BOE Candidates for 2026 election

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if Brenda Wolff, Karla Silvestre, and Grace Rivera-Oven will run for reelection.

I hope not. They all need to go, especially Brenda and Karla. Karla should not be working at MC as an MCPS liaison as it’s a huge conflict of interest and probably why they push kids to Mc vs having classes at the schools.

How is that even ethically possible for Karla Silvestre? I get that a salary of 25k as an McPs board member isn’t enough to make a living but that is a massive conflict of interest.

That 25k is something when saving up for college for your kids. Buying another car. Grooming, hair and nails care and so on. It really is a show, ask a question or two but no followup. Should be a full time job and pay but that's not going to happen.

Theyve run MCPS into the ground, how much do you think they should be paid? The salary is set by the state.

It's a chicken and egg situation. If it paid like a real full-time job, you'd get way more good candidates running, and they'd treat it like a real job and give it their full-time attention and focus.

Long overdue that we lobby the state to change the salaries, and lobby our local electeds to call for it as well (practically speaking, this will likely be a key factor.)

I think this would help. I've seen a few MCPS Board meetings online, and was not impressed with the caliber of questions coming from Board members. If they're practically volunteer Board members, that explains why they don't sound particularly informed or engaged.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if Brenda Wolff, Karla Silvestre, and Grace Rivera-Oven will run for reelection.

I hope not. They all need to go, especially Brenda and Karla. Karla should not be working at MC as an MCPS liaison as it’s a huge conflict of interest and probably why they push kids to Mc vs having classes at the schools.

How is that even ethically possible for Karla Silvestre? I get that a salary of 25k as an McPs board member isn’t enough to make a living but that is a massive conflict of interest.

That 25k is something when saving up for college for your kids. Buying another car. Grooming, hair and nails care and so on. It really is a show, ask a question or two but no followup. Should be a full time job and pay but that's not going to happen.

Theyve run MCPS into the ground, how much do you think they should be paid? The salary is set by the state.

It's a chicken and egg situation. If it paid like a real full-time job, you'd get way more good candidates running, and they'd treat it like a real job and give it their full-time attention and focus.

Long overdue that we lobby the state to change the salaries, and lobby our local electeds to call for it as well (practically speaking, this will likely be a key factor.)

I think this would help. I've seen a few MCPS Board meetings online, and was not impressed with the caliber of questions coming from Board members. If they're practically volunteer Board members, that explains why they don't sound particularly informed or engaged.

Most of them don't have actual experience in business, education, etc. and really have no clue what goes on day to day.

[Anonymous]

This is insane. No wonder why it’s gone downhill over the decades. Why would anyone smart and hardworking want to take on another demanding job for peanuts and to get so much stress that comes with it?

There’s also no incentive or motivation besides the goodness of your heart to strive for making things great.

I used to be skeptical of a lot of corporate boards and still am to some extent but given the compensation especially the stock compensation, there’s a strong incentive to give it a lot to ensure the company is successful.

[Anonymous]

Also I think back to the 80s 90s and early 2000s when the board had long time members like Paul Vance, Blair Ewing, Alan Cheung, Patricia ONeil, wonder how they got by, but I think they were probably a lot more educated and diligent but maybe that’s naive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is insane. No wonder why it’s gone downhill over the decades. Why would anyone smart and hardworking want to take on another demanding job for peanuts and to get so much stress that comes with it?

There’s also no incentive or motivation besides the goodness of your heart to strive for making things great.

I used to be skeptical of a lot of corporate boards and still am to some extent but given the compensation especially the stock compensation, there’s a strong incentive to give it a lot to ensure the company is successful.

Most board positions are not paid or get a small stipend. This gives you a small stipend. You know it when you run.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is insane. No wonder why it’s gone downhill over the decades. Why would anyone smart and hardworking want to take on another demanding job for peanuts and to get so much stress that comes with it?

There’s also no incentive or motivation besides the goodness of your heart to strive for making things great.

I used to be skeptical of a lot of corporate boards and still am to some extent but given the compensation especially the stock compensation, there’s a strong incentive to give it a lot to ensure the company is successful.

Most board positions are not paid or get a small stipend. This gives you a small stipend. You know it when you run.

Most boards are run by wealthy, successful people. Hence why they can give their time away at free or reduced cost.

Following that model ensures the same for our public school system. Why would we want only wealthy, well-off people running for and getting elected to the school board?

Also, in corporate boards, as another PP pointed out, they usually get stock compensation. No similar equivalent for BOE members.

[Anonymous]

I actually think the board members we have right now are mostly solid and much better than the previous slate with a few exceptions. The issue is that MCPS is just going to do what it’s going to do and board members can only sort of change around the edges. And quite frankly MCPS’s focus and goals do not align with mine in a lot of cases. I think they do not think of any of the students as individuals, just as members of racial groups.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if Brenda Wolff, Karla Silvestre, and Grace Rivera-Oven will run for reelection.

I hope not. They all need to go, especially Brenda and Karla. Karla should not be working at MC as an MCPS liaison as it’s a huge conflict of interest and probably why they push kids to Mc vs having classes at the schools.

How is that even ethically possible for Karla Silvestre? I get that a salary of 25k as an McPs board member isn’t enough to make a living but that is a massive conflict of interest.

That 25k is something when saving up for college for your kids. Buying another car. Grooming, hair and nails care and so on. It really is a show, ask a question or two but no followup. Should be a full time job and pay but that's not going to happen.

Theyve run MCPS into the ground, how much do you think they should be paid? The salary is set by the state.

It's a chicken and egg situation. If it paid like a real full-time job, you'd get way more good candidates running, and they'd treat it like a real job and give it their full-time attention and focus.

Long overdue that we lobby the state to change the salaries, and lobby our local electeds to call for it as well (practically speaking, this will likely be a key factor.)

I think this would help. I've seen a few MCPS Board meetings online, and was not impressed with the caliber of questions coming from Board members. If they're practically volunteer Board members, that explains why they don't sound particularly informed or engaged.

Most of them don't have actual experience in business, education, etc. and really have no clue what goes on day to day.

What are you talking about. Two of them are/have been attorneys, one a principal, one a teacher, and one runs a non-profit, and one works at MC. They may not know what goes on day to day inside every school or classroom but they certainly aren’t oblivious on the whole or incompetent.

What frustrates me is how unprepared most folks from MCPS appear when coming to address the Board. Their lack of information and followup is ridiculous. Frankly, they need to spend more time in the old business section so they can make visible any follow-ups and additional Q/A for the public. Instead it’s just regulated to this site:

https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/boe/meetings/memorandum/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if Brenda Wolff, Karla Silvestre, and Grace Rivera-Oven will run for reelection.

I hope not. They all need to go, especially Brenda and Karla. Karla should not be working at MC as an MCPS liaison as it’s a huge conflict of interest and probably why they push kids to Mc vs having classes at the schools.

How is that even ethically possible for Karla Silvestre? I get that a salary of 25k as an McPs board member isn’t enough to make a living but that is a massive conflict of interest.

That 25k is something when saving up for college for your kids. Buying another car. Grooming, hair and nails care and so on. It really is a show, ask a question or two but no followup. Should be a full time job and pay but that's not going to happen.

Theyve run MCPS into the ground, how much do you think they should be paid? The salary is set by the state.

It's a chicken and egg situation. If it paid like a real full-time job, you'd get way more good candidates running, and they'd treat it like a real job and give it their full-time attention and focus.

Long overdue that we lobby the state to change the salaries, and lobby our local electeds to call for it as well (practically speaking, this will likely be a key factor.)

I think this would help. I've seen a few MCPS Board meetings online, and was not impressed with the caliber of questions coming from Board members. If they're practically volunteer Board members, that explains why they don't sound particularly informed or engaged.

Most of them don't have actual experience in business, education, etc. and really have no clue what goes on day to day.

What are you talking about. Two of them are/have been attorneys, one a principal, one a teacher, and one runs a non-profit, and one works at MC. They may not know what goes on day to day inside every school or classroom but they certainly aren’t oblivious on the whole or incompetent.

What frustrates me is how unprepared most folks from MCPS appear when coming to address the Board. Their lack of information and followup is ridiculous. Frankly, they need to spend more time in the old business section so they can make visible any follow-ups and additional Q/A for the public. Instead it’s just regulated to this site:

https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/boe/meetings/memorandum/

None of the current board members have been a principal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I actually think the board members we have right now are mostly solid and much better than the previous slate with a few exceptions. The issue is that MCPS is just going to do what it’s going to do and board members can only sort of change around the edges. And quite frankly MCPS’s focus and goals do not align with mine in a lot of cases. I think they do not think of any of the students as individuals, just as members of racial groups.

Agree, and also feel my kids MCPS education is much stronger than mine was at a W 30 years ago. All this winging is misguided. People want their kids to get a good education try parenting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That will be a huge loss. Julie is the only good member of the BOE.

I think she's good, but I think there are others that are good as well-- particularly impressed with Montoya so far.

I feel like the culture on the board is slowly shifting towards questioning and pushing back on MCPS more... shifting far too slowly, for sure, but moving in the right direction. I think folks ought to give them a ton of positive feedback from us every time they do-- obviously they "shouldn't" need if, but realistically there is a lot of discomfort inherent in challenging MCPS and flexing their power, they are only human, and getting praise and appreciation from the community will stiffen their spines whereas if they feel like no one notices they will be more inclined to just go with the flow. I'd urge people who care about MCPS to watch Board meetings (and committee meetings) from time to time, take note of when Board members ask tough questions and particularly when they withhold approval of things or make clear they will withhold approval without answers. You can do this even if you support MCPS decisions (i.e. I thought the new middle school ELA curriculum was the right choice but I still appreciated that the Board refused to approve it initially based on what MCPS originally presented and demanded more info before doing so-- you can thank them for asking questions and demanding a better process, independent of the substance.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That will be a huge loss. Julie is the only good member of the BOE.

I think she's good, but I think there are others that are good as well-- particularly impressed with Montoya so far.

I feel like the culture on the board is slowly shifting towards questioning and pushing back on MCPS more... shifting far too slowly, for sure, but moving in the right direction. I think folks ought to give them a ton of positive feedback from us every time they do-- obviously they "shouldn't" need if, but realistically there is a lot of discomfort inherent in challenging MCPS and flexing their power, they are only human, and getting praise and appreciation from the community will stiffen their spines whereas if they feel like no one notices they will be more inclined to just go with the flow. I'd urge people who care about MCPS to watch Board meetings (and committee meetings) from time to time, take note of when Board members ask tough questions and particularly when they withhold approval of things or make clear they will withhold approval without answers. You can do this even if you support MCPS decisions (i.e. I thought the new middle school ELA curriculum was the right choice but I still appreciated that the Board refused to approve it initially based on what MCPS originally presented and demanded more info before doing so-- you can thank them for asking questions and demanding a better process, independent of the substance.)

I disagree. Montoya has been a huge disappointment. She talked a big game about holding MCPS accountable during the campaign and too often, she wastes time fumbling through procedural things she's clearly not up to speed on or performative niceties, like profusely "thanking" MCPS staff for "their hard work."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if Brenda Wolff, Karla Silvestre, and Grace Rivera-Oven will run for reelection.

I hope not. They all need to go, especially Brenda and Karla. Karla should not be working at MC as an MCPS liaison as it’s a huge conflict of interest and probably why they push kids to Mc vs having classes at the schools.

How is that even ethically possible for Karla Silvestre? I get that a salary of 25k as an McPs board member isn’t enough to make a living but that is a massive conflict of interest.

That 25k is something when saving up for college for your kids. Buying another car. Grooming, hair and nails care and so on. It really is a show, ask a question or two but no followup. Should be a full time job and pay but that's not going to happen.

Theyve run MCPS into the ground, how much do you think they should be paid? The salary is set by the state.

It's a chicken and egg situation. If it paid like a real full-time job, you'd get way more good candidates running, and they'd treat it like a real job and give it their full-time attention and focus.

Long overdue that we lobby the state to change the salaries, and lobby our local electeds to call for it as well (practically speaking, this will likely be a key factor.)

I think this would help. I've seen a few MCPS Board meetings online, and was not impressed with the caliber of questions coming from Board members. If they're practically volunteer Board members, that explains why they don't sound particularly informed or engaged.

Most of them don't have actual experience in business, education, etc. and really have no clue what goes on day to day.

What are you talking about. Two of them are/have been attorneys, one a principal, one a teacher, and one runs a non-profit, and one works at MC. They may not know what goes on day to day inside every school or classroom but they certainly aren’t oblivious on the whole or incompetent.

[b[What frustrates me is how unprepared most folks from MCPS appear when coming to address the Board.[/b] Their lack of information and followup is ridiculous. Frankly, they need to spend more time in the old business section so they can make visible any follow-ups and additional Q/A for the public. Instead it’s just regulated to this site:

https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/boe/meetings/memorandum/

You're right about the lack of info/follow-up and the need to spend a good deal of the start of live meetings going over old business so that the info requests don't get lost/aren't just accepted without deeper questioning.

That "unprepared" appearance though, is often deliberate. I've seen meetings where a question is asked, but the mid-level admin presenting has to feign ignorance (knowing this from having spoken with them before/knowing that they had the information) so as not to disrupt the theme being delivered by the higher-level executive sitting next to them. I've also seen such an executive interrupt to redirect away from a truthful response and, worse, speak up in place of the admin, supplying a more direct lie (again knowing they had the proper info from conversations with them).

Note -- These are in relation to more general issues, not a specific student case in which I have a disproportionate stake.

It's not everyone at MCPS, but there are at least two high execs whose promotions happened early under Taylor for whom this was the case in thier previous executive roles.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if Brenda Wolff, Karla Silvestre, and Grace Rivera-Oven will run for reelection.

I hope not. They all need to go, especially Brenda and Karla. Karla should not be working at MC as an MCPS liaison as it’s a huge conflict of interest and probably why they push kids to Mc vs having classes at the schools.

How is that even ethically possible for Karla Silvestre? I get that a salary of 25k as an McPs board member isn’t enough to make a living but that is a massive conflict of interest.

It’s the actual job that’s the issue. And, how does she get that much time off to do board work during the day?

I mean, how do any of them get that much time off? I don't want the school board to be only for SAHMs and dilettantes, which means folks have outside jobs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if Brenda Wolff, Karla Silvestre, and Grace Rivera-Oven will run for reelection.

I hope not. They all need to go, especially Brenda and Karla. Karla should not be working at MC as an MCPS liaison as it’s a huge conflict of interest and probably why they push kids to Mc vs having classes at the schools.

How is that even ethically possible for Karla Silvestre? I get that a salary of 25k as an McPs board member isn’t enough to make a living but that is a massive conflict of interest.

It’s the actual job that’s the issue. And, how does she get that much time off to do board work during the day?

I mean, how do any of them get that much time off? I don't want the school board to be only for SAHMs and dilettantes, which means folks have outside jobs.

Or we can make the school board positions full-time, so we don't have to pretend that they have other jobs in some cases, or that they're not focused on the school board job because they have to split their time and attention on the job that pays the majority of their bills.