From the Washington Post, reporter John Hicks, published May 14, 2015. For the complete story, go here.
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announced Thursday that he will withhold $68 million in funding for high-cost school systems this year, thwarting the wishes of Democratic legislators and top officials in Montgomery and Prince George’s counties.
The General Assembly passed a measure in April requiring the state to fully fund a program that sends extra money to the state’s costliest school systems.
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Click here to read County Executive Rushern Baker’s statement in response to Governor Hogan’s decision to withhold the funds.
From the Washington Post editorial board, published May 6, 2015.
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EVER SINCE he announced his audacious turnaround plan for Prince George’s County’s public schools — with 125,000 students, one of the nation’s 25 biggest systems — County Executive Rushern L. Baker III (D), until now one of Maryland’s most popular local officials, has become a political punching bag.
Yet none of his critics — neither the unhinged ones, who suggest Mr. Baker has ulterior motives, nor the calmer ones, who worry that taxpayers cannot afford sharply higher property taxes to raise teacher salaries and standards — has proposed an alternative to put the county’s struggling schools on a level playing field with the regional competition. Nor has anyone disagreed that doing so is essential to the county’s children and its future.
From the Washington Post, by reporter Lynh Bui, published May 6, 2015.
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A Prince George’s County elementary school teacher was arrested Tuesday after police allege he kissed a 9-year-old student.
Erwin Magnaye, 39, of Laurel, was charged with sex abuse of a minor, second-degree assault and other sex offenses, police said.
The mother of a William Paca Elementary School student told authorities in February that her son said Magnaye “kissed him in a classroom and had also inappropriately touched him several times beginning in September of 2014,” police said in a statement.
From the Washington Post, reported by the Associated Press, published May 4, 2015.For the complete story, go here.
UPPER MARLBORO, Md. — A Prince George’s County police officer has been found guilty of assaulting a student.
Authorities announced Monday that Police Officer First Class Charles Pickard was found guilty of second-degree assault, reckless endangerment and malfeasance.
From WUSA9, reported by Scott Broom, April 22, 2015.
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UPPER MARLBORO, Md. (WUSA9) — “It’s as much as a guarantee as I can give you,” said Prince George’s County Schools CEO Kevin Maxwell when asked about his strategic plan for Prince George’s County Schools.
Maxwell’s plan promises to lift the county’s long-suffering school system from near the bottom of state ranks to within the top-10 by 2020.
Not a single member of the Council has committed to support the tax proposal which will be voted on in the county budget by June 1.
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UPPER MARLBORO – The Prince George’s County Board of Education will announce at its next meeting it violated the Open Meetings Act after the Open Meetings Compliance Board (OMCB) ruled the Board’s staff failed to provide copies of minutes to a county resident.
Thea Scarato, an activist who opposes cell phone towers, said she was attempting to track the history of the school system’s cell phone tower policy by making open records requests and looking through minutes of meetings by the school board and its subsidiary committees.
Prince George's County Advocates for Better Schools 