Screwball Antics Continue to Mar AA Nominating Commission

The Anne Arundel School Board Nominating Commission process continues to provide us with new and wondrous screwball antics that continue to show why the process should never have been created in the first place:

Three years after the state legislature revamped the way members are placed on the county Board of Education, confusion over the details continues to muck up the process.

In another case in point this week, the commission that nominates candidates to the governor for appointment relied on a new opinion from the state Attorney General's Office to conclude that board President Ned Carey was seeking another term.

Meanwhile, Carey was reading the law differently.

"My understanding was, the way the law read, by not submitting an application, I would not be considered," he said Thursday. "It wasn't my intention to run."

Just a day earlier, Joshua Greene, chairman of the School Board Nominating Commission, had said Carey was definitely still in the running even though he had not submitted an application, because under a ruling by the attorney general, incumbents don't have to be vetted. Their names go straight to the governor for consideration.

"He'll have his name forwarded, and that's it," Greene said.

Read the whole thing.....and incidentally I find it extremely curious that nobody asked these questions when two Republicans were up for reappointment to the School Board, and thus allowed them to go through the public confirmation process.

This kind of slapstick comedy shows exactly why a Nominating Commission process continues to lack legitimacy (in addition, of course, to the other well documented reasons why such a process is a travesty foisted upon county residents). The fact of the matter is that the General Assembly in creation of Nominating Commission process punted on a lot of the nitty gritty details of the process. That might not be a bad thing, except for the minor detail that the Nominating Commission is made up of political hacks who don't seem to be bothered to actually give a damn.

This process involving Ned Carey is a joke, and continues to undermine whatever credibility the Nominating Commission might have had by providing adequate incumbency protection by allowing sitting members to circumvent the process. And once again, it is necessary to point out that legitimate elections would eliminate all of the cloak and dagger stuff, opinions from the office of the Attorney General, and the lack of credibility in the process, and replace it with a process that would adequately provide representation for the students, parents, teachers and taxpayers of Anne Arundel County...

Take the Hint

So it looks like once again the School Board Nominating Commission is trying to hunt and peck to find people to apply for the School Board.

But can you really blame people for not wanting to be part of this convoluted, undemocratic process? A process that the School Board Nominating Commission has decided should avoid public input at all costs and hide their deliberations from the public? A system that is subjected to a highly politicized process that puts the decision in the hands of a Governor who bypasses a qualified candidate in order to appoint an unregistered Democratic lobbyist who gets "re-elected" in a sham election that gives people no real choices.

Yeah, I wonder why nobody wants to sign up for this gig.

What's even more ridiculous is the fact that O'Malley Flunky Commission Chairman Joshua Greene wants to push back the application deadline, seemingly just for the hell of it;

"Applications are due April 1," said Joshua Greene, commission chairman. "What we may do is push back the application deadline."

That's great. Give people who couldn't submit their applications by a set deadline another opportunity to not submit their applications by a set deadline. Fantastic.

Can we please have our School Board elections now so we don't have to play any more games with the education of our County's children?

A Well Articulated Position

I missed this yesterday, by Eric Hartley, very nicely articulatingthe anti-incumbent position regarding the Anne Arundel County School Board Farce Retention Elections:

A win for "no" would stun the school system and send a message that people want some changes in a board that's accountable to no one - a fact readily demonstrated by some of its actions.

For example, this is the school board that recently voted in public on a move it actually made behind closed doors nearly two months ago, approving a $5,000 bonus for schools Superintendent Kevin Maxwell, which followed his $6,000 bonus last year.

This is also the board that has overseen an astonishing explosion (from 213 to 450) in the number of six-figure school system jobs.

If board members had any fear of voters, they might have thought twice about such raises and bonuses in tough economic times. They might have cared more about how it appeared. But they don't have to.

For a long time, the school board was entirely appointed, its members picked by the governor after public vetting by a "nominating convention." Now, at least, voters have a chance for an up-or-down vote after those appointments, thanks to a 2007 law.

But if voters unthinkingly approve these two appointees, the retention process will serve as only a faint imitation of democracy....

....This year, Ms. Birge was picked and Ms. Johnson was reappointed under a suspect process. Joshua Greene, the politically connected Democratic lawyer who chaired the School Board Nominating Commission, told me the deliberation and vote would be entirely public.

Yet when the time came, the commission deliberated secretly before voting on recommended candidates, from whom the governor picked two. Mr. Greene said he wanted to keep the debate open, but was outvoted by members who thought they could talk more candidly in private.

That's not how public officials should be picked in a democracy.

I'd be hard pressed to write anything better than that. The fact of the matter is that the farce we call an "election" that was thrust upon us by John Leopold and his Democratic allies does not subject either the incumbent Tricia Johnson or unregistered Democratic lobbyist Teresa Milio Birge to the rigors of a real campaign or real scrutiny by the voters. It is merely a way for Annapolis liberal insiders to retain control of the day to day operations of county school boards throw a non-public, non-accountable appointment and retention process. The decision to reward Maxwell's poor performance with a bonus is one of just a number of questionable and downright bad decisions that continually and continuously endanger the educational well-being of Anne Arundel County's children.

Eric Hartley is spot on. We need to send the Anne Arundel County School Board a message on November 4th..

Welcome to Our World

Looks like Harford County is suffering under the same Board of Education shenanigans we have been subjected to here in Anne Arundel County:

The Governor has chosen Alysson Krchnavy and Dr. Leonard Wheeler to fill the two open seats on the Board of Education, circumventing the recommendations of the Harford County Board of Education Nominating Committee.

The Committee, made up of representatives from the Office of County Executive David Craig, the Harford County State Senators, the Harford County House of Delegates and the Harford County Council who had recommended retired principal Nancy Reynolds and Dr. Mohammad Reza Shahab to fill those seats.

County Councilman and Committee Chairman Richard Slutzky expressed disappointment that the work of the committee had been overruled. Slutzky noted “This demonstrates that we have no effective process for vetting or evaluating potential Board of Education candidates at the Harford County level” and that today’s announcement was a “validation of the reason why Harford County political entities and citizens are asking for an elected school board.”

The process in Harford County is slightly different in that the Commission is made up of strictly local appointees, no Commission members being appointed by the Governor. But it is just as bad to bypass the Commission-endorsed candidates in Harford County as it was for O'Malley to appoint unregistered Democratic lobbyists Teresa Milio Birge here in Anne Arundel County.

And Councilman Slutzky is right: these type of appointment shenanigans are just as political, if not more so, than allowing the citizenry to make the choices for themselves.

Shame on Governor O'Malley for again putting the interest politics ahead of the interests of students.

An idea worth considering

It looks like Washington, DC, of all places, may be getting ready to implement a useful idea in regards to teacher retention:

D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee is proposing a contract that would give mid-level teachers who are paid $62,000 yearly the opportunity to earn more than $100,000 -- but they would have to give up seniority and tenure rights, two union members familiar with the negotiations said yesterday.

Under the proposal, the school system would establish two pay tiers, red and green, said the union members, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the talks are confidential. Teachers in the red tier would receive traditional raises and would maintain tenure. Those who voluntarily go into the green tier would receive thousands of dollars in bonuses and raises, funded with foundation grants, for relinquishing tenure.

Teachers in the green tier would be reviewed yearly and would be allowed to continue in their jobs only if they passed an evaluation and boosted students' test scores, the union members said.

Rhee's idea is a breath of fresh air in an area that seems to have little movement over the last decade. The fact of the matter is that in order to truly be able to reinvigorate public schools, we have to find better ways to tie pay to teacher performance, and better ways to ensure that tenure does not stagnant the educational growth of our students. But the Teacher's Union, as always, stands in the way of common sense reforms designed to improve the classroom. Rhee's idea is a compromise that allows teachers to opt out of the current system if they desire, and gives teachers the opportunity to prove themselves and earn incentives.

This is exactly the kind of debate that we need here in our public schools. Unfortunately, in Anne Arundel County, we're not going to get to have that debate because Governor O'Malley appointed two Maxwell apologists to the Board of Education. And it's not like anybody is going to ask unregistered Democratic lobbyist Teresa Milio Berge her position on this proposed tenure reform during a retention election....

Puff Piece

The Sun today ran a pretty irritating puff piece about the new members to the Anne Arundel County Board of Education. Not irritating because a piece ran, but irritating because reporter Susan Gvozdas manged to go the entire article without actually calling unregistered Democratic lobbyist Teresa Milio Birge an unregistered Democratic lobbyist.

Sure Gvozdas talked about all of Birge's service as a Democratic committee staffer in Annapolis, serving as the lobbyist of the Maryland Municipal League, and her "part time as a government relations consultant and as special assistant to the director of state relations for the University System of Maryland" all without actually mentioning that Birge was working as a lobbyist.

Of course, what little things of substance that Birge talked about in the article are pretty irritating too:

Birge, 36, who has two children, said she hopes to use her background working with the House of Delegates' Appropriation Committee to help demystify the budget process for her constituents in West County. After watching the county executive and the superintendent battle over budget items, she wants to find a way to tone down the rhetoric and work together.

"That was very difficult for everyone," Birge said. "I would hope in the future we could avoid that."

Read as: "I am going to stand for the status quo and support whatever Superintendent Maxwell wants me to support. I would hope in the future we can tone down the rhetoric by having the County Council and County Executive roll over and die and do whatever the Superintendent asks."

As expected, it looks like the Sun will be in the bag for the retention of Birge and the continuation of this cockamamie "retention election" farce...

The Brian Griffiths Minute: 06-27-2008

Meet Sam Georgiou

Meet Sam Georgiou.

Pharmacy Manager. Long-time resident of Anne Arundel County. Involved in more Civic and Community Groups that you can shake a stick at. And long-time interest in Public Education: member of the School Board Nominating Convention, Chairman of the Citizens Advisory Council, member of the Meade Area Redistricting Task Force, Member of the Maryland Department of Education Parent Advisory Council, etc. Sam Georgiou is just the kind of person you'd want to cast a vote for in an election for in an election to be a member of a School Board.

Except he lives in District 32. Instead of appointed someone with a long and varied background in community and school system issues, Governor O'Malley appointed insider Democratic lobbyist Teresa Milio Birge to the seat. Instead of appointing somebody with Georgiou's experience and credentials in public school policy, O'Malley appointed a Democratic crony instead.

Is there really any better argument for an elected School Board for Anne Arundel County than this?

Job Losses Highlight lack of Options

It's official: 80 jobs have been slashed from the Anne Arundel County Public School System:

Schools are starting to feel the pinch from this year's budget battle.

Eighty jobs - none of them teaching positions - were eliminated last week while the schools brace for another year without new science labs, kindergarten classrooms, playground equipment and other things officials said they badly need.

"It is severely going to impact how we help the media specialists and the children," said Linda Williams, head of the library department, which is losing 11 of 21 employees. "I'm still overwhelmed by all of this."

Now it's true that the positions eliminated are not the 150 teaching positions that Kevin Maxwell proposed be axed from the budget. But is there a clearer sign of financial mismanagement in the school system than this? In a nearly $1 billion budget, Kevin Maxwell and the majority of the Board of Education could not save 80 positions that have a positive impact on the education of our students. Is Maxwell and the Board saying that the high dollar bureaucratic jobs on Riva Road have a greater importance than jobs that directly impact the lives of students?

The problem with this, naturally, is the fact that parents, teachers, and taxpayers all still have no voice in this process. They do not get to cast a vote that will decide who will get the opportunity to vote on the School System Budget, voice their opinions on staffing, or hire the next superintendent. Instead of getting that choice in a competitive election, the voters will only decide if retread appointee Tricia Johnson and unregistered Democratic lobbyist Teresa Milio Birge stay on the job or not.

Sadly, we already know, through their appointment and selection by Governor O'Malley and his cronies on the School Board Nominating Commission, Johnson and Birge are going to do little more than uphold Maxwell's status quo and fail to make the tough decisions that are required in order to provide students with a high quality education. And that is of no benefit to our students, our school employees, or taxpayers.

O'Malley did appoint an Unregistered Democratic Lobbyist to the Board of Education

Yesterday, we talked about the fact that Governor O'Malley appointed an unregistered Democratic lobbyist to the Board of Education. And I got an email from Ms. Birge this morning confirming that very fact:

I'd like to introduce myself. I'm Teresa Milio Birge, and I'm the new District 32 appointee to the Board of Education. One of my friends recently put me on google alerts, and gave me a call this morning that I was the topic of your most recent blog. I thought I'd help you out and nip this in the bud for you. In 2005, after I gave birth to my second child, I stopped working. But I didn't want to lose touch with everyone I had known in my 10 years of nonpartisan work for and with the legislature. So, my mother, who at the time was a senior center director, knew that the Association of Senior Centers needed some help with the legislature. And I was bored. It was a perfect fit. We signed a $1500 yearly contract from July 1 2005 to June 30 2006 which we renewed through June 30 2007. I've been busier this year with my accounting work and knew that I would not be able to put in as many hours (charging them a ridiculously low rate of $25 an hour), so we agreed to just charge hourly. I haven't yet billed them for the year, but it will fall in far below the $1500 mark this year.

Would love it if you could clarify on your post. I even made sure when I forwarded my CV to the governor's office I explained this, because I certainly don't want anyone mistakenly assuming that I'm not registered when I should be.

If you have any questions, please call me or email me back - I'd be more than happy to answer them! My cell is [redacted].

Teresa Milio Birge

So, to recap, she is an unregistered Democratic Lobbyists, but falling within the guidelines of the ethics laws.

But man, does that message sound like backtracking or what? Between that and the comments made on the original post, the message I get from this is 1) I'm a lobbyist, but it's OK, an 2) God I don't want to make Governor O'Malley look bad.

Here's what we need to take from this. Whether or not any ethics laws were broken is really inconsequential to the larger problem. The problem is the fact that Governor O'Malley appointed an individual to represent District 32 who has spent the majority of her professional career as a Professional Lobbyist, either for the State of Maryland or for private companies such as this one. Birge has no professional experience with education issues, which of course flies in the face of the concept that this School Board Nominating Commission was going to give us qualified people to speak on issues surrounding education. And again, the Governor and the Commissioners he appointed tried to slip an unregistered Democratic lobbyist onto the Board of Education and hoped that nobody noticed.

Well, somebody did notice. And I don't find the Governor appointing Annapolis insiders to the Board of Education to be particularly humorous at all. We need people who are serious about Education. Not rubber stamps for the Governor's policies.

134 days until Election Day...

Did O'Malley appoint an unregistered lobbyist to the Board of Education?

Governor O'Malley appointed Tricia Johnson and Teresa Milio Birge to five-year stints on the Board of Education this past Tuesday, pending the approval of the voters in the ridiculously asinine process that the General Assembly set up for us. More details on their appointments in general here.

But did O'Malley appoint an unregistered lobbyist in Birge to the Board? Birge is listed by the Maryland Association of Senior Centers as their lobbyist. In her resume, Birge notes that for a "private client" she:

Manages government relations program for a state association; track and review legislation; draft amendments and testimony; draft oral and written testimony; testify before legislative committees on legislative and budget matters; facilitate meetings of members with legislators; conduct training for association members.

All of which sounds like the activities of a lobbyist. Except Birge is not registered as a lobbyist according to the Maryland State Ethics Commission, nor is the Maryland Association of Senior Centers listed as employing a lobbyist. And the summary of lobbying law seems to indicate that if Birge received more than $2,500 in personal compensation or if the MASC paid a lobbyist more than $2,500 in lobbying expenses, both should have had to register.

The evidence seems to point to an unregistered Democratic lobbyist being appointed to the Board of Education. I'm not exactly sure how flouting ethics laws makes Anne Arundel County's new appointment process a success, though is does give us the opportunity to right this wrong at the ballot box in November.

As Expected, the System Fails

Yesterday, Governor O'Malley reappointed Tricia Johnson and appointed Terese Milio Berge to the Anne Arundel County Board of Education, moving us further along the circle of failure that is the current School Board Nominating Commission Process.

Johnson and Berge bring nothing new to the Board of Education. Johnson, whom was appointed in 2003 when I was a candidate for the open seat, is the current President of the Board. Ostensibly a Republican (though her most recent political donations have all been to Democrats), Johnson has stood for little more than the status quo during her tenure on the Board. She has failed to stand up for common sense Republican ideas, has failed to stand up for fiscal responsibility and accountability, and has failed to move schools from its current state of stagnation. She's been nothing more than a rubber stamp for both Kevin Maxwell and Eric Smith before him. Tricia Johnson has proven that she is not an agent of change, and should not have been rewarded with a second term. Particularly when you consider this:

Mrs. Johnson said she didn't have any specific plans for her second term.

"I hope that I can serve the people of Anne Arundel County to the best of my ability," she said.

If she has no plans, why did O'Malley give her five more years?

The appointment of Berge is just as problematic. A Democrat, Berge's professional experience has surrounded working with the legislature on noticeably non-education issues. While she may be currently working as an accountant, her career seems to have had more professional dealings in state government and politics than anything related to schools. I see little in Berge's experience that makes her more qualified to represent District 32 than Sam Georgiou, former Chairman of the Citizens Advisory Council and a longtime advocate for public schools. Berge appears, on the outset, to be more of an Annapolis insider than somebody who is going to put common sense school reforms on their agenda. In fact, it seems like Berge is going to give a free ride to Kevin Maxwell if you believe her candidate statement:

I believe that a board member's proper role is that of policymaker, and an idea generator. I think that a board member needs to allow the Superintendent and his or her staff to do their job and make the administrative decisions that have been clearly delegated to them.

Which means that you are going to get more of the same from Berge: no legitimate oversight of the job that Kevin Maxwell is doing, and probably a continued acquiescence to Maxwell's desires on policy and budget without a vigorous watchdog role.

Now, we move on to the final phase. Voters will have to make what will likely be an uninformed decision on whether or not Johnson and Berge should serve the remainder of these five year terms. Instead of competitive elections, in which Johnson and Berge could be challenged on their ideas and vision, we will likely see these two members hand-picked by the O'Malley/Leopold Commission rubber stamped into office. And that is bad news for the people of Anne Arundel County. As I have said before, the people of Anne Arundel County have had this shell game foisted upon them by John Leopold and the General Assembly delegation. What is it going to take to prove the unfeasibility of such a system, and the need for these candidates to compete in competitive elections based on ideas?

True, an elected school board is not going to be the answer to all of our problems. And there is nothing to say that an elected school board is going to provide more qualified candidates than this cockamamie Nominating Commission will. But I certainly would put more faith in the choices of voters than I do the choices of individuals hand selected by Martin O'Malley and John Leopold.

I'm voting no. How many others will?

Sunlight, Please

Even the Capital, long a cheerleader of the Anne Arundel School Board Nominating Commission, is aghast at the closed door tactics adopted by the Commission during their selection process:

Although the public knows who was chosen, it is been kept in the dark about why they were chosen. That's a troubling sign for a new public body....

....Public bodies should be transparent. That's what the commissioners promised the public at their very first meeting. And isn't a robust discussion about future school board members the public's business?

A private meeting to discuss these nominations - on the ground that this is a personnel decision - may be within the letter of the law, but has nothing to do with the law's spirit.

And I agree. But some of the other points the Capital makes don't necessarily serve their point:

If you apply for an influential public office, enduring a public discussion of your qualifications - and perhaps your temperament - isn't too much to ask. Would we want a county executive or County Council member chosen behind closed doors? Why should it be any different for a school board member who will have a major voice on our children's education?

A full and open discussion keeps the public informed and assures people that a public body isn't mired in cronyism or conflicts of interest.

Openness is not always convenient or easy, but it keeps public officials honest. We doubt legislators intended to drop a cloak of secrecy around this process when they created it last year.

And I couldn't agree more. But what hoots down their argument is the fact that the Capital is against an elected School Board. All of the things they say are correct, but can only be done justly and properly in a situation where the voters, not political cronies of Martin O'Malley and John Leopold, get the final say on who gets to serve. I want candidates to be scrutinized by the public. I want their qualifications discussed. But I want it done by the voters, not the unelected hacks that make up the Commission.

The public would be best served if the General Assembly were to right this wrong, disband the Commission, and allow the voters to elect the members of the School Board as soon as humanly possible.

It's Over.....for now

Well, the School Board Nominating Commission process is mercifully over for this year:

For the new District 32 seat, the commission chose candidates Teresa Milio Birge and Sam Georgiou. For the at-large seat, they chose Walter Chitwood, Kevin Jackson, Evelyn Gray-Mason and Tricia Johnson, the current board president who's up for re-appointment.

Of course, nobody has actually convinced anybody that the new process is any better than the old process. Particularly when you have attempts at stunts like this:

Tim Mennuti, a commissioner who represents the local teachers' union, asked for the vote to also happen behind closed doors, but not enough commissioners agreed.

That's right. The teachers union wants to conduct business behind closed doors. Shameful.

Of course, not as shameful as this entire cockamamie process in general. Once again, the O'Malley/Leopold Commission structure still does not address basic questions, such as why voters should not get the final say as opposed to unelected special interests.

We'll see how this all plays out with the Governor's appointment, and the silly "vote" on the ballot in November. Because I have a funny feeling that we haven't seen how this is going to play out in the end just quite yet...

More SBNC Shenanigans

The School Board Nominating Commission process is so screwed up that they are now changing the rules as they go:

County Executive John R. Leopold's appointee to the School Board Nominating Commission successfully pushed through a rule change that limits the power of the governor's five appointees. Each candidate, even the five appointed by the governor, now needs approval from eight of the 11 commissioners to have their name sent to the governor, who appoints new school board members from among those names.

Before the commission changed the rule last night, candidates had needed only six votes - easy to get if Gov. Martin O'Malley's five appointees voted as a bloc.

Of course, the change is likely cosmetic as the O'Malley/Leopold/Union liberal block is pretty likely to be in line on candidates. But does this not serve as a wonderful display of the absurdity of this kangaroo court system?

And speaking of the absurdity of this system, the same School Board Nominating Commission doesn't think the Board of Education should be involved in school system operations. So explain this:

The county Board of Education plans to discuss raising school lunch prices at its meeting tomorrow.

Meal prices haven't gone up for four years, said Jodi Risse, supervisor of the school system's Food and Nutrition Services.

She said the combination of federal and state money and revenue from the lunches isn't enough to cover expenses of the county's school lunch program.

Superintendent Kevin M. Maxwell is recommending the board raise school lunch prices by the following amounts:

Milk, ½ pint, up 5 cents from 45 to 50 cents

Breakfast up 25 cents from $1 to $1.25

Elementary school lunch up 25 cents from $1.75 to $2

Secondary school lunch up 25 cents from $2 to $2.25

This isn't a knock on the decision to raise prices, because if you gotta do it, you gotta do it. But isn't this the kind of thing that the Commission believes School Board nominees should not be vetted for (i.e., their thoughts on operations) before the Commission passes the buck on to the Governor's office?

The school lunch price decision, no matter how minor, just goes to show out of touch and poorly planned the Nominating Commission concept is....

Kevin Maxwell: Smartass

Anne Arundel County School Superintendent Kevin Maxwell decided to respond to John Leopold's budget statement with less comments about how to improve schools, but did plenty to act like a smartass:

And even though he already decided to cut 50 non-teaching positions, he'll have to look at slicing more administrative positions from the school system's central office - all cuts that ultimately will hurt student achievement and his goal of taking county schools "from good to great."

"If you want a Mercedes, you have to pay for a Mercedes," Dr. Maxwell said. "And we didn't even ask for a Mercedes. We asked for a Chrysler, and we got a pogo stick."

Yeah, that's clever. Not as clever, though, as it would be for Maxwell to adequately fund teacher pay and adequately fund classroom development. The fact of the matter is that in the Anne Arundel County School System all of the pork is at the top of the heap. I have talked previously about all of the unnecessary bureaucracy in public schools, all of the unnecessary positions and money tied up in Riva Road as opposed to being in the classroom where it is actually needed. Why does Maxwell insist that he needs to have record-high school funding when, in actuality, we aren't even quite sure what we have exactly with so little money going towards the classroom?

Kevin Maxwell needs to get his fiscal hosue in order....and this is exactly why this was a stupid statement from the School Board Nominating Commission

New Refuge Podcast

If you can't get enough of hearing me opine, take a listen to the new Conservative Refuge Podcast, where Greg, Mark and I tackle the recent General Assembly session, as well as Greg and I talk about the School Board Nominating Commission.

As always, it's a great listen...

Another Day, More Reasons

One of the best reasons for an elected school board in Anne Arundel County are encapsulated in this article regarding school budgeting:

Angry County Council members yesterday accused the Anne Arundel County school system of vilifying the county government for the superintendent's proposal to leave 200 teaching positions unfilled, with the council chairwoman blasting school officials for running "one hell of a PR [public relations] scam."

"Whoever's doing your PR over there is doing one heck of a job, not a fair one, but a good job," Council Chairwoman Cathleen M. Vitale scolded the district's top business and human resources officials. "I'm wondering when I will see the press release that says the superintendent cut 200 positions ... so [he] can move forward with other non-core programs and initiatives."

Kudos to Councilwoman Vitale for calling a spade a spade on this one. Something Councilman Ed Reilly also echoed:

Council members insisted they funded 294 new teaching positions last year, and it was the school district's decision to use the money in other ways and pull the funding from such a controversial area as classroom teachers.

"So, even though we told you we want you to use [funding] for teachers, you used it for other things?" Councilman Edward R. Reilly asked the school system's assistant superintendent Gregory V. Nourse, budget director Susan Bowen and human resources director Florie Bozzella.

"We have gotten very little from the school board, which I'm not very happy about," continued Reilly, who called the meeting. "Wish we would've gotten some of the numbers before the news outlets."

The budget battle has everything to do with the call for an elected school board. Let's face it, a School Board appointed by the O'Malley/Leopold Commission is not going to be any more proactive that the current Board in adopting responsible spending that focuses on educating students first and foremost. I have argued for some time that Kevin Maxwell's spending priorities are out of whack with what is necessary in order to properly educate students in core classes and subject matters. The County Council understands this, and is taking steps to address these concerns with the budget. The Board appointed by the O'Malley/Leopold Commission is merely going to gives us more of the same, particularly when one considers that it has been suggested by the Commission that Board members should give the Superintendent carte blanche when it comes to School System Operations.

Kevin Maxwell's fiscal irresponsibility has been tolerated by a majority of the current members of the school Board, and more than likely will also be tolerated by the appointees coming from O'Malley and Leopold's liberal commission. Until we make sure that this Board is elected by the voters of Anne Arundel County, taxpayers will not have their interests represented in School System policymaking and we will see a continuation of recklessly misguided spending from the Board and the Superintendent.

Who needs to show up anyway?

Who needs to serve on the School Board Nominating Commission when you can just blow it off for a few months:

One of the 11 members on the School Board Nominating Commission will give his vote to a colleague this spring when the commission selects two new members for the county Board of Education.

Richard Kovelant, who was appointed to the commission by the Association of Education Leaders, will give his vote to Robert Ferguson.

Mr. Kovelant is executive director of the association, which is the local school-based administrators' union. He said he is going out of town to attend the birth of his grandchild at the end of April and will not be able to hear all the school board testimony. He said he'd return to the commission this summer.

Candidate hearings are set for 7 p.m. tonight and April 28 in County Council chambers, and 7 p.m. May 5 and May 12 at sites to be determined.

Mr. Ferguson is an assistant principal at Old Mill High School in Millersville and president of the association.

Joshua Greene, chairman of the nominating commission, said since the association holds the seat, its members can appoint another person to fill it in Mr. Kovelant's absence.

Why on Earth would somebody be appointed to the seat who knows they will be unable to attend the process? Why does this outfit get a seat at the table, but average parents and taxpayers get no voice in the process?

Can we for the love of God please replace this convoluted, undemocratic system with something that gives a voice to the people of Anne Arundel County? Stories like the one above makes a mockery of the entire process.

And speaking of a mockery of the process, I can't wait to hear the news coming out of the first hearing that is going on right now...

Why School Board Elections are important

Two stories are quickly coalescing together in a way that was altogether too predictable.

First, let's hear about how much of an issue the school curricula are here in Anne Arundel County:

The recent decision by Anne Arundel County schools Superintendent Kevin M. Maxwell to turn social studies and science into semester-long courses in middle schools has sparked fierce criticism among parents, students and some teachers who accuse the district of robbing students of a well-rounded curriculum.

The roiling debate in Anne Arundel County reflects a trend in which a fifth of middle schools surveyed in a recent national study say they have sharply cut science, social studies, art, music and physical education in order to double up on math and reading.

All of which is a very important policy discussion that has a tremendous impact on the life of students, and should engage all citizens, teachers, parents, and taxpayers as part of this discussion.

At the same time, the names and resumes for candidates who have applied for the two vacancies on the Anne Arundel County School Board have been put on the School Board Nomination Commission website which also got its own write-up in the Sun, which talks a little bit about this goofy process:

The commission will hold a public hearing Monday night, where the public can meet the candidates and the commissioners can formally question them. Two weeks later, the commission will hear public testimony on the qualifications of the candidates.

The fact that these stories come together like this is fortuitous because it once again highlights how ridiculous and absurd the new nominating process is. The School Board Nominating Commission is going to hold a meet the candidates night, yet the public has absolutely no real input on who is going to serve on the School Board. The Commission, made up of Martin O'Malley and John Leopold's liberal donors and friends, are going to nominate to the Governor whomever they damn well please, regardless of the public input. One the candidates go to a retention election in the fall, they will likely remain unchallenged on their records or their qualifications since the voters will not have a true voice in the process and cannot replace them with somebody who better represents their views on education and public spending.

The story about the curricula questions are even further damning of the new and convoluted process. The candidates will not have to defend or promulgate their stances on the curricula issue, or any other issue for that matter, to the public. Under the old process, despite its flaws, candidates still were questioned by the public before a vote was taking of Nominating Convention delegates. Candidates were questioned directly. Under the new process, parents, teachers, and taxpayers may not be able to know or understand the positions of these candidates or their implications for School Board policy until well after they are already serving on the Board of Ed. it is even more of a hopeless situation when you remember the fact that even if a candidate is nominated who is out of touch with their constituents (a likelihood given the O'Malley/Leopold team in place) and turned out by the voters, the liberal Nominating Commission will merely appoint another out of touch replacement.

Issues regarding school curricula are critically important for the future of Anne Arundel County and its children. Unfortunately, what this story really does is highlight merely the seriousness and gravity of our newfangled, highly undemocratic School Board selection process in Anne Arundel County.