[RP TownTalk] Fwd: Your Action Needed to Stop Baker’s Actions to Takeover the School System

Tue Mar 19 11:16:39 UTC 2013

>From our school board member. Her perspective on the Baker proposal.

-Sarah

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Peggy Higgins <peggy.higgins at pgcps.org>
Date: Tue, Mar 19, 2013 at 6:28 AM
Subject: Your Action Needed to Stop Baker’s Actions to Takeover the School
System
To: Peggy Higgins <peggy.higgins at pgcps.org>

*Notice to My Community*

* *

*Your Action Needed to Stop Baker’s Harmful Legislation to *

*Takeover the School System*

                                                            Peggy Higgins,
LCSW-C

                                                            Prince George’s
County Board Member, District 2

Saturday, March 16, *suddenly and without discussion or notice* and
immediately after the Prince George’s County School Board announced final
details regarding its inclusive process of community input for the
superintendent search, County Executive Rushern Baker suddenly announced
his proposed takeover of the school system. *Mr. Baker’s proposal*, made
just three weeks before the end of the legislative session, *requires
action by either the full House or the Senate by Monday at 8 pm.  The
suddenness of this proposal is structured to prohibit debate and
reflection. *

*Mr. Baker’s radical legislation eliminates the legal authority of the
School Board* to select the superintendent, increases unelected membership
of the School Board, and has the superintendent serving on Baker’s
Executive Cabinet and reporting directly to the County Executive.  Further
it eliminates the School Board’s authority in the school budget process
that is now then reviewed and adopted by the County Executive and County
Council.  *The Board/Superintendent’s role will be reversed with the Board
serving in an advisory capacity to the Superintendent.  Baker’s bill gives
Superintendent sole authority to determine salaries of principals,
teachers, staff, eliminating labor negotiations as well as Superintendent
authority to authorize contracts. *

The legislation does all of this, while continuing to hold the School Board
responsible for academic achievement.  Mr. Baker equates his proposal as
similar to the District of Columbia’s, which is recognized as having been
unsuccessful.

*Mr. Baker’s radical legislation is being made in the middle of the school
year, in the middle of the superintendent search, without regard to the
impact on this vulnerable time of transition for the school system and
without regard for public deliberation and input.  *

*So why would Mr. Baker do such a thing?   He says his decision is based on
his sense of urgency about the school system and the slow pace of change
that is occurring in student achievement.*

A WJLA Internet article reports “A takeover of the Prince George's County
School system's operational arm will lead to the more rapid enactment of
academic reforms throughout the system, Prince George's County Executive
Rushern Baker says…

"This would afford the school board the ability to focus on academic
improvements, preaching transparency, accountability and the coordination
of our operation," Baker said.

Under his plan, the school's academic policy would still fall under the
school board's realm; however, the operational portion of the system would
be overseen by Baker and the Prince George's County Council...  "By us
being able to align the operations structure into the executive branch and
allowing the school board to focus on academic improvement and reform, we
will be able to move the system forward quicker."…

For full article

http://www.wjla.com/articles/2013/03/rushern-baker-seeking-more-school-control-86340.html#ixzz2NyK3u1Ra

Essentially Mr. Baker is taking over the school system’s financial affairs,
having the Superintendent report to him and reversing the authority line
between the Superintendent and the School Board.  But he leaves the
responsibility for academic achievement, the issue he is raising that he is
concerned about in the hands of the School Board.

* *

*Given Mr. Baker’s drastic actions* and declared sense of urgency, *one
would conclude that he has been actively engaged with the School Board
about the business of education since his term of office began December 2010
*.    *As the District 2 School Board member in Prince George’s County, I
can tell you categorically he has not.*  At *no time* in the past year and
three months has Mr. Baker offered any opinion to the Board in either in
writing or verbally of any pending Board decisions or actions taken. *NONE.*
 *In the past year and three months, he has met with the Board on only
three occasions* that I can recall, and I may be overstating that.

*If there was any merit to this plan, it would have been presented in a
manner that would allow thoughtful dialogue by legislators and the community
*.  That clearly is not happening. I believe these actions to be
irresponsible and the upheaval created by this sudden initiative to be
dramatically harmful to our community and the education of our students,
especially if this plan becomes law.

If you believe it too,  your action is needed *NOW.*  There is no time.
Mr. Baker and his team are *now *working the legislators very, very hard to
get them to sign onto the bill, sight unseen and they have met with some
success.  That is partly because their is quickly becoming little regard
for the truth.

*
*

*The first critical timeline is to stop this bill from passing through
either the House or Senate before Monday at 8 pm.*  If we are successful in
preventing that, this will stop the bill. I encourage all to contact
IMMEDIATELY your state senator and delegates and tell them that you are
opposed to this takeover.  I also encourage you to contact other Prince
George's County citizens regarding this issue.  It is OK to disseminate
this email and/or put it on any listserves of which you may be members

If you wish to fact check statements being made, have any questions or
comments or want help getting information about how to contact your
legislators, please contact me at peggy.higgins at pgcps.org.

Yours in service

Peggy Higgins

-- 
Peggy Higgins, LCSW-C
Board of Education, District 2
Prince George's County, MD
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