Schoolhouse Limbo: How Low Will Educators Go to 'Better' Grades?

Maryland’s new education chief, Carey Wright, an old-school champion of rigorous standards, is pushing back against efforts in other states to boost test scores by essentially lowering their expectations of students.

States, including Oklahoma and Wisconsin, are making it easier for students to demonstrate on annual assessments that they are proficient in math and English after a decade of declining test scores nationwide. By redesigning the assessments and lowering the so-called “cut scores” that separate achievement levels such as basic, proficient, and advanced, several states have recently posted dramatic increases in proficiency, a key indicator of school quality. 

Wright warns that lowering the bar on proficiency can create the public impression that schools are improving and students are learning more when, in fact, that’s not the case. 

“You can make yourself look better to the public by lowering your cut scores,” Wright, the Maryland state superintendent of schools, told RealClearInvestigations in an interview. “But then you are not really measuring proficiency. My position is no, no, no. Parents and teachers need to know if their children are proficient or not.”..

https://www.realclearinvestigations.com/articles/2024/11/12/schoolhouse_limbo_how_low_will_educators_go_to_better_grades_1070484.html

Maryland won’t force struggling readers to repeat third grade [Maryland will not be Carey Wright's Mississippi]

After getting flooded with public comments, the Maryland State Department of Education is softening the most controversial part of its proposed literacy policy.

In July, the education department drafted a mandate for third graders to be held back if they aren’t reading at grade level. The policy mirrored one Maryland’s State Superintendent Carey Wright introduced in Mississippi, which preceded a rise in fourth grade reading scores on a national test from second-to-last to the middle of the pack.

But it seems Maryland won’t be taking that exact approach. In a revised draft of the policy, parents have gained the right to challenge a school district’s decision to make a child repeat third grade...

https://www.thebaltimorebanner.com/education/k-12-schools/maryland-literacy-policy-third-grade-3DYNYLJ3YJFW3HNHORGVCBWQEM/

Not everyone on board is on board with proposed literacy policy to hold back third graders

 Story by William J. Ford in Maryland Matters. Full story here.

Maryland State Board of Education sets public comment period on policy at August meeting, with eye toward voting in September

Some members balked Tuesday as the Maryland State Board of Education reviewed a proposed literacy policy that could lead to third grade students with reading difficulties being held back, with one calling it “harmful to children.”

Board member Susan Getty, an educator of 40 years that includes 35 years teaching prekindergarten and kindergarten, said the policy is “not a viable option and harmful to children. I don’t consider it on the list of best practice in literacy.”

During the nearly 90-minute discussion, board member Joan Mele-McCarthy said more research is needed on the policy. She mentioned that the National Association of School Psychologists does not support retention policies, especially those strictly based on test scores.

And:

The board said it will hold a special comment period on just the literacy policy during next month’s regular board meeting. The goal is to vote on the policy by September, but when it would actually go into effect remains unknown.

"Wright, who declined an interview request, will now have responsibility for making the plan work."

Former Mississippi schools chief aims to repeat learning ‘miracle’ in Maryland

https://www.marylandmatters.org/2023/12/19/former-mississippi-schools-chief-aims-to-repeat-learning-miracle-in-maryland/

MCPS History: The curious case of John Q. Porter [Carey Wright took John Q. Porter to Mississippi when she became State Superintendent] @MdPublicSchools

"Federation Corner" column 

The Montgomery Sentinel - January 17, 2008 

The curious case of John Q. Porter 

by Wayne Goldstein

To many in this county, the name John Q. Porter may be no more recognizable to them than John Q. Public, although Mr. Porter has had and continues to have an extremely interesting life compared to Mr. Public. 2000 was a big year for Mr. Porter. In August 2000, 400 guests watched as he was chosen for a second term as chairman of the Chamber Workforce Corporation's (CWC), a merger of the Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce and the county Workforce Development Corp., a job training agency. Problems in the Chamber organization before the merger had become more serious after the merger took place in June 1999, a few months before Mr. Porter first took the helm of CWC. These problems then became so severe that the county government stepped in and broke up the merger in October 2001, taking charge of the job training agency itself, shortly after Mr. Porter completed his second term.

In March 2000, Mr. Porter was hired by Superintendent Weast as interim head of the schools' Office of Global Access Technology (OGAT) after his predecessor was fired because a $4 million computerized student information system did not work properly. Weast was so pleased with Mr. Porter's performance that he soon made him the permanent chief information officer of OGAT. In July 2004, Weast also made him the new deputy superintendent for strategic technologies and accountability

Events continued to go very well for Mr. Porter, such that on April 26, 2007, it was announced: "The Oklahoma City Public Schools (OKCPS) has successfully concluded its national search for a new superintendent with the selection today of John Q. Porter, an accomplished national leader recognized for his breakthrough initiatives in the use of technology to transform student learning, improve academic performance and increase accountability." Cliff Hudson, Chairman of the OKCPS Board of Education, stated: "John is the right person at the right time and his broad experience in law, business and education will be of great value in his new position with our district."

Mr. Porter started his new job on July 2, 2007. Barely six months later, on January 7, 2008: "After a two-hour executive session, the Oklahoma City school board voted to suspend its superintendent immediately with pay pending an investigation into accusations against him. The board voted to appoint [an] acting superintendent until an open hearing is held on Feb. 6. ...The allegations include that Dr. John Q. Porter improperly agreed to a $365,000 contract for the school district without getting bids. [He] also took about $2,400 from the school district's activity fund for personal expenses and was reimbursed about $5,000 for personal air travel."..

fedcorner20080117.pdf (montgomerycivic.org)

Report: Mississippi State Department of Education under Carey Wright did not adhere to State Statute Requiring Office of Dropout Prevention @mcps @mocoboe @MdPublicSchools

A Forgotten Program: A Review of the Mississippi Department of 

Education’s Office of Dropout Prevention

The Office of Dropout Prevention has not existed according to statute in over a decade 

Key Conclusions

The Office of Dropout Prevention (ODP) was statutorily mandated to be created by the Mississippi Department of 

Education (MDE) in 2006 to reduce the dropout rate. Auditors determined that:

1. MDE has not adhered to Miss. Code Ann. § 37-13-80 since 2009;

2. MDE maintained inapplicable graduation rate benchmarks when reporting progress to the State Board of 

Education;

3. MDE has been apathetic regarding oversight of a coordinated initiative to reduce the dropout rate;

4. 73% of local school districts’ dropout prevention plans do not meet requirements set forth by MDE;

5. 49% of local school districts’ dropout prevention programs are not being monitored by MDE;

6. 71% of local school districts’ dropout prevention programs are not evidence-based; and

7. MDE does not monitor whether evidence-based programs are implemented as designed to ensure effectiveness.

To reach these conclusions, auditors conducted surveys of local school districts, interviewed officials at MDE and local school districts, analyzed financial and program records, and reviewed internal and leading professional practices, as well as peer-reviewed journal articles regarding dropout prevention...

2020_Office-of-Dropout-Prevention_Report.pdf (ms.gov)

2017: Feds seek fraud probe of Mississippi State Education Department programs [under Carey Wright] @MdPublicSchools

The federal government is calling for a forensic audit — an effort to look for potential fraud — of two of the Mississippi Department of Education’s programs, according to State Auditor Stacey Pickering’s office.

Read more at: https://www.oxfordeagle.com/2017/04/27/feds-seek-fraud-probe-of-state-education-department-programs/

Mississippi Lowered Standards to Show Higher Graduation Rates under State Superintendent Carey Wright [Now Maryland State Superintendent] @MdPublicSchools

The Mississippi Department of Education just published a 79-page document breaking down nearly every aspect of the state’s graduation rate. Rates by district, by students with disabilities, by race and gender, it’s all in there — with one notable exception.

The state does not publish how many graduates did not pass the four subject-area tests, which was a requirement to get a diploma before 2014.

It’s easy to guess why: Publicizing that data would shine a light on the reason why graduation rates have steadily improved since then: lower standards.

The Department of Education did provide that information to me when I requested it, as it presumably did as well to the Associated Press, which reported about it. The state said 23,586 graduates (79.8 percent) passed all four subject area tests.

That means about 6,000 students who would not have met the standards for graduation before 2014 did in 2018.

What impact has that had on graduation rates? In 2014, the state’s rate was 74.5 percent. According to the numbers for the class of 2018 recently released, the rate has risen to 84 percent.

But if those nearly 6,000 students who didn’t pass the subject-area tests would not have received a diploma, the graduation rate would have fallen to 67 percent in 2018. Now some of them would have tried harder to pass if they didn’t have alternatives to graduating and would have buckled down and passed. That would probably boost the graduation rate back to around where it was in 2014. So in real terms of what students have actually learned before leaving high school, nothing has changed all that much.

Yet state leaders continue to give themselves a pat on the back for the so-called improvements.

Mississippi Superintendent of Education Carey Wright, the highest-paid in the nation, issued a laudatory press release saying, “Students, parents, teachers and administrators should be proud of the class of 2018’s significant achievement. I congratulate our school districts for helping students complete high school, prepare for college, postsecondary training, the military and the workforce.”

Gov. Phil Bryant boasted about the highest graduation rate in Mississippi history during his State of the State address, and Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves, who has the inside track toward becoming the next governor, has made it a staple in his campaign.

They are all, of course, well aware of the lower standards. It just benefits both the Democratic-leaning state Department of Education and the Republican-controlled state government to make a deal where they can both take credit for “improving education” while turning a blind eye toward the truth.

In fact, the subject-area tests are easy and should be a breeze for any student truly qualified to possess a high school diploma. Dumbing down the standards where students can get around those tests through a variety of means serves only to further ingrain the “everyone-gets-a-trophy” mentality — which conservatives like Bryant and Reeves love to rail against, except when it benefits them.

I don’t mean to be negative about the state’s public education system, which I support and believe is the key to a better Mississippi. And certainly administrators and politicians can’t be blamed for a culture that traditionally does not value education; they’ve been trying to change that mindset for years with only minimal success.

Yet someone needs to point out to the taxpayers, parents and employers that the alleged gains in graduation rates are mostly fiction...

Grad inflation | The Northside Sun

MIssissippi State Auditor alleges Department of Education manipulated graduation rates [State Superintendent Carey Wright now Maryland State Superintendent] @MdPublicSchools

For the past decade, the Mississippi Department of Education manipulated graduation rates and has been “apathetic” about taking initiative to reduce the dropout rate, an investigation conducted by the state auditor’s office found. The Mississippi Department of Education denies these assertions.

“Mississippi’s teachers, parents, and administrators have worked together to improve our graduation rate over the past few years, and that’s a commendable, important achievement,” State Auditor Shad White said in a release. “But some of that improvement in the graduation rate, is just due to a change in the way MDE calculated the graduation rate. You have to be honest about it.”

The 17-page performance audit claimed the department didn’t accurately report graduation rates to the Mississippi State Board of Education or create the Office of Dropout Prevention, which was tasked with overseeing the statewide dropout prevention plan and increasing graduation rates...

State Auditor alleges Department of Education manipulated graduation rates - Mississippi Today

2019 History: State with lowest per-pupil spending has highest-paid state superintendent [Former MCPS Special Ed Director]

State with lowest per-pupil spending has highest-paid state superintendent [Former MCPS Special Ed Director]

[Former @MCPS Administrator]Carey Wright will lead Maryland schools after superintendent’s departure @MdPublicSchools

The Maryland State Board of Education on Wednesday unanimously appointed Carey Wright, a former schools chief in Mississippi who began her career in Maryland, to serve as interim state superintendent while a national search is conducted to replace the departing Mohammed Choudhury.

Wright is known in the education world as the Mississippi superintendent who raised student reading and math performance in a state that for decades had abysmal results on the National Assessment of Educational Progress, a standardized test sometimes called the “gold standard” of student assessment because it is seen as the most consistent nationally representative measure of U.S. student achievement since the 1990s. She retired from the post in June 2022 and now lives in Baltimore County, according to an interview she gave to Maryland Matters...

 https://wapo.st/3ZLnRH7

2016 History: Mississippi Gets @MCPS Brand Administrators: Carey Wright, John Q. Porter and Elton Stokes @MdPublicSchools

Mississippi Gets MCPS Brand Administrators: Carey Wright, John Q. Porter and Elton Stokes

Mississippi State Board of Education votes to allow hybrid scheduling due to COVID-19

JACKSON, Miss. (WJTV) – On Thursday, the Mississippi State Board of Education (SBE) voted to allow school districts to use hybrid scheduling if needed to minimize the current spread of COVID-19. According to officials, the hybrid scheduling option is available immediately and will extend through March 11, 2022. They said hybrid scheduling enables districts to reduce the number of students in schools each day by scheduling a portion of students to learn online.

The SBE based its decision on COVID-19 infection data from the Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH). The SBE may consider extending the option beyond March 11.

“The Mississippi Department of Education asked the State Board to temporarily allow hybrid scheduling to give school districts that needed it an additional strategy to help educate students safely,” said Dr. Carey Wright [former MCPS Assoc. Superintendent], state superintendent of education...

https://www.wjtv.com/health/coronavirus/mississippi-state-board-of-education-votes-to-allow-hybrid-scheduling-due-to-covid-19/

State with lowest per-pupil spending has highest-paid state superintendent [Former MCPS Special Ed Director]

Former MCPS Director of Special Education Carey Wright in the news. 

JACKSON, Miss. — Mississippi Superintendent of Education Carey Wright is the highest paid state schools chief in the country, according to an analysis by Education Week.

With a salary of $300,000, Wright, who was appointed in 2013, ranked first in the trade publication’s review of state superintendent salaries.

Education Week reported on average state superintendents are paid $174,000.

In a state with one of the nation’s lowest per-pupil spending rates, Wright’s salary stands out as somewhat of an outlier.

That might be partly because of an unofficial precedence set by a former state law mandating that the state education chief’s salary be 90% of what the state’s commissioner of higher education makes.

That law was phased out at the time of Wright’s appointment. And state Board of Education members haven't quite kept up with the trend. Commissioner Glenn Boyce makes $358,312.50, meaning Wright’s salary would have to be $322481.25 in order to align with the former statute...

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2017/09/01/state-lowest-per-pupil-spending-has-highest-paid-state-superintendent/625369001/?fbclid=IwAR15Gxle45vq-wfiYv--YdboZSuweV2znD1Nyan_kH1iu32pY5bIm6w_ZCU

Mississippi Gets MCPS Brand Administrators: Carey Wright, John Q. Porter and Elton Stokes

State Board of Education trims salary of double-dipping CIO

Ten years ago, John Q. Porter told District Administration, a publication aimed at school district administrators, that he liked fine things, expensive clothes, expensive cars and that he collected Rolex watches.
Thanks to a salary ($195,000 per year) as interim chief information officer for the Mississippi Department of Education that is higher than Gov. Phil Bryant’s ($122,160 per year), and several lucrative, single-source contracts totaling more than $293,000 before he was hired by the state, Porter can afford to indulge his hobbies on the taxpayers’ tab.

The Mississippi education administrator’s salary was reduced Tuesday by the state Board of Education meeting in executive session...

http://watchdog.org/266149/mississippi-education-administrator/

Former MCPS Assoc Super Carey Wright Finalist for Charles Co. Superintendent Position

Somehow other public school systems in Maryland can release the names of the finalists for their superintendent positions.  Montgomery County is unable to do this.  Why?

The Board of Education of Charles County has narrowed its field of superintendent candidates to three. Finalists are Kimberly Hill of Charles County Public Schools, Jeanice Swift of Colorado Springs School District 11, and Carey Wright of District of Columbia Public Schools...

Click here for the rest of this blog posting.  By the way, this blog is written by a Board of Education member in Charles County.