Reply to PG County School Fake Graduation rates

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[quote=Anonymous]Maxwell and 9 Board members have asked to State to reinvestigate " in the interest of transparency and accountability, to bring closure to this matter"

[i]
Kevin M. Maxwell, Ph.D.
Chief Executive Officer
June 27, 2017
Karen B. Salmon, Ph.D.
State Superintendent of Schools
Maryland State Department of Education
200 West Baltimore Street
Baltimore, MD 21201
Dear Dr. Salmon:

This letter is to serve as a formal request for a follow-up investigation by the Maryland State Department
of Education (MSDE) into allegations regarding the Prince George’s County Public Schools’ (PGCPS)
high school graduation rates since my arrival.
Prince George’s County Board of Education Members Edward Burroughs, David Murray and Raaheela
Ahmed, joined by immediate past student member Juwan Blocker, made allegations of “widespread
systemic corruption” in a May 30, 2017 letter to Governor Larry Hogan, citing various unconfirmed
reports from unnamed “whistleblowers” with “accomplices and complicity at the highest levels of the
school system.” I categorically deny any accusation of a systemic effort, ordered by me or others acting on
my behalf, to promote students in order to inflate graduation rates.

I appreciate the time and resources spent by MSDE earlier this year, at the direction of the U.S.
Department of Education Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, to investigate similar allegations
after receiving an anonymous claim. That investigation concluded neither grade manipulation nor bullying
occurred to alter promotion or graduation rates. Although both MSDE and the U.S. Department of
Education considered the matter resolved, the Board Members’ recent claims have been the subject of
media coverage and calls by elected officials for additional inquiry, giving rise to intense public
speculation. As I have stated publicly, PGCPS stands ready and able to look into these concerns. We
continue to look for ways to improve our auditing of credits and to review our student support pathways
and revisions to our grading procedures.

Despite no presented evidence of widespread systemic corruption at the highest levels of our organization,
the undersigned Board Members and I request that you conduct an additional inquiry into this work, in the
interest of transparency and accountability, to bring closure to this matter. Please know that you can expect
full cooperation from me, my Executive Team, and anyone else you deem pertinent. We will provide any
necessary accommodations to ensure that school-based and central office employees can freely come
forward.
Page 2
June 27, 2017
Dr. Karen Salmon
Our students and alumni deserve to embark on the next phases of their lives with full confidence in their
diplomas from Prince George’s County Public Schools. Our community does not deserve unfair scrutiny
or mischaracterizations. I look forward to collaborating with you and MSDE to resolve this matter.
As always, thank you for your service to all Maryland students.
Sincerely,
Kevin M. Maxwell, Ph.D.
Chief Executive Officer

Segun Eubanks, Ed.D.
Board Chair

Carolyn Boston, District 6
Board Vice-Chair

Lupi Quinteros-Grady
District 2

Dinora Hernandez, Esq.
District 3

Patricia Eubanks
District 4

K. Alexander Wallace
District 7

Sonya Williams
District 9

Mary Kingston-Roche
At-Large

Curtis Valentine
At-Large[/i][/quote]

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