Should MCPS buy teachers or electronic toys and artificial grass?

The following letter was published today in the Washington Post and also Facebook by a Florida parent:

Dear Rick Scott, Governor of Florida

Please buy my child a teacher.

I pay taxes and send my children to public school.

Please buy my child a teacher. A child whisperer. A trained, energetic, enthusiastic, loving, educated, invested adult to grow a relationship with my child in the pursuit of learning.

Please buy my child a teacher who can see, hear and understand my child in a small group of special, targeted relationships. My child loves learning when learning comes with love.

Buying my child a new curriculum will not improve her relationship with learning.

Buying my child a new test will not improve his relationship with learning.

Buying my child a new computer program will not improve her relationship with learning.

Buying my child all these things reduces funding for what my child really needs: a relationship.

My child needs a person. A crowd.

Please invest my tax dollars in the people surrounding my child.

Buy my child a teacher who is paid so well that he would choose a career in education.

Buy my child a teacher who is trained so well that she can beautifully engage my child’s developing mind.

Buy my upset or disruptive child a teacher with time and expertise available for his needs.

Buy my child more teachers’ assistants for gentle encouragement and better classroom dynamics.

Buy my child enough support staff to improve communication with parents, to make use of the learning garden each morning and to run the clubs that spark my child’s interest.

Please transfer my taxes from the purchase of things to the purchase of people.

Spend less on assessment and more on relationships.

Spend less on hardware and more on hearts.

Spend less on worksheets and more on wisdom.

Spend less on standards and more on students.

Buy my child a person.

Buy my child a teacher.

Best Regards,

Are you a Montgomery County Public Schools parent or taxpayer with similar feelings?

I know I am.  I would add artificial turf to the list of items I'd be willing to sacrifice for a few good teachers.

If you agree, send your letters to MCPS and let them know!

Patricia O'Neill, President, MCPS BOE
850 Hungerford Lane
Rockville, MD 20850 
boe_account@mcpsmd.org

School Fees - A Preview

Yes, the Parents Coalition is planning to publish its annual listing of illegal school fees in Montgomery County Public Schools.

While you are waiting, here is a letter from Dr. Doran at Wootton High School. In his letter, he says he can no longer "mandate" that students purchase a planner for $4.00.

Note to Dr. Doran - you could never mandate such a fee. It's illegal in the state of Maryland, where our state constitution guarantees a free public education. Back to civics class for you - or in 2012 terms, please relearn the contents of US Government.

But it's nice to know that you finally acknowledge that certain fees are just not allowed. Aren't student planners a thing of the past, anyway? Environmentally unfriendly, and not in sync with students and their various electronic devices.

Welcome back to school Dr. Doran. We hope that your 10th year is as good as the previous nine.

MCPS Can Not Mandate School Fees - MD Constitution Provides for Free Education

Free-for-all at Walter Johnson High School

Again this year, every 10th and 11th grader at Walter Johnson High School gets to take the PSAT for free.  And 9th graders get to take a practice version of the PSAT for free.

WJHS, which serves the Bethesda area, is the only MCPS school that offers the PSAT for free to every 10th and 11th grade student.  At all other MCPS schools, 11th graders who want to take the PSAT must pay a fee, which is $14 at most schools. (Some schools, such as Sherwood High School, charge a fee to 9th graders and 11th graders.)
Free PSAT at WJHS

Middle School Fees

High school students and their families in Montgomery County Maryland aren't the only ones subject to educational extortion.  Middle schoolers and their families are also asked to pay for what should be a free public education.  Here is a list of fees charged.

http://www.scribd.com/fullscreen/63616532?access_key=key-2c0xztqmklbtaoa66u6l

Some fun facts about middle school fees.

1.  Not all schools charge fees.  Consider your child lucky if he or she attends Argyle, Clemente, Forest Oak, Frost, Key, Lee, Poole, Ridgeview, Sligo, or Tilden.  Your child is among the few who are truly getting a free public education.

2.  Even though course offerings are supposed to be consistent across the county, some schools charge fees for the same classes offered for free at other schools.

3. If your student is enrolled in a "high school course" in middle school, your student may be charged a fee - even if the course is a graduation requirement.  See Banneker, Montgomery Village, Pyle, Shady Grove and White Oak, offering Introduction to Engineering Design.

4.  Red/Green zone distinctions don't seem to apply.

5.  Are the lists accurate?   Readers will need to report back whether they were charged additional fees not on the list.

So - what is a parent to do, other than try to transfer their student into one of the free schools?

As with the high school fees, ask for a waiver.  Students are not supposed to be denied educational opportunities based on whether a fee is paid.

And, if you do choose to pay a fee, consider it a donation.

But most importantly, let Dr. Starr know if you are assessed a fee to attend a middle school class.  He has stated in interviews this week that MCPS only charges for high school courses. 

I guess Dr. Starr has a lot of learning to do.   Maybe he should stay home for a few days and catch up on his reading.

School Funding: Public good, public cuts

The Economist

State budget shortfalls will bring a raft of cuts to public schools

Excerpt:

Some schools are now charging fees for certain classes or activities, a startling trend that violates some basic ideas about what public schools are supposed to do. The idea of asking people to chip in for schools is not unprecedented, but it is usually a bit more subtle. Elementary-school teachers ask their pupils to buy school supplies; high-school students sell cupcakes and wash cars to raise money for the prom. Parents may supplement a child’s education with extra services—a tutor, a week at lacrosse camp, a second-hand car, a new silver trumpet rather than the borrowed cornet, glottal with generations of spit. Asking pupils to pay fees for core activities or classes seems much worse. These services may be for individual students, but public schools are a public good.

Projected cuts around the country will bring forward some deeper questions about school finance. As it is, Americans already pay for public schools by virtue of where they live; schools are partly funded by property taxes. The richer the parents, the better the schools, or at least better resourced. That is a fundamental inequity of the American system, not a new one.

A broader question is whether money is the best way to improve schools. A 2008 study from the Centre on Reinventing Public Education at the University of Washington found that spending on schools, adjusted for inflation, increased by 29% between 1990 and 2005, without a commensurate gain in pupil achievement. Better strategies may not be more expensive. The cuts may force states to think creatively. That would be some consolation.

Read more at The Economist, here.

Portable classrooms expanding in Montgomery | Washington Examiner

Portable classrooms expanding in Montgomery | Washington Examiner

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Another school year, and another year of overcrowded school facilities. Portables are still populating the Montgomery County Public School landscape. Will MCPS ever be able to accurately predict classroom needs?

Teachers Beg on DonorsChoose.Org

Our 'world class' school system with its $2.1 BILLION budget has teachers begging for money for school items on DonorsChoose.org (see below). Many of the items requested are curriculum related - things that should be supplied by the MCPS.

Oh wait - those Pain in the Ass parents are supposed to cough it up through 'curricular fees'.

How is it MCPS always has a SURPLUS for Textbooks and Instructional Materials, yet schools do not have these materials?

Textbooks and Instructional Materials Surplus

2009 $5,000,000
2008 $6,800,000
2007 $ 200,000
2006 $ 400,000
2005 $1,500,000

Besides noting what the teachers are asking for, please note the interesting teacher comments copied from their DonorsChoose pages.

These are not all the requests. I will note requests for special education supplies in another post. There's even a request for a Gifted Center.

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Twinbrook ES Gr 3-5 $566 81 subscriptions to "TIME for Kids Magazine - News Scoop Edition". The cost of this proposal is $566, which includes shipping for any materials requested and fulfillment."

Twinbrook ES Gr 3-5 $572 My students need reading comprehension centers, 14 different vocabulary centers, a poetry listening center, and privacy partitions. The cost of this proposal is $572, which includes shipping for any materials requested and fulfillment."

Twinbrook ES Gr 3-5 $565 My students need 6 cases of multipurpose paper, 3 packs of easel pads, and 1 chart pad. The cost of this proposal is $565, which includes shipping for any materials requested and fulfillment."

Twinbrook ES Gr PreK-2 Mrs G $642 My second grade students need 3 sets of guided reading kit books. The cost of this proposal is $642, which includes shipping for any materials requested and fulfillment."

Twinbrook ES Gr PreK -2 $544 Mrs G "Have you ever tried to teach students who were learning math on 2 or 3 different grade levels in the same room? It's not easy! ...Help my students read WHILE mastering their math skills with these math centers. Also, help me keep my sanity teaching 30 kids with different needs. We would really appreciate your generosity! My students need 10 math centers resources, including 2 Magic Function Math Machine sets and a set of Stamp & Solve Math Activity Boxes. The cost of this proposal is $544, which includes shipping for any materials requested and fulfillment."

Thurgood Marshall ES PreK-2 $1004 My students need 20 leveled book sets, from levels D-M. The cost of this proposal is $1,004, which includes shipping for any materials requested and fulfillment."

Meadow Hall ES Gr PreK-2 $373 "I teach second grade in a school where the neighborhood has a low socio-economic status. There are many immigrant families who do not speak any English and have limited resources. A major obstacle in our classroom is a lack of supplies. With families who have to work multiple jobs to support their families, there are not many donations from parents... My students need a mailbox organizer to put their papers in. This is a good way to keep us organized and to save time. Also, we always run out of school supplies like glue sticks! We need 30 glue sticks. Please help to keep our classroom running in an organized way. The cost of this proposal is $373, which includes shipping for any materials requested and fulfillment."

Meadow Hall ES Gr PreK - 2 $405 "... My students need supplies. It is as simple as that. We are not a Title 1 school, ...My students need pencils, glue sticks, glue bottles, Crayola crayons, Crayola markers, Scotch tape, highlighters, Expo dry erase markers, and other craft supplies. The cost of this proposal is $405, which includes shipping for any materials requested and fulfillment."

Corrected: How to look for Montgomery County Schools: go to DonorsChoose.org, click on "See Projects" upper right, or 'All Projects' in middle of page. Search State (Maryland) --> County (Montgomery)

Superintendent Weast determines that charging curricular fee was a "mistake" following inquiry by Maryland state delegate

MCPS policies and practices don't always agree with Maryland state laws, but the law is authoritative when there is a conflict. So, when I received an "obligation letter" for a $35 "Consumer Science" (cooking class) fee from my child's school, I decided to challenge the fee.

For many years, the Maryland Attorney General has held the position that curricular fees are illegal. In January 2009, MCPS Superintendent Jerry Weast released a memo describing a new curricular fee policy that does away with most curricular fees. However, the new policy continues to allow some curriculum-related fees. An article in the Washington Post summarized Dr. Weast's curricular fee memo as follows:

Under Weast's proposal, schools could no longer charge for any materials required for an academic course, with a few exceptions for items that go home with the student, such as a ceramic bowl, or go into their stomachs, such as a cake baked in cooking class.

Here is the "obligation" letter that I received from the school. Note that it says that my child won't be allowed to attend graduation or receive a diploma if I don't pay the $35 fee.

(You can click on the control buttons on any of the documents below to make them larger and easier to read.)

Demand Letter for Consumer Science Class Fee

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Education Presentations & Slid bill weast

I sent MCPS form 270-8 to the school principal to ask that he rescind the curricular fee. (Note that you can get a blank copy of form 270-8 from this web site, specifically from here.) Here is my form 270-8, showing my complaint and the principal's response.

Initial Complaint Against Curricular Fee (with denial)

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Education Presentations & Slid complaint mcps

And here is a letter that the principal sent to me that gives his detailed explanation for denying my request to rescind the fee.
Denial letter from Principal - Request to Remove Fee Obligation

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Education Presentations & Slid curricular fee weast magruder

After receiving the denial letter from the principal, I sent an appeal package to Dr. Weast. Here is my cover letter.

Appeal to Superintendent Weast for Removal of Curricular Fee

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Education Presentations & Slid illegal mcps

While I was waiting for the response to my appeal, I remembered when Maryland State Delegate Saqib Ali asked BOE President Shirley Brandman for clarification about curricular fees during public testimony, so I wrote to Delegate Ali to give him an update. Here is my email to Delegate Ali and his reply.
Correspondence Between Maryland State Delegate Saqib Ali and Louis Wilen Regarding Fee Removal

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Education Presentations & Slid weast mcps

About the same time that I received the reply email (shown above) from Delegate Ali, I received an email from the principal of my child's school stating that the fee was being rescinded. He provided no explanation for the change in his decision.

A few days later, I received the following letter from MCPS Chief Operating Officer Larry Bowers.

MCPS - Appeal of fee for consumable items "moot", says Larry Bowers

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Education Presentations & Slid weast mcps

At this time, I am still waiting for a reply from Mr. Bedford as to whether the decision to rescind all curricular fees will apply to all MCPS students or just to my child and/or those who bring the issue to the attention of a Maryland state delegate.

Also noteworthy is the fact that Mr. Bowers advised, in his letter shown above, that if I wish to appeal his decision to the BOE, the appeal must be submitted within 10 days. The policy documents say that 30 days are allowed for an appeal to the BOE. I've been told that Mr. Bowers has worked for MCPS since around the time that chalkboards were first introduced into MCPS classrooms, so if anyone knows the policies, it's Mr. Bowers. Therefore, I cannot explain the discrepancy between the 30 days allowed in the policy and the 10 days allowed in Mr. Bowers' letter. Update: A member of Mr. Bowers' staff called to tell me that the "10 days" was a typographical error and that a corrected version of the letter will be mailed to me.

If it is curriculum related a school system cannot charge a fee

These words come from the Maryland Attorney General's office in response to questions about hundreds of course fees charged students who attend Montgomery County Public Schools.

If it is curriculum related a school system cannot charge a fee.

Yet, we see Superintendent Weast continuing to put out contradictory information to MCPS staff via the February 17th edition of the MCPS publication "The Bulletin". In this edition of the MCPS Bulletin, MCPS staff are told:

Generally, allowable course-related fees are limited to:

• Materials that become a product that belongs to the student, such as a student art project.
• Personal items that become the student’s property, such as auto technology uniforms.
• Food consumed by the student as part of a course.

According to the Maryland Attorney General, there are no "allowable course-related fees". Why are MCPS staff being given bad information?

On August 18, 2008, Superintendent Weast was sent a letter (see below) from the Maryland Attorney General's office. The letter outlined current Maryland law with regard to curricular fees and quoted the opinion of the Attorney General that, "we are safe in saying that anything directly related to a school's curriculum must be available to all without charge."

Why are MCPS students being denied their Maryland Constitutional right to a free public education under Superintendent Weast's leadership? Why has the Board of Education been silent on this fundamental issue of equal access to education for all?

For a complete overview of the Curricular Fees issue in Montgomery County Public Schools, please see the Parents' Coalition of Montgomery County, Maryland's Guide to Fees, including MCPS' own attorney's explanation of the difference between Curricular Fees and Extra-Curricular Fees in Maryland. MCPS' own attorney knows that Extra-Curricular fees can be charged under Maryland law, and Curricular Fees can not be charged.

KameenOAGLetter

School Fees - BOE Meets the Blair HS Gym Towel

Rosanne A. Hurwitz
Testimony before the Montgomery County Board of Education
August 21, 2008 on
MCPS Curriculum Fees

Good afternoon, Superintendent Weast and Members of the Board of Education. My name is Rosanne Hurwitz. I am here to testify concerning student fees for my child who is a student at Blair High School.

As we know, Maryland law provides for a free public education for all. The Maryland Court of appeals has stated that schools must be open to all without expense and this information has recently been reiterated by the Principal Counsel to the State Board of Education.[1]

Therefore, I come to you with three requests.

1. Please refund the towel fees charged my son for two semesters of Physical Education at Blair High School. Physical education is a state mandated graduation requirement. Students at Blair do not take showers in conjunction with their class; however, the school imposes a fee for which students incur an obligation of $4 per semester. Failure to pay this fee results in a “financial obligation” and students who do not pay this fee cannot participate in certain school activities, including graduation.[2] At the end of last year, the senior class had over $72,000 in outstanding obligations.[3]

2. Remove the upcoming charge of $3 per semester for AP English Language. According to the 2008-2009 approved student fee schedule for Blair, this is for a computer workshop. This is clearly a fee in conjunction with the instructional program for the course.

3. Finally, I request that you suspend the imposition of other similar charges throughout the county immediately, pending a review as to the legality of these charges. Although the Board President stated earlier this week that these charges were permitted under Board Policy JNA, I question whether the policy itself or its implementation is in fact consistent with our state law. The list of fees charged by the various MCPS high schools exceeds 40 pages, and the charges themselves are not consistent from school to school, thereby questioning why education costs more at some schools than others. While the Attorney General suggests parents appeal to the Board, it is unconscionable to expect the families of our county to go through this process to obtain what is clearly their right.

Thank you.

[1]August 18, 2008 letter from E. Kameen to L. Wilen (in MCPS records)
[2]2008-2009 MBHS Parent Handbook, page 16
[3] SCO, June 2, 2008

Link to WJLA story