Prince George’s County NAACP President Bob Ross addresses reporters following a meeting with Gov. Larry Hogan and Lt. Gov. Boyd Rutherford about grade-change allegations in the county. (Ovetta Wiggins/The Washington Post)
UPPER MARLBORO, Md. — Parents in Prince George’s County are calling for Prince George’s County Public School CEO, Dr. Kevin Maxwell, to step down after an independent audit revealed thousands of students had their grades changed to boost graduation rates.
This comes after Governor Larry Hogan held an hour-long meeting with the Prince George’s County NAACP and parents about the audit’s findings.
“The CEO must go! He does not care about our children. The CEO must go!.”, shouted a parent during a news conference following Governor Hogan’s meeting, calling for accountability in the grading scandal that has rocked PGCPS.
“That investigation turned up wide-spread corruption and wrongdoing.”, said Governor Hogan.
An independent audit commissioned by the Maryland State Board of Education found that thousands of graduates from 2016 and 2017 had failing grades for at least one quarter, which were later changed after the cutoff dates.
It further stated that over 150 students graduated in 2017, despite having over 50 absences for the school year.
Yolanda Rogers is a parent with five children who have attended PGCPS schools, of whom three have graduated.
She said the grading scandal has had a huge impact on her kids.
“I have two children that’s graduated with A’s in English, B’s in Math and when they tested in college, they tested for remedial English and remedial Math. That’s problematic for me.”, said Rogers.
Many are now calling for Prince George’s County Executive, Rushern Baker, to get rid of the current chairman and superintendent.
In a statement, John White, spokesperson for PGCPS pointed out that the school system was not invited to today’s meeting, but says Dr. Kevin Maxwell and his leadership team have taken the state audit findings and recommendations very seriously.
PGCPS has until the end of the month to respond to the audit and submit a plan of action.
Officials from Prince George’s County Public Schools have said that an action plan is in the works to improve grading and graduation certification.
County Executive, Rushern Baker could not be reached for comment.
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