Secret report shows ‘special’ treatment for public officials in D.C. school lottery

[Anonymous]

Bowser sucks. And I'm sorry that he didn't win, but whoever comes on every DC education thread lamenting about how David Cantania lost, could YOU get lost? I'm so tired of seeing you whine about it. He lost. He may have been great, but that's not our reality. Time to move on, PP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:According to the WP, Bowser did NOT apologize:

"The fallout from findings that a former schools chancellor misused her authority to place children of top city officials in coveted schools seemed clear. From city hall, where council members were inundated with calls last week, to neighborhood email groups, where parents fumed, there was outrage that well-connected people had stepped ahead of everyone else in the city’s notoriously competitive school lottery.

But the mayor doesn’t see it that way."

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/after-favoritism-revealed-in-school-lottery-dc-parents-wait-on-apology/2017/05/21/8876c2da-3c25-11e7-9e48-c4f199710b69_story.html?utm_term=.0783d5fe86d5

From the article:

"[Rashad] Young, who had been the city administrator in Alexandria, Va., before Bowser announced his hire in late 2014, had not yet moved into the District when he entered the lottery in spring of 2015.

He won seats for his two sons at Murch Elementary School, a high-performing school in Northwest, but did not enroll by the May 1 deadline. The chancellor arranged for Young to claim the seats months later, after Young and his family moved to a $1.2 million house outside the Murch school zone and east of Rock Creek Park."

1.2M house, $297K annual salary, AND Murch ... hey Kaya, are you SURE that DC government officials are under-compensated???

If this is true this sucks big time

What don't you think is true? Rashad Young's salary and home price are public record. The independent IG indicated Young received special treatment in the lottery. The Mayor effectively confirmed it. What's left to doubt?

I just looked up his house--have to say, it's pretty nice. Awesome backyard.

I can see why public officials would be tempted to move ahead of the line for high-performing schools, but buy homes in areas where their money can stretch further (and, for many AAs, esp. those from the DC area, the "Gold Coast" area is very desirable place to live). The system is already in place, and they are simply operating within it. I do, however, think the rules need to be changed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:According to the WP, Bowser did NOT apologize:

"The fallout from findings that a former schools chancellor misused her authority to place children of top city officials in coveted schools seemed clear. From city hall, where council members were inundated with calls last week, to neighborhood email groups, where parents fumed, there was outrage that well-connected people had stepped ahead of everyone else in the city’s notoriously competitive school lottery.

But the mayor doesn’t see it that way."

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/after-favoritism-revealed-in-school-lottery-dc-parents-wait-on-apology/2017/05/21/8876c2da-3c25-11e7-9e48-c4f199710b69_story.html?utm_term=.0783d5fe86d5

From the article:

"[Rashad] Young, who had been the city administrator in Alexandria, Va., before Bowser announced his hire in late 2014, had not yet moved into the District when he entered the lottery in spring of 2015.

He won seats for his two sons at Murch Elementary School, a high-performing school in Northwest, but did not enroll by the May 1 deadline. The chancellor arranged for Young to claim the seats months later, after Young and his family moved to a $1.2 million house outside the Murch school zone and east of Rock Creek Park."

1.2M house, $297K annual salary, AND Murch ... hey Kaya, are you SURE that DC government officials are under-compensated???

Can anyone explain how he supposedly won these seats in the first place with no DC address to put on his form? His application should have been last behind every single DC OOB resident with a valid address applying. The explanation that he won the seats at first in the lottery at all seems extremely fishy to me.

+100. Which makes this situation even worse, because now they are lying about the lie. We need an audit of that whole process, because he should have been behind all the siblings, all the DC residents applying OOB, etc.

+1000. Bowser must think we're stupid. There's NO way his children legitimately won a lottery seat.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:According to the WP, Bowser did NOT apologize:

"The fallout from findings that a former schools chancellor misused her authority to place children of top city officials in coveted schools seemed clear. From city hall, where council members were inundated with calls last week, to neighborhood email groups, where parents fumed, there was outrage that well-connected people had stepped ahead of everyone else in the city’s notoriously competitive school lottery.

But the mayor doesn’t see it that way."

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/after-favoritism-revealed-in-school-lottery-dc-parents-wait-on-apology/2017/05/21/8876c2da-3c25-11e7-9e48-c4f199710b69_story.html?utm_term=.0783d5fe86d5

From the article:

"[Rashad] Young, who had been the city administrator in Alexandria, Va., before Bowser announced his hire in late 2014, had not yet moved into the District when he entered the lottery in spring of 2015.

He won seats for his two sons at Murch Elementary School, a high-performing school in Northwest, but did not enroll by the May 1 deadline. The chancellor arranged for Young to claim the seats months later, after Young and his family moved to a $1.2 million house outside the Murch school zone and east of Rock Creek Park."

1.2M house, $297K annual salary, AND Murch ... hey Kaya, are you SURE that DC government officials are under-compensated???

Can anyone explain how he supposedly won these seats in the first place with no DC address to put on his form? His application should have been last behind every single DC OOB resident with a valid address applying. The explanation that he won the seats at first in the lottery at all seems extremely fishy to me.

+100. Which makes this situation even worse, because now they are lying about the lie. We need an audit of that whole process, because he should have been behind all the siblings, all the DC residents applying OOB, etc.

+1000. Bowser must think we're stupid. There's NO way his children legitimately won a lottery seat.

She sure does

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:According to the WP, Bowser did NOT apologize:

"The fallout from findings that a former schools chancellor misused her authority to place children of top city officials in coveted schools seemed clear. From city hall, where council members were inundated with calls last week, to neighborhood email groups, where parents fumed, there was outrage that well-connected people had stepped ahead of everyone else in the city’s notoriously competitive school lottery.

But the mayor doesn’t see it that way."

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/after-favoritism-revealed-in-school-lottery-dc-parents-wait-on-apology/2017/05/21/8876c2da-3c25-11e7-9e48-c4f199710b69_story.html?utm_term=.0783d5fe86d5

From the article:

"[Rashad] Young, who had been the city administrator in Alexandria, Va., before Bowser announced his hire in late 2014, had not yet moved into the District when he entered the lottery in spring of 2015.

He won seats for his two sons at Murch Elementary School, a high-performing school in Northwest, but did not enroll by the May 1 deadline. The chancellor arranged for Young to claim the seats months later, after Young and his family moved to a $1.2 million house outside the Murch school zone and east of Rock Creek Park."

1.2M house, $297K annual salary, AND Murch ... hey Kaya, are you SURE that DC government officials are under-compensated???

If this is true this sucks big time

What don't you think is true? Rashad Young's salary and home price are public record. The independent IG indicated Young received special treatment in the lottery. The Mayor effectively confirmed it. What's left to doubt?

I just looked up his house--have to say, it's pretty nice. Awesome backyard.

I can see why public officials would be tempted to move ahead of the line for high-performing schools, but buy homes in areas where their money can stretch further (and, for many AAs, esp. those from the DC area, the "Gold Coast" area is very desirable place to live). The system is already in place, and they are simply operating within it. I do, however, think the rules need to be changed.

What Bowser and others are missing here is that yes, discretionary transfers existed but that the expectation is that senior government officials act ethically. Every policy in DC Government should not require special instructions to indicate that senior officials not take advantage of it. They should already know not to use their position or power to benefit themselves ahead of residents. If they don't already know that, they shouldn't be allowed in positions of power. That's why people are upset, not because the discretionary transfer policy was poorly worded.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:According to the WP, Bowser did NOT apologize:

"The fallout from findings that a former schools chancellor misused her authority to place children of top city officials in coveted schools seemed clear. From city hall, where council members were inundated with calls last week, to neighborhood email groups, where parents fumed, there was outrage that well-connected people had stepped ahead of everyone else in the city’s notoriously competitive school lottery.

But the mayor doesn’t see it that way."

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/after-favoritism-revealed-in-school-lottery-dc-parents-wait-on-apology/2017/05/21/8876c2da-3c25-11e7-9e48-c4f199710b69_story.html?utm_term=.0783d5fe86d5

From the article:

"[Rashad] Young, who had been the city administrator in Alexandria, Va., before Bowser announced his hire in late 2014, had not yet moved into the District when he entered the lottery in spring of 2015.

He won seats for his two sons at Murch Elementary School, a high-performing school in Northwest, but did not enroll by the May 1 deadline. The chancellor arranged for Young to claim the seats months later, after Young and his family moved to a $1.2 million house outside the Murch school zone and east of Rock Creek Park."

1.2M house, $297K annual salary, AND Murch ... hey Kaya, are you SURE that DC government officials are under-compensated???

Can anyone explain how he supposedly won these seats in the first place with no DC address to put on his form? His application should have been last behind every single DC OOB resident with a valid address applying. The explanation that he won the seats at first in the lottery at all seems extremely fishy to me.

+100. Which makes this situation even worse, because now they are lying about the lie. We need an audit of that whole process, because he should have been behind all the siblings, all the DC residents applying OOB, etc.

+1000. Bowser must think we're stupid. There's NO way his children legitimately won a lottery seat.

The lottery does not rank people with DC addresses OOB higher than people without DC addresses. Young wasn't necessarily below all those who were living in DC at the time of the lottery. But when the deadline passed and the seat was presumably given to someone on the waitlist, his kid was still let in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:David Grosso calls for a review of all 4 years of lottery data

Link: http://www.nbcwashington.com/blogs/first-read-dmv/Review-All-Four-Years-of-DC-School-Lottery-Councilmember-Says-423045494.html

Well, assuming all of the data and relevant emails will be made available, the next step would be to subpoena Kaya Henderson about what she did. As long as she doesn't lie, she's not going to be in any legal jeopardy. As for her future employment prospects, probably not so great.

Grosso loves Kaya and would never do anything that would put her in bad spot. Plus he was in charge of oversight during these years so could potentially reflect badly on him. This is just window dressing for us dumb voters

+1 Yup. Lottery data will not show anything as these are discretionary spots. Grosso will say x thousand kids were fairly matched in the lottery process, and these 7 cases were aberrations.

7X4=almost 30. and that is if 7 is representative and not a low outlier. All those kids need to be out at the end of the year. Their parents can afford to move IB. It might be they can only apply this to government officials (so kaya's friend and Fenty is off the hook). But at least we can eliminate this as a perk of office! Maybe this will be the beginning of the end of cronyism in DC - but only if there are immediate consequences. I feel much more strongly about this than about residency cheaters, which happens by those who make less than 100,000 a year and don't have the same economic (though inconvenient) options these people have.

That makes zero sense. The children were placed in those schools within the approved process; Kaya had discretion and she used it. There is no reason or justification to remove kids at those schools who now have a right to their feeder pattern.

These public officials acted unethically and knowingly accepted a public benefit, at the expense of residents. They should either give back the seats or resign.

You need to go back on your meds. It wasn't unethical for them to make the request through the formal process. I don't think it should have been made available, but it was. And they made the request. And some non-connected people also used the process (unsuccessfully, to be sure). So it was available to all. And the accepting public benefit line is laughable. Are you trying to sound like a lawyer? Did you hear that on Law & Order? Taken to its logical extreme that would prohibit these employees from having garbage picked up or sending their kids to DCPS schools. There's nothing wrong with "accepting a public good".

So many of you are missing the larger picture here. The problem wasn't the employees asking or Kaya granting. The problem is that the discretion was available in the first place, that Kaya browbeat people who weren't politically connected for having the audacity to ask, that Bowser doesn't have a clue that any of this is a problem, that city officials may or may not be lying about who actually benefited, or how, and that it isn't clear what type of pressure or promises were deployed to get Kaya to concede.

I get it, people are upset. But if you want to create real,, lasting change then you need to focus your ire on the actual problems and then propose solutions. Platitudes and strings of pretty words that don't mean what you think they mean don't get us anywhere.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:According to the WP, Bowser did NOT apologize:

"The fallout from findings that a former schools chancellor misused her authority to place children of top city officials in coveted schools seemed clear. From city hall, where council members were inundated with calls last week, to neighborhood email groups, where parents fumed, there was outrage that well-connected people had stepped ahead of everyone else in the city’s notoriously competitive school lottery.

But the mayor doesn’t see it that way."

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/after-favoritism-revealed-in-school-lottery-dc-parents-wait-on-apology/2017/05/21/8876c2da-3c25-11e7-9e48-c4f199710b69_story.html?utm_term=.0783d5fe86d5

From the article:

"[Rashad] Young, who had been the city administrator in Alexandria, Va., before Bowser announced his hire in late 2014, had not yet moved into the District when he entered the lottery in spring of 2015.

He won seats for his two sons at Murch Elementary School, a high-performing school in Northwest, but did not enroll by the May 1 deadline. The chancellor arranged for Young to claim the seats months later, after Young and his family moved to a $1.2 million house outside the Murch school zone and east of Rock Creek Park."

1.2M house, $297K annual salary, AND Murch ... hey Kaya, are you SURE that DC government officials are under-compensated???

If this is true this sucks big time

What don't you think is true? Rashad Young's salary and home price are public record. The independent IG indicated Young received special treatment in the lottery. The Mayor effectively confirmed it. What's left to doubt?

I just looked up his house--have to say, it's pretty nice. Awesome backyard.

I can see why public officials would be tempted to move ahead of the line for high-performing schools, but buy homes in areas where their money can stretch further (and, for many AAs, esp. those from the DC area, the "Gold Coast" area is very desirable place to live). The system is already in place, and they are simply operating within it. I do, however, think the rules need to be changed.

What Bowser and others are missing here is that yes, discretionary transfers existed but that the expectation is that senior government officials act ethically. Every policy in DC Government should not require special instructions to indicate that senior officials not take advantage of it. They should already know not to use their position or power to benefit themselves ahead of residents. If they don't already know that, they shouldn't be allowed in positions of power. That's why people are upset, not because the discretionary transfer policy was poorly worded.

You are turning logic on its head. If it was a published appeals application process (it was) available to all (it was) then the government employees didn't "take advantage of it". You are suggesting that they shouldn't have to be told that they are ineligible for something that is otherwise available to all other taxpayers. How far should we extend your line of thinking? Should we say as a default that employees are ineligible for everything unless legislation specifically includes them?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:David Grosso calls for a review of all 4 years of lottery data

Link: http://www.nbcwashington.com/blogs/first-read-dmv/Review-All-Four-Years-of-DC-School-Lottery-Councilmember-Says-423045494.html

Well, assuming all of the data and relevant emails will be made available, the next step would be to subpoena Kaya Henderson about what she did. As long as she doesn't lie, she's not going to be in any legal jeopardy. As for her future employment prospects, probably not so great.

Grosso loves Kaya and would never do anything that would put her in bad spot. Plus he was in charge of oversight during these years so could potentially reflect badly on him. This is just window dressing for us dumb voters

+1 Yup. Lottery data will not show anything as these are discretionary spots. Grosso will say x thousand kids were fairly matched in the lottery process, and these 7 cases were aberrations.

7X4=almost 30. and that is if 7 is representative and not a low outlier. All those kids need to be out at the end of the year. Their parents can afford to move IB. It might be they can only apply this to government officials (so kaya's friend and Fenty is off the hook). But at least we can eliminate this as a perk of office! Maybe this will be the beginning of the end of cronyism in DC - but only if there are immediate consequences. I feel much more strongly about this than about residency cheaters, which happens by those who make less than 100,000 a year and don't have the same economic (though inconvenient) options these people have.

That makes zero sense. The children were placed in those schools within the approved process; Kaya had discretion and she used it. There is no reason or justification to remove kids at those schools who now have a right to their feeder pattern.

These public officials acted unethically and knowingly accepted a public benefit, at the expense of residents. They should either give back the seats or resign.

You need to go back on your meds. It wasn't unethical for them to make the request through the formal process. I don't think it should have been made available, but it was. And they made the request. And some non-connected people also used the process (unsuccessfully, to be sure). So it was available to all. And the accepting public benefit line is laughable. Are you trying to sound like a lawyer? Did you hear that on Law & Order? Taken to its logical extreme that would prohibit these employees from having garbage picked up or sending their kids to DCPS schools. There's nothing wrong with "accepting a public good".

So many of you are missing the larger picture here. The problem wasn't the employees asking or Kaya granting. The problem is that the discretion was available in the first place, that Kaya browbeat people who weren't politically connected for having the audacity to ask, that Bowser doesn't have a clue that any of this is a problem, that city officials may or may not be lying about who actually benefited, or how, and that it isn't clear what type of pressure or promises were deployed to get Kaya to concede.

I get it, people are upset. But if you want to create real,, lasting change then you need to focus your ire on the actual problems and then propose solutions. Platitudes and strings of pretty words that don't mean what you think they mean don't get us anywhere.

Did you even read the report? How about the conclusion? Start there because it concludes that she failed to act impartially. Sure she has discretion but it has to be impartial. You do know what impartial means?

I firmly believe the Chancellor should have discretion to move kids from bad situations, into better situations, etc. I don't think that discretion should be used to benefit her friends or political allies. That is cronyism -- actual opposite of impartial.

[Anonymous]

Well said. It was an abuse of discretion.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:David Grosso calls for a review of all 4 years of lottery data

Link: http://www.nbcwashington.com/blogs/first-read-dmv/Review-All-Four-Years-of-DC-School-Lottery-Councilmember-Says-423045494.html

Well, assuming all of the data and relevant emails will be made available, the next step would be to subpoena Kaya Henderson about what she did. As long as she doesn't lie, she's not going to be in any legal jeopardy. As for her future employment prospects, probably not so great.

Grosso loves Kaya and would never do anything that would put her in bad spot. Plus he was in charge of oversight during these years so could potentially reflect badly on him. This is just window dressing for us dumb voters

+1 Yup. Lottery data will not show anything as these are discretionary spots. Grosso will say x thousand kids were fairly matched in the lottery process, and these 7 cases were aberrations.

7X4=almost 30. and that is if 7 is representative and not a low outlier. All those kids need to be out at the end of the year. Their parents can afford to move IB. It might be they can only apply this to government officials (so kaya's friend and Fenty is off the hook). But at least we can eliminate this as a perk of office! Maybe this will be the beginning of the end of cronyism in DC - but only if there are immediate consequences. I feel much more strongly about this than about residency cheaters, which happens by those who make less than 100,000 a year and don't have the same economic (though inconvenient) options these people have.

That makes zero sense. The children were placed in those schools within the approved process; Kaya had discretion and she used it. There is no reason or justification to remove kids at those schools who now have a right to their feeder pattern.

These public officials acted unethically and knowingly accepted a public benefit, at the expense of residents. They should either give back the seats or resign.

You need to go back on your meds. It wasn't unethical for them to make the request through the formal process. I don't think it should have been made available, but it was. And they made the request. And some non-connected people also used the process (unsuccessfully, to be sure). So it was available to all. And the accepting public benefit line is laughable. Are you trying to sound like a lawyer? Did you hear that on Law & Order? Taken to its logical extreme that would prohibit these employees from having garbage picked up or sending their kids to DCPS schools. There's nothing wrong with "accepting a public good".

So many of you are missing the larger picture here. The problem wasn't the employees asking or Kaya granting. The problem is that the discretion was available in the first place, that Kaya browbeat people who weren't politically connected for having the audacity to ask, that Bowser doesn't have a clue that any of this is a problem, that city officials may or may not be lying about who actually benefited, or how, and that it isn't clear what type of pressure or promises were deployed to get Kaya to concede.

I get it, people are upset. But if you want to create real,, lasting change then you need to focus your ire on the actual problems and then propose solutions. Platitudes and strings of pretty words that don't mean what you think they mean don't get us anywhere.

This is the part that still bothers me the most, personally. Either all parents should have the right to ask, or no one should.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Bowser sucks. And I'm sorry that he didn't win, but whoever comes on every DC education thread lamenting about how David Cantania lost, could YOU get lost? I'm so tired of seeing you whine about it. He lost. He may have been great, but that's not our reality. Time to move on, PP.

Catania voter here. My DC is in private and we're not going anywhere.

Kisses to you and your low-performing schools!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:According to the WP, Bowser did NOT apologize:

"The fallout from findings that a former schools chancellor misused her authority to place children of top city officials in coveted schools seemed clear. From city hall, where council members were inundated with calls last week, to neighborhood email groups, where parents fumed, there was outrage that well-connected people had stepped ahead of everyone else in the city’s notoriously competitive school lottery.

But the mayor doesn’t see it that way."

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/after-favoritism-revealed-in-school-lottery-dc-parents-wait-on-apology/2017/05/21/8876c2da-3c25-11e7-9e48-c4f199710b69_story.html?utm_term=.0783d5fe86d5

From the article:

"[Rashad] Young, who had been the city administrator in Alexandria, Va., before Bowser announced his hire in late 2014, had not yet moved into the District when he entered the lottery in spring of 2015.

He won seats for his two sons at Murch Elementary School, a high-performing school in Northwest, but did not enroll by the May 1 deadline. The chancellor arranged for Young to claim the seats months later, after Young and his family moved to a $1.2 million house outside the Murch school zone and east of Rock Creek Park."

1.2M house, $297K annual salary, AND Murch ... hey Kaya, are you SURE that DC government officials are under-compensated???

If this is true this sucks big time

What don't you think is true? Rashad Young's salary and home price are public record. The independent IG indicated Young received special treatment in the lottery. The Mayor effectively confirmed it. What's left to doubt?

I just looked up his house--have to say, it's pretty nice. Awesome backyard.

I can see why public officials would be tempted to move ahead of the line for high-performing schools, but buy homes in areas where their money can stretch further (and, for many AAs, esp. those from the DC area, the "Gold Coast" area is very desirable place to live). The system is already in place, and they are simply operating within it. I do, however, think the rules need to be changed.

What Bowser and others are missing here is that yes, discretionary transfers existed but that the expectation is that senior government officials act ethically. Every policy in DC Government should not require special instructions to indicate that senior officials not take advantage of it. They should already know not to use their position or power to benefit themselves ahead of residents. If they don't already know that, they shouldn't be allowed in positions of power. That's why people are upset, not because the discretionary transfer policy was poorly worded.

Wrong.

In a world where the lottery makes a phenomenal and powerful difference in your child's education, people are justifiably upset that some children are more equal than others.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:According to the WP, Bowser did NOT apologize:

"The fallout from findings that a former schools chancellor misused her authority to place children of top city officials in coveted schools seemed clear. From city hall, where council members were inundated with calls last week, to neighborhood email groups, where parents fumed, there was outrage that well-connected people had stepped ahead of everyone else in the city’s notoriously competitive school lottery.

But the mayor doesn’t see it that way."

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/after-favoritism-revealed-in-school-lottery-dc-parents-wait-on-apology/2017/05/21/8876c2da-3c25-11e7-9e48-c4f199710b69_story.html?utm_term=.0783d5fe86d5

From the article:

"[Rashad] Young, who had been the city administrator in Alexandria, Va., before Bowser announced his hire in late 2014, had not yet moved into the District when he entered the lottery in spring of 2015.

He won seats for his two sons at Murch Elementary School, a high-performing school in Northwest, but did not enroll by the May 1 deadline. The chancellor arranged for Young to claim the seats months later, after Young and his family moved to a $1.2 million house outside the Murch school zone and east of Rock Creek Park."

1.2M house, $297K annual salary, AND Murch ... hey Kaya, are you SURE that DC government officials are under-compensated???

If this is true this sucks big time

What don't you think is true? Rashad Young's salary and home price are public record. The independent IG indicated Young received special treatment in the lottery. The Mayor effectively confirmed it. What's left to doubt?

I just looked up his house--have to say, it's pretty nice. Awesome backyard.

I can see why public officials would be tempted to move ahead of the line for high-performing schools, but buy homes in areas where their money can stretch further (and, for many AAs, esp. those from the DC area, the "Gold Coast" area is very desirable place to live). The system is already in place, and they are simply operating within it. I do, however, think the rules need to be changed.

What Bowser and others are missing here is that yes, discretionary transfers existed but that the expectation is that senior government officials act ethically. Every policy in DC Government should not require special instructions to indicate that senior officials not take advantage of it. They should already know not to use their position or power to benefit themselves ahead of residents. If they don't already know that, they shouldn't be allowed in positions of power. That's why people are upset, not because the discretionary transfer policy was poorly worded.

You are turning logic on its head. If it was a published appeals application process (it was) available to all (it was) then the government employees didn't "take advantage of it". You are suggesting that they shouldn't have to be told that they are ineligible for something that is otherwise available to all other taxpayers. How far should we extend your line of thinking? Should we say as a default that employees are ineligible for everything unless legislation specifically includes them?

It's unethical. Young is the most senior appointed official in DC. He cannot ask Kaya to make an impartial decision regarding his children by virtue of his position. What if was the Deputy Mayor for Education that asked for a discretionary transfer? She's Kaya's direct supervisor. Would that be ethical? This is literally no different. Young is Kaya's boss' boss.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:According to the WP, Bowser did NOT apologize:

"The fallout from findings that a former schools chancellor misused her authority to place children of top city officials in coveted schools seemed clear. From city hall, where council members were inundated with calls last week, to neighborhood email groups, where parents fumed, there was outrage that well-connected people had stepped ahead of everyone else in the city’s notoriously competitive school lottery.

But the mayor doesn’t see it that way."

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/after-favoritism-revealed-in-school-lottery-dc-parents-wait-on-apology/2017/05/21/8876c2da-3c25-11e7-9e48-c4f199710b69_story.html?utm_term=.0783d5fe86d5

From the article:

"[Rashad] Young, who had been the city administrator in Alexandria, Va., before Bowser announced his hire in late 2014, had not yet moved into the District when he entered the lottery in spring of 2015.

He won seats for his two sons at Murch Elementary School, a high-performing school in Northwest, but did not enroll by the May 1 deadline. The chancellor arranged for Young to claim the seats months later, after Young and his family moved to a $1.2 million house outside the Murch school zone and east of Rock Creek Park."

1.2M house, $297K annual salary, AND Murch ... hey Kaya, are you SURE that DC government officials are under-compensated???

If this is true this sucks big time

What don't you think is true? Rashad Young's salary and home price are public record. The independent IG indicated Young received special treatment in the lottery. The Mayor effectively confirmed it. What's left to doubt?

I just looked up his house--have to say, it's pretty nice. Awesome backyard.

I can see why public officials would be tempted to move ahead of the line for high-performing schools, but buy homes in areas where their money can stretch further (and, for many AAs, esp. those from the DC area, the "Gold Coast" area is very desirable place to live). The system is already in place, and they are simply operating within it. I do, however, think the rules need to be changed.

What Bowser and others are missing here is that yes, discretionary transfers existed but that the expectation is that senior government officials act ethically. Every policy in DC Government should not require special instructions to indicate that senior officials not take advantage of it. They should already know not to use their position or power to benefit themselves ahead of residents. If they don't already know that, they shouldn't be allowed in positions of power. That's why people are upset, not because the discretionary transfer policy was poorly worded.

You are turning logic on its head. If it was a published appeals application process (it was) available to all (it was) then the government employees didn't "take advantage of it". You are suggesting that they shouldn't have to be told that they are ineligible for something that is otherwise available to all other taxpayers. How far should we extend your line of thinking? Should we say as a default that employees are ineligible for everything unless legislation specifically includes them?

It's unethical. Young is the most senior appointed official in DC. He cannot ask Kaya to make an impartial decision regarding his children by virtue of his position. What if was the Deputy Mayor for Education that asked for a discretionary transfer? She's Kaya's direct supervisor. Would that be ethical? This is literally no different. Young is Kaya's boss' boss.

Young should have never asked for the transfer, and Kaya never should have considered it. That would have been the ethical course of action, recognizing the inherent conflict. You're correct that by accepting the job of city administrator (or Chancellor) and its high salary & responsibilities, you accept a higher ethical obligation than your average resident.