Parents' Coalition of Montgomery County, Maryland: Thomas P. Klausing

Showing posts with label Thomas P. Klausing. Show all posts

Monday, July 8, 2013

BOE & Starr Blow Off Council Education Committee discussion of MCPS Surplus

5% cut backs for other Montgomery County agencies for FY 2014 while MCPS boasts a $21.8 million surplus for FY 2013

The $21.8 million surplus includes 185 vacant school based positions.

When the Montgomery County Council's Education Committee met on July 8, 2013, to discuss the Monthly Financial Report of MCPS, Superintendent Joshua Starr and the Board of Education members were absent. In fact, there weren't even any Deputy Superintendents or Associate Superintendents in attendance at the committee meeting.

The only representative from MCPS at this discussion was the new MCPS Director of Management and Budget, Thomas P. Klausing.

Where were Superintendent Starr and all of the BOE members during this important budget discussion?

Discussion of MCPS surplus starts at minute 1:25 of the YouTube video:

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Principles

Formed in 2002, the Parents' Coalition of Montgomery County, Maryland seeks to achieve the goals of coherent, content-rich curriculum standards; high expectations combined with timely remediation and acceleration; a wider range of educational options for parents and children; greater transparency and accountability; and meaningful community input.

E-mail: parentscoalitionmc AT outlook.com

What The Washington Post said about the Parents' Coalition

The coalition might be the best-known parent advocacy group in the region. Its members represent several constituencies, including parents of special education and gifted education students and fiscal watchdogs. The group's defining victory came this school year when the school system scaled back the fees charged to families for course materials.

Coalition leaders have drawn attention to the misuse of funds collected from students for activities, the broadcast of a commercial radio service on school buses and, with their "Weast Watch" blog, the travel habits of Weast and his lieutenants.

The Washington Post, June 4, 2009

Jerry Weast on the Parents' Coalition

"Along the way, you’ve had a challenging relationship with the Parents’ Coalition, the network of citizen activists who use the political process and other means to hold MCPS accountable.

The thing people accuse me of is listening, but not hearing. I hear, but I do not always agree. I am sorry that the world is faster than it was 10 years ago. I did not do that. [But] if we do not keep up, then our kids will be behind. We have to stop whining and get real."

Bethesda Magazine, March-April 2011