Parents at Thurgood Marshall ES were not told that the new ass't. principal was moved from East Silver Spring ES

When MCPS staff told parents at Thurgood Marshall Elementary School they were getting a new assistant principal, MCPS staff did not mention that the person was the same assistant principal implicated in the abuse of the kindergartner at East Silver Spring Elementary School. Dr. Hasson tweeted and wrote the letter below.

Dear Members of the Board of Education:

I am writing to you with concerns about the recent placement of Justine Pfeiffer as the new assistant principal at Thurgood Marshall Elementary School (TMES). As you are likely aware, Ms. Pfeiffer was the assistant principal at East Silver Spring Elementary School in January 2020, when a kindergarten student was berated and handcuffed by police after leaving school grounds. She, among others, have been named in a lawsuit brought by the child’s mother that has garnered international attention (see https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9185349/Mom-sues-cops-handcuffed-verbally-assaulted-son-5-wandered-class.html). According to allegations, neither Ms. Pfeiffer nor any of the other MCPS staff present intervened as the child experienced nearly an hour of verbal and emotional abuse by the officers involved. Ms. Pfeiffer was reportedly present throughout this ordeal. 

Per the Bethesda Beat, Ms. Pfeiffer was placed on administrative leave in April 2021, after the video of the incident surfaced (see: https://bethesdamagazine.com/bethesda-beat/schools/mcps-employee-on-leave-after-watching-police-berate-handcuff-5-year-old/ ). It is unclear if she returned to work at East Silver Spring Elementary School or simply was reassigned to TMES. 

Of note, TMES parents were informed via email on June 30, 2021 that a new assistant principal had been assigned. In the initial email, Ms. Pfeiffer’s name was misspelled and a second email, correcting the misspelling, was sent a few days later. Neither email mentioned her previous school placement, only noting that she has served as an assistant principal for two years and was previously an elementary educator. I have enclosed a screenshot of both of the messages at the end of this letter. In fact, had it not been for Caitlynn Peetz’s reporting, parents at TMES would not have been informed of Ms. Pfeffer’s involvement in the East Silver Spring incident (see https://bethesdamagazine.com/bethesda-beat/schools/administrator-switches-schools-amid-controversy-over-police-treatment-of-boy/ ). This lack of communication with the parents is concerning and certainly does not foster a relationship of trust between staff and parents.  

In addition to concerns regarding her involvement in the incident at East Silver Spring Elementary School in January 2020, I have the following questions/concerns:

1- Does the time on leave count towards her probationary period as a new administrator?

2- What trainings has she participated in in the interim to ensure she understands mandated reporting laws and how to deescalate these situations? Will parents be informed of these trainings? Moreover, is she currently being supervised/mentored to mitigate against a similar event occurring?  

3- Why were TMES parents not informed of Ms. Pfeiffer’s prior placement and her history? 

4- Why is she continuing to work in an administrative capacity when there is an active lawsuit with serious allegations against her and others? 

MCPS is working to reframe the year using a PROSPER 100 model. With PROSPER 100, the first goal is to put students first. Is placing an administrator who is currently named in a civil lawsuit due to an incident that occurred under her watch truly putting students first? Another goal of PROSPER 100 is to reestablish a culture of respect. How does not informing parents of an administrator’s history establish a culture of respect?

As a parent, I request that MCPS reconsider its placement of an administrator, who is currently cited in a civil lawsuit due to actions that occurred in/around an MCPS building, at another school. Moreover, MCPS needs to be more transparent with its communication with parents. One of the reasons I love TMES is that it is an accepting community. I am sure had this transition been handled differently, such as with the community being informed of Ms. Pfeiffer’s placement, given a chance to ask questions and express concerns, and told of the trainings she has participated in to mitigate the risk of a similar incident happening again, we would have been at least open to the placement. However, this placement was done in secrecy and without informing parents and other stakeholders. We found out about Ms. Pfeiffer’s history via some investigative reporting by Ms. Peetz rather than being told upfront. Frankly, this is unacceptable and merely serves to support the narrative that MCPS is secretive and no longer making the students a priority.

Do better, MCPS. Be better. It’s time to step up and really put the students first.

Please feel free to contact me at any time if you would like to discuss this matter further.