Sen. Mike Miller Aide will Now Lobby Annapolis for MCPS BOE

On Monday we reported that Board of Education staff member Laura Steinberg was gone. Here is the resume of Ms. Steinberg's replacement.

The Montgomery County Board of Education will now have a former staffer from Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller, Jr.'s office as their in house lobbyist in Annapolis. 

Time to Cut up BOE Staff Assistant Laura Steinberg's MCPS Credit Card

The Board of Education's Staff Assistant Laura Steinberg was one of the many MCPS administrators who has a MCPS credit card.  60 pages of her charges were exposed last year. 

Laura Steinberg has now retired from MCPS.  

40 MCPS Administrator Retirees honored today! Thank you for your leadership and service!👏 pic.twitter.com/fpCa2KxnP1

— Renay Johnson (@blairprincipal) June 18, 2015

BOE Staff Member Campaign Contributions - $250 to Christopher Barclay

Laura Steinberg on left 

Remember the post about the Board of Education staff member who took a picture of a member of the public who attended a BOE retreat?  

That staff member was Laura Steinberg and she is the Board of Educaton's Staff Assistant for Legislative and Inter-Governmental Relations.  

And then there was the interaction after the July 3, 2014, BOE credit card committee meeting where Ms. Steinberg was heard profusely apologizing to a member of the media. (Minute 1:29:00 of video at link. See image at left.) 

Ms. Steinberg also has a MCPS American Express credit card and some of her expense account records have now been made public. 

Here is the public record of Ms. Steinberg's Maryland campaign contributions.  

Note that on April 1, 2014, Ms. Steinberg gave $250 to Christopher Barclay's campaign.

Source:  Maryland Campaign Finance Database

Contribution Date	Contributor Name	Contributor Address	Contribution Amount	Receiving Committee	Filing Period	Office
4/1/2014	Steinberg Laura	-Baltimore Ave Takoma Park MD 20912-4135	$250	Barclay Christopher Friends Of	2014 Gubernatorial Pre-Primary1	Montgomery (County Council )
7/17/2006	Steinberg Laura M.	-Baltimore Avenue Takoma Park MD 20912	$500	Ervin Valerie Friends Of	2006 Gubernatorial Pre-Primary
3/29/2008	Steinberg Laura M	-Baltimore Ave Takoma Park MD 20912	$100	Navarro-Laurent Nancy Friends Of	2008 Special Pre-Primary2
10/5/2006	Steinberg Laura M.	-Baltimore Avenue Takoma Park MD 20912	$150	Leggett Isiah Ike Friends Of	2006 Gubernatorial Pre-General
5/20/2006	Steinberg Laura	-Baltimore Ave Takoma Park MD 20912	$150	Navarro-Laurent Nancy Friends Of	2006 Gubernatorial Pre-Primary
4/5/2009	Steinberg Laura M	-Baltimore Ave Takoma Park MD 20912	$ 50	Navarro-Laurent Nancy Friends Of	2009 Special Pre-Primary2

Exclusive Video: BOE Credit Card Committee - Pat O'Neill "These are adults. They should know - Obviously, in these last couple of days, I question that..."

The Parents' Coalition has exclusive video from the July 3, 2014, off-camera Board of Education committee meeting to discuss Board members' use of MCPS credit cards. Documents reviewed at that meeting can be found on the Board of Education website at this link.

At minute 20 the BOE committee is discussing Board members attending conferences and whether or not they need pre-approval to attend a conference.

BOE Vice President Patricia O'Neill makes the following statement at minute 23:

"...I think if this is something that requires pre-approval and went through that process, it wasn't approved that's done. I mean it's done. I think in the pre-approval there should be an appeal
I can't even believe that we are in this world of - I mean, these are adults. They should know - . Obviously, in these last couple of days, I question that...

Bullies at the Board Table

Remember a few months ago when our own Joshua Starr invented the word "cyberbullying" to describe Twitter feeds about his decision to close schools?  Remember Dr. Starr's memo to parents?  His committee to evaluate cyberbullying?

Dr. Starr doesn't like being the target, but he is just fine when his staff does the bullying.

Recently, I learned of two instances where BOE staff pulled out cameras and took pictures of individuals attending Board of Education meetings.  One was a committee meeting concerning staff use of credit cards. Both meetings are subject to the Open Meetings Act and the public is invited.  Or maybe not.

I couldn't believe that staff actually took pictures, so I filed a request under the Maryland Public Information Act.  

Sad, but true.  Here is the response I received from MCPS:

. . . As for Ms. Steinberg, she did take a photo during the Board of Education retreat and it is attached. 

Regarding your question about policies: There are no policies that would limit the right of anyone to take a photo or video during a public meeting or in a public space under these circumstances.  

Ms. Steinberg is the Board of Education's Staff Assistant for Legislative and Intergovernmental Relations.  Before she snapped the picture she said she needed to "document this."

Why take a picture of only one member of the public?  Would a sign-in sheet satisfy who attends a meeting?  Everyone signs, or everyone doesn't.  But a picture of only one person?

I am extremely concerned about the chilling effects of the actions of Ms. Steinberg or other individuals employed by the Board of Education on community involvement.  You've got to be a pretty tough individual to participate in BOE meetings when you are bullied by the staff.  In view of the the school system's concern as voiced in the press and at Board meetings issues with stakeholder engagement, actions by these individuals may in fact discourage public participation. 

Expense Reports for BOE Legislative and Inter-Governmental Relations Staffer

  Laura Steinberg by Parents' Coalition of Montgomery County, Maryland