Thursday 5/21 Board of Education Meeting

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:The Gymnastics thing is so ridiculous. They're just going to let the gymnastics team complain but they're not reversing their decision....

There have been multiple people testifying about it for each of the last 4 meetings -- it's getting exhausting and they're taking away slots from all of the other important issues on this list...

Thanks Chris Cram. Hadn't heard from you today. Good to know you are getting in one more jab before heading out in her MCPS leased car.

DP but are you seriously not annoyed by all the gymnastics people repeatedly distracting from parents/kids/staff being able to comment on the big new issues that MCPS is ignoring community input on and that it's crucial that the Board hear from people on?

It's almost as bad as the Wootton parkway people ramming their complaints into every comment period over the course of a month or two.

I know several folks who wanted to speak on compacted math this meeting who didn’t get a slot. Meanwhile based on googling of some of the folks slated to testify, at least 3 are gymnasts listed no the Dynamite gymnastics site.

It's absolutely a strategy to quash meaningful testimony on an important issue affecting a lot of students. Instead, the board chooses to deflect by filling slots with a niche concern.

If it were truly first come first serve they’d simply close the form once all the slots were filled.

[Anonymous]

Look at this: one of the Celebrations to begin the meeting is Pupil Personnel Worker Week.

Meanwhile, the current budget they are supposed to be discussing cuts Pupil Personnel Workers.

[Anonymous]

Surprise, surprise-- the two most controversial items on the agenda (operating budget and open lunch) have no presentations up yet the night before the meeting, despite the fact that all materials are supposed to be posted 4 days in advance.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Gymnastics thing is so ridiculous. They're just going to let the gymnastics team complain but they're not reversing their decision....

There have been multiple people testifying about it for each of the last 4 meetings -- it's getting exhausting and they're taking away slots from all of the other important issues on this list...

That’s exactly how many of us felt about the Wootton and Farmland parents

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Look at this: one of the Celebrations to begin the meeting is Pupil Personnel Worker Week.

Meanwhile, the current budget they are supposed to be discussing cuts Pupil Personnel Workers.

I saw that too. The irony. It’s the MCPS way..

[Anonymous]

This has good info https://noraegordon.substack.com/p/why-does-the-board-want-to-give-up?shem=rimspwouoe%2C

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why does it say “tentative action” for the open lunch option. Is there a chance they don’t vote on it?

They are not actually voting on keeping or eliminating open lunch. They are voting on what to do with the existing board policy. They have a variety of options of how they could proceed but it sounds like the superintendent basically asked them to forfeit their own rights to govern this topic so he, our unelected king, could be in charge of it and decide for everyone.

The policy committee is recommending rescinding the policy. So that's what the vote will be on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Surprise, surprise-- the two most controversial items on the agenda (operating budget and open lunch) have no presentations up yet the night before the meeting, despite the fact that all materials are supposed to be posted 4 days in advance.

Why Board members are okay with this I will never understand. They should be refusing to take up agenda items when the Board's policy has not been followed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Surprise, surprise-- the two most controversial items on the agenda (operating budget and open lunch) have no presentations up yet the night before the meeting, despite the fact that all materials are supposed to be posted 4 days in advance.

Why Board members are okay with this I will never understand. They should be refusing to take up agenda items when the Board's policy has not been followed.

I suspect the board has the materials. We the public do not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Surprise, surprise-- the two most controversial items on the agenda (operating budget and open lunch) have no presentations up yet the night before the meeting, despite the fact that all materials are supposed to be posted 4 days in advance.

Why Board members are okay with this I will never understand. They should be refusing to take up agenda items when the Board's policy has not been followed.

I suspect the board has the materials. We the public do not.

The requirement is that they be posted ahead of time publicly. Not just distributed to the Board. But I think you are wrong. When I have spoken with Board members about this, they have said they don't get the materials before we do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Surprise, surprise-- the two most controversial items on the agenda (operating budget and open lunch) have no presentations up yet the night before the meeting, despite the fact that all materials are supposed to be posted 4 days in advance.

Why Board members are okay with this I will never understand. They should be refusing to take up agenda items when the Board's policy has not been followed.

I suspect the board has the materials. We the public do not.

The requirement is that they be posted ahead of time publicly. Not just distributed to the Board. But I think you are wrong. When I have spoken with Board members about this, they have said they don't get the materials before we do.

And to be clear - they are supposed to be publicly posted 4 days ahead of time. The morning of won't cut it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Surprise, surprise-- the two most controversial items on the agenda (operating budget and open lunch) have no presentations up yet the night before the meeting, despite the fact that all materials are supposed to be posted 4 days in advance.

Why Board members are okay with this I will never understand. They should be refusing to take up agenda items when the Board's policy has not been followed.

I suspect the board has the materials. We the public do not.

The requirement is that they be posted ahead of time publicly. Not just distributed to the Board. But I think you are wrong. When I have spoken with Board members about this, they have said they don't get the materials before we do.

And to be clear - they are supposed to be publicly posted 4 days ahead of time. The morning of won't cut it.

DP what is particularly appalling is that they often don't even post it the morning of. They post it when the agenda item comes up that evening. These leeches are not fit for public service.

[Anonymous]

Yikes. This BCC student's testimony in favor of Open Lunch actually works against him and his cause:

The last thing I would like to touch on is the safety of the school. The year before I got to B-CC, there was a bomb threat to the school. The school was quickly put into lockdown, but had this situation been real, the dangers would’ve been catastrophic. You see, many students were off campus due to the open lunch policy. As a result, they were able to hear of the incident and could evacuate back home. My older brother was not so lucky and was trapped in the classroom where he was eating lunch. I understand that safety is a major concern of the closed lunch proposal. I would argue that this real-world incident demonstrates how students' maturity and freedom kept students out of harm's way rather than in it. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to share.

He's basically admitting that BCC lost track of its kids when it had a lockdown because it was during Open Lunch and kids went home or somewhere other than the school during the lockdown. That sounds like a serious liability risk to me....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Second written testimony up is on elimination of compacted math: https://go.boarddocs.com/mabe/mcpsmd/Board.nsf/files/DU8NCW5F5788/$file/Temkin%20Cahill%20MCPSBOE%20Testimony%205212026.pdf

Well said. Why are all these board materials being posted so late? Aren’t they supposed to go up days in advance.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Second written testimony up is on elimination of compacted math: https://go.boarddocs.com/mabe/mcpsmd/Board.nsf/files/DU8NCW5F5788/$file/Temkin%20Cahill%20MCPSBOE%20Testimony%205212026.pdf

Well said. Why are all these board materials being posted so late? Aren’t they supposed to go up days in advance.

Too bad it will make no difference. Who cares that MCPS is msirepresenting research on gifted education and breaking MD law to provide supports to gifted and talented students. Not this board at least.