Friday, March 31, 2017
Fix The Lead Contamination in Prince George's County Public Schools Water Fountains : CTV: Lead Contamination in Water of PGCPS Schools
Fix The Lead Contamination in Prince George's County Public Schools Water Fountains : CTV: Lead Contamination in Water of PGCPS Schools: CTV News covers the lead tainted water in Prince George's County. 88 Schools have water turned off because of lead contaminati...
New Baltimore Sun Letter: Dr. Cindy Russell on The Health Risks of Wi-Fi In School
Baltimore Sun: Letter from Dr. Cindy Russell on The Health Risks of Wi-Fi In School March 20, 2017
Thank you for publishing the recent commentary by Devra Lee Davis regarding limiting wifi in schools ("Wifi in Md. schools may put your kid at risk for cancer," March 24). I am pleased that the Children's Environmental Health and Protection Advisory Council looked at the science carefully before recommending precaution with our children's health by limiting wifi in schools.
Contrary to some criticism that "junk science" was used, I felt the council was both informed and balanced. There was an abundance of peer-reviewed scientific research in their materials presented that showed evidence of harm. Non-ionizing microwave radiation from wireless devices we commonly use has been shown in the broad scientific literature to impair sperm, cellular structures, plants, trees, animals and insects in addition to humans, and the research is growing. One only has to read the published science to be convinced this is an unaddressed important public health issue.
Read the letter at the Baltimore Sun HERE.
Contrary to some criticism that "junk science" was used, I felt the council was both informed and balanced. There was an abundance of peer-reviewed scientific research in their materials presented that showed evidence of harm. Non-ionizing microwave radiation from wireless devices we commonly use has been shown in the broad scientific literature to impair sperm, cellular structures, plants, trees, animals and insects in addition to humans, and the research is growing. One only has to read the published science to be convinced this is an unaddressed important public health issue.
Read the letter at the Baltimore Sun HERE.
FOX5: Stepfather claims the school refused to contact police.
...However, Charles Longcor, the girl's stepfather, said that it is not
true. He said he went to the school that day and claims the school
refused to contact police. He is also upset that an ambulance was not
immediately called.
Longcor said his stepdaughter will not be returning to Rockville High School because she is terrified. She continues to receive threats on social media and a group drove by their house shouting threats as well. She continues to be treated for a head injury. The family has retained a lawyer to make sure that she can still graduate on time...
http://www.fox5dc.com/news/local-news/245096223-story
Longcor said his stepdaughter will not be returning to Rockville High School because she is terrified. She continues to receive threats on social media and a group drove by their house shouting threats as well. She continues to be treated for a head injury. The family has retained a lawyer to make sure that she can still graduate on time...
http://www.fox5dc.com/news/local-news/245096223-story
Thursday, March 30, 2017
Sentinel: More Rockville Violence
Local attorney Rene Sandler said MCPS should have contacted parents at the school to inform them of a fight between two female students, and an attack involving two other female students that occurred March 6 and March 7.
The fight and attack occurred 10 days before police arrested two male students in connection with an alleged rape at the high school.
Sandler said her client was kicked in the head by someone she didn’t know and had never seen before. In the weeks since the attack, Sandler says the girl remains disoriented and that the kicks to the head have affected her vision...
http://www.thesentinel.com/mont/newsx/local/item/5043-more-rockville-violence
Rally at the Board of Education by concerned parents is scheduled before the 6 PM BOE Meeting Tonight
Montgomery County To Review Security Measures In All Schools: MoCo Schools chief orders security review as the Board of Education meets for the first time since the Rockville High School incident
MCPS superintendent declines to personally address safety concerns at Rockville High School #CraigRice #JackRSmith #HumanError
Councilmember Craig Rice and Superintendent Jack R. Smith shown in Fox5 video not responding to reporters question:
http://www.fox5dc.com/news/local-news/244890857-story
http://www.fox5dc.com/news/local-news/244890857-story
This case concerns FieldTurf’s numerous broken promises made to their customers regarding an artificial turf product it launched in 2005, which it advertised as revolutionary and more durable than anything on the market. These were lies.
Another government body stands up to protect citizens and children from defective artificial turf. This is the same artificial turf that is currently in use at Walter Johnson High School and Richard Montgomery High School, and was just removed from Montgomery Blair High School.
Remember in Montgomery County, MD we are progressive, and progressives do not enforce warranties or care about defective products from no bid procurements.
Remember in Montgomery County, MD we are progressive, and progressives do not enforce warranties or care about defective products from no bid procurements.
Wednesday, March 29, 2017
FOX5 EXCLUSIVE: Rockville High School student says she was beaten by another student inside school
ROCKVILLE, Md. - The family of a Rockville High School senior student said their daughter was attacked and beaten at the school earlier this month. The incident happened just nine days before an alleged rape was reported by a 14-year-old girl by two classmates – a case that has gained attention locally and nationally.
Now, the family of the senior student is questioning Montgomery County Public Schools and Rockville High School's commitment to student safety.
http://www.fox5dc.com/news/local-news/244573623-story
Tuesday, March 28, 2017
Silver Creek Middle Revealed As Community Pick for Name of New Kensington School
Silver Creek Middle Revealed As Community Pick for Name of New Kensington School: County school board will have the final say
As opioid crisis intensifies, one Md. school system looks at a ‘recovery’ school
“I have no question that it changed the course of everything I was doing,” said Burnes, now a music teacher and musician.
The school that made the difference was Phoenix, in Montgomery County, believed to have been the first of its kind in the country. It opened in 1979 amid concerns about student drug use and continued for decades before fizzling to an end four years ago at a time of flux for alternative programs.
Now the idea may be making a comeback, with school leaders looking into the possibility of a new “recovery” school program as the nation’s opioid epidemic draws wide attention. While some in Montgomery pose questions about cost and effectiveness, others say the program worked well years ago and could help those who struggle with addiction today...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/as-opioid-crisis-intensifies-one-md-school-system-looks-at-a-recovery-school/2017/03/19/d0f8a57c-0981-11e7-a15f-a58d4a988474_story.html?utm_term=.44f7d4cd3b4c
Monday, March 27, 2017
Principal charged with theft of school funds, withdrawing cash at casino
The Office of the State Prosecutor announced Monday the indictments charging Leslie Lewis, 44, of Owings Mills, and her former colleague Albert Fluker, 45, of Randallstown. Lewis worked as principal of Baltimore Community High School near the Dundalk line. Fluker formerly worked as a teacher at the alternative high school. Lewis is charged with theft, misappropriation and conspiracy to commit theft; Fluker with theft and conspiracy...
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/crime/bs-md-ci-principal-teacher-charged-20170320-story.html
Saturday, March 25, 2017
Breaking News: Lawyer: Girl, 17, beaten at Rockville High; community wasn’t notified
http://wtop.com/montgomery-county/2017/03/lawyer-girl-17-beaten-rockville-high-school-parents-not-notified/
Friday, March 24, 2017
Smartphones Violate Safety Limits When Placed Against The Body: Schools Allow Cell Phones in Classes?
Montgomery County allows cell phones to be used in classrooms and on school buses. Where are children carrying these phones? Why isn't MCPS informing students and parents that this digital device used in classrooms as part of the educational curriculum emits radiation and should not be held close to the body.
Watch this CBC investigation that aired on March 23, 2017 that found when cell phones were tested against the body, the radiation absorbed surpassed the safety limit.
Are MCPS students carrying cell phones in their pants pockets? Are teenage girls carrying cell phones in their bra or tucked in their stretchy pants? If so- they are getting radiation levels that are unsafe even according to our government standards.
Watch this CBC investigation that aired on March 23, 2017 that found when cell phones were tested against the body, the radiation absorbed surpassed the safety limit.
Are MCPS students carrying cell phones in their pants pockets? Are teenage girls carrying cell phones in their bra or tucked in their stretchy pants? If so- they are getting radiation levels that are unsafe even according to our government standards.
The CBC Marketplace episode entitled “Berkeley's cellphone crusade ” with prize-winning reporter Wendy Mesley and featured Dr. Devra Davis, President of Environmental Health Trust and Frank Clegg, former President of Microsoft Canada and head of Canadians for Safe Technology. The five minute episode will be followed by a longer 30 minute CBC Report running Friday night at 8 pm on March 24, 2017.
“There are dozens and dozens of studies that we presented to Canada that show harm at levels below Canada’s guidelines” stated Frank Clegg pointing to the Safety Code Six review.
“Millions of children use cell phones and wireless devices every day. Many carry cell phones in their jeans pocket tight against their body. Many women tuck cell phones in their bra or under their spandex pants. The public needs to be informed that cell phones violate already outdated so called safety limits tested in the ways they typically are used,” stated Devra Davis, PhD, MPH pointing out that “the American Academy of Pediatrics and Consumer Reports have issued recommendations that the public reduce exposure to cell phones along with over a dozen other countries.”
If cell phones placed near the body emit radiation levels that exceed safety guidelines- guidelines which are over two decades old and outdated- then what about laptops and tablet on the lap of school children?
Read this letter sent to the Department of Education last week by a parent asking twenty questions about cell phones in classrooms and wireless devices on the lap.
Baltimore Sun: Wi-Fi in Md. schools may put your kid at risk for cancer
Baltimore Sun "Wifi in Md. schools may put your kid at risk for cancer" by Devra Lee Davis PhD, MPH
Thank you, Gov. Larry Hogan, for appointing thoughtful, brave medical experts to Maryland's Children's Environmental Health and Protection Advisory Council (CEHPAC). Your next challenge is to get the Maryland school superintendents to heed the council's well-founded advice: reduce and restrict children's wireless radiation (wifi). With distinguished experts in child health, neurodevelopment and pediatrics, the council draws on the well-established public health principle that stopping harm now is always better and cheaper than trying to fix damage later.
The council recommends wired rather than wireless classroom networks. Why? All wireless devices from laptops to tablets to cell phones work as two-way microwave radiating radios. While weak in power, this radiation is absorbed into our bodies, far more deeply into children who are smaller with thinner skulls. Two decades ago when the FCC set "safety" standards, authorities assumed that microwave radiation was harmless unless it produced heat. Research on children's long-term effects was nonexistent. Today millions of children regularly use microwave radiating devices. Read the full article online.
Md. mother admits to killing children; legal loophole exposed
http://wtop.com/maryland/2017/03/md-mother-admits-killing-children-exposes-loophole-law/
Thursday, March 23, 2017
MCPS Teacher was alleged to have used physical and mechanical restraints inappropriately to manage the behavior of her special needs students.
PATRICIA SULLIVAN v. MONTGOMERY COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION, ET AL.
Administrative law — Employment reprimand — Arbitrary or capriciousPatricia Sullivan (“Appellant”) was terminated from her job as a special education teacher for Montgomery County Public Schools (“MCPS”) on September 12, 2012, after receiving three reprimands for failing to comply with MCPS’s Regulation JGA-RA on Classroom Management and Student Behavior Interventions (“Behavior Interventions Regulation”). The termination centered on three incidents where Sullivan was alleged to have used physical and mechanical restraints inappropriately to manage the behavior of her special needs students.
Sullivan unsuccessfully sought administrative review of her termination with the Montgomery County Board of Education (“County Board”) and the Maryland State Board of Education (“State Board”) (collectively, “Appellees”). Sullivan sought judicial review of the State Board’s decision in the Circuit Court for Montgomery County.
On appeal from the circuit court’s May 4, 2015 opinion and order affirming the decision of the State Board, Sullivan presents three questions for our review, which we have reordered:..
http://thedailyrecord.com/2017/03/21/patricia-sullivan-v-montgomery-county-board-of-education-et-al/
Full text of opinion:
http://www.courts.state.md.us/appellate/unreportedopinions/2017/0692s15.pdf
County-initiated audit of Howard schools released ahead of budget season
In their review of financial statements for special education, the health and dental fund and legal services, the auditors found the school system generally complied with all procedures. State law limits the scope of the financial audit, which purely verifies transactions, traces payments to contracts and reviews other financial statements.
The audit capped an often contentious back-and-forth between the school system's leadership and local officials last year as the Howard County Council considered the school's budget request...
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/howard/elkridge/ph-ho-cf-school-budget-preview-0323-20170316-story.html
VA Superintendent Sends Letter About Teacher's 'Inapropriate Relationships' 2 Years After Instructor Resigned
""
Loudoun County's superintendent has
called for a former band instructor's teaching license to be revoked two
years after the instructor resigned -- raising questions about why the
call to action wasn't made sooner.
Brian
Damron resigned from his position at Dominion High School in Sterling,
Virginia in 2015 before starting a teaching job in Florida...
Wednesday, March 22, 2017
Ask your state Senator to vote YES on SB 705 - a bill that will help people with low incomes, including people with disabilities, find legal representation when their rights under the Maryland Constitution have been violated by the State or local governments.
CALL NOW - Before the Vote!
Urge your Senator to vote YES on SB 705!
Disability Rights Maryland (DRM) has
been working with a group of public interest advocates to protect your
Constitutional rights - please help by making one phone call!
Ask your state Senator to vote YES on SB 705 - a bill that will help
people with low incomes, including people with disabilities, find legal
representation when their rights under the Maryland Constitution have
been violated by the State or local governments.
For example, DRM sees cases of disabled people with no money
who are isolated in state-run facilities, and vulnerable to abuse and
neglect. SB 705 would allow a judge to decide that an attorney who
successfully represents such an individual in state court to vindicate
their Constitutional rights may receive reasonable attorney's fees. This
would encourage more attorneys to consider representing low-income
people in these cases, and would also deter the government from
violating the rights of its most vulnerable citizens!
Call and email your State Senator right away - the vote is tomorrow (Thursday) morning!
Tell your Senator:
I support SB 705. False arguments are being made to defeat
this important bill. Don't be misled. This bill is about basic fairness
and will NOT create "open season" for frivolous law suits. Vote YES on
SB 705 to provide access to justice for your constituents.
The Supreme Court Rules In Favor Of A Special Education Student
The decision in Endrew F. v. Douglas County School District could have far-reaching implications for the 6.5 million students with disabilities in the United States.
The case centered on a child with autism and attention deficit disorder whose parents removed him from public school in fifth grade. He went on to make better progress in a private school. His parents argued that the individualized education plan provided by the public school was inadequate, and they sued to compel the school district to pay his private school tuition.
The Supreme Court today sided with the family, overturning a lower court ruling in the school district's favor.
http://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2017/03/22/521094752/the-supreme-court-rules-in-favor-of-a-special-education-student
2017 Report on American education: US students have mediocre scores, US classes "much easier"
The key findings include:
- The U.S. continues to register mediocre scores on the Program for International Student Assessment, as it has done since the test began in 2000. U.S. performance in all three subjects—math, reading, and science—was no different statistically in 2015 than it was when each subject was first administered.
- International students still think U.S. schools are much less challenging than schools in their home countries. In 2001, 55.9 percent of foreign exchange students surveyed said their classes in America were “much easier” than back home; in 2016, that increased to 66.4 percent.
- Analyzing data from California schools, Loveless finds that African-American students continue to be suspended at a higher rate than other ethnic groups. In 2013, the suspension rate for African-American students was 0.235, meaning 235 out of every 1,000 black students received a suspension; in 2015, it fell to 0.178. This is still dramatically higher than the 2015 rates of Hispanic students (0.052), white students (0.044) and Asian-Americans (0.012).
A painful ESSA setback in Maryland
March 22, 2017
Maryland prides itself on having high-performing public schools, but the truth is that its primary-secondary education system is failing to prepare far too many children for what follows. On the most recent (2015) National Assessment of Educational Progress, for example, barely one third of the state’s eighth graders were “proficient” or “advanced” in either math or reading. Among African-American youngsters, that key benchmark was reached by fewer than one in five.
Yet lawmakers are on the verge of undermining the best chance the state has had in ages to do something forceful about the schools that have allowed this sad situation to endure. They’re about to prevent the State Board of Education from installing a new school-accountability system that prioritizes pupil achievement and student success, as well as true transparency by which parents can easily tell whether their child’s school is succeeding or failing. Instead, House Bill 978 and Senate Bill 871, now speeding toward enactment, sharply limit the extent to which learning counts, restrict the use of achievement data, forbid the state from “grading” its schools (or intervening in dreadful ones), and give top billing to measures of teacher satisfaction, class size, adult credentials, and other inputs that are dear to the hearts of teacher unions but have woefully little to do with classroom effectiveness. The General Assembly has already killed Governor Hogan’s proposed expansion of the state’s cramped charter school program and is threatening to shrink its tiny voucher program, thereby ensuring that kids stuck in district-run dropout factories won’t have any alternatives. Maryland districts are also famously allergic to public-school choice, save for the occasional magnet...
https://edexcellence.net/articles/a-painful-essa-setback-in-maryland
ROCKVILLE HIGH PTSA MEETS FOLLOWING RAPE REPORT
The Rockville PTSA held a meeting on Tuesday night that included a presentation from Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) officials about safety and security at Rockville High School.
The meeting comes five days after a student reported she was raped at the school during school hours.
Reporters were not allowed to attend the meeting at Rockville High School.
“It is not a public meeting,” wrote MCPS spokesperson Gboyinde Onijala in an email. “PTA leadership also has made it clear they do not want media there.”...
CDC Issues Guidelines On Recess
Students
spend a lot of time on academics and standardized tests, especially in
the early school years. Few states require recess.
But
studies show recess leads to better test scores and classroom behavior.
Now, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has issued new guidelines on the issue.
Take note Montgomery County Board of Education of statement that "recess should not be withheld as punishment."
Take note Montgomery County Board of Education of statement that "recess should not be withheld as punishment."
Maryland State Board of Education to Hold Emergency Meeting on March 23
BALTIMORE – The Maryland State Board of Education will hold an
emergency meeting on Thursday, March 23, at the Maryland State
Department of Education, 200 W. Baltimore Street, Baltimore. It will be
held in conference room 1 on the 8th floor beginning at 3:30 p.m.
Board members will discuss Senate Bill 871/House Bill 978 Education – Accountability – Consolidated State Plan and Support and Improvement Plans (Protect Our Schools Act of 2017). The discussion will take place via conference call.
The Public may attend in person to listen to discussion or call the WebEx conference call line as follows:
1-415-655-0045
Board members will discuss Senate Bill 871/House Bill 978 Education – Accountability – Consolidated State Plan and Support and Improvement Plans (Protect Our Schools Act of 2017). The discussion will take place via conference call.
The Public may attend in person to listen to discussion or call the WebEx conference call line as follows:
1-415-655-0045
Meeting number (access code): 644 373 389
Meeting Password: 1234 (if prompted)
Tuesday, March 21, 2017
MCPS superintendent will hold evening press conference to take media questions about Rockville HS rape
Rockville High Principal To Meet With Parents Tonight About Reported Rape: MCPS superintendent will also hold evening press conference to take media questions
Reminder: MCPS Security Cameras - "The cameras are really never monitored."
Council to Approve Fake Security for Schools - $5.8 Million: Parents' Coalition of Montgomery County, Maryland
Even in such highly regarded districts as Montgomery County, we find school after school where barely one pupil in five is on track for college.
While public education in Maryland assuredly has bright spots and success stories, it's failing far too many of the state's children, with just 23 percent of 8th grade African-American students in Maryland "on track" toward college readiness in language arts according to the 2016 PARCC assessments and only 11 percent in math. That's because far too many young Marylanders are trapped in dreadful schools. Even in such highly regarded districts as Montgomery County, we find school after school where barely one pupil in five is on track for college...
...The state board, to my sorrow, lacks the statutory authority to remove either kids or schools from the clutches of failure. The General Assembly would need to act. Instead, by killing the bills that propose such changes while moving ahead with measures that forbid them, lawmakers will ensure that the status quo endures. They will declare that they're keeping public education public and preserving local control. But what they're really doing is preserving bad schools, existing power structures and middle-class jobs. The heck with the kids.
Chester E. Finn Jr. (cefinnjr@edexcellence.net) is vice president of the Maryland State Board of Education and distinguished senior fellow and president emeritus at the Thomas B. Fordham Institute. The views expressed here are his alone.
88 PG public schools exceeded EPA allowable lead levels #lead
So in January of 2016 I decided to write to PGCPS CEO Dr. Maxwell and began a long inquiry asking what tests had been done in Prince George’s County Schools to measure for lead. Here is what I learned:
The school system performed water tests from 2009 to 2012 and found that at least 88 schools exceeded EPA allowable lead levels. (Read the list of “Prince George’s County Public Schools Fixtures that are Valved Off” which was sent to me from PGCPS). The majority of schools with lead contamination are elementary schools.
As of December 2016, the school system had not done anything to remediate this other than simply to turn off faucets in the majority of these schools.
At first, PGCPS told me that they were fixing the lead problem. I was sent a document titled “PGCPS Lead in Water Program” that explained a four-phase plan to fix the lead problem. This document said that a Request for Proposals (RFP) had been submitted “to remediate the remaining classroom water fountains and sinks throughout the system.” This was “Phase Four” of the plan.
You can imagine my surprise to learn that in fact the information PGCPS had sent me was not accurate. When I asked PGCPS to share the details of the “Phase Four” plan, they responded on October 7, 2016 with an email saying that they had made a mistake...
https://pgcabs.org/2017/03/10/what-i-learned-about-lead-in-the-water-in-prince-georges-county-schools/
Monday, March 20, 2017
Maryland delegate's effort to allow child abuse lawsuits clears hurdle
The first two times he did that, the Charles County Democrat saw his proposal die in a House committee without even being called for a vote.
He said it was a relief after repeatedly giving painful testimony.
"It's a huge accomplishment. Also a huge weight," Wilson said. "To expose yourself like that is so painful."
For the bill to advance, two powerful opponents had to be won over: the Catholic Church and Del. Joseph F. Vallario Jr., chairman of the Judiciary Committee. Their concerns were satisfied when the bill was amended to make it more for difficult for victims older than 25 to win damages in civil lawsuits...
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/politics/bs-md-abuse-statute-20170315-story.html
Sunday, March 19, 2017
High schooler blocked from playing basketball because of her hijab
At Watkins Mills HS in Gaithersburg, story from reporter Megan Friedman. Watkins Mills, according to their website, is "An International Baccalaureate World School."
Je'Nan Hayes, a junior at Watkins Mill High School in Maryland, had played an entire season of basketball for her high school—until March 3. That's when she was blocked from playing, all because she was wearing a hijab.
And:
"I felt discriminated against and I didn't feel good at all," she told the newspaper. "If it was some reason like my shirt wasn't the right color or whatever, then I'd be like, 'okay.' But because of my religion it took it to a whole different level, and I just felt that it was not right at all."
Full story here.
Je'Nan Hayes, a junior at Watkins Mill High School in Maryland, had played an entire season of basketball for her high school—until March 3. That's when she was blocked from playing, all because she was wearing a hijab.
And:
"I felt discriminated against and I didn't feel good at all," she told the newspaper. "If it was some reason like my shirt wasn't the right color or whatever, then I'd be like, 'okay.' But because of my religion it took it to a whole different level, and I just felt that it was not right at all."
Full story here.
Reminder: Students who raped classmate were allowed back at school
Gazette: Students who raped classmate were allowed back at school: Parents' Coalition of Montgomery County, Maryland
Friday, March 17, 2017
Exclusive: Kagan, Zucker and MCEA employee Pinsky vote No to Guidelines for Digital Devices in Classrooms #progressive #AppleBallot
From the voting record we learn that two Montgomery County Senators voted against moving this bill forward.
We also see that on the same committee with Montgomery County Senators Cheryl Kagan and Craig Zucker is Senator Paul Pinsky. While Pinsky technically represents citizens in Prince George's County, he is also a long time employee of our Montgomery County teachers union.
Does Kagan and Zucker voting against this bill along with Pinsky signal that our local teachers' union (MCEA - Apple Ballot) has secretly put the kibosh on this bill, thus killing it for all public school children in the state of Maryland?
If anyone can get Senator Cheryl Kagan or Senator Craig Zucker to explain their NO vote on this bill, please let us know their explanation.
As a reminder, the national organization Campaign for Commercial-Free Childhood supported this bill.
http://parentscoalitionmc.blogspot.com/2017/02/campaign-for-commercial-free-childhood.html
Two Male Rockville High School Students Charged with Rape of Female High School Student
Detectives from the Montgomery County Police Department – Special
Victims Investigations Division (SVID) have arrested and charged two
Rockville High School students, Jose O. Montano, age 17, of an unconfirmed address, and Henry E. Sanchez, age 18, of Bel Pre Road in the Aspen Hill area,
with the rape of a juvenile female Rockville High School student. The
rape occurred at the school yesterday during school hours. Montano has
been charged as an adult in this crime.
On Thursday, March 16, school administrators notified Montgomery County Police that a juvenile female student reported to them that she had been sexually assaulted in a boy’s bathroom by two male students. SVID detectives were notified of this report and began an investigation...
http://www.mymcpnews.com/2017/03/17/two-male-high-school-students-charged-with-rape-of-female-high-school-student/
http://www.wmal.com/2017/03/17/wjla-tvs-kevin-lewis-on-the-rape-of-a-14-year-old-girl-at-rockville-high-school/
On Thursday, March 16, school administrators notified Montgomery County Police that a juvenile female student reported to them that she had been sexually assaulted in a boy’s bathroom by two male students. SVID detectives were notified of this report and began an investigation...
http://www.mymcpnews.com/2017/03/17/two-male-high-school-students-charged-with-rape-of-female-high-school-student/
http://www.wmal.com/2017/03/17/wjla-tvs-kevin-lewis-on-the-rape-of-a-14-year-old-girl-at-rockville-high-school/
Senate Committee Votes NO to Protecting Students from Eye Damage
Ever wonder how much screentime your kids have at school? Chromebooks
and ipads, Promethean boards, videos.... We can monitor screentime at
home, but we have no idea what goes on in class.
Today's
instruction requires computers. "Computer literacy" is baked into
Curriculum 2.0. Substitute teachers reportedly let kids play "computer
games" for an entire period. Indoor recess = videos. Homework requires
computers.
Just Google "retinal damage," "digital addiction," and "wifi radiation" for why this is a problem.
What can you do? Maryland is on the verge of creating legislation that gives schools common sense guidelines for device time. Please pick up the phone today and call our Montgomery County legislators.
"What do I say?" "I'm a Montgomery County parent and I want to voice my support for HB866 and SB1089." Honestly, that's all.
Phone calls are best, but here are email addresses:
Senator Zucker
Senator Kagan
410-841-3134
Delegate Kaiser
410-841-3036
Delegate Luedtke
410-841-3110
410-841-3134
Delegate Kaiser
410-841-3036
Delegate Luedtke
410-841-3110
Thursday, March 16, 2017
BOE wants 180 Days of School Start/Finish to Include Embeded Teacher Professional Days
School Board Says Hogan Mandate Cut Into Teacher Planning, Training Time: Governor’s order that classes end by June 15 had “unintended consequences”
... funds would be used to provide a 4.5 percent pay raise for all college employees
Montgomery College President Asks County Council To Fully Fund Its Budget Request To Pay for Staff Raises: Leggett’s proposed budget for the college falls about million short, according to the school’s president
In Finland, Kids Learn Computer Science Without Computers
The Finns are pretty bemused by Americans’ preoccupation
with whether to put iPads in every classroom. If a tablet would enhance
learning, great. If it wouldn’t, skip it. Move on. The whole thing is a
little tilting-at-windmills, anyway.
That was the
gist of the conversation one recent morning at the Finnish Embassy in
Washington, D.C., where diplomats and experts gathered to celebrate the
country’s education accomplishments as Finland turns 100. And Americans
could stand to take notes. (Yes, from Finland—again.)
Coding and programming are now part of the curriculum in the
Scandinavian country, and they’re subjects kids tackle from a young age.
But unlike in some parts of the United States where learning to code is
an isolated skill, Finnish children are taught to think of coding and
programming more as tools to be explored and utilized across multiple
subjects...
Wednesday, March 15, 2017
Popular Online Database Leads School Kids to Porn
https://protectyoungminds.org/2017/02/23/educational-library-portal-porn/
Tuesday, March 14, 2017
Leggett not supportive of funding artificial turf fields. ICB drops oversight of MCPS spending of funds.
From the minutes of the March 2016, meeting of the Interagency Coordinating Board (ICB) the public learns that the ICB has a fund balance of an unknown amount, and that County Executive Ike Leggett was not supportive of spending any of that fund balance on artificial turf fields.
The public also learns that at this meeting the ICB decided to drop reviewing how MCPS spends ICB funds allocated to schools. Instead, the ICB voted to transfer that oversight to the already overworked MCPS internal auditors. The ICB decided that MCPS would now be on the "honor system" to spend ICB funds as per policy.
The public also learns that at this meeting the ICB decided to drop reviewing how MCPS spends ICB funds allocated to schools. Instead, the ICB voted to transfer that oversight to the already overworked MCPS internal auditors. The ICB decided that MCPS would now be on the "honor system" to spend ICB funds as per policy.
Monday, March 13, 2017
MCPS Does Not Report Class Fees to County Council #illegal #extortion #slushfund #appropriation #altfacts
Please ask a question:
*
Where in the MCPS Operating budget is the money collected from curricular fees accounted for?
Thank you. |
Ms. Sartucci,
Thank you for the question regarding
curricular fees. Every school provides without charge the textbooks,
supplementary readers, audio/visual aids, stationery, and materials of
instruction necessary to teach the curriculum or
needed by the students to demonstrate mastery of the curriculum through
the MCPS Operating budget. The decision to charge curricular fees for
designated courses is determined at the school level. An allowable
maximum fee has been established for each designated
course and must be specific to the course and cost of the item(s)
(rounded to the nearest dollar for ease of accounting)—no overcharge may
be assessed to paying students to offset the costs absorbed by the
school for students who are unable to pay. Course
related fees are collected by the school and deposited to the school’s
Independent Activity Funds account. These fees are not accounted for as
part of the Operating Budget revenue since they are managed at the
school level. If you have any additional questions
regarding course related fees, please contact Dr. Arronza M. LaBatt,
Executive Director of School Support and Improvement at 301-279-3994 or via
Arronza_M_LaBatt@mcpsmd.org
Nancy Austin
Budget Unit
Carver Educational Services Center
850 Hungerford Drive, Room 170
Rockville, MD 20850
Nancy_Austin@mcpsmd.org
301-279-3547
Budget Unit
Carver Educational Services Center
850 Hungerford Drive, Room 170
Rockville, MD 20850
Nancy_Austin@mcpsmd.org
301-279-3547
Friday, March 10, 2017
...out of some 12 counselors at Blair, only one is Spanish-speaking...
https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2017/02/the-non-white-student-behind-the-white-picket-fence/518097/
Thursday, March 9, 2017
Medical Alert: Eyestrain Common for Kids Staring at Screens Too Long
...“Eyestrain is a common complaint for kids who are really looking at screens too much,” says Dr. Scott Krugman of Medstar Franklin Square Hospital.
Eyestrain is a serious concern, along with musculoskeletal discomforts that include neck and back pain and carpal tunnel syndrome. But there’s another troubling concern says Franklin Square Medstar department of pediatrics chairman: lack of sleep...
http://baltimore.cbslocal.com/2017/02/24/medical-alert-eyestrain-common-for-kids-staring-at-screens-too-long/
Wednesday, March 8, 2017
Montgomery County is unusual, if not unique, in creating such a program.
His teacher asked him an easy yes-or-no question at one point, and as an aide held a keyboard in front of him, Mike typed the word “Yes” on the iPad, followed by a touch of sarcasm: “Duh.”
Mike is not able to speak. He points at letters on a laminated alphabet board or types on a keyboard that an aide holds. Nationally, most students who can’t talk are in self-contained classrooms or autism programs or, like Mike used to be, in a separate school for students with severe disabilities.
But five years ago, Mike and his mother traveled to Texas to explore a novel communication technique called Rapid Prompting Method that led to what his family describes as a breakthrough. About a year later, he joined a new pilot program in Montgomery County Public Schools for autistic students who rely on keyboards and communication partners...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/social-issues/parents-of-autistic-children-are-pushing-schools-to-allow-controversial-communication-techniques/2017/02/28/1bd33da2-ed6a-11e6-9973-c5efb7ccfb0d_story.html?utm_term=.1df8072f08f7