Dear Editor,
This week marks a critical turning point for the future of the public school system in Wicomico County.
At 6 PM on Thursday evening September 10th at the Wicomico youth and Civic Center a public hearing will be held. Citizens of Wicomico County will have an opportunity to tell State Legislators that we want to decide who makes decisions about our children’s education and not leave it to politicians and political appointees.
There are only 3 of 23 counties statewide that still have all school board members appointed by the governor. Currently the Wicomico County Democrat and Republican Central Committees submit names of candidates to the Governor for review. The Governor can appoint any person that he chooses regardless of the names submitted by the committees. Also there is no formal process for unaffiliated voters (N/A) to submit names of candidates. There are over 10,000 U/A voters in Wicomico County. Of the 7 members on the current school board, none are U/A. We have an opportunity to change this.
We decide is a grass roots organization made up of concerned citizens that believe a 100% elected school board would result in more accountability to citizens, parents and students of Wicomico County. WE Decide proposes to adopt a100% elected school board system. The easiest and most equitable way to do this is adopt the county council election model. The county is divided into 5 districts. The county council is made up of members from each district. In addition the council has two members elected at large.
There have been attempts for years to convert to an elected school board. These attempts have been blocked by our past and present locally elected state officials. In 2014 the county council and county executive unanimously agreed on proposed legislation to convert to an elected school board, this attempt was blocked by Senator Jim Mathis. Jim Mathis has requested that a series of public hearings be held and he has promised to support the outcome of these hearings. Interestingly, Jim Mathis represents 3 counties. Somerset and Worcester Counties have elected school boards. Wicomico County has its members appointed by the governor.
For more information check out our web site at www.wedecidewicomico.org and please come to the public hearing and let your voice be heard.
Mark McIver
13 comments:
You are wasting your time. Jim Mathis will block any vote on the issue. Just keep voting Democratic folks.
"The Governor can appoint any person that he chooses regardless of the names submitted by the committees."
Does the name Kim Hudson ring a bell!
I have a feeling she won't be re-appointed and Chris Adams you need to stay out of this. You screwed up supporting Don Fitzgerald! Now look at Don Fitzgerald Mr. Delegate Adams. See you you did to our BOE. Ms. Elmore should be the BOE President and you let Democrat Fitzgerald and RINO Kim Hudson take the lead. You are an idiot Chris Adams. I knew you were a RINO when I found out your wife was a school teacher.
We are supposed to have a majority Republican Board of Education and somehow a Democrat gets elected to be the BOE President instead of the deserving Dr. Carolyn Elmore. Thanks to RINO's Chris Adams and Kim Hudson. Chris Adams had influence at the Governors Office by supporting the re-appointment of Don Fitzgerald. Don Fitzgerald is the only member of the BOE without any college background. His best credential is being a Union President. Scary isn't it. It would have been in Chris Adams best interest to stay out of it.
I oppose opening the school board up to professional politicians. You really want Laura Mitchell on the school board? That is the type of candidate you will get.
Anonymous said...
I oppose opening the school board up to professional politicians. You really want Laura Mitchell on the school board? That is the type of candidate you will get.
September 10, 2015 at 11:21 AM
How do you know? Why didn't you run against her if you are so concerned. She ran at large and I didn't see your name on the ballot for County Council.
BOE people running the school board making financial decisions with taxpayers money is like the fox guarding the hen house! We need an elected school board just because of this reason. We have got to try and stop the out of control spending! As a property owner, I cannot afford the yearly tax increases because they can't or won't control their spending!!!!!!
Don Fitzgerald has a daughter working as a teacher at Bennett Middle School and she is a coach. Don Fitzgerald also helps her coach. This should make Don Fitzgerald ineligible to vote on any and all issues at the Wicomico County Board of Education.
Wannabe Delegate Chris Adams really did screw this one up. He was pressured by board members and board employees to support Don Fitzgerald's re-appointment by a Republican Governor. Very dumb move folks, very dumb move.
Relax folks, Kim Hudson will be delivering papers for the Salisbury Independs soon enough.
Trust me on this one.
Kim Hudson and Don Fitzgerald have been two of the most responsible, civic minded citizens we have had in Wicomico County in the last decades.
Prudence yes, but irresponsible people whose only interest is reducing their taxes are not the people we need on the school board or voting for school board members.
I attended the meeting. The vast majority were in favor of an elected school board. Sheri Sample Hughes said she would continue to vote against this in favor or "video taped meetings" for the public to see for more transparency!
Mathias stated he would not decide on this until there were more open meetings, which means it is doubtful if he would ever allow this to go to a ballot.
A lot of great speakers like Woody Willing, Dave Snyder, and Julie Brewington as well as many others whose names I don't know. There were some BOE members who didn't have a leg to stand on for their reasons to keep an appointed school board. Since there are now only two counties in the state with an appointed school board, I don't believe they can stall this much longer. Need more people to attend. There was a good turnout, but there were still a lot of empty seats.
You people don't get it, do you?
This is an exercise in futility show to get input on whether or not to start a referendum to bring to a vote to whether to have an appointed, elected, or hybrid school board, so it can be decided as to whether or not it would be useful to the Democrats now in charge to start the final referendum to get this 3 way choice on a ballot to run it in their fixed election ten or more years down the road.
Did I get that about right?
Tonight was nothing more than an appeasement to those who represent ALL of us, who have been asking for an elected board for the last 20 years.
It's time to stop this dance around the pole, and put the damned thing on a ballot, the next ballot!
Wicomico definitely needs to become an elected board to rid the "fox guarding the henhouse" mentality....even when several of the current board members were completely aware of how a highly effective and well liked teacher was being targeted by a select few staff at central office simply because the teacher wouldn't just look the other way and let them continue to violate the rights of students in special Ed by not providing services they were mandated to provide, and then when it got to the point of writing false reports of achievement and inflating grades, the retaliation worsened, and yet not only did the board members do nothing to intervene during all of this, they somehow UNANIMOUSLY agreed to terminate the teacher....now knowing that several of the board members actually wanted to help during the situation but didn't because they didn't want to make it worse for the teacher tells the story right there.....doesn't matter if they know about corruption or actions being taken that are not in the schools' best interests, they are tied too tightly personally that they can not even begin to effectively act as a school board should. Which is exactly why we need an elected school board with members representing the needs of the community....not the current method of a school board who cover up for the wrongdoers so they can in return have their own personal interests protected. Very glad to see the community starting to pull together and stand up for their right!!!
Anonymous said...
Kim Hudson and Don Fitzgerald have been two of the most responsible, civic minded citizens we have had in Wicomico County in the last decades.
Prudence yes, but irresponsible people whose only interest is reducing their taxes are not the people we need on the school board or voting for school board members.
September 10, 2015 at 7:20 PM
LMAO... Thanks Ms. Hudson. Maybe you can write a piece on this. How is Mike Dunn and the rest of your Democrat friends doing by the way. Oh yeah, make the best of your time on the Board because you won't be serving another term.
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