Morgan Barth, former principal at Achievement First Amistad High School, resigned Thursday.

Achievement First Amistad in New Haven is known for two things: high test scores and high suspension rates.

Principal of New Haven charter school quits after video surfaces

But when a video captured the principal exercising the usual harsh discipline, the principal stepped down and a former “behavior specialist” spilled the beans.

“The State Department of Education has reprimanded the leadership of AF Amistad in the past for what the state says amounts to three times more suspensions as any other New Haven public school. Now, a video obtained by the New Haven Independent, shows AF Amistad principal Morgan Barth grabbing a male student, who tried to leave his office, while discussing previous discipline.

“The school’s Chief External Officer, Fatimah Barker, calls the principal’s conduct “unacceptable,” in a statement. It continued:

“When this incident happened, we conducted an internal investigation, documented the incident in accordance with state laws, and worked with the student’s family – including sharing the video with them. In addition, Mr. Barth was disciplined and also required to attain additional restraint training.”

“From the time I met that man, very intimidating to the kids,” said Steve Cotton, a now former AF Amistad employee. “Multiple staff always referred to his style as intimidation, basically.”

Achievement First Amistad in New Haven

New Haven Ranks as Country’s Eighth “Most Walkable City”

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House Economic Matters Chairman Dereck E. Davis (D-Prince George’s). Campaign photo

By Josh Kurtz

The powerful chairman of the House Economic Matters Committee has sponsored a bill that would lift a ban on developer contributions in Prince George’s County – a law that went into effect following a widespread corruption scandal that rocked the county for several years.

Economic Matters Chairman Dereck E. Davis (D-Prince George’s) is the sponsor of a local bill that would repeal the prohibition on developers or their agents making campaign contributions to the Prince George’s County executive or a political slate that includes the county executive when the developer has a proposed project pending before the county government.

The bill is scheduled to be considered by the Prince George’s County House delegation on Friday morning. It has broad political implications, touching on everything from the county’s history of corruption, to its new public financing law for political campaigns, to the possible aspirations of current and future Prince George’s political leaders.

In an interview Thursday, Davis said he sponsored the bill in part because the prohibition, which went into effect in 2012, is no longer necessary.

“Everyone knows it was in response to the whole Jack Johnson situation,” Davis said, referring to the former Prince George’s County executive who did time in federal prison after being caught accepting bribes from developers and other businessmen. “There was a crisis in confidence in county government.”

The measure was put into place by the state legislature at the insistence of Johnson’s successor, former county executive Rushern L. Baker III (D), as he tried to promote Prince George’s as a place where elected officials weren’t on the take.

Davis said he believes the law may violate free speech – an argument often made by opponents of campaign finance restrictions. He also asserted that the law isn’t necessary, because land use and development decisions in Prince George’s County are largely made by the County Council, not the executive. And he said the corruption cases that have roiled the county in recent years have involved public officials looking to enrich themselves – rather than campaign finance violations.

“I would compare that [law] to, like, if you break your arm, you go and get your flu shot,” Davis said.

The veteran lawmaker, when he isn’t performing his legislative duties, works for the Prince George’s County government, as deputy director of community relations – a job he held during the Baker administration and now holds under the newly sworn-in county executive, Angela D. Alsobrooks (D).

Davis said he intentionally did not confer with Alsobrooks before introducing his legislation – an assertion confirmed by the county executive’s spokesman, John Erzen.

“It was certainly not a bill that we requested…It’s not something we’re focused on in Annapolis,” Erzen said.

But Alsobrooks could be a beneficiary if the bill passes – and if she decides to run for statewide office some day. Davis and other supporters of removing the prohibition on developer contributions argue that Baker was financially hamstrung during his unsuccessful 2018 gubernatorial campaign because he could not accept contributions from many developers – and their lawyers, engineers, agents and contractors who have projects under review by the county.

Developers and real estate interests have cast a long shadow over county elections across Maryland. Two decades before the state law preventing Prince George’s executives from raising money from developers with projects pending before the county government, the state passed a law in 1992 preventing Prince George’s developers from contributing to local candidates – unless they were part of a political slate.

While Prince George’s current ban on developer donations to county executives is unique – and unfair, in the view of Davis and his allies – political leaders in some other counties have at least discussed the possibility of pursuing a similar prohibition. Anne Arundel County Executive Steuart Pittman (D) recently suggested that such a law would be desirable in his county.

Damon Effingham, executive director of Common Cause, said the political watchdog group believes “you should apply the rules that Prince George’s County has to other counties as well – rather than pulling back.”

Davis is pursuing his legislation as Prince George’s leaders prepare to set up a public financing system for county campaigns – in the 2026 election cycle. Freshman Del. Mary A. Lehman (D-Prince George’s) – the chief sponsor of the public financing legislation when she was a member of the County Council, who reluctantly accepted a compromise to delay the launch of the system – said she would oppose Davis’ legislation as long as the public financing system is so far from kicking off.

“Somebody moves that up to 2022, I’ll consider it,” she said. “But until then, no.”

Lehman also rejected the argument that Prince George’s County executives have no influence over development projects or land use policies. Executives, Lehman said, set tax policies and incentives that can be applied to specific projects, and they also appoint all the members of the county planning board.

“That’s not entirely true to say the county executive doesn’t have a role,” she said.

If the Prince George’s delegation approves Davis’ measure, it would go to the full House. Davis said he is unlikely to bring the legislation back if it fails this year.

“I understand that eyebrows are going to be raised,” he said.

jkurtz@marylandmatters.org

Via Maryland matters

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By: Lindsay Watts, FOX 5 DC

UPPER MARLBORO, Md. (FOX 5 DC) — – Records from Prince George’s County Public Schools show hundreds of thousands of dollars in school funds has gone missing or been unaccounted for over the last few years.

In some of the cases documented, theft is suspected, yet school officials acknowledge that law enforcement was not notified. Instead, the cases were handled internally and employees found to be at fault were disciplined and forced to pay restitution, according to officials.

In one instance, auditors found a high school bookkeeper was responsible for nearly $14,000 of money that disappeared from the student activities fund.

n another case, auditors found an elementary school bookkeeper was responsible after $3,300 went missing from her school’s student activities fund.

On FOX 5 at 10 & 11, we’ll have details on what auditors discovered and efforts to ensure suspected theft is prosecuted.

Via Fox5 DC

Monica Goldson is facilitating a big web of conflict of interest and cover ups. According to personnel familiar with the issues, the press is only reporting the pennies compared to the kickbacks paid in illegal procurement and transportation contracts. And it wasn’t Maxwell that covered it up. The Union executives are part of the scheme which is driven by Association of Supervisory and Administrative School Personnel (ASASP), Prince George’s County Education Association (PGCEA) and American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME)

Read more >>> Major Outrage as Architect of an Organized Scheme Monica Goldson is appointed Acting CEO of PGCPS

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Former Baltimore County Public Schools superintendent, Dr. S. Dallas Dance – Photo Source: Pasadena Education Foundation

BY ANN COSTANTINO

As part of the fallout from his perjury convictions last year, former Superintendent Shaun Dallas Dance surrendered his superintendent licenses to Virginia and Maryland state education departments after given the option to either do so voluntarily or have them revoked.

But before he consented to canceling his certifications with Virginia’s State Department of Education (VSDE), he asked administrators to consider his 20 years in education service and to weigh that against poor decisions he said he made while leading Baltimore County Public Schools (BCPS).

In a letter to the deputy superintendent of VSDE, Dance said, “As painful as it is to accept, I completely understand your position and your decision.  However, in your letter and as outlined … the Board mayremove a license …” As such, Dance said, “I am humbly requesting that both licenses be maintained if at all possible.  While I do not contest the allegations in the petition, it is my sincere hope that my body of work not only in the Commonwealth of Virginia but also in other states and around the country is reviewed and taken into account before a final decision is ultimately made, as I believe I can still add value to the students and public schools of the Commonwealth of Virginia, my home state.”

Dance was convicted on four counts of perjury last year for failing to report $147,000 in income on his 2012, 2013 and 2015 financial disclosure statements, money he earned consulting for other school systems and organizations while leading BCPS, the country’s 25th largest school system.  Roughly $90,000 of the income was earned while Dance worked for a school system vendor.

The disclosure documents are required to be filed annually by school personnel who have the ability to spend or direct the spending of system funds.  The forms are signed under penalty of perjury.

In April, Dance was sentenced to serve six months in a Baltimore County detention center, but was granted a transfer to a Henrico County jail near his home in Virginia where he served four of the six-month sentence.  He was released in August.

Records, which were obtained by The Baltimore Post through a Freedom of Information Act request, show that the following month, the VSDE sent Dance a “Petition for the Revocation” of his “Postgraduate and Division Superintendent Licenses.”  After first asking VSDE to reconsider, Dance ultimately decided to surrender the credentials.  And according to the records, Dance may reapply for his VSDE licenses in five years.

In Maryland, Dance asked for leniency from Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) Superintendent Karen Salmon, requesting that his licenses be reinstated after two years, at the conclusion of his probation which is a condition of his sentencing.  His request was denied, but he will be eligible to reapply in 10 years.

As part of the agency’s protocol, through a clearinghouse, VSDE also notified state education departments across the country about Dance’s license removals, documents show.  But since he volunteered them willingly, his records will show that his licences were not revoked.

In a response to The Baltimore Post’s request for comment about his past and future endeavors, Dance said in part, “… I have the utmost respect and admiration for State Superintendents Drs. Lane and Salmon, of Virginia and Maryland respectively, and I wholeheartedly respect their position and their decisions.” He said, “As I look to the future, I move deliberately and passionately as I aim to ensure the promise I made to the hundreds of thousands of students, families, employees, and others whom I have served throughout my career in front of Judge Cox (sic) is carried out with purpose and is kept. To that end, I will continue to do everything in my power to ensure that a lifetime of striving to live with integrity would outweigh a bad decision and unfortunate lapse in judgement. While most people wish to not discuss their mistakes and failures, I will as I believe that those who persevere from adversity possess a spirit of humility and are therefore inclined to make the necessary changes needed to not only learn but, most importantly, grow.”

In a Twitter message posted this week, Dance announced a new YouTube Channel he created for education leaders, Dialogue w/ Dallas.  He is also the author of Deliberate Excellence: Three Fundamental Strategies That Drive Educational Leadership, and he works as a leadership consultant for Infinite Solutions Enterprises and The DDance Group.

Although Dance’s licenses have been surrendered to the state departments, Charles Pyle, an administrator at the VSDE, told The Baltimore Post that the agency does not oversee or license education consultants in the state. “Local school boards are responsible for decisions about the qualifications of the consultants they hire,” Pyle said.

In Dance’s statement to The Baltimore Post, he closed with a comment on his feelings about Baltimore County schools and community.  “I would encourage anyone who wants to know the genuine respect, adoration, and admiration that I have for the Baltimore County community to read the ‘Acknowledgements’ in my book. The first paragraph of those words is below and ring true deep in my heart, then as well as now:

Acknowledgement: For five years, I was extremely fortunate to serve as the Superintendent of Baltimore County Public Schools in Towson, Maryland, which is located adjacent to the City of Baltimore. Those years were by far the best of my professional life. I led the organization from my heart believing that we could move mountains, and while not literally, we began tackling some large complex issues, which will take time, effort, energy, and commitment to realize its full impact. The strides we made, which garnered us numerous national, state, and local awards were due to the dedication of our teachers, principals, staff, parents, community leaders, and especially our students who rose to the high standards we set for them each day. As this book is about three main areas of my work as Superintendent, I want to personally take the opportunity to thank the entire Team BCPS family for everything you did and continue to do for the students of Baltimore County.”

Dance’s full response can be viewed here.

The Board of Education of Baltimore County has initiated a process to select the school system’s next permanent superintendent.  Since Dance left the district in 2017, the system’s former chief academic officer, Verletta White, has filled the role as interim. But White failed to obtain the approval of Maryland State Superintendent Karen Salmon, who declined to approve her twice for the position.  The school board will conduct a search for potential candidates through a search firm it has not yet selected.  By law, the board is required to hire a permanent superintendent before July 1, 2019. White may also apply for the permanent position.

annc@thebaltimorepost.com

Via The Baltimore Post 

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Prince George’s County Public Schools Headquarters (Sasscer Administrative Building)

By: Lindsay Watts, FOX 5 DC

UPPER MARLBORO, Md. (FOX 5 DC)– Records from Prince George’s County Public Schools show hundreds of thousands of dollars has gone missing or been unaccounted for over the last few years.

In some instances, staff members were suspected of stealing money, yet school officials say law enforcement was not notified and instead cases were handled internally.

Two school board members, Edward Burroughs and Raaheela Ahmed, are now working to create a new policy that would call for suspected theft cases to be turned over to police.

“I’m frustrated by the fact that we have bookkeepers or other employees every single year stealing large sums of money, and then we allow them to resign,” said Burroughs at a December budget meeting. “I think we need to send a very strong message that those days are over and you will be prosecuted if you still from our system.”

An internal audit shows that in 2014, nearly $14,000 went missing from the student activities fund at Crossland High School. According to the report, “it appears that the bookkeeper defrauded Crossland High School.” A school spokesman says the bookkeeper agreed to pay back the money and is no longer an employee, but confirms police were not involved.

At Central High School in 2016, auditors investigating alleged theft from school sporting events say they found over $4,700 missing. They said staff responsible for the gate receipts should pay restitution.

In 2017 at Central, auditors say about $3,700 raised through school football program fundraisers also disappeared.

At Fort Washington Forest Elementary in 2017, auditors say a bookkeeper was responsible for $3,300 of missing money and was responsible for paying restitution.

And at Gwynn Park High School, auditors discovered in 2017 that a staff member operated a youth basketball camp at the school for 11 years and never paid facility fees. While not a suspected theft case, auditors say the school district lost out on half a million dollars from those unpaid fees.

Internal auditors compiled a list of all the missing funds cases from the last three school years (to include the case at Crossland), and the total figure was over $800,000.

Christian Rhodes, Chief-of-Staff for Interim PGCPS CEO Dr. Monica Goldson, says in cases where fault was found by an employee, the district sought full repayment of funds.

“This included garnishing employee pay or final payout if the employee was terminated,” said Rhodes.

But Burroughs says restitution isn’t enough.

“If you have stolen money from our students, simply paying the money back after we’ve already caught you is not sufficient,” said Burroughs. “I think it’s important that we prosecute these individuals to the fullest extent of the law to send a message to everyone that we will not allow you to steal from our students.”

He said he and Ahmed will propose a new policy before the end of the school year, and have support from others on the board. He stressed that it’s only a few employees who break the law.

“If you look at these individual cases, maybe one or two or three a year,” he said. “And we have 22,000 employees in our organization who are doing the right thing every single day. But for those three employees who decide to steal from students, they need to know that we will send them to jail if they do that.”

FOX 5 requested an interview with Goldson, but instead, she provided a statement reading:

“Since my appointment, I have reviewed all active audits and action plans. I am monitoring each one to ensure compliance with the auditor’s recommendations and our timeline for completion. I welcome independent reviews of our processes. I will continue to work with our Board of Education to ensure proper oversight and good stewardship of taxpayer dollars.”

D.C., Fairfax County and Montgomery County public schools say they turn over suspected theft cases to law enforcement.

Following FOX 5’s report Thursday evening, Goldson appeared to reverse course on Friday, announcing the district would refer the case to the Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Office for review.

“A recent media report detailed PGCPS’ long-standing challenges with missing school funds and other abuse of resources. The reports have raised questions on the best course of action for holding wrongdoers accountable and ensuring PGCPS employees understand the consequences for these serious actions,” Goldson’s announcement read in part. “With this in mind, I am referring all cases of missing funds and alleged fraud dating back to 2015 to the Prince George’s County State’s Attorney’s Office for review and possible prosecution. Moving forward, PGCPS will coordinate with law enforcement on any waste, fraud and abuse cases within the system.”

Via Fox 5 DC

Interim @PGCPS CEO Dr. Goldson responded to the recent news story above which involves handling cases of missing funds discovered by Internal Audit. https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/…/bulletins/22c6a25

Read the original story here which is presented above: http://www.fox5dc.com/…/after-thousands-go-missing-at-princ…

Some county activists have already responded to the story. See attached screenshots below.

Quarterly Internal Audit reports are presented at PGCPS Budget & Operations Committee meetings. The December 11th meeting is on Youtube, with Internal Audit beginning around 1:17: https://youtu.be/u9A-nDwVwg8

Monica Goldson is facilitating a big web of conflict of interest and cover ups. According to personnel familiar with the issues, the press is only reporting the pennies compared to the kickbacks paid in illegal procurement and transportation contracts. And it wasn’t Maxwell that covered it up. The Union executives are part of the scheme which is driven by Association of Supervisory and Administrative School Personnel (ASASP), Prince George’s County Education Association (PGCEA) and American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME)

Read more >>> Major Outrage as Architect of an Organized Scheme Monica Goldson is appointed Acting CEO of PGCPS

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By Diana DiGangi

PRINCE GEORGE’S COUNTY, Md. (ABC7) — A middle school teacher for Prince George’s County was arrested Wednesday and charged with soliciting a prostitute.

The “prostitute” was actually an undercover detective with PGPD, a release from the department said. Police said the alleged crime happened at a hotel in the county.

Gregory Hollins, 55, is a teacher at William Wirt Middle School in Riverdale.

The school system said in a Friday statement that they are aware of Hollins’ arrest, and they had provided the following letter to parents:

Dear Parents and Guardians,

This letter is to inform you that William Wirt Middle School physical education teacher Gregory Hollins is currently on leave due to an incident that occurred off school property.

A substitute teacher will be assigned to his class in the interim. I want to assure you that our school system remains committed to a quality education in a safe environment for all students.

Thank you for your support.

Sincerely,

Rhonda Simley

Principal

via WJLA 

Read more >>>Prince George’s County middle school teacher arrested for solicitation of prostitute WUSA9

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School officials at William Wirt Middle School found a threat against a teacher, and weapons in a student’s backpack, but parents only found out about it from school officials after the press began investigating.

By Anna-Lysa Gayle/ABC7

RIVERDALE, Md. (ABC7) — Parents got a robocall and a letter from Prince George’s County Public Schools on Wednesday evening, weeks after a middle school student was found with a BB gun, brass knuckles and a pocket knife.

“I’m kind of mad that they didn’t say anything sooner,” parent Wilma McClearn said.

According to Principal Rhonda Simley, the weapons were inside a student’s backpack at William Wirt Middle School.

The backpack was found on Jan. 10 on school grounds following dismissal.

Simley went on to apologize for not informing students and parents sooner.

“It is always my intent to keep you updated on school safety issues in a timely and transparent manner,” Simley said in her letter. “I assure you that your child’s safety remains our first priority.”

“Seems like recently there has kind of been a lot of stuff going on,” McClearn said.

Parents were also on edge earlier this month, when Prince George’s county police arrested Willliam Wirt middle school teacher Gregory Hollins for solicitation of a prostitute at a hotel in the county.

via WJLA

Principal Rhonda Simley – She stated “It is always my intent to keep you updated on school safety issues in a timely and transparent manner,” Simley said in her letter. “I assure you that your child’s safety remains our first priority.”

Schools interim CEO Dr. Monica Goldson failed to respond about the incident, or about transparency. She is accused of facilitating a big web of conflict of interest and cover ups including public corruption within the schools. According to personnel familiar with the issues. The Union executives are part of the scheme which is driven by Association of Supervisory and Administrative School Personnel (ASASP), Prince George’s County Education Association (PGCEA) and American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME). If Monica really wants to do something, she needs to investigate when she had oversight as COO. That’s when the real corruption was happening which is being covered up. It’s amazing that she is starting when Wesley took over. LOL!! He walked into the corruption, or did he? But if he did not do anything to correct it, then he is just as guilty. Members of the public are asked to demand  Monica Goldson resigns at the earliest opportunity.

Read more >>> Major Outrage as Architect of an Organized Scheme Monica Goldson is appointed Acting CEO of PGCPS

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