Prince George’s schools’ test scores drop.

Source: Washington Post analysis of Maryland School Assessment scores for 2013. Scores reflect combined results for reading and math.. The Washington Post. Published on July 23, 2013, 12:20 p.m.

As the New Board of Education for Prince George’s County reorganizes itself and is determined to bring the necessary changes, we must realize that there is no silver bullet. However, as we articulated before, real improvements in a school system like PGCPS take time and hard work.  As we said before, miraculous sudden improvements in student achievement was likely the result of outright fraud or a rigged evaluation system designed to produce desired results. This notion has been proved right today by news articles in Gazette and Washington Post.

Prince George’s County elementary school mathematics and reading scores are down compared to last year, ending a suspicious “positive four-year streak” driven by what appears to be fraud on state tests, and officials say next year may not be much better. (Read more)

On this note, we must demand changes starting with PGCPS HQ (Sasscer) and not cosmetics changes. We ask our new Board and our CEO to go boldly for administrative reforms that relate to the nuts and bolts of our school system and how it is run. Buses must be made to run on time and we must get rid of administrative waste, and sort through questionable contracts beginning with Thatcher Law firm which is the epicenter of corruption and the legal department. We must change contracting procedures and demand more for our kids instead of high suspension rate we have seen in the past. Above all, we must use appropriate technologies to gain efficiencies as well as, demand effective and timely school-to-parent communications. This is the first and most necessary element for enabling parental involvement as articulated by our sister Blogs in the past.

Finally, we must treat teachers and other staff members as professionals. Listen to them and provide them opportunities to influence how schools are run. We must refrain from arbitrary compensation schemes that will make teachers accountable for conditions they have no control over.  On this note, we must revisit how budget is controlled by Principals without much oversight which is like “Christmas in April.” This does not mean you don’t demand accountability and high performance. However, transparency and accountability initiatives passed into law must be implemented fully. We expect County Executive Rushern Baker, Board Chairman Dr. Segun C. Eubanks and our New Chief Executive Officer Dr. Kevin Maxwell to be a partner, not a punitive leader who are out to get teachers and other staff members. Let us make PGCPS a place that values innovation and professionalism—an attractive place for good teachers and other professionals to work for the good of the county.

###

Hite Hires former budget chief

Philadelphia: MATTHEW E. Stanski, who was chief financial officer with Prince George’s County, Md., schools until a payment scandal forced his removal in September 2012, has been named the Philadelphia School District’s new CFO by Dr. William Hite Jr, district sources have told the Reform Sasscer Movement. (Read more here) and (Here).

Prince George’s Schools & Dr. Hite Sued By Principals for $100 Million

Dr. William Hite Jr (Pictured Above)

Suit alleges age, race discrimination

by Jamie Anfenson-Comeau     Staff writer

The union for Prince George’s County school principals and administrators has filed a $100 million federal class action lawsuit against the county school board and former schools superintendent William Hite.

The Association of Supervisory and Administrative School Personnel, or ASASP, filed the suit Nov. 2, alleging that school administrators were fired or demoted under Hite due to age and race discrimination.

“We have had, under Dr. Hite, almost half of our administrators and principals replaced. Hundreds of senior, experienced people have been replaced by younger, less experienced individuals,” said Doris Reed, executive director of ASASP, which represents over 800 administrators and principals, according to its website.

Reed said black male administrators were singled out during the tenure of Hite, who is also black.

“When we looked at it, older black males had no chance of promotion,” Reed said.

Hite served as superintendent of Prince George’s County Public Schools from 2009 until this summer, when he left to become superintendent of the Philadelphia School District.

The suit also alleges that during the last reduction in force, board member Donna Hathaway Beck (Dist. 9) met with certain white employees and assured them they would continue to be employed with the school system, regardless of seniority or the RIF plan.

Reed said previous attempts to resolve the issue with the school board failed.

Schools spokesman Briant Coleman said Tuesday that the school system could not comment on the lawsuit, stating, “Prince George’s County Public Schools has not been served with a complaint by ASASP.”

The suit came a little over a week after the school system finalized an agreement with the teacher’s union, providing teachers with their first pay raise in three years.

Pay raise negotiations between the ASASP and the school board are still ongoing, Reed said.

janfenson-comeau@gazette.net

(See ealier reporting by NBC News)

Read~~>  asaspunion-complaint here.

###

Prince George’s Schools & Dr. Hite Sued By Principals.

The Prince George’s County Public Schools system is facing a lawsuit from the union that represents the schools’ principals and administrators. According to the published article by NBC News, The Association of Supervisory and Administrative School Personnel, or ASASP, filed a $100 million federal class action suit against the schools and Dr. William Hite Jr  on November 2, 2012.

The Complaint centers a lot on Dr. William Hite Jr who alone replaced almost half of the principals in the Prince George’s County Public schools (PGCPS) (Read More) Read~~>  asaspunion-complaint here.

Dr. William Hite Jr (pictured above)  and the whole saga.

###

Good riddance to Dr.William Hite Jr.

Dr. William Hite Jr (pictured above) is a pathological liar, there’s no doubt about that. He is also a cover-up artist. If the court reports in Greenbelt Federal courts are correct in its summary of the Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS) corruption and sexual exploitation of children scandal, the public Dr. William Hite Jr of the last few years is a work of fiction. In his place is a hubristic, indictable hypocrite. He should not be a Superintendent of schools anywhere!

According to concerned citizens of Prince George’s County, we must abolish entire PGCPS leadership led by Dr. Hite and Ms. Verjeana Jacobs in the wake of findings by the federal judge that Scott Smallwood, of Upper Marlboro and an employee of PGCPS hid his crimes of being a child rapist.  The three-hour sentencing hearing on Wednesday July 18, 2012 involved home movies of sexual acts, trembling verbal testimonies from distraught family members and an exhibit of a homemade doll that resembled an anatomically correct adolescent boy Smallwood used in what U.S. District Court Judge Roger W. Titus called his own “fantasy world.” (Read more) “This is a very sad day especially since this happened again not too long ago in Bowie High School in which students were forced in prostitution by athletic coaches”, said a concerned PG parent. Another incident involving student sexual exploitation happened in Flowers High school as well under the leadership of Dr. William Hite Jr.  We need to put a stop to Board of Education’s shenanigans. We have finally reached the tipping point for sure and we have had enough. Enough is enough with cover up and appointing select few who are politically connected like Ms. Monica Goldson as Chief Operating Officer (COO) in order to continue the status quo.

We have said over and over again that, The PGCPS leadership lacks vision, and they continue to bend to parents who lack the insight to recognize that their failure to have control over the student body and place the right staff in the right place has led to an environment in which few are educated but all get diplomas at the end of the school year. Thus very few college graduates emerge from this school district that has many students taking the AP exam but keeps no records on those passing the AP exam. This year for example Central High School had students photographing AP exams and posting the pages on the internet because students are used to using their cell phones while in class and the school staff is powerless to stop it. There is no doubt  Dr. Hite is an outstanding education reform propagandist. Unfortunately there is no substance underneath the propaganda. The Prince George’s County public school district has seriously deteriorated under his leadership which was certainly hampered by a know nothing and do nothing school board again led by one Ms. Verjeana Jacobs.

Therefore, it is disturbing that our members of the Board of Education recently spent untold hours debating who should be included in Executive Session in an apparent battle over whether our student Board member should be included to hear set of facts involving Adult matters.

That’s really not the issue. We want our curricula to be based on sound, empirical data and grounded in common sense. Unfortunately, the best interests of our students and our county have taken a back seat to the promotion of an ideological agenda focused on Board of Education chairperson’s rival in November 2012 election.

Do we need to have public input regarding curricula coming out of the PGCPS Education Agency? Certainly. But the actions of the PGCPS BOE provide more of a distraction than meaningful oversight of our public education system.

If Dr. William Hite knew about corruption, nepotism, professional misconduct and sexual exploitation of children scandal within the system and refused to do something about it, then he isn’t and wasn’t some aging granddad who was deceived, but a canny and unfeeling power broker who put protecting his reputation ahead of protecting children and staff. There is no question he engaged in a cover-up, “an active agreement of concealment in collaboration with Chief legal counsel Mr. Roger Thomas and others within and outside PGCPS.”

The only explanation we can find for this “striking lack of empathy” is self-absorption. In asking how a paragon of virtue could have behaved like such a thoroughly bad guy, the only available answer is that Dr. William Hite Jr. is no different from Paterno who fell prey to the single most corrosive sin in sports: the belief that winning on the field makes you better and more important than other people.

We can’t afford to continue applying Band-Aids, hoping for a cure. At the very least, we should depoliticize our county  board by taking partisan politics out of the mix. The last resort would be to abolish the board altogether.

The best solution, we suspect, lies somewhere in between. We  look forward to working with  legislators and community leaders to address the problems. The fates of our students and our future — even our history — demands it.

As Dr. William Hite Jr. prepares to jump off ship to Philly, it’s a good riddance for sure!

Letter to the elected officials in Maryland.

Dear Governor O’Malley, Senate President Miller, Speaker Busch, Senators and other elected officials  el al:

We are writing to share our collective concern about the devastating impact corruption, nepotism and professional misconduct is having in two of our biggest school systems in Maryland i.e.; Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS) and Baltimore City Public Schools (BCPS). The so-called “doomsday” budget would be a perfect time to tighten the belt towards fiscal stability. We would like the funding restored. However, we are asking accountability measures be tied to the funding especially in these two troubled school Districts. Both systems perform poorly in state tests and are in the bottom of the ladder in the whole of Maryland. The main factor impacting PGCPS for example is corruption which has been present since time memorial. Baltimore City Public School recently spent $250,000 refurbishing an office. Surely that money could have been well spent helping students in the classroom. The amount of waste occurring in these two school district without proper oversight is off the hook.  Below is a summary of our survey conducted recently in PG County through our blog and tweeter feed.

We have established that, Poor coordination between various agencies, lack of specialized judicial enforcement authorities and a lack of political will to adopt a coherent strategy against corruption are the main flaws in Prince George’s County anti-corruption efforts. The school system led by embattled superintendent William Hite Jr. is most affected. We wonder why the accountability measures are not in place to combat these concerns. The answer to this question is obvious. They are refusing to act in order to mismanage and continue the status quo led by a few greedy adults in the top management especially the Superintendent and the chief legal counsel.

Corruption is ever present in the daily life of Prince George’s County citizens, who are assailed everyday by the media reporting new scandals of corruption, recurring obstacles in pending investigations, crimes that go unpunished and new anti corruption policies that have no effect on these issues because management starting at the top of PGCPS is covering up in order to maintain the status quo. This should be a concern to everybody ie; Republicans, Democrats, independents etc.

The continuous public exposure of high profile corruption cases involving public figures starting with former county Executive Jack Johnson or private sector, combined with extensive media coverage of how successive governments have dealt with this phenomena, has undermined public confidence but at the same time given new hope that federal and state agencies are monitoring somehow.

The concerned citizens of PG County (CCOPGC) conducted a survey recently. The survey conducted a complete assessment of the country’s strengths and weaknesses in the fight against corruption. «The results show there’s a big gap between the legal infrastructure that’s in place and the way institutions conduct themselves in practice. The legal mechanisms are generally satisfactory, but the authorities’ effectiveness is hindered by the lack of a comprehensive and coherent prevention and enforcement strategy. The urgency of fighting corruption has made its way to the political discourse, but our leaders are not backing their words with action», a clear example is Mr. Rushen Baker’s promise of an Inspector General (IG) during his  campaigns in 2009-2010. He made a promise for an IG but after assuming power, he changed completely says a concerned parent.

More than just a diagnosis, the CCOPGC survey makes a set of clear and practical recommendations to improve the effectiveness of the fight against corruption in Prince George’s County. These measures include the following;

1. Adopting a stronger system to monitor politicians’ personal wealth and conflicts of interest including the superintendent of schools;
2. Introducing measures to reduce the influence of political appointees in Public Administration including the school systems; (There is a lot of nepotism).
3. Strengthening cooperation between prevention and investigation authorities;
4. Improving the scope and quality of public information made available;
5. Creating a specialized agency to combat corruption, with broad powers and independence led by an Inspector General (IG).

«It’s not enough to just point fingers. Civil society has a responsibility to present specific measures that get to the heart of the problems. What the CCOPGC System survey gives us is a road map for change, so we can make a positive impact in Prince George’s anti-corruption abilities. This survey is only the first step in a larger work of advocacy and public pressure that begins today», says Francis Rajan.

According to 2010’s Global Corruption Barometer (GCB) data, most Prince George’s County citizens (83%) not only feel that corruption levels have increased since 2001, but they also consider that the Government is inefficient in fighting corruption. The percentage of citizens with this latter view has increased from 64% in 2002 to 95% in 2012.

The negative perception regarding the County Government’s role in fighting corruption and the evolution of this phenomenon in Prince George’s County can also be felt in the international context. Transparency International’s (henceforth, TI) Corruption Perceptions Index (henceforth, the CPI), which measures the perceptions of businessmen and foreign experts, confirms this trend. Prince George’s county is among the 1st in the CPI global ranking, and in relation to the whole of Maryland, Prince George’s County stands as the 1st most corrupt county and the school system (PGCPS) is the most affected. As perceived by the aforementioned experts and businessmen, Very few businesses want to invest in the county. (Read the top most priorities in PGCPS here).

Clearly, the time has come for the Rushen Baker administration and the Board of Education (BOE) to make a candid assessment and holistically resolve the issues facing schools. A comprehensive approach encompasses diverse methods of measuring student progress, increased family involvement, more stakeholder collaboration, thoughtful resource allocation and a thorough plan to address socioeconomic disparities without diverse treatment/ retaliation on everyone concerned .

Each day, many students travel to schools from some of the most economically challenged communities in Maryland. We must acknowledge that learning and school readiness extend far beyond the walls of the classroom and into students’ homes and communities. With a large percentage of Maryland children living in poverty — and more than half of those children in PG county experiencing extreme poverty — it is imperative that school leaders and policymakers consider the role and challenges high rates of homelessness, unemployment and poor health care present in education reform.

The socioeconomic disparities in Maryland and especially Prince George’s County and Baltimore City have a profound and undeniable influence on student academic achievement. To make the matters worse,  superintendent Hite, Chairperson of the  Board and other senior managers are  involved in questionable conduct. Time has come to talk about innovation, fiscal stability and find a permanent fix together to address the concerns in the school systems.

Once again remember that, this is not a Republicans, Democrats nor independents idea. As President Barack Obama said recently,  “Those who oppose change, those who benefit from an unjust status quo, have always bet on the public’s cynicism or the public’s complacency. Throughout American history, though, they have lost that bet, and I believe they will this time as well. Don’t wait for the person next to you to be the first to speak up for what’s right. Because maybe, just maybe, they’re waiting on you”.

It’s time to address the issues heads on and let the chips fall where they may!

Best regards,

Morris Flecher Bayene –  on behalf of Reform Sasscer Movement secretariat.

http://pgcpsmess.wordpress.com/

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NEWS RELEASE

 Reform Sasscer Movement Statement on Corruption and cover up Report in PGCPS.

 Contact: Morris Flecher Beyene 

 Reformsasscer@gmail.com  

For Immediate Release:

May 05, 2012                     

PG County citizens know that corruption, nepotism and professional misconduct is the way of life in Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS) and this culture of Malfeasance must be stopped immediately. The incarceration of former county executive Jack Johnson, a good friend of Superintendent Hite, has not created a reality check for Dr. Hite or his kitchen cabinet. Therefore, innovative ways to bring accountability in the school system needs to be explored and utilized including by the general assembly.

Above all, our school system is stagnant. Studies show a large majority of students entering two and four-year colleges are behind in math and English Read more:  In addition, the unemployment rate remains high with students and parents losing hope on finding jobs. It’s a clear declaration that PGCPS society as a whole and the educational institutions in particular are not providing for the welfare of its student citizenry. This in turn affects the morale of the staff and students alike.

 It’s time to end Ms.Verjeana Jacobs, the Chairperson of the Board of Education and Dr. William Hite’s policies and get the County school system back on track to create fiscal stability. It’s time to create proper reforms at Sasscer Administration Building. The reforms include reduction in womanizing by Superintendent Hite and ending the culture of discrimination and harassment. Furthermore, the high suspension rate of students needs to be reduced, abolishing the Office of Constituent Services which acts as a campaign tool for Dr. William Hite and finally support teachers by advancing a reasonable empowerment policy. (See entire list here).

Chairperson Verjeana Jacobs needs to vacate the chair because her husband has been caught numerous times drunk driving. (See reports here, here, here and here). “This man has his hands in a lot, his wife is on the school board,” one concerned parent said. “He should be responsible and mature.” “He has enough money that he doesn’t have to drive if he isn’t able to.” she said. We agree with organized labor that staff should not drink on the job and a policy should be in place regarding drunken spouses and not delayed “until after the election,” according to the concerned parent. Unfortunately Chairperson Verjeana Jacobs hesitated in her support of this venture. The Prince George’s County educator association (PGCEA) and part of the ACE_AFSCME Local 2250 should not be in bed with PGCPS management. Otherwise, the unions become useless and members are trying to find ways to denounce their memberships because union leaders, staff and lawyers involved in protecting workers are corrupt.

Furthermore, Chairperson Verjeana Jacobs who supports corruption through a variety of ways including an illegal tender involving Thatcher law firm, needs to vacate the chair. The no competitive bind policy advocated by Verjeana Jacobs and Dr. William R. Hite Jr. is hurting our children’s education.  Thatcher Law firm was given a no competitive bind contract because of ties to Dr. William R. Hite Jr. and after Verjeana Jacobs was paid $8,000 hush-money towards her re-election campaign. It’s time to elect new leadership and cancel the $5 million no bind contract awarded to the Thatcher Law firm. Corruption in PG County is killing the future education of local kids. The Thatcher Law firm is involved in deep seated corruption and must be forced to repay back the money to PGCPS. (Read more)

 PG County needs a school board chairperson who is not afraid to lead and take on the challenges facing the staff, students and parents. Chairperson Verjeana Jacobs no longer represents the interests of the citizens of PG County and Prince George’s County 5th district.  Her “corruption, corruption, hide, hide, nepotism, nepotism, pay to play, pay to play, cover up, cover up” ways and policies have contributed to the terrible and low performance of the Prince George’s County school system we have today led by the corrupt Dr. William R. Hite Jr.

Today PGCPS is on the bottom of the ladder in Maryland. We need Board members and a new superintendent who will step up and fight for our students, American workers and free enterprise, and work to facilitate job opportunities where all Americans can pursue their own American dream while being accountable – it’s time!

https://www.petitionbuzz.com/petitions/sasscer

Corrupt Dr. William R. Hite Jr. and Ms. Verjeana Jacobs are pictured below.

Dr.William Hite Jr goes Bonkers – finally loses it!

Please anyone, calm this man down.

Reform Sasscer movement has always taken a holistic approach to promote good governance. Good governance requires strong institutions, a receptive regulatory environment, and an active citizenry that holds its government accountable.  Underpinning all governance reform efforts is the public’s right to information. Where information is accessible at all levels and transactions are conducted in a transparent and open way, citizens are empowered and opportunities for corruption diminish. Conversely, the lack of adequate access to information, whether in election, budget processes or procurement procedures, enables corruption to not only exist but to flourish.

Reform Sasscer movement experience has proven that improving in one area of governance –  For example PGCPS Budget reform – without addressing access to information leaves an imbalance which can result in a less transparent and accountable society like we are seeing under the  Student Based Budgeting (SBB) in Prince George’s County Public Schools ( PGCPS) under William Hite. Many parents and staff members are in the dark. This was demonstrated recently on May 30, 2012 during the District 6 citizen meeting at Dr. Henry A. Wise Jr. High School. Several concerned parents had no idea of how money is being spent.

It is in this background that we wrote to the General assembly on April 23, 2012 asking our elected officials to help push much needed reforms within PGCPS under embattled Superintendent Hite.  As a result of our advocacy, Dr. Hite reacted angrily over the weekend promising certain retaliatory measures. He refused to answer the concerns presented in our blogs by denying everything  saying “these allegations are not only false, they are slanderous”. (See emails below and our response).

Greater transparency can be achieved in various ways, but one of the most efficient way is through a general right of access to official information. Access to timely, transparent and appropriate information within our school system is crucial to building accountable communities.  If William Hite cannot cope with this demand, he should resign hence forth. We have been demanding this for a while now on behalf of PGCPS and the larger community as a whole. Dr. Hite is and has been a distraction because he does not know the job and he is harrassing. The man was selected corruptly for the job.

Bottom line, in the age of social media (Twitter, Facebook, blogs etc.), no leader or civil servant can afford to abuse power and plunder resources without oversight. The consequences can be adverse as demonstrated recently even with our own secret service. Nobody should be above the law in PGCPS. That goes for Dr. William R. Hite Jr., Ms. Verjeana Jacobs and anyone else involved in the public corruption including Chief legal counsel Mr. Roger Thomas.  We will continue with our advocacy until the issues are addressed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From: Reform Sasscer <reformsasscer@gmail.com>
Date: Sun, Apr 29, 2012 at 3:45 AM
Subject: Re: Allegations – A Response To Allegations in This Information
To: “William R. Hite, Jr.” <william.hite@pgcps.org>
Cc: “educationissues@hotmail.com” <educationissues@hotmail.com>, “paul.pinsky@senate.state.md.us” <paul.pinsky@senate.state.md.us>, “anthony.muse@senate.state.md.us” <anthony.muse@senate.state.md.us>, “douglas.peters@senate.state.md.us” <douglas.peters@senate.state.md.us>, “jim.rosapepe@senate.state.md.us” <jim.rosapepe@senate.state.md.us>, “victor.ramirez@senate.state.md.us” <victor.ramirez@senate.state.md.us>, “thomas.v.mike.miller@senate.state.md.us” <thomas.v.mike.miller@senate.state.md.us>, “joanne.benson@senate.state.md.us” <joanne.benson@senate.state.md.us>

Dear Senators, Board of Education members, elected officials et alia,

The reply received is typical of Dr. William Hite jr response to a public inquiry. First, Dr. William Hite jr is a public figure with responsibility and duty to be accountable to the public and yet he feels he is a king in charge and only accountable to himself. His response to Dr. Eugene Williams is contemptible and disgusting and revealing to his attitude towards accountability and transparency of public funds. Dr. Eugene Williams only asked for a simple clarification to an issue which is now public knowledge and what does Dr. William Hites jr do? He comes out with guns blazing and with a no take prisoners approach. Dr Hite immediately becomes a judge and jury all rolled into one claiming slander and terrorist – threatening unspecified retaliation measures. Could someone please bring this Dr. William Frankenstein Hite monster under control with a muzzle and tranquilizer? Such a so called learned man should learn how to respond in a civil and enlightened manner. Prince George’s County Public Schools (Pgcps) does not deserve or condone such uncouth and irresponsible behavior from a superintendent of schools.

Dr. Wiiliam Flantesntein Hite should tame his ego and lead by example. What kind of example does this dialogue serve? Are we supposed to bow and shudder to the all might self proclaimed king Dr. Wiliiam Frankenstein Hite? We hope he is not trying to start his own Friday the 13th horror sequel. Dr. Hite you don’t scare anyone. We will settle for nothing-less than the truth, transparency and accountability. Enough is enough. Your threats and witch hunt belong in a museum. They will never work. We will not be silenced or intimidated.

In addition, Dr. William Hite you can bark as much as you like but you need to have the common decency to the gentleman’s inquiry and answer the questions.  This is not a threat but a fact. There are more than 21 points to clarify. We will continue to post questions and concerns from Pg county citizens in the blogs. Parents and students deserves answers. Dr William Hite jr climb down from your high perch.

Finally, if you are a woman  who has been subjected to sexual harrassment, innuendo, unwarranted looks and comments and promises by Dr. William Hite jr, don’t be a victim of silence, you need to come out and save other women suffering the abuse silently. We are aware of numerous venues inluding Boston etc. Time has come to put a stop to this madness. Every girl and woman needs your protection in Pgcps – Speak up!

Regards,

Deputy spokesman – Fletcher Morris Beyene

Reform Sasscer Movement Secretariat.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From: William R. Hite, Jr. <william.hite@pgcps.org>
Date: Fri, Apr 27, 2012 at 11:58 AM
Subject: Allegations – A Response To Allegations in This Information
To: educationissues@hotmail.com, reformsasscer@gmail.com
Cc: paul.pinsky@senate.state.md.us, anthony.muse@senate.state.md.us, douglas.peters@senate.state.md.us, jim.rosapepe@senate.state.md.us, victor.ramirez@senate.state.md.us, thomas.v.mike.miller@senate.state.md.us, joanne.benson@senate.state.md.us

Greetings Mr. Williams,

 Thank you for contacting Prince George’s County Public Schools. As a general rule, we do not respond to anonymous emails, blogs, tweets and Facebook posts. The school system has established numerous resources for individuals to voice their concerns and/or make formal complaints (http://www1.pgcps.org/internalaudit/index.aspx?id=20430).

However, rest assured that these allegations are not only false, they are slanderous. The individuals behind these hateful attacks seek to shred the reputation of our employees, students, school system and community. Hateful online speech (e-bullying or e-terrorist attacks) have real world consequences and should not be tolerated.

Finally, Mr. Williams, if you are the person responsible for these communiqués or if you know the individual(s) responsible, please let us know.

Thank you,

William R. Hite

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From: Eugene Williams,Sr. <educationissues@hotmail.com>
Date: Wed, Apr 25, 2012 at 11:58 AM
Subject: A Response To Allegations in This Information
To: rosalind.johnson@pgcps.org, verjeana.jacobs@pgcps.org, donna.hathawaybeck@pgcps.org, william.hite@pgcps.org, educationissues@hotmail.com

Superintendent Hite and Board Members-

I recently retired from the school system, primarily because I did not feel that the the teaching environment was hostile and retaliatory to senior, experienced teachers. Moreover,  the alleged age and racial discrimination infuriated me, an experience, competent teacher who helped many students and brought national and international recognition to the system. For more abour my accomplishments and achievements, please see www.academicresourcesunlimited.org.

Now, an Evolutionary Elder, I am desirious of a response to the information in the e-mail I am forwarding to you. I receive such e-mails regularly. Are these allegations true? If so, how do you plan to address them?

Personally, as a citizen of the County, I have several other concerns about the quality of education some of our young people are receiving. I will share them with the Superintendent in a follow-up e-mail.

Thanks for a prompt response.

Dr. Eugene Williams, Sr.
301-768-8316
www.academicresourcesunlimited.org
Evolutionary Elder

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Date: Mon, 23 Apr 2012 12:43:06 -0400
Subject: Reforms needed at PGCPS -Sasscer.
From: reformsasscer@gmail.com
To: paul.pinsky@senate.state.md.us; anthony.muse@senate.state.md.us; douglas.peters@senate.state.md.us; jim.rosapepe@senate.state.md.us; victor.ramirez@senate.state.md.us; thomas.v.mike.miller@senate.state.md.us; joanne.benson@senate.state.md.us

Greetings,

We are providing you with this update to make you aware of the conflicts of interest which is impacting Prince Georges County Public Schools (PGCPS) as a result of  the actions of Superintendent of Schools Dr.William Hite and the outgoing BOE Chair since 2008 school year.

We are asking the members of the General Assembly to press for reforms at the Sasscer Administration Building and an end to the corruption being perpetrated by Dr. William Hite and his Kitchen cabinet. We request major cuts be pushed at Sasscer before any approval of the FY2013 budget..Our school system is faced with corruption, nepotism and professional misconduct and cuts are necessary to clean house. Any Budget approval should be tied to accountability and transparency of an inspector General (IG). Needless to say, this would act as a mint of fresh air to scandalous Budget AND money buried in the said budget for questionable activities by Dr. William Hite and Verjeana Jacobs (BOE Chair). (see the link below)

http://pgcpsmess.wordpress.com/2012/04/16/top-priorities-for-the-incoming-boe-in-pgcps/#respond

Deputy spokesman – Fletcher Morris Beyene

Reform Sasscer Movement Secretariat.

 

Thank you and Keep up the pressure!

Friends –

Thank you for your support!  We are humbled by your faith in the reform Sasscer movement to carry out your message to the Pg county voters  forward.

Now the second phase of our fight begins in earnest.  We are going to carry our message to every nook and cranny in the Pg county School District. The future of our county and our children is at stake and we look forward to discussing these issues with citizens from every Council, town, and village in Prince Georges County (Pg).  Join us in this endeavor–contact our Headquarters to find out how you can help. Email (reformpgcps@gmail.com) &  blogs.

We would also like to thank Mr. Edward Burroughs, Mr. David Murray, Ms.  Raaheela Ahmed, Ms Carletta Fellows, Mr. Micah Watson, Mr. Dennis Smith,  Mr. Sandy J. Vaughns , Ms. Deidre N. Jackson and others for running a smooth campaign.  Their sincerity, honesty, and sportsmanship are commendable and made the races enjoyable. We invite them to join our campaign in our effort to give the citizens of  Pg county school  System – Board of Education members who will better represent everyone. The fight against corruption, proffessional misconduct and nepotism at Sasscer Administration Building and in the schools should be a concern to everybody especially the voters.

Once again, thank you for your vote of confidence in helping advance change, innovation and transformation in Prince George’s county public schools (Pgcps).  Together, We look forward to making sure that Ms. Verjeana Jacobs ( Board of Education Chairperson pictured below) loses her seat in November 2012.  She is and has been the epicenter of corruption in Pgcps and has failed to address the issues brought to her attention through the blogs (read more) etc.

Sincerely,
Reform Sasscer Movement.

Dr. Hite and his ongoing scandals

On Monday Dr. William Hite, Superintendent of the Prince George’s County Public Schools, invited all non-incumbent candidates for the Board of Education to a private meeting in his office. Our investigations reveal that, Hite requested the discussion to probably sway potential board members. He is looking for ways to make sure it works for him since questions surrounding misappropriation of funds, professional misconduct and nepotism was first brought to light in our blog. Before highlighting more about the meeting we think it is important to get a few facts straight;

• Hite’s scheduling secretary sent an e-mail early this month (February 2012) inviting the candidates to a brief meeting on Monday night at Sasscer Administration Building.
• The invitation was not sent to all candidates but just all non-incumbents with an exception of two Board members close to Dr. Hite.
• The invite didn’t mention the agenda. However, Since then, the meeting has taken on a life of its own.

Some of the BOE candidates chose not to attend the meeting with Dr. Hite because they felt it flirted with a line that they were not willing to cross. “Meetings of this type should not be done in private” Joseph Kitchen said.  There was the appearance that he wanted to tell “candidates what the board is supposed to do. It’s supposed to work the other way around.” He continued. We agree with him. Superintendent William Hite Jr is not a reformer in our view and is presiding over deep seated corruption in variety of ways in Pg County. Superintendent Hite who is a great friend of convicted former county executive (Jack Johnson) needs to be put on the spot light as he was elected corruptly.  Proper accountability is needed immediately.

According to Washington post, “among some of the topics discussed were the  district’s revenue, its enrollment, and maintenance and repair of school property”. The information shared by Dr. Hite never came as a surprise to us, and the issues he outlined are issues we have been involved in for many months now. We want to see proper accountability and transparency involving millions of dollars slated to be poured in Pg County towards construction projects and other matters in the next school year. We demand public scrutiny with proper checks and balances.

Accountability is a fundamental value for any system. Citizens of PG County should have the right to know what actions are being taken in their name, and they should have the means to force corrective actions when government acts in an illegal, immoral, or unjust manner as seen in Prince Georges County recently.  Individual citizens should have the ability to have some redress when their rights are abused by government or they do not receive the public benefits to which they are entitled.

Accountability is also important for Dr Hite and PGCPS itself.  It provides the school system or any government agency with a means of understanding how programs may fail and finding mechanisms that can make programs perform better. Covering up Financial corruption with the announcement that PGCPS got a Distinguished Budget Presentation Award will never fly with anybody. Staff we spoke to at Sasscer knows what is happening regarding the decay in PGCPS.

In the next several months, discussions on serious issues regarding corruptions and other matters will be discussed. It’s in these forums where true leaders will be identified to lead the next BOE in Prince Georges County. The decision regarding a private meeting with Dr. Hite should not have taken place in private especially in regards to issues pertaining to public funds. Let us demand transparency.

23 candidates are vying for the Board of Education seats. Citizens of PG County must do their work in order  to select the best candidates who have a good track record in fighting corruption. This is the key to accountability!