10/16 Board of Ed meeting

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The community is not upset because “change can feel uncertain,” as MCPS keeps trying to message. We are upset because there has been no outreach to those who would be most impacted (students in grades 4–7 and their parents) by this proposed plan, and consequently few are even aware of the massive changes that would affect them.

The plan makes inequity worse. Few high FARMS URMs would travel to the HSs where most criteria-based programs would be housed. This will lessen diversity in those schools.

Additionally the plan would take away access to renowned, established programs, and sequester many to attend inferior substitutes, thereby increasing inequity,

The sample model budget is just a sliver of the enormous amount of taxpayer money this proposed plan will cost.

Many communities would be disrupted and placed into regions without being given opportunities to have a meaningful voice and influence. Just like that BOE member would not want an involuntary transfer to teach ELD just because she is certified in it, many communities do not want to be involuntarily transferred into a region they did not consent to.

It makes much more sense to build more programs in areas that demonstrate want or need, and put the money towards fixing the inequity: strengthen K–8 core subjects in all schools.

Yes, this! As a former teacher and current elementary parent, I have been dismayed by MCPS. We moved to Montgomery County for the schools, and I have been dismayed at the many of the curricular choices of MCPS, especially Benchmark, which was horrible.

I have had to take a far more active role in homeschooling my kids than I ever imagined I would take as a full-time working parent to make up for curricular gaps and ensure my kids have a well-rounded education. I’m dismayed at the excessive screen time and movies shown at school, the preponderance of low-quality graphic novels, the lack of novel study, the substitute teachers who have shown my elementary student Mr. Beast videos and other garbage on YouTube instead of teaching, etc.

I believe in the value of public education, and I am the child of a public school teacher. I received an excellent public education myself, and I am dismayed at the state of public education here in MoCo. I don’t know if it’s just this area or if it’s the impact of what ed tech has done to education, but I understand now why so many families turn to private school.

When we have such terrible test scores, why on earth are they focusing on creating excessively complex, specialty programming? How about ensuring each high school has high-quality curriculum, enough teachers and paraeductors, and strong AP classes, humanities and arts programming, etc.

They don’t need a new regional programming model, they need to get back to the very basics of providing a high-quality public education for all students.

Nicely said. We heavily supplemented at home in the early years. The ES curriculum is lacking and changing it every few years makes it worse. Get back to basics. Any child not on grade level should get extra support.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Chart from chat gbt on medium taxes paid.

Estimated Median Annual Property Taxes by High School Cluster
High School Cluster Median Home Value Estimated Median Annual Property Tax
Walt Whitman $990,000 $8,613
Winston Churchill $905,000 $7,873
Bethesda-Chevy Chase (BCC) $830,000 $7,221
Thomas S. Wootton $700,000 $6,090
Montgomery Blair (Silver Spring) $650,000 $5,655
Walter Johnson $560,000 $4,872
James Hubert Blake (Silver Spring) $550,000 $4,785
Richard Montgomery $510,000 $4,437
John F. Kennedy (Silver Spring) $500,000 $4,350
Quince Orchard $420,000 $3,654
Springbrook (Silver Spring) $450,000 $3,915
Northwood (Silver Spring) $475,000 $4,138
Gaithersburg $365,000 $3,175
Northwest $345,000 $3,002
Wheaton (Silver Spring) $425,000 $3,698
Albert Einstein (Silver Spring) $400,000 $3,480
Poolesville $375,000 $3,263
Damascus $350,000 $3,045
Clarksburg $325,000 $2,907
Seneca Valley $300,000 $2,610
Watkins Mill $275,000 $2,393
Paint Branch $250,000 $2,175
Blair High School (Silver Spring) $650,000 $5,655

Blair is so expensive they appear twice

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Chart from chat gbt on medium taxes paid.

Estimated Median Annual Property Taxes by High School Cluster
High School Cluster Median Home Value Estimated Median Annual Property Tax
Walt Whitman $990,000 $8,613
Winston Churchill $905,000 $7,873
Bethesda-Chevy Chase (BCC) $830,000 $7,221
Thomas S. Wootton $700,000 $6,090
Montgomery Blair (Silver Spring) $650,000 $5,655
Walter Johnson $560,000 $4,872
James Hubert Blake (Silver Spring) $550,000 $4,785
Richard Montgomery $510,000 $4,437
John F. Kennedy (Silver Spring) $500,000 $4,350
Quince Orchard $420,000 $3,654
Springbrook (Silver Spring) $450,000 $3,915
Northwood (Silver Spring) $475,000 $4,138
Gaithersburg $365,000 $3,175
Northwest $345,000 $3,002
Wheaton (Silver Spring) $425,000 $3,698
Albert Einstein (Silver Spring) $400,000 $3,480
Poolesville $375,000 $3,263
Damascus $350,000 $3,045
Clarksburg $325,000 $2,907
Seneca Valley $300,000 $2,610
Watkins Mill $275,000 $2,393
Paint Branch $250,000 $2,175
Blair High School (Silver Spring) $650,000 $5,655

Wait until you find out even homeless students get to go to school. Without even paying property taxes!

Oh, and it will be fun for you to find out that you still have to pay property taxes after your kid grows up, or if they go to private school, or if you have no kids! Because it’s not tuition.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Rita Montoya is ripping into their community engagement efforts. Thank you Ms. Montoya.

What did she say? At what time in the meeting (for looking up her comments)?

[Anonymous]

MCPS is also assuming without sufficient evidence that it is not taking away opportunities, that the plan would increase equity, that the substitute programs will be rigorous. It is a problem that the most impacted have not been given meaningful voice and agency. No one wants to be involuntarily transferred into regions which may serve more as ghettos.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:MCPS is also assuming without sufficient evidence that it is not taking away opportunities, that the plan would increase equity, that the substitute programs will be rigorous. It is a problem that the most impacted have not been given meaningful voice and agency. No one wants to be involuntarily transferred into regions which may serve more as ghettos.

They know, they don’t care.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There are 4 academic criteria based programs in each region. They should all be at the highest FARMS schools in each region.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Chart from chat gbt on medium taxes paid.

Estimated Median Annual Property Taxes by High School Cluster
High School Cluster Median Home Value Estimated Median Annual Property Tax
Walt Whitman $990,000 $8,613
Winston Churchill $905,000 $7,873
Bethesda-Chevy Chase (BCC) $830,000 $7,221
Thomas S. Wootton $700,000 $6,090
Montgomery Blair (Silver Spring) $650,000 $5,655
Walter Johnson $560,000 $4,872
James Hubert Blake (Silver Spring) $550,000 $4,785
Richard Montgomery $510,000 $4,437
John F. Kennedy (Silver Spring) $500,000 $4,350
Quince Orchard $420,000 $3,654
Springbrook (Silver Spring) $450,000 $3,915
Northwood (Silver Spring) $475,000 $4,138
Gaithersburg $365,000 $3,175
Northwest $345,000 $3,002
Wheaton (Silver Spring) $425,000 $3,698
Albert Einstein (Silver Spring) $400,000 $3,480
Poolesville $375,000 $3,263
Damascus $350,000 $3,045
Clarksburg $325,000 $2,907
Seneca Valley $300,000 $2,610
Watkins Mill $275,000 $2,393
Paint Branch $250,000 $2,175
Blair High School (Silver Spring) $650,000 $5,655

Inaccurate and useless

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Rita Montoya is ripping into their community engagement efforts. Thank you Ms. Montoya.

She rarely finds her footing on issues as her learning curve has been steep. And she is usually angry when she does find that footing.

I wish she could get her arms around the quality and logistic issues concerning the proposed regional programs. We need her to get those parts of the issue.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If MCPS's goal is to stop fighting for seats for magnet programs, it can just add programs. It does not need to enact a regional model.

It's how you add the programs that matters. None of the central office staff have any secondary school curriculum programming experience. They are bureaucrats.

The process should have included experienced educators and principals specifically from our best program high schools -- this is deep experience that they possess and they should be helping to lead the process. And it was just LAST FRIDAY, after all this time, that they finally started to meet with principals. Unbelievable. That is why they need to slow down the process - central office was late to the table with key contributors to excellent programming.

Otherwise, we will get garbage and ALL our children deserve better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why separating music out of theatre and dance? That doesn’t make sense at all…

In some ways, they are different disciplines.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Did they present anything about MS programs? This is what parents in grades 4 and 5 care about most right now. I want to make sure my kid’s MS program aligns with whatever their HS ends up offering since transportation won’t be provided. We’re in a spot in the DCC where we could end up at 2-3 different middle and high schools

No, they said that's still to come. But Taylor suggested that the middle school program changes would be minor.

Minor! Word on the school corner is that the middle school magnets are going away...we'll see.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Chart from chat gbt on medium taxes paid.

Estimated Median Annual Property Taxes by High School Cluster
High School Cluster Median Home Value Estimated Median Annual Property Tax
Walt Whitman $990,000 $8,613
Winston Churchill $905,000 $7,873
Bethesda-Chevy Chase (BCC) $830,000 $7,221
Thomas S. Wootton $700,000 $6,090
Montgomery Blair (Silver Spring) $650,000 $5,655
Walter Johnson $560,000 $4,872
James Hubert Blake (Silver Spring) $550,000 $4,785
Richard Montgomery $510,000 $4,437
John F. Kennedy (Silver Spring) $500,000 $4,350
Quince Orchard $420,000 $3,654
Springbrook (Silver Spring) $450,000 $3,915
Northwood (Silver Spring) $475,000 $4,138
Gaithersburg $365,000 $3,175
Northwest $345,000 $3,002
Wheaton (Silver Spring) $425,000 $3,698
Albert Einstein (Silver Spring) $400,000 $3,480
Poolesville $375,000 $3,263
Damascus $350,000 $3,045
Clarksburg $325,000 $2,907
Seneca Valley $300,000 $2,610
Watkins Mill $275,000 $2,393
Paint Branch $250,000 $2,175
Blair High School (Silver Spring) $650,000 $5,655

Inaccurate and useless

Then provide something better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why separating music out of theatre and dance? That doesn’t make sense at all…

In some ways, they are different disciplines.

They are but they intermix.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Humanity is now moved to Whitman!

It's also at Blair in the Communications Arts Program. Central office staff don't realize that the Blair CAP program is humanities.