Concerned about BOE Candidate Sunil Dasgupta’s binding boundary review commission

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This would be fine if we could trust those on the BOE...but alas, they have already shown their true colors. The cannot be trusted because they have their own political agenda, and it is NOT in the best interests of ALL students.

The whole point of a commission is to take it out of the hands of the elected representatives (aka, the people you don't trust).

But then the people have no control if they dont' agree with it. If it's in the hand of elected officials, you can vote them out.

Or, the commission can draw the boundary maps, and then the elected representatives vote on them. That is another way to do it. Iowa has been doing legislative redistricting that way for 40 years.

https://www.ncsl.org/research/redistricting/the-iowa-model-for-redistricting.aspx

Perhaps the OP meant to scare DCUM away from Dasgupta and his horrifying proposal? If so, the OP has not succeeded with this voter. I think it's a great idea, worthy of consideration.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am more amused by your thought that parents have any input or say in anything mcps does. Sure, mcps meets with the community, they might even listen to the community. Then they do whatever it was they were planning to do anyway. When mcps meets with community members, for any reason, it is 100% to "check the box" so their spokesperson can say they met with the community and has zero meaningful results.

People often think that "have input into" means "do what I want," but it doesn't. Yes, parents have input. No, MCPS doesn't necessarily do what this parent or that parent or the other parent wants. Or even this or that group of parents.

BOE simply doesn't care about even majority of opinion in things like naming school. In RM#5 naming survey, majority favoured 2 names and BOE picked a name which was lobbied for political purpose. Why even ask for opinion and then get the opinion that majority want either name A or name B and then ignore the oinion?

It's dog and pony show.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am more amused by your thought that parents have any input or say in anything mcps does. Sure, mcps meets with the community, they might even listen to the community. Then they do whatever it was they were planning to do anyway. When mcps meets with community members, for any reason, it is 100% to "check the box" so their spokesperson can say they met with the community and has zero meaningful results.

People often think that "have input into" means "do what I want," but it doesn't. Yes, parents have input. No, MCPS doesn't necessarily do what this parent or that parent or the other parent wants. Or even this or that group of parents.

BOE simply doesn't care about even majority of opinion in things like naming school. In RM#5 naming survey, majority favoured 2 names and BOE picked a name which was lobbied for political purpose. Why even ask for opinion and then get the opinion that majority want either name A or name B and then ignore the oinion?

It's dog and pony show.

One group of people wanted one name, another group of people wanted a different name, the BoE decided. That's how the process works. The fact that they didn't choose the name you wanted, doesn't mean they don't care what anybody thinks. It just means that they didn't choose the name you wanted.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am more amused by your thought that parents have any input or say in anything mcps does. Sure, mcps meets with the community, they might even listen to the community. Then they do whatever it was they were planning to do anyway. When mcps meets with community members, for any reason, it is 100% to "check the box" so their spokesperson can say they met with the community and has zero meaningful results.

People often think that "have input into" means "do what I want," but it doesn't. Yes, parents have input. No, MCPS doesn't necessarily do what this parent or that parent or the other parent wants. Or even this or that group of parents.

BOE simply doesn't care about even majority of opinion in things like naming school. In RM#5 naming survey, majority favoured 2 names and BOE picked a name which was lobbied for political purpose. Why even ask for opinion and then get the opinion that majority want either name A or name B and then ignore the oinion?

It's dog and pony show.

One group of people wanted one name, another group of people wanted a different name, the BoE decided. That's how the process works. The fact that they didn't choose the name you wanted, doesn't mean they don't care what anybody thinks. It just means that they didn't choose the name you wanted.

The people who wanted the other name did not live in the community. The community came up with a list of multiple names, including honoring an African American school teacher from Rockville (whose name was also turned down in the Matsunaga school naming). The BoE decided that anyone who didn't want Bayard Rustin as the name was homophobic. It was not one of the top 5 names selected by the naming committee.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am more amused by your thought that parents have any input or say in anything mcps does. Sure, mcps meets with the community, they might even listen to the community. Then they do whatever it was they were planning to do anyway. When mcps meets with community members, for any reason, it is 100% to "check the box" so their spokesperson can say they met with the community and has zero meaningful results.

People often think that "have input into" means "do what I want," but it doesn't. Yes, parents have input. No, MCPS doesn't necessarily do what this parent or that parent or the other parent wants. Or even this or that group of parents.

BOE simply doesn't care about even majority of opinion in things like naming school. In RM#5 naming survey, majority favoured 2 names and BOE picked a name which was lobbied for political purpose. Why even ask for opinion and then get the opinion that majority want either name A or name B and then ignore the oinion?

It's dog and pony show.

One group of people wanted one name, another group of people wanted a different name, the BoE decided. That's how the process works. The fact that they didn't choose the name you wanted, doesn't mean they don't care what anybody thinks. It just means that they didn't choose the name you wanted.

The people who wanted the other name did not live in the community. The community came up with a list of multiple names, including honoring an African American school teacher from Rockville (whose name was also turned down in the Matsunaga school naming). The BoE decided that anyone who didn't want Bayard Rustin as the name was homophobic. It was not one of the top 5 names selected by the naming committee.

I understand that. Nonetheless, it's Montgomery County Public Schools, and it's the Montgomery County Board of Education. The process is not: parents whose children will attend the school when it opens get to decide on the name by majority vote. The process is: the Board of Education decides.

And for what it's worth, they didn't choose the name I wanted, either.

[Anonymous]

Let me tell you what happens with a commission: the silver spring crowd stacks it with ‘representatives’ who rubber stamp their views. This is just a way to insulate the BoE from hearing from the public - and having their votes have consequences. Austin is scaring the hell out of them - not for boundaries as much as his call for an MCPS Inspector General.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am more amused by your thought that parents have any input or say in anything mcps does. Sure, mcps meets with the community, they might even listen to the community. Then they do whatever it was they were planning to do anyway. When mcps meets with community members, for any reason, it is 100% to "check the box" so their spokesperson can say they met with the community and has zero meaningful results.

People often think that "have input into" means "do what I want," but it doesn't. Yes, parents have input. No, MCPS doesn't necessarily do what this parent or that parent or the other parent wants. Or even this or that group of parents.

BOE simply doesn't care about even majority of opinion in things like naming school. In RM#5 naming survey, majority favoured 2 names and BOE picked a name which was lobbied for political purpose. Why even ask for opinion and then get the opinion that majority want either name A or name B and then ignore the oinion?

It's dog and pony show.

One group of people wanted one name, another group of people wanted a different name, the BoE decided. That's how the process works. The fact that they didn't choose the name you wanted, doesn't mean they don't care what anybody thinks. It just means that they didn't choose the name you wanted.

The people who wanted the other name did not live in the community. The community came up with a list of multiple names, including honoring an African American school teacher from Rockville (whose name was also turned down in the Matsunaga school naming). The BoE decided that anyone who didn't want Bayard Rustin as the name was homophobic. It was not one of the top 5 names selected by the naming committee.

I understand that. Nonetheless, it's Montgomery County Public Schools, and it's the Montgomery County Board of Education. The process is not: parents whose children will attend the school when it opens get to decide on the name by majority vote. The process is: the Board of Education decides.

And for what it's worth, they didn't choose the name I wanted, either.

Sure, but the parents group gets created and facilitated by MCPS. What is the purpose of bringing in the parents to hold meetings as an official part of the naming process only to ignore their feedback, not just as the top choice, but top 5? Why waste people's time like that? It would be better to say "schools are for the whole county and so the Bose will make a decision based on countywide feedback." Everyone's time is limited. The people who were selected to be on the naming committee by MCPS gave up their time for the meetings and also time in soliciting feedback from the entire community as was asked of them by MCPS. I can see the BoE saying we are not going with your number 1 choice, we are going to pick #3 instead. But the way they did it not only completely cut parents out but 2 board members actually ridiculed the committee for their top 2 choices.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Let me tell you what happens with a commission: the silver spring crowd stacks it with ‘representatives’ who rubber stamp their views. This is just a way to insulate the BoE from hearing from the public - and having their votes have consequences. Austin is scaring the hell out of them - not for boundaries as much as his call for an MCPS Inspector General.

+100

[Anonymous]

Let me guess who Sunil Dasgupta would want on this "commission" - a few recent college graduates who are extreme left-wing activists as well as a few additional hyper-activists from Takoma Park, which is a good description of his most ardent supporters. He'll throw in one parent from Bethesda for optics only, but that person will be aligned with the people from Takoma Park. That's what you can expect.

[Anonymous]

If you want somebody who will be a refreshing voice and much needed additional perspective on the Board of Education, Stephen Austin is the clear choice. This is why the community is rallying to back him, but certain politicians are concerned. He does not settle for B.S. politics. Given his financial background, he is very direct with his questions on how money is spent, where it's going, and whether there are better ways to do things. He is also very focused on solid evidence-based data, not fudging numbers or studies to fit a narrative by special interest groups. This is exactly why some people are so afraid of him being elected. He will no longer tolerate what has been going on behind the scenes for years, which people in the BOE and local politicians don't want to change.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Let me tell you what happens with a commission: the silver spring crowd stacks it with ‘representatives’ who rubber stamp their views. This is just a way to insulate the BoE from hearing from the public - and having their votes have consequences. Austin is scaring the hell out of them - not for boundaries as much as his call for an MCPS Inspector General.

1000%. You hit the nail on the head.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let me tell you what happens with a commission: the silver spring crowd stacks it with ‘representatives’ who rubber stamp their views. This is just a way to insulate the BoE from hearing from the public - and having their votes have consequences. Austin is scaring the hell out of them - not for boundaries as much as his call for an MCPS Inspector General.

+100

And to clarify the +100, love, love, love Silver Spring. So sorry if the initial comment was too general. Great people, great community, great diversity, great culture, and great restaurants. Against the idea that only an activist crowd that acts like parents who know what is better than the regular, good people of Silver Spring and other Montgomery County residents are the only ones to have a voice. Give all people a voice and a choice. Adjust the transfer policy so kids can have more access to the schools they want. Improve the schools and let kids and families get access to the programs that will best help them to succeed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Let me guess who Sunil Dasgupta would want on this "commission" - a few recent college graduates who are extreme left-wing activists as well as a few additional hyper-activists from Takoma Park, which is a good description of his most ardent supporters. He'll throw in one parent from Bethesda for optics only, but that person will be aligned with the people from Takoma Park. That's what you can expect.

He might even leave off the token Bethesda person, so it's all Takoma Park/Silver Spring, like most of MoCo politics.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you want somebody who will be a refreshing voice and much needed additional perspective on the Board of Education, Stephen Austin is the clear choice. This is why the community is rallying to back him, but certain politicians are concerned. He does not settle for B.S. politics. Given his financial background, he is very direct with his questions on how money is spent, where it's going, and whether there are better ways to do things. He is also very focused on solid evidence-based data, not fudging numbers or studies to fit a narrative by special interest groups. This is exactly why some people are so afraid of him being elected. He will no longer tolerate what has been going on behind the scenes for years, which people in the BOE and local politicians don't want to change.

I honestly don't understand why some people find bigotry and ignorance refreshing.

He's also been notably unforthcoming about that "financial background."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let me guess who Sunil Dasgupta would want on this "commission" - a few recent college graduates who are extreme left-wing activists as well as a few additional hyper-activists from Takoma Park, which is a good description of his most ardent supporters. He'll throw in one parent from Bethesda for optics only, but that person will be aligned with the people from Takoma Park. That's what you can expect.

He might even leave off the token Bethesda person, so it's all Takoma Park/Silver Spring, like most of MoCo politics.

FYI Sunil is from Rockville.