Black and Brown Coalition supports proposed regional model

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:yeah I would be very very cautious about optics from here on out if you are opposing the regional program model. even what you write here.

Is it ok to keep pointing out that they put the Humanities magnets at the whitest and most affluent schools in each region (Churchill, Whitman, Poolesville, etc)?

And, that unlike now, students won’t have a local bus to take them to Poolesville, they’ll have to first get themselves to Clarksville or Seneca Valley HS early?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:yeah I would be very very cautious about optics from here on out if you are opposing the regional program model. even what you write here.

Is it ok to keep pointing out that they put the Humanities magnets at the whitest and most affluent schools in each region (Churchill, Whitman, Poolesville, etc)?

And, that unlike now, students won’t have a local bus to take them to Poolesville, they’ll have to first get themselves to Clarksville or Seneca Valley HS early?

DP
Of course it is, Black and Brown Coalition made abundantly clear they don't think the model is perfect. Everyone should feel free to continue to point out the numerous problems with it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Copied from another thread that has already discussed about this topic:

“Byron Johns is a vendor for Montgomery College IT on an annual contract that has been about $500,000 for a decade.”

For people who aren't terminally online, who is Byron Johns?

He was one of the leaders of the Montgomery County NAACP. It doesn't look like he is anymore.

BUT,

Wolfe and Evans are board members of the Montgomery County Alliance of Black School Educators, as is Byron Johns.

https://mcabsemcps.org/?page_id=64

He's part of the Black and Brown Coalition:

https://www.bandbcoalition.org/about-us

They need to change their mission statement:

"The Black and Brown Coalition for Educational Equity and Excellence envisions that Black and Brown students who attend Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) will have equitable access to the resources, opportunities and supports they need to be successful in college, career and life.

Our vision was born out of a 2019 resource study commissioned by MCPS that revealed glaring gaps exist in the allocation of resources to Black, Latino and low-income students. Following the release of this study, in the summer of 2019, Byron Johns (chair of the Education Committee and Parents Council for the NAACP—Montgomery County, Maryland chapter) and Diego Uriburu (executive director and co-founder of Identity, Inc.) joined forces to found the Coalition. Today, our Coalition stands more than 30 organizations strong, all advocating for quality education for MCPS’s’ Black and Brown students. We are committed to increasing educational equity for the 90,000 Black and Brown students who attend MCPS schools."

And just what are those 30 organizations? The coalition's website is a bit thin on details...mostly this is Diego and Byron.

https://www.bandbcoalition.org/about-us

Here are some. Interesting they don't list all.

This is from AI:

480 Club LLC
Black and Brown Coalition for Educational Equity and Excellence
Child Trends
City of Gaithersburg
Emerging Triumphantly LLC
EveryMind
Gaithersburg Financial Empowerment Center
Gaithersburg Beloved Community Initiative
Housing Initiative Partnership, Inc.
Jewish Community Relations Council
KID Museum
KindWorks
Latin American Youth Center / Maryland Multicultural Youth Centers (MMYC)
Latino Child Care Association
Latino Health Initiative
Levine School of Music
Manhattan Strategy Group
Manna Food Center
Maryland Treatment Centers
Mind Matters Counseling LLC
Montgomery Coalition for Adult English Literacy
Montgomery Coalition for the Homeless
Montgomery College
Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services
Montgomery County Department of Recreation
Montgomery County Food Council
Montgomery County Public Schools
Montgomery Village Foundation
Neighbors Rising
Nurturing Hope Counseling
Olney Theater
Parent Encouragement Program
Potomac River Keepers
Primary Care Coalition
Street Outreach Network
The Invisible Hand
Tickets for Kids
True Connection Counseling LLC
Universities at Shady Grove
University of Maryland College of Education
University of Maryland Extension Service
University of Maryland School of Public Health

This is a huge, diverse list of organizations. Are these official partnerships? Is there a funding relationship? How do all these organizations support the Black and Brown Coalition?

That is an AI-generated list. It is not accurate. They are not transparent about their members.

Members are people. Partnerships are business and organizations.

Is that a definition of membership you found in a dictionary? These are 2 men running this coalition who receive county money for their paychecks. Diego provides staff support for the coalition. He has a vested interest in doing what Taylor asks, because his organization Identity Youth depends on access to MCPS schools to do their work. Identity does good work, but the reason for this sudden statement seems clear.

Those three people aren't members. They are the people who own/run it.

There are lots of conflicts in the BOE and MCPS. Nothing new.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:yeah I would be very very cautious about optics from here on out if you are opposing the regional program model. even what you write here.

The Black and Brown Coalition recommended implementing programs in underserved areas first before adding programs elsewhere and I think that's a fantastic idea that a lot of people should support and amplify and hold MCPS accountable for, especially if they are going to dismiss all opposition based on the opinion of two people with financial ties to BOE/MCPS.

But rolling this program model out will shift the highest performing kids from lower performing schools. For example, in Region 1, expect Einstein families to flee and go to B-CC or Blair if they can.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:yeah I would be very very cautious about optics from here on out if you are opposing the regional program model. even what you write here.

Absolutely not. Do not be intimidated in criticizing what is clearly a half-baked plan with egregious flaws and gaps. Silencing yourself is precisely what Taylor and MCPS wanted to do by enlisting BBC's statement in support of the model. Do not let Taylor win. I am saying this as a Black parent. They are using race/equity to intimidate people from speaking the truth. It's a game.

People who know and work toward true equity know and are speaking out about how this program models fails to truly deliver on those fronts.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:yeah I would be very very cautious about optics from here on out if you are opposing the regional program model. even what you write here.

The Black and Brown Coalition recommended implementing programs in underserved areas first before adding programs elsewhere and I think that's a fantastic idea that a lot of people should support and amplify and hold MCPS accountable for, especially if they are going to dismiss all opposition based on the opinion of two people with financial ties to BOE/MCPS.

But rolling this program model out will shift the highest performing kids from lower performing schools. For example, in Region 1, expect Einstein families to flee and go to B-CC or Blair if they can.

I completely agree with you. Just saying it looks like based on shady sh$t happening behind the scenes they are going to move forward with this model. One way to mitigate the harms would be to amplify the Black and Brown Coalition's recommendation to initially not to create new programs in areas that aren't underserved. So no new programs at BCC or Whitman until the new programs at Einstein, Northwood and Blair are well established.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:yeah I would be very very cautious about optics from here on out if you are opposing the regional program model. even what you write here.

Absolutely not. Do not be intimidated in criticizing what is clearly a half-baked plan with egregious flaws and gaps. Silencing yourself is precisely what Taylor and MCPS wanted to do by enlisting BBC's statement in support of the model. Do not let Taylor win. I am saying this as a Black parent. They are using race/equity to intimidate people from speaking the truth. It's a game.

People who know and work toward true equity know and are speaking out about how this program models fails to truly deliver on those fronts.

PP, since MCPS is playing this dirty game, can you or others you know rally a group of "your" people as a counterpoint to the BBC? Contribute your own opinion piece to Bethesda Mag or get your own protests going, like the next BOE meeting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Copied from another thread that has already discussed about this topic:

“Byron Johns is a vendor for Montgomery College IT on an annual contract that has been about $500,000 for a decade.”

For people who aren't terminally online, who is Byron Johns?

And for people who don’t understand IT contracts that’s about 2.5 people or three people being paid very little.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Copied from another thread that has already discussed about this topic:

“Byron Johns is a vendor for Montgomery College IT on an annual contract that has been about $500,000 for a decade.”

For people who aren't terminally online, who is Byron Johns?

And for people who don’t understand IT contracts that’s about 2.5 people or three people being paid very little.

Or one person being paid a lot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:yeah I would be very very cautious about optics from here on out if you are opposing the regional program model. even what you write here.

Absolutely not. Do not be intimidated in criticizing what is clearly a half-baked plan with egregious flaws and gaps. Silencing yourself is precisely what Taylor and MCPS wanted to do by enlisting BBC's statement in support of the model. Do not let Taylor win. I am saying this as a Black parent. They are using race/equity to intimidate people from speaking the truth. It's a game.

People who know and work toward true equity know and are speaking out about how this program models fails to truly deliver on those fronts.

PP, since MCPS is playing this dirty game, can you or others you know rally a group of "your" people as a counterpoint to the BBC? Contribute your own opinion piece to Bethesda Mag or get your own protests going, like the next BOE meeting.

Oof. Good luck.

[Anonymous]

Black and brown coalition?

What a joke. Maybe I should fund a yellow and white coalition to make sure all kids have advocates for equitable access to the resources, opportunities and supports they need to be successful in college, career and life.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Does the Black and Brown Coalition allow Asians to join too?

Let's test this..... all the brown Asians should join this group and "provide our input" into these changes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Black and brown coalition?

What a joke. Maybe I should fund a yellow and white coalition to make sure all kids have advocates for equitable access to the resources, opportunities and supports they need to be successful in college, career and life.

Feel free to. BTW, you do know there are similarly organized Asian groups that advocate for the needs and preferences of Asian students, right?

For example, the Chinese American Parents Association: https://capamc.org/

Current BOE President Julie Yang in fact testified on behalf of this association for inclusion of Lunar New Year on the school calendar: https://www.boarddocs.com/mabe/mcpsmd/Board.nsf/files/B23VF66FCF2B/$file/Julie%20Yang.pdf

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:yeah I would be very very cautious about optics from here on out if you are opposing the regional program model. even what you write here.

Is it ok to keep pointing out that they put the Humanities magnets at the whitest and most affluent schools in each region (Churchill, Whitman, Poolesville, etc)?

And, that unlike now, students won’t have a local bus to take them to Poolesville, they’ll have to first get themselves to Clarksville or Seneca Valley HS early?

I don’t understand what you’re saying. Students who aren’t zoned for Clarksburg or Seneca Valley will have to go to one of those schools to get a bus to Poolesville? There’s no bus to Poolesville for some of the other schools in the same region as Poolesville?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Black and brown coalition?

What a joke. Maybe I should fund a yellow and white coalition to make sure all kids have advocates for equitable access to the resources, opportunities and supports they need to be successful in college, career and life.

Yeah this is going to go well….no optics problems there.