New Interim Superintendent Monique Felder

[Anonymous]

Dr. Felder has now been appointed as interim superintendent effective today, through July 1st.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Dr. Felder has now been appointed as interim superintendent effective today, through July 1st.

I’m happy it’s only till the end of the year. I thought this was going to be a multi year contract, so I’m pleased that it is short, which allows them to find a suitable long-term candidate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The same article: "High school graduation rates for the district had been improving, and the number of seniors graduating with “industry-recognized and industry aligned” credentials had jumped 40 percent in 2023 over 2022. At the end of the 2022 school year, statewide data determined that Orange County Schools was the No. 1 district for percentage of students exceeding growth for North Carolina. There were also marked gains in closing achievement gaps among students, including an 83 percent increase among Black students selecting Honors, AP or IB coursework. Among Hispanic students, the number was up 26 percent."

And a board member admitted that historically it has rarely been near six million dollars. So selective excerpts really doesn't work here. There is also no context to the extra spending, which could be pandemic-related. Context, context, context.

These are exactly the results for "honor for all" or "anybody can SELECT an AP class" policy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Dr. Felder has now been appointed as interim superintendent effective today, through July 1st.

I’m happy it’s only till the end of the year. I thought this was going to be a multi year contract, so I’m pleased that it is short, which allows them to find a suitable long-term candidate.

I suspect she will get strong consideration especially if it appears things are trending up.

[Anonymous]

You can find the BOE's press conference with Felder that they just held on MCPSTV's Youtube channel. Not a lot of "there" there, but worth a listen for anyone interested.

[Anonymous]

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m not wading into the other issues above but I do wonder about her ability to do this big of a job. Nashville has just over 7K students. Doesn’t MCPS have over 160K? Pretty big jump in size of responsibilities.

Metro nashville has over 80k students. Unless Dr Felder came from somewhere else in Nashville area

Yes, her last full-time gig was Orange County, NC. Whoever said "Nashville has 7K" was wrong. Orange County Schools has 7K.

Chapel Hill-Carborro Schools is its own school system and separate from Orange. (Chapel Hill is in Orange County).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Dr Felder parted with the Orange County North Carolina School system after 3.75 years, one year before her contract term.
Per the MCPS press release, Dr Felder had previously been subject to a financial disclosure investigation that the BOE feels is not an issue.

Orange County NC Schools student population 7,200 students < MCPS 160,554 students (3 of our High Schools).

Some might ask, is this really the most qualified person for this job and why is it being rushed through. How much will we have to pay her to go when this doesn't work out.

In addition, the Orange County School Board did not extend her contract. That's why she left in 2023.

[Anonymous]

https://montgomeryperspective.com/2024/02/05/new-proposed-interim-superintendent-has-baggage/

Worrisome info on her past…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Weird how quickly they hired her and she sounds shady too.

I'm sure her name was on a short list as soon as all the JB smoke started appearing and the BOE was thinking about an exit strategy from McKnight. But yes very strange interim hire so quickly from outside the district. She was basically fired from her post in NC this summer and had ethics questioned from a bribe/kickback situation in 2019. Does the BOE not have the internet?

I think the BOE either:

1. Didn't dig deep cause they can't or don't want to because the candidate pool is not deep

2. Worry about giving a victory to moderate-rightwing voices that say they're doing a bad job with stewarding the district, so they hired someone who's like McKnight, but isn't her

Either is fine. My only issue with the second rationale is that makes sense if you pick someone who has McKnight's profile (black, female, equity focused) but doesn't have McKnight's baggage (fired by school board, questions about transparency/accountability). But Felder doesn't pass that threshold, so why hire her with all of those clouds hanging over her?

I think the pool of eligible and available superintendent candidates is small. The BOE knew about the financial reporting issue from Nashville and in the end, it did not persuade the board to look elsewhere. I wish Dr. Felder well and I wish her good luck.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Dr. Felder has now been appointed as interim superintendent effective today, through July 1st.

I’m happy it’s only till the end of the year. I thought this was going to be a multi year contract, so I’m pleased that it is short, which allows them to find a suitable long-term candidate.

I suspect she will get strong consideration especially if it appears things are trending up.

I don't know, but I'm willing to give her a chance. Her background in gifted education is a major plus for me given the cuts the MCPS have done to that office in recent years.

I don't know whether she wants the longer term job, but if she can move quickly to clean up some of the messes of her predecessor, and if she lives up to her reputation as being tough but fair, she seems like as good of a choice as anyone else.

Let's just see how it goes, and not give anyone any ammunition to claim tha she never got a fair shot. She will rise or fall on her merits, but she deserves an opportunity to do so.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Dr. Felder has now been appointed as interim superintendent effective today, through July 1st.

I’m happy it’s only till the end of the year. I thought this was going to be a multi year contract, so I’m pleased that it is short, which allows them to find a suitable long-term candidate.

I suspect she will get strong consideration especially if it appears things are trending up.

I don't know, but I'm willing to give her a chance. Her background in gifted education is a major plus for me given the cuts the MCPS have done to that office in recent years.

I don't know whether she wants the longer term job, but if she can move quickly to clean up some of the messes of her predecessor, and if she lives up to her reputation as being tough but fair, she seems like as good of a choice as anyone else.

Let's just see how it goes, and not give anyone any ammunition to claim tha she never got a fair shot. She will rise or fall on her merits, but she deserves an opportunity to do so.

She seems more polished and certainly knows more about MCPS and the culture. I do like the gifted ed piece also. The question is "Does she even want the gig full time?" Being an Ed Consultant can be very lucrative without all the headaches of a Superintendent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

She's very political. And not in a way that impresses me. Hopefully she fares better than McKnight but....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Dr. Felder has now been appointed as interim superintendent effective today, through July 1st.

I’m happy it’s only till the end of the year. I thought this was going to be a multi year contract, so I’m pleased that it is short, which allows them to find a suitable long-term candidate.

I suspect she will get strong consideration especially if it appears things are trending up.

I don't know, but I'm willing to give her a chance. Her background in gifted education is a major plus for me given the cuts the MCPS have done to that office in recent years.

I don't know whether she wants the longer term job, but if she can move quickly to clean up some of the messes of her predecessor, and if she lives up to her reputation as being tough but fair, she seems like as good of a choice as anyone else.

Let's just see how it goes, and not give anyone any ammunition to claim tha she never got a fair shot. She will rise or fall on her merits, but she deserves an opportunity to do so.

She seems more polished and certainly knows more about MCPS and the culture. I do like the gifted ed piece also. The question is "Does she even want the gig full time?" Being an Ed Consultant can be very lucrative without all the headaches of a Superintendent.

Agreed. I also think there might be value in an interim candidate who doesn't want the job full-time. I was recently on the outskirts of a professional situation in which a senior director was removed after a history of bullying and insubordination, part of a long-term pattern in that division. Rather than immediately throw a new person into that toxic environment, leadership brought in someone who always knew they would only be in the role for 4-6 months, and they were given the sole job of "fixing things for the new person."

I realize that public education isn't the private sector, but someone who didn't have to worry about maintaining long-term relationships was exactly what that team needed. The interim fixer came in, cleaned house, rehired some great folks who had left in despair, and then moved on. In some ways, it feels like the Central Office might need such a person.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Dr. Felder has now been appointed as interim superintendent effective today, through July 1st.

I’m happy it’s only till the end of the year. I thought this was going to be a multi year contract, so I’m pleased that it is short, which allows them to find a suitable long-term candidate.

I suspect she will get strong consideration especially if it appears things are trending up.

I don't know, but I'm willing to give her a chance. Her background in gifted education is a major plus for me given the cuts the MCPS have done to that office in recent years.

I don't know whether she wants the longer term job, but if she can move quickly to clean up some of the messes of her predecessor, and if she lives up to her reputation as being tough but fair, she seems like as good of a choice as anyone else.

Let's just see how it goes, and not give anyone any ammunition to claim tha she never got a fair shot. She will rise or fall on her merits, but she deserves an opportunity to do so.

She seems more polished and certainly knows more about MCPS and the culture. I do like the gifted ed piece also. The question is "Does she even want the gig full time?" Being an Ed Consultant can be very lucrative without all the headaches of a Superintendent.

Agreed. I also think there might be value in an interim candidate who doesn't want the job full-time. I was recently on the outskirts of a professional situation in which a senior director was removed after a history of bullying and insubordination, part of a long-term pattern in that division. Rather than immediately throw a new person into that toxic environment, leadership brought in someone who always knew they would only be in the role for 4-6 months, and they were given the sole job of "fixing things for the new person."

I realize that public education isn't the private sector, but someone who didn't have to worry about maintaining long-term relationships was exactly what that team needed. The interim fixer came in, cleaned house, rehired some great folks who had left in despair, and then moved on. In some ways, it feels like the Central Office might need such a person.

Hopefully you're right and that's what happens here. That would be the best-case scenario.