Pat O'Neill Expenses Charged to MCPS Operating Budget = $4,793.61

For FY 2017 and FY 2018 through March, Board of Education member Patricia O'Neill charged $4,793.61 in expenses to the MCPS Operating Budget.

The Parents' Coalition has obtained Board of Education expense account records for calendar year 2017 through March 15, 2018.

From the documents we obtained we believe the documents show that Ms. O'Neill traveled out of town on the following dates.

Conferences:

August 18 2017 - Possible Ocean City stay, but BOE members are not listed on the hotel bill

September 21, 2017 - Possible Ocean City stay, but BOE members are not listed on the hotel bill.

October 3-6, 2017 - Possible MABE Conference in Ocean City, MD


Below are the records that we obtained.  Please note that Board of Education members no longer possess personal credit cards.  That practice ended in 2014 when the Parents' Coalition exposed how Board of Education members and their staff were using their personal MCPS credit cards.

However, Board of Education staff still have a MCPS credit card for Board member purchases.

The first document below shows Pat O'Neill's requests for expenses/reimbursements and the second document shows the bills for Board members paid from the Board office credit card.  The one Board of Education office credit card is in the name of staff member Rebecca Gibson.

Pat O'Neill's mileage charges for balls, galas, retreats, lunches, breakfasts...

   2018 Pat O'Neill Expenses by Parents' Coalition of Montgomery County, Maryland on Scribd

BOE Credit Card bills for the time period covered:

   2018 BOE Staff King and Gibson by Parents' Coalition of Montgomery County, Maryland on Scribd

15th annual "Preparing for Success" program for local students

Montgomery College and the Montgomery County Women's Bar Foundation are hosting the 15th annual "Preparing for Success" program for local students. The all-day seminar program is designed for middle school and high school students and parents. This year's theme is "Navigating Life, the Streets and Social Media". The event will be a town hall discussion that kicks off with a key note speaker and follows with presentations on safety issues that teens and parents face each day. The program is free to students and parents. A light breakfast and lunch will be served to attendees. Students have a chance to win prizes and giveaways for their active participation.

http://preparing4success.com/parents-agenda/

10 of the current 32-member Montgomery legislative delegation have reached the House of Delegates or advanced from the House to the state Senate by central committee appointment.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/md-politics/montgomery-democrats-tussle-to-fill-open-general-assembly-seats/2017/01/01/79fcda8e-ce14-11e6-a747-d03044780a02_story.html?utm_term=.6a05f8b0d81e

BOE Taxpayer Paid for Party and Vacation List for 2016-2017

On July 12, 2016, the Montgomery County Board of Education (BOE) will approve their taxpayer paid for vacation and party plans for the 2016-2017 school year.  The Parents' Coalition has previously documented the public school education dollars that are diverted to the entertainment and lodging of BOE members and MCPS administrators. 

MCPS parents would rather see education dollars being spent on these vacations and parties than on classroom teachers, and so this vacation and party list will be approved unanimously by the current Board of Education.

Note that at most, one or two of these events include actual MCPS public school students. 

In addition, this is only a partial list of vacations and parties for the year.  Additional events can and will be approved without any public notice.  See the note at the bottom of the second screenshot.

Board of Education Taxpayer Funded Vacations for 2016-2017

 Board of Education Taxpayer Funded Parties for 2016-2017

http://www.boarddocs.com/mabe/mcpsmd/Board.nsf/files/ABNMM35B5531/$file/Annual%20Ticketed%20Event%20and%20Meeting%20List%20for%2016-17.pdf

Apple Ballot Keeps Historically Black, Low-Income Community Isolated By Cutting Bus Service

The citizens of Montgomery County continually vote into office the teachers' union Apple Ballot endorsed candidates.  Montgomery County citizens support teachers and think that teachers will do right by our citizens and chose candidates that value and respect all citizens.

But, the reality is very, very different.  

Here is an example of how the Apple Ballot candidates behave once they are in office.  

Tobytown is a historically Black, low-income community off of River Road on the western edge of Montgomery County.  Tobytown has never had access to public transportation.  A proposal to finally add RideOn bus service to this community in the FY16 Montgomery County budget has just been cut.

The cost of the RideOn bus service to this isolated community?  Just $200,000.

The Board of Education spent $2.4 MILLION yesterday alone on NO BID purchases, including $250,000 for no bid Promethean boards.  

Let's add up the cost of all of the MCPS take home cars for administrators and see how that cost equates to the needs of this community.  Alternatively, lets look at the $100,000+ expense account of the Board of Education.  

MCPS wastes $200,000 without a thought, while this community remains cut off and isolated.

Are the Apple Ballot social justice warriors interested in closing the achievement gap?  Only if it involves a cocktail party with campaign donations, photo opportunities they can post on Facebook, or trendy topics that will get media attention. 

Next election day, remember that this is the real face of the Apple Ballot endorsed candidates. 

Tobytown:  A Community Ignored

Without equal access to public transportation, Tobytown residents will never receive adequate access to gainful employment, healthcare, and education.  The 140-year poverty cycle continues...unless you help us stop it!

https://www.scribd.com/doc/289254879/MCEA-Recommended-Candidates-September-2014

BOE Spent $71,544 in Club Dues in FY 2015

It's MABE again!  Yes, that Maryland Association of Boards of Education that sucks cash out of public school systems, and for what? No one knows! But each year MABE is getting about $60,000 of the MCPS Operating Budget.  That's one classroom teacher that can not be hired because the Board of Education would rather belong to this club.

Leggett Wants to Park 400 MCPS Buses on Rt. 355 to Appease Developers #NOtrafficstudy #noiseordinance #ikeleggett #eya

Leggett and Council to move buses to red area.

"It is likely that an interim relocation solution will include use of the lot in front of the Carver Educational Services Center."








On Monday, July 13, 2015, the Montgomery County Council will vote to hand $27 million to County Executive Ike Leggett for a mystery solution for the relocation of the MCPS Shady Grove bus depot.

The Council packet (shown below) prepared for the Monday meeting announces that it is likely that the 400 school buses will first move to 850 Hungerford Drive, the parking lot shown in the image to the left.  This lot is currently used by Montgomery College and is located right in front of the Board of Education and MCPS main offices. The lot is also right on Rt. 355 in Rockville.  

County Executive Ike Leggett asks the County Council for $27 million dollars, but does not detail what that amount represents.  

Leggett does not ask for a traffic study to determine if the intersection of Rt. 355 and Mannakee Street can handle the addition of 400 school buses.

Leggett also does not mention that the placement of 400 buses at 850 Hungerford Drive will violate the Montgomery County Noise Ordinace.  See the yellow highlighting in the image above for the location of homes that will be impacted by Leggett's plan.  (But there are only a few dozen homes and those homeowners probably can not take on Leggett and the developers so the impact on these citizens can be ignored.)

This is what we call "planning" in Montgomery County.  Do what makes developers happy, throw a dart to deal with the rest, and be really, really shocked and indignant when citizens protest your "plans."

   20150713_GOED1 by Parents' Coalition of Montgomery County, Maryland

Council will Approve Imaginary WJHS Addition so Developer Can Build #fantasy #overcrowding #trailersRus

The Montgomery County Council appears likely to approve a placeholder classroom project for Walter Johnson High School that will allow some major White Flint development projects to move forward.
Last week, the council introduced a $3.1 million, eight-classroom addition for the Bethesda school in the county’s six-year capital budget in order to avoid a development moratorium in the area.

The project will act purely as a placeholder – the eight classrooms won’t actually be built. That will allow at least two anticipated redevelopment projects in the White Flint area to move forward in the county’s approval process...

...The high school, at 6400 Rock Spring Drive, was renovated and modernized just six years ago and has a capacity of 2,345 students. But its enrollment is projected to soar to 2,798 students by the 2020-2021 school year, according to MCPS...

 http://www.bethesdamagazine.com/Bethesda-Beat/2015/Placeholder-Classroom-Project-Would-Allow-White-Flint-Development-to-Continue/