Board of Education finds way to tax students

[Anonymous]

Next year the board will be collecting fees from students and using that money to fund the operating budget. This is just another tax that school families will be paying.

https://parentscoalitionmc.blogspot.com/2024/06/board-of-education-to-raid-student.html

[Anonymous]

Is that a change? Who controls those funds now?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is that a change? Who controls those funds now?

Student funds are kept in local schools under the control of the local principal. The funds are to be spent on the students. For example, buy a ticket to a school play and the funds raised are to pay for the props and costumes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is that a change? Who controls those funds now?

Principal and school business administrator.

[Anonymous]

Principals can (and have actually already) decide to spend that money on anything they want. A new golf cart, office furniture, whatever. Happens all the time when sponsors leave a school and the principal steals the money

[Anonymous]

Actual memo
https://go.boarddocs.com/mabe/mcpsmd/Board.nsf/files/D5WRBX6A8F88/$file/Cont%20Apprv%20RFP%20121923%20Tech%20Products%20Servcs%20Solutions%20Ext.pdf

"The Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) Office of Strategic Initiatives is seeking Board of Education approval to continue making purchases of technology solutions (hardware and services) through the Sourcewell technology solutions contract, under Request for Proposal No. 121923, Technology Products with Services and Related Solutions; and approval to finance a portion of these purchases through the Master Lease/Purchase Agreement with Banc of America Public Capital Corporation. It is recommended that the Board of Education approve this contract through June 30, 2025.

This contract is funded by the MCPS Fiscal Year (FY) 2023–2028 approved Capital Improvements Program (CIP), the FY 2025 Operating Budget, and several grants awarded to MCPS which include allocable technology purchases. A total of $14,225,000 is projected to be funded in the FY 2023–2028 CIP, and $10,775,000 is projected to be funded in the FY 2025 Operating Budget or the Independent Student Activity Funds. An estimated $9,980,000 will be financed over four years, and an additional $5,000,000 is projected for potential grant-funded purchases, which brings the estimated total amount available for the purchase of technology products and services for FY 2025 to $30,000,000."

To me, this looks like a copy-paste oversight from a different memo. There's no relation between the IAF funds and technology purchases, unless there is something specific in that Sourcewell is providing that is used directly by the schools to manage student activities.

Certainly worth asking the question, but not exactly worthy of the inflammatory thread title.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Actual memo
https://go.boarddocs.com/mabe/mcpsmd/Board.nsf/files/D5WRBX6A8F88/$file/Cont%20Apprv%20RFP%20121923%20Tech%20Products%20Servcs%20Solutions%20Ext.pdf

"The Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) Office of Strategic Initiatives is seeking Board of Education approval to continue making purchases of technology solutions (hardware and services) through the Sourcewell technology solutions contract, under Request for Proposal No. 121923, Technology Products with Services and Related Solutions; and approval to finance a portion of these purchases through the Master Lease/Purchase Agreement with Banc of America Public Capital Corporation. It is recommended that the Board of Education approve this contract through June 30, 2025.

This contract is funded by the MCPS Fiscal Year (FY) 2023–2028 approved Capital Improvements Program (CIP), the FY 2025 Operating Budget, and several grants awarded to MCPS which include allocable technology purchases. A total of $14,225,000 is projected to be funded in the FY 2023–2028 CIP, and $10,775,000 is projected to be funded in the FY 2025 Operating Budget or the Independent Student Activity Funds. An estimated $9,980,000 will be financed over four years, and an additional $5,000,000 is projected for potential grant-funded purchases, which brings the estimated total amount available for the purchase of technology products and services for FY 2025 to $30,000,000."

To me, this looks like a copy-paste oversight from a different memo. There's no relation between the IAF funds and technology purchases, unless there is something specific in that Sourcewell is providing that is used directly by the schools to manage student activities.

Certainly worth asking the question, but not exactly worthy of the inflammatory thread title.

Ask the question and post the response now. The vote is tomorrow and it is on the Consent Agenda.

If you think it is a copy/paste error, where have you seen the board ever use student activity funds? What is this copied from?

What other copy/paste errors are in the $3.2 billion budget?

[Anonymous]

Can you just refuse to pay it and not have to use a computer?

[Anonymous]

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/1209609.page

[Anonymous]

When you're even more extreme and half-cocked than the extreme Parents Coalition, it's time to rein yourself in, OP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can you just refuse to pay it and not have to use a computer?

It's not a computer fee for each person. It's paid through general budget.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can you just refuse to pay it and not have to use a computer?

It's not a computer fee for each person. It's paid through general budget.

It would be a computer fee for each student if that is how the Board of Education is funding it.

[Anonymous]

IAF fraud, waste, and abuse audits:

https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/iaf/

Example:

https://audits.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/uploads/poolesvillees/20240103_Poolesville%20ES%20Audit.pdf

"Refreshment amounts were overspent. (The water in the town of Poolesville is not drinkable.)"

[Anonymous]

[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Can you just refuse to pay it and not have to use a computer?[/quote]

It's not a computer fee for each person. It's paid through general budget. [/quote]

It would be a computer fee for each student if that is how the Board of Education is funding it.
[/quote]

If frogs lived on Mars they'd be Fartians.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can you just refuse to pay it and not have to use a computer?

It's not a computer fee for each person. It's paid through general budget.

It would be a computer fee for each student if that is how the Board of Education is funding it.

If frogs lived on Mars they'd be Fartians.