreat story. Parents are not given the choice of using a less expensive photographer and I at least was never told this was a 'fundraising' event.
ReplyDelete