The Maryland State Department of Education has been saying for some time now that the School year 2021-2022 Report Card results will be available by the end of February 2023.
https://reportcard.msde.maryland.gov/Graphs/#/ReportCards/ReportCardSchool/1/E/1/15/XXXX/2019
As of 9:00 p.m. on February 28, 2023, the report card results have not been posted on the MSDE website. The most recent data is from 2018-2019.
ANNAPOLIS, Md. —
Child sex abuse survivors are pushing a bill that would eliminate the statute of limitations to bring a civil case against an abuser, but they're concerned about potential delays in the courts if the bill is passed.
For the first time in years since similar legislation has been introduced, there is a political will in Annapolis to eliminate the statute of limitations and to repeal a provision giving the Catholic Church sweeping immunity from sex-abuse lawsuits...
Child sex abuse victims fear delays in courts even if bill passes (wbaltv.com)
According to the lawsuit, the company’s employees served as marketing advisers to a number of opioid companies, helped to offset the “emotional messages” from families of overdose victims and encouraged Purdue to “turbocharge” opioid sales.
The county’s lawsuit, which was filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, was announced in a news release Thursday.
County Executive Marc Elrich called the actions of McKinsey “immoral, inhumane, and unconscionable” and said the company needs to be held “accountable.”..
Montgomery Co. sues consulting firm McKinsey for helping ‘turbocharge’ opioid sales - WTOP News
Circuit Judge Robert Taylor presided over secret proceedings Tuesday, with attorneys representing the attorney general’s office, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore, an anonymous group of people named in the report, and two separate groups of abuse survivors.
Taylor issued his written ruling Friday, directing the attorney general’s office to prepare a heavily-redacted report for public release...
Baltimore judge orders release of redacted Catholic church sexual abuse report – Baltimore Sun
Since the initial decision, there have been developments:
On Feb. 13, Principal Joshua Munsey submitted an appeal to the Maryland Public Secondary School Athletic Association (MPSSAA). it was denied after being filed by the MPSSAA which was confirmed to myMCM by Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) Director of Public Information, Jessica Baxter. She says the appeal was reviewed in conjunction with the MPSSAA handbook...
Surprise! KID Museum is not the only science program in Montgomery County. Here's a company that actually takes the science directly to the classrooms, no field trip required.
What a treat for 2nd grade! In-school field trip with @MadScienceGroup #sublimation #notmelting #dryice #smokeybubbles @MCPSCommunitySc @MCPS @MCPSEspanol pic.twitter.com/GeZV1Mu3U6
— Vicmarie Arocho (@HighlandES_CSL) February 16, 2023
In 2019, Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) was awarded a grant from the State of Maryland Department of Environment. The grant was part of funding from the Volkswagen Settlement and was very specific as to the amount of the award and as to how the funding was to be used. See image below for specifics of grant.
MCPS was to replace one diesel school bus with one new electric school bus and one associated charging station. The electric school bus was to run a very specific route.
But MCPS never claimed the grant award and the money has been on hold for years.
This week, Superintendent Monifa McKnight has announced that MCPS has received the grant but is not going to spend it as directed by the Maryland grant award.
Instead of using the grant to purchase one electric school bus and one charging station, Superintendent McKnight wants to turn the $349,393 grant award over to a company that does not have a contractual relationship with MCPS. In fact, the company isn't even registered to do business in Maryland.
Just last month Superintendent McKnight tried to funnel money to this company and after this blog post the resolution was removed from the Board of Education's agenda without discussion.
This month Superintendent McKnight wants to give this MD Grant of $349,393 to a company called Highland Electric Fleets. Highland Electric Fleets does not have a contract to supply electric school buses to MCPS and is not even registered to do business in Maryland.
The Board of Education actually has a Transportation Equipment Services Agreement (TESA) with a company called HET MCPS, LLC.
Gaithersburg resident Etienne Kabongo, 67, was found guilty by a jury on Thursday, Feb. 9 to multiple counts of rape and sexual abuse of a minor after one of his victims came forward and several other victims were identified during the investigation.
A driver for Montgomery County Public Schools, officials said that one of Kabongo’s victims came forward following an incident in July 2018, launching an investigation by the Montgomery County Department of Police.
During that investigation, police say that by using school bus surveillance footage, they were able to identify multiple incidents involving three additional students...
Etienne Kabongo, of Gaithersburg, pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree rape and two counts of sexual abuse of a minor. All of the female victims rode the bus he drove for the school system.
One victim, a 12-year-old girl, came forward after Kabongo sexually assaulted her in July 2018, police said. Kabongo assaulted the girl while the school bus attendant got off the bus to help with another student, and a school bus camera captured video of the assault, according to police.
During their investigation, police discovered more surveillance video of multiple incidents involving three additional victims.
Two of the girls were minors at the time of the assaults, while the other two were both 18 years old...
Kabongo, 62, pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree rape and two counts of sexual abuse of a minor after an investigation revealed he sexually abused the four girls who rode the bus he drove in 2018. Court docs mentioned two of the girls were minors at the time and the other two were both 18 years old...
A group of volunteer court observers across the country is coming together to launch a new national network to observe bail review hearings and other legal proceedings. Join Courtwatch PG director Carmen Johnson and Grammy-winning artist Fiona Apple, a volunteer court observer in Prince George’s County, Md., to discuss their push for more transparency and accountability in courtrooms nationwide.
From The Sentinel, full story here. Written by Dani Klein. Feature Writer Dani Klein is a member of Whitman’s Speech team, which functions separately from Whitman Debate. Online Editor-in-Chief Ethan Schenker was a member of Whitman’s Public Forum Debate team from 2019 to 2022.
Two students on Whitman’s Debate team allegedly made a series of antisemitic comments about their Jewish teammates during an off-campus team trip in mid-December. The allegations were first reported on Sunday by The Washington Post, which had obtained a January email that a student team member sent to the team’s parent board.
According to the email, which was also obtained by The Black & White, the two students allegedly joked about using challah to lure Jewish people — including specific Debate team members — to the secluded Andaman Islands and burn them at the stake. The email reported that the two students referenced burning Jewish people while playing Kanye West music and “mosque music.” None of the Jewish team members named nor MCPS staff members were present at the time of the incident.
Following the report, school administrators asked members of the Debate team not to speak to their peers about the incident and the report’s contents. MCPS’ Hate Bias Incident Reporting procedures outline that as part of “Interim Measures,” administrators may place “restrictions on contact” between the students involved in the conflict during an active investigation.
And:
Administrators publicly acknowledged the alleged antisemitic statements for the first time in an email to the Whitman community yesterday afternoon, nearly a month after the original complaint and subsequent investigation in partnership with the debate leadership.
Bethesda Beat a.k.a. MoCo360 is reporting that City Manager Jamal Fox has resigned. Like many of their stories, they have largely just rewritten a press release without doing any investigation.
https://moco360.media/2023/02/20/takoma-park-city-manager-resigns-amid-change-in-elected-leadership/
From the article:
Fox had previously been City Administrator of Camas, Washington, according to his LinkedIn profile. A welcome letter from Fox that Takoma Park posted in May 2021 did not mention a finite term but quoted him as saying he and his wife, “saw Takoma Park as a beautiful community that shared our family values and where we could raise our family. My family and I look forward to connecting with you in the community.”MoCo360 overlooked the fact that upon relocating from Washington state, Mr. Fox promptly purchased a home in southern Prince George's County, specifically in Upper Marlboro, a 45 minute drive from Takoma Park. From all appearances, his choice of Prince George's County was not based on affordability, as the purchase price of the home was $850,000.
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| Courtesy of Prince George's County Land Records Department |
AGENDA
Briefing:
Due to the impact of construction activities, Poolesville HS will be closing at 1pm. All after-school activities are canceled. @PHSathletics @MrCarothersPHS
— Poolesville AD (@PHSFalcons18) February 14, 2023
Dear Mr. Munsey:
On Monday, February 13, 2023, MPSSAA Appeals Committee held a hearing to review your appeal of the penalties imposed upon your school’s wrestling team in the recent case involving the use of an ineligible player.
Mr. Andy Warner, MPSSAA Executive Director, provided opening comments and documents for the committee. The committee then heard testimony from Dr. Jeff Sullivan, Director, Systemwide Athletics, Montgomery County Public Schools and from yourself and two parents.
After careful consideration and discussion of the details of this incident, the committee voted to uphold the COMAR 13A.06.03.05A(1)(a) and (b) penalties of declaring a forfeit of all games in which there was a violation and declaring the team not eligible for championship honors for the current school year, imposed by MCPS. The committee determined that there was sufficient evidence that not only were your coaches promoting a culture in which sportsmanship and fair play takes a back seat to winning but there was also evidence that the members of the team knew that the athlete was not eligible to be on the team. There was also evidence that your school failed to notice that a student mentioned in its social media accounts as winning a tournament was not an MCPS student. The committee determined that the severity of the violation justifies the penalty imposed. While wrestling does pose a unique situation due to it being both a team and individual sport, the whole team shall be held accountable just as with any other sport where team members are not able to play in the post-season due to a violation.
In accordance with COMAR 13A.06.03.05D(9), a member MPSSAA school, student or coach may appeal the decision of the MPSSAA Appeals committee to the State Superintendent of Schools within 30 days after the receipt of the Appeals Committee decision. The State Superintendent of Schools, upon examination of the facts, may, in his or her discretion, allow the appeal and appoint a special committee of three local school superintendents of schools to hear the appeal. The committee of superintendents may deny or uphold the appeal or modify the penalty.
Sincerely,
Kevin C. Hook, JD
MPSSAA Appeals Committee Representative, District IV
Cc: Mr. R Andrew Warner, Executive Director of the MPSSAA
Dr. Jeffrey Sullivan, Director of Systemwide Athletics
Last week, survivors and advocates had the opportunity to speak with Governor Wes Moore at the State House. He listened and shared his support for passage of The Child Victims Act.
The Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee will hold a hearing on our bill (HB1/ SB686) THIS Thursday, February 23 at 1PM. If you are planning to submit testimony please review the steps below and be certain you are able to access the Maryland General Assembly website to upload your information in the correct time window. Need help? Contact information is below for Claudia and Susan, both are available to help.
Are you ready to take action?
No Athletic Trainer at Poolesville High School. @MCPSAthletics and @MCPS has failed to uphold their own policy! If Dr Mcknight or Mr Sullivan need to figure out where Poolesville is, use google maps
— RL Sosna (@afcbsupporter) February 18, 2023
@MCPSAthletics
— RL Sosna (@afcbsupporter) February 18, 2023
Once again an injury during a poolesville sporting event. THERE ISNT ONE!!!! EVEN THOUGH @MCPS states on their website that there WILL be one at ALL sporting events.
MCPS website:
WASHINGTON — A D.C. rec center playground used by a nearby elementary school was closed Thursday after elevated levels of lead were discovered.
In an email, DC Public Schools alerted parents that one of the playgrounds at Parkview Rec Center tested high for lead and it had been closed. The playground, attached to Bruce-Monroe Elementary School, sits on rubber mats...
Due to the impact of construction activities, Poolesville HS will be closing at 1pm. All after-school activities are canceled. @PHSathletics @MrCarothersPHS
— Poolesville AD (@PHSFalcons18) February 14, 2023
School Restrooms
Safety measures for school restrooms are currently being examined with input from students, staff and parents. Our restrooms must be safe places for students and cannot be places where activities that violate our code of conduct, such as drug and tobacco use, occur.
Schools are making sure restrooms are checked regularly and monitored throughout the day so they can continue to be available for use as intended. Latches are being installed on exterior restroom doors in secondary schools to ensure doors remain open. During transition periods and more unstructured times, like before school, after school and lunch periods, schools may limit access to designated restrooms. Staff are increasing the frequency of their visual monitoring and checks inside restrooms throughout the school day, in between class periods and during lunch periods. These measures, along with additional support from the Department of Systemwide Safety and Emergency, are being implemented to enhance the level of security students feel. Schools will continue to keep this as a priority.
Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) (montgomeryschoolsmd.org)
The final version of the group announced last week shocked council members, who received no advance notice of the specific plans despite holding oversight powers over the planning board...
Montgomery County leaders agree something must be done about planning - The Washington Post
The Maryland Child Victims Act of 2023 will give survivors access to justice and help protect children from sexual abuse by bringing predators to light.
About The Child Victims Act of 2023
Read the bills HB001 and SB686.
Legislative Updates
Email justice4mdsurvivors if you would like to help.
Call To Action
What are The Child Victims of 2023 Act Goals?
Arm trusted adults with information to protect children
Shift the cost of abuse from victims to those who caused the harm
Provide a path to justice for victims ready to come forward
Identify Hidden Predators
Disclose facts of sex abuse epidemic to the public
The 2023 Child Victims Act :
It’s important to understand the key elements of the bill:
Links in this PDF shown below.
February 2023 Statement Fro... by Parents' Coalition of Montg...
Paragraph with hyperlinks:
...The penalties handed down to the coaching staff also seem arbitrary and capricious. For
example, we are aware of this incident in MCPS where football coaches actively incited a
physical altercation, and were punished with a one game suspension; and of this incident
where it took a full 15 months to obtain a resignation from a football coach whose players
sexually assaulted fellow team mates. It is quite difficult for us to see any consistent
application of the rules at a county level, or to understand the reasoning around these
disparate treatments. It appears that a technical infringement has been managed with far
more alacrity and severity than incidents that have directly jeopardized students’ safety and
well-being. We are looking for an explanation of why Coach Ellis was targeted for such a
comparatively harsh response...
Silver Spring International Middle School, (300 block of Wayne Ave in Silver Spring) a student brought a knife & brass knuckles to school and tried to hand it off to someone else. The two weapons were taken by the school’s administrators. #mcps @MCPS @CordellTraffic @alanhenney pic.twitter.com/XNEjrMm4z5
— MoCo PG News (@MoCoPGNews) February 8, 2023
