Prince George’s school board member announces resignation Plans

…..to pursue degree in education

PGCPS District 7 school board member Lyn Mundey.

School Board member Lyn J. Mundey (Dist. 7) of Upper Marlboro announced June 1 that she is resigning from the Prince George’s County school board prior to the start of the next school year.

“This is not a decision made in haste. The work that I’ve done has galvanized me to do work that brings me closer to the students,” Mundey said. “It really is bittersweet. I’ve learned a lot in my two years on the board.”

Mundey said she will be pursuing a doctorate in education at Walden University, an online college based in Minneapolis, Minn., and taking her experiences on the school board to a different level.

“I want to eventually move from the work I’ve been doing with the government as an internal auditor to working in education full-time,” Mundey said. “I find that what excites me is to be impactful in the lives of students day-to-day.”

During her tenure on the board, Mundey founded an annual Boardwalk Event to promote wellness for students, staff and the community, founded a “Write-On Writing Workshop” beginning in the fall, to support students in grades six through 12 in becoming better writers, and served on a number of committees.

“The Prince George’s County Board of Education extends its appreciation to Lyn Mundey for her service as a Board of Education Member in District Seven over the past two years. We thank her for the service and we wish her the best in future endeavors,” board chair Segun Eubanks said in an email statement Tuesday.

Mundey’s resignation will be effective Aug. 24, unless someone is appointed to fill her seat before that date, so as to provide a smooth transition and continue representation in her district, Mundey said.

Board member Edward Burroughs (Dist. 8) said Mundey was a valuable independent voice on the board.

“In an environment where you’re pressured to ‘go along to get along,’ she always put kids at the forefront,” Burroughs said. “I know that she is going to return more equipped to fight for the kids she cares so deeply about when she gets her Ph.D. in education.”

Mundey’s resignation is the second for her district in two years. Mundey was appointed to the board in August 2013 by County Executive Rushern L. Baker (D) following the July resignation of former District 7 board member Carletta Fellows.

Fellows resigned citing personal reasons after clashing with the board on several issues, including her use of her board-issued credit card.

Under legislation passed by the General Assembly in 2013, Baker has authority to appoint members to the board to fill any vacancies.

Mundey’s seat will come up for election in November 2016.

Via Gazzette

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L.A. Unified delays release of audit on school with ties to candidate.

A charter school with ties to L.A. school board candidate Ref Rodriguez is the subject of an audit withheld from public release. (Lawrence K. Ho / Los Angeles Times)

An audit of a charter school co-founded by a Board of Education candidate has been withheld from public release at the request of a school board member, L.A. Unified district officials have confirmed.

Two well-placed district sources said that the release of the audit was delayed at the request of school board member Monica Garcia, a political ally of candidate Ref Rodriguez. Rodriguez works for the charter organization.

L.A. Unified School District general counsel David Holmquist confirmed that a board member requested the delay, but would not specify which one.

Garcia did not respond to attempts to reach her through her staff and email.

Rodriguez would not comment until he had reviewed the document, his campaign manager said.

Insiders who read the audit said it was not overly critical of the school and that the charter’s management agreed with many findings. The audit faults the charter for failing to consistently follow some required business practices, they said.

Lakeview Charter Academy is among the local campuses run by PUC Schools, which have a generally solid reputation as academically sound and popular with parents.

Senior district officials, who were not authorized to speak publicly about the matter, said a board member wanted the audit handled in private because it could result in litigation. It’s permissible under state law to keep discussions about potential litigation confidential.

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