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)

Letter from MCPS Staff Member

 As staff members in MCPS, we were required to attend a Professional Development Day on Monday about anti-racism, equity, and inclusion. There was zero mention, discussion, or words of comfort about the atrocities and terror that is occurring in Israel. Principals sent out mandatory "resources" (many of them political) but were left to curate the message as they wanted. 

The message below was sent out at 4:00pm yesterday. I attended a meeting with the MCJEA (Montgomery County Jewish Educators Association) with over 230 people in attendance soon after. Many Jewish staff feel completely alone and unsupported. Many see and are calling out the continuous evidence that Jews don't matter in this county's school system. MCPS has experienced an unprecedented rise in antisemitism in the past year and has done virtually nothing. 

Regardless of political beliefs, Jewish staff and students should not have to face antagonistic co-workers or peers in a time when our hearts are broken and Israel is facing unprecedented horror. 

I urge you to reach out to the superintendent and the Board of Education to share your outrage about the non-existent or soft messages coming from MCPS. They need to hear from all Jewish community members. 

monifa_b_mcknight@mcpsmd.org

karla_silvestre@mcpsmd.org

boe@mcpsmd.org

A Message of Vigilance and Respect

from Montgomery County Public Schools

OCTOBER 11, 2023

Dear Families, Students and Staff,

As superintendent of schools, my primary concern is for the physical and emotional well-being of students and staff. So today, I am reaching out and urging you to be vigilant regarding distressing social media content (including videos and images) emanating from the terrorist attacks on innocent civilians in Israel. We are all aware that such content is intended to amplify fear and can cause great emotional harm. I urge you to talk with your children and students about the content they may currently be viewing and sharing. 

As we collectively continue to process these horrific and violent acts, I recognize that the situation in Israel and Gaza has affected many members of our community, including those who have family or friends in the region. Their loss, grief and apprehensions for their loved ones' safety are profound. It is impossible to ignore the fear and anxiety that many within our community are experiencing directly, and as they are exposed to stories of violence and the tragic loss of innocent lives through television, news outlets and social media.

Our work to provide school communities with resources and assistance for those in need has already begun, including providing school leaders with tools and support to assist staff and students. Please do not hesitate to reach out to our school counselors, social workers, or administrators if your child requires any support.

Let us come together to support one another. This is a moment when we must remember our common values of empathy, compassion and respect for one another.

In partnership,

Dr. Monifa B. McKnight
MCPS Superintendent of Schools

Antisemitic incident this morning at Tilden MIddle School

This morning a swastika was discovered draw on a table at Tilden Middle School. Antisemitic 'incidents' are an almost daily event in MCPS schools and yet our Central office leadership and school staff do almost nothing about it.

Superintendent Melanie Kay-Wyatt said she and other staff members conduct walk-throughs of the plaza to direct students who are supposed to be on school campuses back to class.

What’s being done to keep Alexandria students away from local shopping plaza during school day

Fewer major incidents involving students have occurred since Alexandria, Virginia, police and school leaders increased their presence in a local shopping center where a student was stabbed last May, some business leaders said.

An Alexandria City High School student was stabbed in a fight at the Bradlee Shopping Center on King Street last year and later died from his injuries. The incident came during a brawl that police at the time said featured dozens of students...

What’s being done to keep Alexandria students away from local shopping plaza during school day - WTOP News

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)

Letter sent to Dr McKnight and the Montgomery County Board of Education, Oct. 10, 2023

On October 10, 2023 the Montgomery County Jewish Parents Coalition sent the letter below to Dr. McKnight and the Board of Education. So far there has been no response. 10% of our county population is Jewish and a substantial number of Israeli immigrants live in the county and send children to MCPS schools. Yet the Board of Education has deliberately refused to help Jewish children work through the trauma they are going through because of the barbaric attacks on Israeli civilians. There has been no statement of support from MCPS or from the Board of Education.

Letter to Superintendent McKnight and BOE 10-10-2023 by freestategal on Scribd

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

Breaking: Superintendent McKnight Kills MCPS Electric School Bus Scheme, Orders 90 Diesel School Buses @mcps @mocoboe

We already know what the excuses will be from MCPS' public information office.  So, let's get the facts out right away.  MCPS will still fib to the Board of Education and the public, but readers of this blog will know the truth. 

1. MCPS buys approximately 120 school buses each year.  School buses have a 12 year useful life in Maryland and 1/12th of the fleet is replaced each year.  MCPS has in total about 1,400 school buses. (Annual expenditure $15M - $17M for 2016-2019.)

2. Superintendent Monifa McKnight is bringing a Resolution before the Board of Education on Thursday, October 12, 2023, to purchase 90 diesel school buses for $14,749,919.

3.  Remember that the Board of Education has already approved a scheme to transition the entire school bus fleet to electric school buses. 

4. By FY 2024 the annual MCPS purchase of 120 school buses was to be for only electric school buses as specified in the executed Transportation Equipment Services Agreement.  (Image shown above.)

4. Remember that the MCPS nationally lauded electric school bus scheme was to be BUDGET NEUTRAL. 

5.  Remember that the Parents' Coalition asked for the numbers that showed the electric school bus scheme was budget neutral and we were told that no such documents existed. 

6.  Supposedly, MCPS just bought 64 special education diesel school buses in 2022.   Well, the Resolution didn't say that that the diesel buses were for special education use, but that was the story that the MCPS public information officer told the press when pressed for an explanation.  

7. And this is IMPORTANT! THERE ARE VENDORS WHO MAKE AND PROVIDE SPECIAL EDUCATION WHEELCHAIR LIFT ELECTRIC SCHOOL BUSES.  (MCPS likes to say there is no such vendor. That is a lie.)

The Resolution before the Board of Education this week does not explain why MCPS suddenly needs to purchase 90 special education school buses on top of the 64 special education school buses they supposedly purchased last year.  

If the Board of Education spends $14.8 million this week on 90 special education school buses, they will only be able to add about 33 electric school buses to their fleet based on their annual school bus budget.  (We are guessing at the exact number of electric school buses because it is a complete mystery as to what the cost of one electric school bus is under the Board of Education's scheme.) 

No matter what is going on at MCPS with regard to the annual replacement of school buses the following are clear:

1. The Board of Education's "budget-neutral" electric school bus scheme is no longer "budget neutral." The Board of Education can't possibly transition to an all-electric school bus fleet while continuing to buy diesel school buses and claim the scheme is budget neutral.  

2.  The MCPS nationally touted transition to an electric school bus fleet has been derailed. 

Tiktok and Instagram Situation Awareness - Horrific images

Dentro de poco, los terroristas de Hamás publicarán fotos y vídeos de rehenes y torturas en todas las plataformas de las redes sociales. El gobierno israelí pide que no se vean ni compartan estas imágenes por respecto a las víctimas y sus familias.

¡Comparte esto!

Tiktok and Instagram Situational Awareness - Horrific Images posted by Hamas terrorists

Parents' Coalition has been made aware that the Hamas terrorists plan on posting video and images of their horrific barbaric actions on Tiktok and Instagram. Please make sure your children are not on those platforms and are not watching, or sharing, these disturbing images.

The terrorists are expected to release distressing videos of hostages begging for their lives.

1.Absolutely do not share these videos or photos; they are part of psychological warfare against Israel and even against you.

2.Absolutely prevent your children from watching them; they are not suitable for children and will be terrifying.

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]

Ex-Northwest football coach speaks out after on-field fight @mcps @mocoboe

Travis Hawkins, former head coach of the Northwest Jaguars, was the central figure in an on-field brawl. He sat down with Chad Ricardo to talk about his struggles with mental health and his challenges in gaining consideration for another head coaching job.

https://www.fox5dc.com/video/1292827

 

[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

Fairfax County, Virginia, basketball coach has been charged with felony embezzlement after police say he misappropriated funds from a school event.

 Fairfax County basketball coach charged with embezzling from school event - WTOP News

Outgoing Maryland Schools Superintendent pens op-ed. Here's what he left out.

BALTIMORE (WBFF) — Embattled Maryland State Superintendent of Schools Mohammed Choudhury’s resignation takes effect October 6.

Choudhury is stepping down after just two years as the state superintendent of schools, marking the end of a tumultuous term. He made the announcement following a series of Project Baltimore investigations that raised serious questions over transparency within the Maryland State Department of Education and potential violations of state law.

In a final goodbye this week, Choudhury penned an op-ed in The Baltimore Sun, touting what he calls “important progress.” But Project Baltimore took a closer look at his performance...

Outgoing Maryland Schools Superintendent pens op-ed. Here's what he left out. | WBFF (foxbaltimore.com)

MCPS Teachers will watch this video in their professional development session on Oct. 9th

 Dr. Carla Shalaby Lessons in Disruption: Learning Freedom from Our Troublemakers

MCPS investigator who closed Beidleman inquiry is twice reassigned. The district moved Khalid Walker to the general counsel’s office. After The Post asked why, it moved him again.

Montgomery County Public Schools in recent weeks has twice moved Khalid Walker, the investigator who closed an inquiry into misconduct allegations against former Farquhar principal Joel Beidleman, into new jobs — most recently on Friday, hours after The Washington Post sent questions asking why he had received a raise and a new position...

https://wapo.st/45o82rh